Israel Railways order additional TWINDEXX Vario double-deck coaches

Israel Railways has signed a contract for 33 TWINDEXX Vario double-deck coaches from Bombardier Transportation worth €56 million.

The new coaches are an improved version of those currently in operation with ISR and will be equipped with carpeting on both levels; a state-of-the-art passenger information system; air-conditioning; bogies with secondary air-suspension; and a safety system that allows departure only after passenger doors have fully closed.

“Israel Railways is coping with a sustainable increase in ridership and capacity demand,” commented Dr. Amir Itskovich, Head of Project Portfolio and Deputy RoS Engineering and Development at Israel Railways. “We are pleased to have the opportunity to receive additional proven and reliable rolling stock from Bombardier in order to further increase the capacity offering to our passengers. We are looking forward to benefitting from Bombardier’s tradition of on-time and on-quality delivery.”

Hauled by the new Bombardier TRAXX AC electric locomotives ordered in 2015, each eight-car train features seating capacity for 1,000 passengers.

“We are delighted to have received yet another strong vote of confidence from our partners at ISR and are proud to be playing such a major role in the ongoing modernization and electrification of Israel’s rail network,” added Yossi Daskal, Chief Country Representative Israel at Bombardier Transportation. “Together with ISR we are driven by an equally powerful vision of transforming this ecosystem’s surroundings and meeting the needs of its continuously growing public transport market.”

Delivery of the new coaches is scheduled to be completed by February 2019.