Stadler Pankow presents the first third-generation FLIRT for DB Regio AG

At InnoTrans 2014, Stadler Pankow GmbH, together with DB Regio AG and the Rail Public Transport Association for the South Rhineland-Palatinate, which represents the authorities responsible for the Rhineland-Palatinate regional railway, presented the FLIRT3 in the outdoor display area of the Messe Berlin exhibition centre on 25 September 2014. This is the first vehicle in the series for DB Regio AG, with a total of 28 vehicles ordered. As of December 2014, the trains will form the backbone of the new, state-wide RE network in the Rhineland-Palatinate.

For the first time, the new trains will not be in the red livery typical of Deutsche Bahn, but will instead have a white paint finish with grey and red elements on the front of the power units. The interior also differs from the previous DB design. A special technical feature means that the FLIRT trains can be coupled to the double-decker KISS trains operated by the CFL (Luxembourg state railways): for the first time, different trains from two different European state railway companies will be coupled together.

“We are proud of the fact that two state railways using two different products produced by Stadler will operate the Trier to Koblenz line in the future,” says Michael Daum, Director of Stadler Pankow GmbH. “The third generation FLIRT is a state-of-the-art railway vehicle and offers plenty of comfort. The DB Regio model is the first to have a central carriage without a door, which means there is a comfortable and quiet area for passengers to enjoy. The double-traction of the Flirt³ is already homologated.”

The five-carriage vehicles include opposite seating with large tables. The passenger compartments and driver’s cab are air-conditioned. One of the two wheelchair-accessible toilets is also suitable for electric wheelchairs, and entry into the train is barrier-free.

Each vehicle has 249 seats in second class and 21 seats in first class. The FLIRT has high drive performance and achieves a maximum speed of 160 km/h. A total of 28 trains have been ordered from Stadler Pankow.

“We opted for Stadler vehicles as not only are they an optimum solution for the comfort requirements of our customers, they also meet the operational and technical requirements of the RE network,” explains Kay Euler, Rail Production Director at DB Regio AG.

“The latest generation of FLIRT vehicles will become the heart of the Rhineland-Palatinate service in 2015. The new regional express lines, such as the RE 1 from Koblenz via Trier, Saarbrücken and Kaiserslautern to Mannheim, will bring a new level of quality to express regional transport. Through the incorporation of the hubs at Koblenz, Trier and Kaiserslautern, the benefits of the new RE will be seen across the whole region, as the travel times for the regional trains could be integrated seamlessly into the RE timetables,” explains Michael Heilmann, Managing Director of the Rail Public Transport Association for the South Rhineland-Palatinate.