RHINE-Ruhr Transport (VRR) and go.Rheinland have released preliminary information about the forthcoming tender for the Rhineland Stage 2 S-Bahn contract in northwestern Germany.
The notice has been issued to provide potential bidders with additional preparation time before a potentially shorter submission period begins. The tender is expected to launch from the third quarter of this year.
The PSO contract is expected to be divided into several lots and will have a core term of approximately 10 years, starting on December 12 2032. It will cover approximately 14.3 million train-km across the following routes:
• S6: Essen - Dusseldorf - Langenfeld - Cologne - Cologne-Worringen
• S10: Cologne-Nippes - Cologne - Cologne Dellbrück (- Bergisch Gladbach)
• S11: Dusseldorf Airport Terminal - Dusseldorf - Neuss - Cologne - Bergisch Gladbach
• S12: (Sindorf-) Horrem - Cologne - Troisdorf - Bonn-Beuel / Siegburg/Bonn - Hennef - Au (Sieg)
• S19: (Aachen West -) Düren - Cologne - Troisdorf - Bonn-Beuel / Siegburg/Bonn - Hennef - Au (Sieg)
• S68: Langenfeld - Dusseldorf - Wuppertal-Vohwinkel
Rolling stock
In summer 2024 Alstom was awarded a €4bn contract by the transport authorities to supply and maintain 90 EMUs that will be made available to the winning bidder. A 150m-long nine-car variant will be used for VRR services and a 170m-long 11-car version for go.Rheinland services. Delivery is scheduled to begin in 2029 and they are expected to have fully replaced the existing ageing fleet by the start of the contract in 2032.
German - Dutch cross-border tender
Separately, German public transport authority Westphalia-Lippe Local Transport Association (NWL) together with the Dutch province of Overijssel, and the municipality of the Dutch city of Enschede have announced their intention to launch a tender for regional cross-border passenger services on Euregiobahn Line RB 64 line (Munster (Westfalen) - Gronau – Enschede, with a planned extension to Zwolle).
The contract is expected to start in December 2032, with a duration of 15 years. The annual operating volume is approximately 1.1 million train-km.
Prior to launching the tender, NWL and the province of Overijssel plan to conduct a market consultation focusing on the contract model and vehicle ownership structure, train maintenance and workshop facilities, rolling stock requirements, and contract duration. Interested parties may register their interest by July 3. The cross-border link between Enschede and Gronau is currently not electrified, although electrification is planned for completion in 2030.
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