Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGBahn) and Stadler signed a contract for the supply of a further 25 Orion rack EMUs expected to be delivered by spring 2029.
This is the largest train order in the history of the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn and has a value of CHF 260 million (EUR 274.85 million).
The manufacturing of the three-car metre-gauge rack electric multiple units will start at the beginning of 2025. The delivery of the first train is planned for the autumn of 2025 and will be put into operation in the first quarter of 2026. The plan is for another vehicle to be delivered every six weeks.
The MGBahn fleet strategy envisages covering regional passenger transport exclusively with multiple units by 2030. After the procurement of the Komet multiple units between 2007 and 2014, the strategy will be implemented in two stages with the Orion rack EMUs. The total investment for all the 37 electric multiple units amounts to approximately CHF 420 million (EUR 434 million).
After the public tender at the end of 2018, Stadler was awarded the contract to supply the multiple units in February 2020. The first stage agreed in March 2020 included the supply of 12 multiple units, the first of which have been running as scheduled on the MGBahn timetable since this summer. Delivery of the first stage will be completed by the end of 2023.
“The consistent focus on a uniform fleet will have a positive impact on the operational options and bring more flexibility in planning. Travelers particularly benefit from Orion multiple units as they provide them with more comfort, additional storage space, WiFi and accessibility,” Fernando Lehner, CEO of MGBahn said.
They can operate in single, double or triple units and offer up to 438 seats, 72 of which are in first class. In addition to the consistent use of lightweight vehicle construction materials, the Orion trains are characterised by energy-efficient drive components of the latest generation, energy optimisation in sleep mode and low energy consumption due to oil-free dry-type transformers. The Orion multiple units replace older locomotives and the associated passenger cars.
BVZ Group, the parent company of MGBahn, decided to label the train fleet with terms from astronomy. For the first time, the astronomical designation “Komet” was used on the regional trains that went into operation in 2007. The Polaris train fleet have been in use on the Gornergrat Bahn (in the Swiss canton of Valais) since winter 2022/23. The “Komet” abreviation stands for KOmfotabler MEterspur multiple unit, “Polaris” from “POpular LAndscape Railway In Switzerland and “Orion” stands for optimal regional train in local public transport (Optimaler Regionalzug Im Oeffentlichen Nahverkehr).
The Orion rack EMUs can be used on the entire MGBahn 144 km network running from Zermatt to Disentis and from Andermatt to Göschenen. The 144 km 1,000 mm-gauge rail system with 44 stops is built at 3,300 meters in altitude and passing through 33 tunnels and galleries, crossing 126 bridges.
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