Coradia Stream HC EMUs For Baden-Württemberg

On 9 May 2022, Alstom has signed a contract to supply 130 Coradia Stream High Capacity double-deck EMUs to Landesanstalt Schienenfahrzeuge Baden-Württemberg (SFBW) for the Baden-Württemberg network. Alstom has also been contracted to provide their full-service maintenance for a period of 30 years. With a total worth of almost 2.5 billion EUR, this is the largest order for Alstom in Germany to date. Furthermore, the contract includes an option to order up to 100 additional trains. 

“When awarding the contract, we set very high standards for the performance and technology of the vehicles. In terms of passenger comfort, we are setting new standards in regional rail transport that have not yet been achieved in Germany. These trains are sprinters in local transport. We want to attract many additional passengers with these trains,” said Winfried Hermann, Minister of Transport Baden-Württemberg. “Alstom has to ensure seamless operational capability of the trains on a daily basis within the framework of the so-called life cycle model (LCC model). Care was also taken to ensure that, despite very powerful vehicles with a top speed of 200 km/h, we also get very energy-efficient vehicles. Alstom will also be responsible for energy consumption for the duration of the contract.”

The first Coradias are scheduled for delivery before the end of 2025, the whole batch is envisaged to be completed in 2026. The four-car trains consist of two double-deck driving trailers and two powered single-deck intermediate cars, offering a total of 380 seats. They will have a length of 106 m and can operate in multiple. The trains will have an output 5,800 kW and will be produced at Alstom Chorzów works (northwest to Katowice). 

They are to be used in the greater Stuttgart area on the routes in the direction of Karlsruhe, Pforzheim, Heilbronn, Schwäbisch-Hall, Aalen, Friedrichshafen/Lindau and Tübingen as well as Horb/Rottweil and on the Stuttgart - Ulm high-speed line. Maintenance and servicing over the 30-year period will be carried out by Alstom locally in Baden-Württemberg.

“Regarding the vehicle design, we have paid particular attention to passenger comfort. There will be reclining seats, well-designed seating landscapes, areas for people with reduced mobility, as well as an innovative lighting concept and strong Wi-Fi,” adds Volker M. Heepen, Managing Director Landesanstalt Schienenfahrzeuge Baden-Württemberg. Additionally, lounge areas, conference and family compartments offer a high level of comfort, whereas multi-purpose compartments offer space for large luggage, prams, and bicycles.

Wide single-leaf doors and optimised opening and closing times allow for a quick entry and exit. As for passengers with reduced mobility, they can enjoy the luxury of travelling with the same comfort as other passengers. The door thresholds will allow barier-free access from the standard platform with 760 mm above TOR, and for stations with different platform heights, there are special lifts in the car for passengers in wheelchairs.

The trains will be equipped with modern signalling and automation technology in the scope of the Digital Node Stuttgart (DKS, Digitaler Knoten Stuttgart) project, Germany’s first digitised railway node. They will start operation in 2025 at the same time as the first two sections of the DKS. The subsequent upgrading of the vehicles to TSI CCS 2022, the future evolution of the European standard for cross-border traffic in the European Economic Area, will be deployed until mid-2027. This will allow all three sections of the DKS to be used.

Alstom has already been awarded the retrofitting contract for the existing SFBW Talent 3 and FLIRT 3 EMU fleets. The new Coradia Stream HCs will also be equipped with the ETCS Level 2 and 3 on-board units, as well as vehicle devices for Automatic Train Operation (ATO) at Grade of Automation (GoA) 2. This will be the first time in Germany that new-built vehicles will be equipped with a Train Integrity Monitoring System (TIMS) and ETCS Level 3 and, in partial stages, the Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS). This allows tighter, denser and more energy-saving driving through digitally predictive signalling and driving commands. It increases the efficiency and reliability of regional transport, especially on highly frequented lines.