ROMANIA: Tenders worth €250m are scheduled to be called in the coming weeks covering work to build a 32 km tram-train network around Oradea. Feasibility studies for the project were approved by Bihor county council and Oradea municipality in November 2023.
The procurement plans were announced by Adrian Revnic, Managing Director of municipal transport company OTL, at the end of February.
The project is being developed by Bihor județ (county), which signed a collaboration agreement in July 2024 with national infrastructure manager CFR for tram-trains to access the national network.
The tram-train network will be delivered in eight work packages. Seven of these cover design and construction of the infrastructure at a total cost of €140m. In another lot worth €110m, 13 tram-trains would be procured. The project would be supported by financing from the European Union.
Existing and new alignments
Services would use the city’s existing tramway infrastructure as well as the cross-city railway which links Oradea Vest and Oradea Est via the main station. As part of the work, 4 km of the Oradea – Arad main line would be electrified.
Two branches are envisaged. These would be created by reviving disused railways around the city which total 25·2 km. These would be rebuilt and electrified. One branch would run from Oradea Est to Sânmartin, Băile 1 Mai, Băile Felix and Cordău southeast of Oradea. The other branch would run from Oradea Vest to Sântandrei, Girișu de Criș, Toboliu and Cheresig in the southwest.
New sections totalling 1·8 km would link the existing tram and rail networks. One connection would be built from the Nufărului tram terminus to meet the main line tracks to Cordău. A short link would allow tram-train services at Oradea Vest to join the tram network at Ioșia II.
Further tram extensions totalling 5·2 km are planned from Sinteza to the Borș industrial park to the west of the city near the Hungarian border, as well as from Octavian Goga to the Oradea International Airport in the south.
