As announced on June 29, 2016, rail technology leader Bombardier Transportation was proud to confirm that it had received an order from German regional rail authority Landesnahverkehrsgesellschaft Niedersachsen mbH (LNVG) to provide rail vehicle service and fleet maintenance. Bombardier also assumes, for a period ending 2035, the registered keeper role of a total of 220 Bombardier TWINDEXX Vario double-deck cars, 29 Bombardier TRAXX electric locomotives and eight TRAXX diesel locomotives from LNVG's vehicle pool.
Hans-Joachim Menn, chief executive officer of LNVG, the company who organizes local rail traffic in Germany between Harz Germany and the North Sea, emphasized the importance of the order, and said, "The high availability and efficiency of our rail passenger locomotives and double-deck cars is an important prerequisite for passenger satisfaction. We will reach an unparalleled level of availability and this will have a positive impact on ridership."
Michael Fohrer, president, Locomotives, Light Rail Vehicles and Services, Central and Eastern Europe, Bombardier Transportation, said, "This truly proves our ability to identify key areas on the value chain where we can provide added value and benefits to our customer. For many years we have been a strong partner to LNVG and the region of Lower Saxony and are proud to once again have been chosen to provide our strong services offering to increase reliability and service in the region."
LNVG has outsourced their fleet maintenance to Bombardier since delivery of the first trains in 2003. The now-signed service and maintenance contract covers the complete lifecycle of LNVG's vehicles with an economic lifetime of around 30 years. The takeover of the registered keeper role for the vehicles and the consequent Entity in Charge of Maintenance (ECM) responsibility is a first for Bombardier. In future public rail transport award procedures LNVG can now deploy the vehicles to the selected railway companies in full legal compliance.
