On 15/07/2018 5:55 PM, Matthew Geier wrote:
> The 'Bumblebees' were supposed to go back, but Mulhouse opened a 'tram

> train' route and the tram-train cars took up the slack and they never

> needed their Citadis cars back.

>

The Melbourne 5 section Citadis trams were provided at a lease price
'too good to be true' when Alstom hoped to get the Melbourne order.

Once the order went to Bombardier the 'end of lease' clauses became
important.
The trams were to be returned in 'as new' condition ... and Alstom were
setting the price for getting them back to that condition.

It took quite a while to negotiate a purchase price.

Mal Rowe - in a city deferring low floor purchases