SWITZERLAND: The first of 10 Be 6/8 Tramlink light rail vehicles being supplied by Stadler Valencia to operate the Waldenburgerbahn south of Basel has been delivered to Bad Bubendorf for the start of test running.
Car 101 was delivered in three parts on a fleet of lorries, and reassembled overnight after being winched onto the track.
The seven-section low-floor cars were ordered by Baselland Transport in April 2019, as part of a joint procurement with Aargau Verkehr which has bought eight similar Tramlink vehicles for the Limmattalbahn in Zürich. The trams are 45 m long and 2 400 mm wide, with capacity for 88 seated and 170 standing passengers. They will operate in pairs at peak times.
The 13·1 km single-track railway from Liestal to Waldenburg was closed in April 2021 to facilitate an extensive modernisation, including conversion from 750 mm to metre gauge. It will become BLT Line 19, and is scheduled to reopen with the December 11 timetable change.
