ITALY: CAF has been awarded a framework contract to supply and maintain a fleet of trams for the network under construction in Bologna, while Roma transport operator ATAC has exercised an option to increase a previous order.
The orders announced on October 8 have a total value of around €200m.
CAF was the sole bidder for the framework contract awarded by the city of Bologna, which is being partly funded from the European Union’s Recovery & Resilience Fund.
There is a €130m firm order for an initial 33 trams, and options to order up to 27 more within six years; procurement laws would allow up to 20% more to be ordered, which could take the order to 72 vehicles. The order includes tools, spare parts and the provision of four years of maintenance.
The five module bidirectional trams from CAF’s Urbos family will be 35 m long and 2 400 mm wide with a capacity of up to 225 passengers, including 68 seats and two spaces for disabled people.
They will have CAF’s On Board Energy Storage System for catenary-free battery operation to reduce the tramway’s visual impact in the historic areas and increase energy efficiency.
The four-line tram network is being developed as the centrepiece of the Bologna’s sustainable urban transport plan which aims to reduce pollution through the creation of a single integrated network. This will be operated by Trasporto Passeggeri Emilia-Romagna, which last year awarded the CAF subsidiary Solaris a contract to supply 127 hydrogen buses.
Meanwhile, Roma operator ATAC has exercised a first option for an additional 20 trams under a 2023 framework agreement which included a €130m firm order for an initial 40 Urbos trams. There are options for 81 more which would take the value to more than €400m. The trams will also be fitted with OESS, and the deal includes five years of maintenance. The CAF trams will replace the ageing Stanga cars as well as operating on planned new lines.
