Should HLB be successful in winning the train operating contract, it will need to introduce the trains into service with the start of the new timetable in December 2017.
The trains must have a maximum speed of 160km/h and be suitable to operate on mixed-traffic lines carrying long-distance passenger trains and freight services. In their longest-configuration the trains must be designed to accommodate at least 800 seated passengers, albeit some sitting on folding seats. The maximum usable length of platforms on the Main-Neckar-Ried network is 205m.
The 15-year Main-Neckar-Ried network concession covers four routes in the Frankfurt, Mannheim and Heidelberg area.
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