Bombardier wins order for additional TWINDEXX Vario double-deck trains

Rail technology leader Bombardier Transportation will deliver five BOMBARDIER TWINDEXX Vario multiple units with regional train equipment to Deutsche Bahn AG (DB AG), which won the contract to operate Germany’s North-South rail network in a Europe-wide tender. The new order is valued at approximately 50 million euro ($64 million US) and is part of a current framework agreement of December 2008. DB AG has already ordered 135 of the variable double-deck coaches for long distance service, as well as 18 intermediate coaches and 16 trains for regional services. Three previously ordered power cars are part of this latest order.

The new TWINDEXX Vario double-deck trains each comprise two power cars and two to three intermediate coaches. The trains will transport passengers at speeds of up to 160 km/h between the Baltic coast and the German states of Brandenburg, Berlin, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Saxony-Anhalt. During the summer months, trains with three intermediate coaches will serve an increased number of passengers travelling to the coast. Delivery of the trains is scheduled to start in the second half of 2014.

The trains feature low floor entrances and one multi-purpose area per car in the lower deck with plenty of space for bicycles and luggage. The middle cars are equipped with vending machines and an area for people with reduced mobility including a lavatory. The first class compartment with a comfortable 2+1 seating arrangement is located on the upper deck of this car. The two power cars each include a standard toilet.

The TWINDEXX Vario trains’ highly flexible modular concept enables operators to adjust the trains’ length to passenger demand easily. As part of the new order, cars designed to accommodate passenger increases during the summer contain large multipurpose areas along the entire lower deck with 36 additional bicycle spaces and separate luggage racks. The intermediate coaches’ low-floor entrances increase vehicle capacity and are compatible with Berlin’s long-distance railway station platforms; a sliding step allows easy access by reducing the gap in height between the vehicle and the platform.

The TWINDEXX Vario coaches are equipped with the reliable and energy efficient BOMBARDIER MITRAC 1000 drive and control system. One of the advantages of this system is that it allows the train to accelerate quickly to a constant speed.

“The new double-deck trains from Bombardier offer regional passengers a high degree of comfort and operators a flexible solution to meet today’s rail transportation needs. Combining high capacity with greater flexibility is the hallmark of the latest generation TWINDEXX Vario trains”, said Dr. Roman Muller, Vice President Sales Germany, Bombardier Transportation.

Bombardier produces the double-deck coaches at its manufacturing site in Gorlitz in combination with extensive research and development at its site in Hennigsdorf. The bogies are manufactured at Bombardier’s site in Siegen and the drive engines in Vasteras, Sweden. Since 1992, Bombardier has supplied nearly 2,000 new generation double-deck coaches to Deutsche Bahn AG.