Alstom has delivered the first of the new Citadis trams for Strasbourg, less than two years after signing a framework agreement with the Strasbourg transport company CTS (Compagnie des Transports Strasbourgeois) for the supply of 50 trams. The first part of the order is for 12 trams, worth a total of $46 million. The first tram will now begin dynamic on-track testing with the remaining 11 slated to be delivered by May 2017.

The trams will be added to CTS’s existing fleet as part of the extensions to lines A and D. On line D they will  run all the way to Kehl in Germany. Entry into commercial service is scheduled for next April. This will be France’s first ever tram to cross a border.

The Citadis trams in Strasbourg will be the first trams approved by German federal BOStrab regulations covering the construction and operation of trams in Germany. The 147-foot-long trams have the capacity for 288 passengers. They are equipped with LED lighting and full glass doors to enhance passengers’ feelings of comfort and safety. In line with PRM (Persons with Reduced Mobility) regulations, the trains are equipped with easily accessible door knobs, wider seating and specially reserved areas for wheelchair users and passengers with strollers.

The trams are largely manufactured in France: La Rochelle (for the design and assembly of the trams), Ornans (for the design and manufacturing of the engines), Le Creusot (bogies for the intermediate modules), Tarbes (traction chains), Villeurbanne (electronic equipment) and St-Ouen (the design). The Salzgitter site in Germany will supply the bogies located underneath the driver cabins.

To date, over 2300 Citadis have been ordered by 54 cities worldwide, the first of which have been in operation since 2000.