PKP Intercity settled a tender for the purchase of 300 new railway wagons, with an option for an additional 150. This is the largest rolling stock tender in the history of the national carrier in terms of the number of vehicles. The project will be carried out by the H. Cegielski – Rail Vehicles Factory based in Poznań. The value of the order exceeds PLN 4 billion, and considering the right of option, it is more than PLN 6 billion.

“We have just settled the largest tender in the company’s history in terms of the number of vehicles. Thanks to the realisation of this order, in 2028 we will use a minimum of 300 carriages of various types, projected in a new design, which will provide passengers with a new standard of travel and encourage even more people to use long-distance travel”, says Jarosław Oniszczuk, member of the board of PKP Intercity.

In the new carriages, passengers will benefit from wi-fi, a system of individual lighting, electrical sockets and USB. A comfortable journey is to be ensured by air-conditioning and a passenger information system displayed on light boards. The carriages of both classes will have additional space under the seats for luggage. An innovative solution will be a space for parents travelling with children, which will connect the passenger area with a safe play area. The new carriages will accelerate to 200 km/h.

The 300 modern carriages will serve the medium category trains – one of the three new categories of connections which the Polish national rail carrier is planning to launch. Trains of the medium category will connect major agglomerations, stopping in smaller centres, and will also run abroad.

Seats in first class will gain a new and consistent standard, inside, there will be novelties such as induction chargers. The restaurant carriages will also change, gaining a more intimate and atmospheric interior. The carriages will be homologated for the railway networks of the Czech Republic, Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, and Lithuania.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński