It's the Citadis Spirit with German input. So it has half a chance of being
a decent tram.

Tony P

On Saturday, 28 November 2020 at 18:47:20 UTC+11 Matthew Geier wrote:

> Köln has just ordered a Ciradis variant - 60m and swivelling bogies.

> Alstom is promoting it as '

> *Citadis type trams with special adaptations for the German market'*

> <

> https://www.alstom.com/press-releases-news/2020/11/cologne-public-transport-authority-commissions-alstom-and-kiepe

> >

> They are ordering 2 variants, in 30 and 60m. They state they will run all

> over the network, but my memory of Köln / Bonn network is that the routes

> are split between low and high platform routes and while the high floor

> cars have folding steps for low platform boarding, so had universal route

> availability, low floor cars couldn't operate on routes with high

> platforms. I remember a 'station' in Bonn that served both low and high

> platform routes with huge long platforms that had two sections, low and

> high floor!

>

> These new German cars are probably based on the Citadis Dualis tram-train

> platform but fitted out as an Urban tram, not an interurban car.

> I'd bet that like the Melbourne adaptation of the Flexity Swift they have

> removed the steps at the bogies to make it a 100% barrier-free car.

>

> What Melbourne requested of Bombardier with the E class isn't so unique. A

> significant part of the additional cost of the Melbourne cars would be the

> local industry support component, probably more so than the customisations.

> Other 'informed' customers are asking similar things of their rollingstock

> suppliers that Melbourne asked for. (Often including local manufacturing

> component.)

> I note that while Alstom is using the same Barcelona factory for assembly

> that built the Sydney 305s to assemble this German order, they are using

> Kiepe traction electronics, thus involving a large German supplier as part

> of the build. The involvement of Keipe was probably one of the 'sweeteners'

> of the deal.

>

>