The option, which was exercised at the end of 2017, takes the total number of Traminos ordered by LVB to 23.

The contract includes two further options, each for nine vehicles, which could take the fleet to 41 units by 2020.

The delivery of the 1458mm-gauge vehicles will allow LVB to retire many of its older Tatra built trams dating from the 1970s and 1980s.

The first of the 65% low-floor trams, designated NGT10 and branded as “XL” by LVB, was delivered to Leipzig on December 21 2016 and a public launch was held on February 10 2017. Approval for public service was granted on July 11, by which time four trams had been delivered from Poland.

The first of the new vehicles entered passenger service on July 13 2017 and they have been used on tram Line 4 alongside older vehicles. All of the initial batch of five trams plus, part of the second batch of nine vehicles, are now in use in Leipzig.

By January 1, seven of the new trams had entered service, with some being used for driver training.

The 37.63m-long, 2.3m-wide Tramino XL is equipped with four motor bogies and one unpowered Jacobs bogie. Each LRV accommodates up to 220 passengers, 58 of them seated.