AUSTRIA: Bombardier Transportation has been awarded a €29m contract to maintain the 23 Flexity Outlook trams which it will supply to Linz from early 2011 under a €69m contract signed in July.

The maintenance contract runs for 16 years. Bombardier will provide tech nical know-how, while the work will be undertaken by employees of operator Linz Linien.

'This first service contract in Austria is a big step in the co-operation between Bombardier and Linz Linien', said Christian Diewald, Bombardier Transportation's Country Co-ordinator for Austria. 'Maximum availability of the fleet for passenger operation is our joint goal.'