GERMANY: VIAS Rail has signed an agreement to lease 14 five-car Stadler Flirt electric multiple-units from Alpha Trains for use on Expressnetz Emscher services which it is to operate from December 2026 until December 2030.
The EMUs will receive a deep clean and renewed seat upholstery and interior fittings. Some outdated components will also be replaced to ensure reliability.
‘We are delighted that our reliable Flirt trains will remain a key part of local transport’, said Bernhard Holzer, Managing Director of Alpha Trains Europa, on June 12. ‘By choosing to continue operating and modernising existing vehicles, we – together with our partner VIAS – are making a valuable contribution to sustainable and cost-effective mobility in regional rail transport.’
VIAS Rail will use the EMUs on the RE3 Rhein-Emscher-Express route from Düsseldorf to Hamm via Duisburg, Oberhausen, Gelsenkirchen and Dortmund where they are currently operated by Eurobahn. It will also use them on the RE41 Vest-Ruhr-Express from Bochum to Haltern am See via Recklinghausen, which is currently operated by DB Regio.
The operating contract was awarded by the Rhein-Ruhr and Westfalen-Lippe transport authorities in 2024. New vehicles are to be procured for use on the two routes from the start of a planned long-term operating contract in December 2030.
