CZECH REPUBLIC: National operator České Dráhy and Polish manufacturer Pesa Bydgoszcz have signed a KC14·5bn framework agreement for the supply of up to 160 regional diesel multiple-units, with a firm order worth almost KC3bn for an initial 33 units.
The 120 km/h low-floor DMUs will be derived from the Pesa Link design, with a different cab design and equipped with ETCS and GSM-R from the start. Up to three DMUs will be able to run in multiple to provide additional capacity during peaks.
They will have 115 seats in two classes, air-conditioning, wi-fi, power sockets and a multi-purpose space for larger luggage, pushchairs and bicycles. An audio-video information system with LCD monitors will provide updates about the journey and any disruption.
Accessibility facilities will include telescopic ramps to bridge the gap between train and platform, a wheelchair accessible retention toilet with baby changing table, 230 V sockets for recharging electric wheelchairs, doors designed to be easy to use for blind passengers and information signs in Braille.
‘We are going to gradually replace our old trainsets with modern and comfortable vehicles that will encourage travellers to use public transport’, said ČD Chairman and Director General Ivan Bednárik when the deal was signed by video link on Febraury 26. ‘The new DMUs will help us to motivate the public to use rail more frequently.’
Newag and CAF also bid for the tender announced in August 2020, which is one of the largest in ČD’s history.
The firm order for 33 DMUs was funded through contracts to operate passenger services in the Vysočina (nine trains), Jihočeský (seven) and Pardubický (seven) regions and the Středočeský region including the capital Praha (10). The Link trainsets are planned to enter service from 2023, replacing obsolete Class 810 and 814/914 railcars.
‘It is necessary to keep our word given to regions and to Praha and to gradually replace the vehicles in which it is impossible to install ETCS and which for a very long time have been unable to satisfy customers’ demands for comfort’, said Bednárik.
More trains could be ordered from the framework in future; this is dependent on ČD winning long-term operating contracts from regional authorities.
In 2011-13, Pesa delivered 31 two-car Class 844 RegioShark DMUs, which are used around Ústí, Liberec, Karlovy Vary, Plzeň, Pardubice and Zlín. ‘The RegioSharks have been our best ambassadors and I can assure you that the new generation of RegioSharks will take us all to next step of technology, comfort and safety’, said Pesa Bydgoszcz CEO Krzysztof Zdziarski. ‘The vehicles will be equipped with the most modern Stage V low-emission engine and many more technical advancements, thanks to which they will meet and exceed the most demanding European standards.’
