Go-Ahead has awarded Siemens Mobility a contract to supply 56 electric multiple-units for use on services around Augsburg from the December 2022 timetable change. The €400m order announced on January 31 covers 44 three-car Mireo single-deck EMUs and 12 five-car Desiro HC partly double-deck EMUs. The double-deck EMUs will provide a ‘substantial’ increase in seating capacity on the Augsburg – München route. The Mireo units will offer 216 seats and 18 cycle spaces, and the Desiro HC 538 seats and 45 cycle spaces. Up to four three-car Mireos, two Desiro HCs or two Mireos and one Desiro HC will be able to work in multiple.

Both types of trainset will feature wheelchair lifts, a real-time passenger information system with connection information. The window glass will be designed to improve mobile phone reception, and there will be provision for the future installation of wi-fi. ‘This is yet another order for our two regional train platforms in our key home market’, said Siemens Mobility CEO Sabrina Soussan, adding that it was the first order to include both Mireo and Desiro HC families so that ‘the strengths of both train types can be optimally utilised. The Augsburger Netze Lot 1 operating contract was awarded by the Land of Bayern in partnership with Baden-Württemberg. It runs for 12 years for December 2022, and covers services totalling 7·4 million train-km/year on three routes currently operated by DB Regio under the Fugger-Express brand:

Ulm – Augsburg – München; Würzburg – Ansbach – Treuchtlingen – Donauwörth – Augsburg; Aalen – Nördlingen – Donauwörth.

It is the fifth operating contract which UK-based Go-Ahead Group has won in Germany. ‘The state-of-the-art trains being supplied by our partner Siemens Mobility are an important building block for ensuring high-quality operations that will attract additional passengers to rail’, said Stefan Krispin, CEO of Go-Ahead Verkehrsgesellschaft Deutschland.