Alstom France Marketing and Sales Vice President Olivier Delecroix and Transdev CEO Thierry Mallet made a presentation to Renaud Muselier, President of the Sud Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur Region and Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of Alstom. The first Omneo train to run on the Marseille-Toulon-Nice line before starting homologation tests is 'Régions de France'. From the end of November, this train set will perform a series of dynamic overspeed tests at the Velim test track (in the Czech Republic). After returning to Crespin to complete static testing and finalize internal arrangements, it will enter pre-commissioning service in the Sud Region.
On 30 November 2021, the Sud Region awarded Transdev the contract to operate trains on the Marseille-Toulon-Nice line from mid-2025. This route alone represents 10% of rail services in the region. The Region's decision is a historic decision. This is the first tender for regional trains awarded to a competitor of the incumbent operator since the opening of passenger rail transport to competition in France.
Under the public service concession agreement, Transdev will purchase the rolling stock necessary to operate the regional train service on behalf of the Region and will build a maintenance center near Nice station. This will enable Transdev to ensure that operations are extremely safe, maintenance is controlled and optimized, and trains are fully available, especially during peak hours.
In this context, Transdev has built 16 vehicles with high capacity, high comfort and high in-car service standards. double-decker Omneo 8 wagon train chose Alstom for its supply. The contract, worth approximately 250 million euros, also includes maintenance services for 10 years. Deliveries of new rolling stock produced at the Alstom Crespin facility (Nord) will begin at the end of 2024.
Omneo trains for the Marseille-Toulon-Nice line are designed to meet the specific needs of Transdev operations, including:
- Creating a pleasant area where passengers can enjoy the snack area;
- It offers all the services requested by the Sud Region, such as the interior layout, bicycle areas (12 per train) and a harmonious interior that reflects the image of the Region;
- Introducing new in-car services, including innovative systems for video surveillance, seat reservation or bicycle space reservation, passenger counting and in-car Wi-Fi.
These new 110-car trains, 8 meters long, will offer 352 seats plus 49 foldable seats (401 seats in total) for short-trip passengers. This high capacity is achieved by alternating the use of single and double-deck cars. Additionally, the modular design means two train sets can be connected together, depending on the number of passengers expected.
Access to the train is at the same level through wide doors and is facilitated by an automatic step (gap filling system) that fills the gap between the train and the platform. The fluidity of traffic on the ship is also ensured with the architecture that allows movement, based on wide corridors and spacious platforms.
Special attention has been paid to comfort on long journeys on this coastal train: spacious seats, large glass windows to make the most of the natural light and panorama at the seaside, clear passenger information with displays and displays, adjusted to international standards air conditioning density on board 2 classes, low and high, accessible to all passengers including wheelchair users toilets and connectivity devices (Wi-Fi, electrical outlets, and USB sockets).
These new trains will be compatible with the new ERTMS signaling system that will be deployed on this line from 2028. It will also be compatible with the new infrastructure created within the scope of the LNPCA project (Ligne Nouvelle Provence Côte d'Azur). network and offer more trains in the region).
These Omneo trains are based on the Alstom Omneo platform, on which 10 trains (544 suburban and regional trains and 403 Intercity trains) have already been ordered by 141 French regions.