Alstom Vado Ligure delivers the 10th Traxx DC3 locomotive to RAILPOOL GmbH branch in Italy

31 May 2021 - Alstom has delivered the 10th Traxx DC3 locomotive to its customer RAILPOOL, one of the leading railway vehicle leasing company in Europe, operating in 16 European countries with more than 400 locomotives. This delivery brings the number of Traxx DC3 locomotives circulating on the Italian network since 2019 to 82. All the locomotives were built at Alstom's Vado Ligure plant.

"We are very happy to be here to celebrate the delivery of the 10th Traxx DC3 locomotive dedicated to the Italian market, which is added to the fleet of the 11 units inherited by Locoitalia for a total locomotive pool of 21 powerful DC vehicles in the country. This delivery represents the trust we have on the Italian market which will be our base for further expansion in Southern Europe and on our growing local team who did an amazing job in establishing our new branch”, said Torsten Lehnert, RAILPOOL CEO.

“Today represents a very important milestone for our company and for the new-born Italian branch. Despite the difficulties during the pandemic, we are proud to confirm that the Italian branch of RAILPOOL is now entirely active, with a structured setup which also includes a flexible and reactive workshop network, able to support our customers’ needs” said Alberto Lacchini, RAILPOOL’s Director Southern Europe & Head of Branch Italia. “We are also proud to have recently signed a long-term agreement with Alstom Italy for the corrective maintenance of our E.494 locomotives, which represents another fundamental step to guarantee to our customers the highest reliability and availability of their fleets at all times.”

“With the delivery on schedule of the 10th TRAXX DC3 locomotive to RAILPOOL, one of our largest locomotive customers in the freight industry, we are pleased to continue a very successful collaboration that will contribute to continue developing our TRAXX locomotive platform” - said Michele Viale Managing Director of Alstom Italy and Chairman and CEO Alstom Ferroviaria

“We are delighted to celebrate yet another milestone with RAILPOOL, one of Alstom’s key customers in the locomotive sector. The on-time-delivery of the 10th Traxx DC3 for Italy adds to the more than 200 locomotives that we have delivered to RAILPOOL to date, and we look forward to continuing this successful and long-lasting partnership”, said Peter Ammann, Head of Customer Management Locomotives at Alstom.

The Traxx DC3, which in the Italian version is named E.494, is a latest-generation high-power electric locomotive that maximizes efficiency, minimizes maintenance interventions and provides higher load and traction capacity with lower energy consumption. One of the most interesting features is the possibility of equipping the locomotive with the 'Last Mile' function, allowing new operating concepts, where the locomotive can be operated on non-electrified lines, often found in ports, industrial areas or terminals. The "Last Mile" equipment is optional and can be installed on the locomotive even after delivery as a post-delivery upgrade. RAILPOOL has decided to install it on the entire fleet operating on the Italian network, ensuring the maximum and full flexibility of usage of the locomotives.

The Traxx DC3 is part of the Traxx DC3 platform, developed to pull trains throughout Europe, and available in different configurations to enable interoperability in many countries.

Deeply rooted in the Italian railway tradition, Alstom has been manufacturing trains for 160 years and signalling and electrification solution for 90 years. Today, with 10 sites throughout Italy and more than 3,500 employees, Alstom is a strong local employer recognised as one of the leaders on the Italian market and has several centres of excellence: one in high-speed Avelia Pendolino trains, Coradia Stream single-deck regional trains, E464 and Traxx locomotives, and another in railway signalling equipment and systems.

The Vado Ligure Alstom Plant has over a hundred years of tradition in the design and construction of locomotives, including the latest generations of Traxx and is a centre for the production and maintenance of rolling stock, locomotives and subsystems.