The Dutch national operator NS (Nederlandse Spoorwegen) awarded CAF a EUR 600 million contract for the supply of 60 double-decker Civity EMUs and also includes additional options for further units.
The new contract consists of the supply of 30 four-car trains and 30 six-car units, as well as technical support for maintenance, with NS carrying out the maintenance itself.
The new trains will deliver inter-city services. The main features of the the new electric multiple units to be supplied by CAF combine high capacity and easy vehicle accessibility. Each train set consists of a combination of single deck and double deck cars, the single deck cars offering level access for passengers with reduced mobility.
The first trains are scheduled for operation on the intercity routes that cross the entire country by 2028, with the possibility to exercise some of the extension options for additional units, or the implementation of train versions that can run on cross-border routes to other countries such as Germany and Belgium.
They will run at a maximum speed of 160 km/h.
The project is part of NS’ ongoing plans to renew its current double-decker fleet, whilst also increasing its service capacity for the next few years.
The order for new Civity EMUs follows the successful double-decker SNG-Civity train sets for commuter services, of which the last of in total 206 train sets are currently being delivered. In December 2018, NS and CAF signed a EUR 400 million contract for the supply of 88 trains (302 Civity passenger cars) comprising 50x three-car and 38 four-car trains. This was an exercised option under a contract signed in 2014 for the delivery of 118 Civity platform suburban trains (404 cars) comprising 68 three-car and 50 four-car trains. EUR 1 billion is the total value of the train contracts signed by CAF and the Dutch rail operator.
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