Bombardier wins contract to supply and maintain 30 FLEXITY trams for Dresden’s transport authority

Mobility solution provider Bombardier Transportation and Dresden’s transport authority Dresdner Verkehrsbetriebe (DVB), have signed a contract to supply and maintain 30 BOMBARDIER FLEXITY trams, equipped with the Obstacle Detection and Assistance System (ODAS) for preventing collisions. The contract also includes the FlexCaremaintenance management system for a 24-year period. The value of the order is 197 million euro ($219 million US). In addition, an option for ten additional FLEXITY trams and eight more years of servicing and maintenance are included in the contract.

The new FLEXITY trams are wider than DVB’s current vehicles and offer significantly greater comfort for passengers with 2+2 seating and large panorama windows. The new trams will be able to carry up to 290 passengers, which is around a 10 percent increase. To allow barrier-free access while using the existing infrastructure, only the portion of the carbody which is above platform level is wider. The new fleet will be delivered by the end of October 2023.

"I am pleased that Dresdner Verkehrsbetriebe is counting on the employees’ competence, know-how and the quality of Bombardier's products here in Saxony and that these modern light rail vehicles are being built at the Saxon sites. The future of both factories and Bombardier's long-term commitment are very close to my heart. I am confident that Saxon products will also increasingly prevail in many tenders outside Saxony due to their quality, which combines innovation and sustainability," emphasized Saxony’s Minister of Economic Affairs, Martin Dulig.

"We urgently need the new light rail vehicles, which provide larger capacity, in order to offer sufficient space for the rapidly growing number of our passengers," said Andreas Hemmersbach, DVB's Board Member for Finance and Technology. He added, "In a multi-stage selection process, criteria such as technology, price, service and design were evaluated on a points-based system. Of all the manufacturers, Bombardier offered us the best overall package."

“We are proud to support our long-standing partner and customer DVB in their transport service expansion by supplying our innovative, reliable and air conditioned FLEXITY trams, offering generous multi-purpose areas and the highest safety standards. Our FlexCare maintenance management system not only ensures high availability and reliability, but also guarantees cost security over the entire term of the contract. Hand in hand with DVB, we will carry out servicing and maintenance of these FLEXITY trams together,” explained Alexander Ketterl, responsible for the urban transport business at Bombardier Transportation in Germany.

Michael Fohrer, Head of Bombardier Transportation Germany, added, “This contract will be carried out at our two sites in Saxony. The carbodies will be produced in our center of competence for carbodies in Görlitz. Final assembly and commissioning will be carried out at our industrial lead site in Bautzen.”

More than 4,000 trams and light rail vehicles from Bombardier are already successfully in operation or on order worldwide.

About Bombardier Transportation

Bombardier Transportation is a global mobility solution provider leading the way with the rail industry’s broadest portfolio. It covers the full spectrum of solutions, ranging from trains to sub-systems and signalling to complete turnkey transport systems, e-mobility technology and data-driven maintenance services. Combining technology and performance with empathy, Bombardier Transportation continuously breaks new ground in sustainable mobility by providing integrated solutions that create substantial benefits for operators, passengers and the environment. Headquartered in Berlin, Germany, Bombardier Transportation employs around 40,650 people and its products and services operate in over 60 countries.