Spanish Fleet for Translink

July 7th 2010

A fleet of new Class 4000 trains is now being built in Zaragoza, Spain.

Spanish rolling stock company,  CAF, will build 20 new trains for Northern Ireland Railways under a contract signed with Translink.  These will operate alongside an existing fleet of 23 Class 3000 trains built by CAF in 2005.

Says Catherine Mason, Group Chief Executive, Translink, ‘This is an exciting period in the overall project which is continuing to progress on schedule. Rolling Stock production is a bespoke process as trains must be compatible with local infrastructure.

‘After 12 months of planning, production is now underway and we expect to complete the first train car body shell this summer. We are also incorporating public preferences into the new design following our consultation carried out with customers and other stakeholders. And of course we have been able to build on the experience gained from our current Class 3000 trains.' 

So close is Translink's relationship with CAF that rail staff from Northern Ireland will soon be based in Zaragoza to help with the project. A new purpose-built train maintenance facility will be built as well as station platform extensions to facilitate the longer six-car trains.

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