The French metropolitan city of Lille and its transport operator Mel have chosen Alstom as the supplier for the replacement of the 30-year-old tramcars of the “Mongy”, the metre-gauge tramway that connects Lille with Roubaix and Tourcoing. These currently operating, Italian Breda low-floor trams are in need of renewal, and Mel also expects passenger numbers on the two lines to increase to 60,000 daily users by 2034. Even today, the lines often run at almost full capacity on certain sections during rush hour.
Alstom will build 24 new low-floor trams (with an option for 6 more), which will enter service in 2026. These trains will be longer (for 20% more passengers), more spacious (30% more seats) and equipped with USB ports and fully air-conditioned. The total investment is 124.8 million euros.
The new low-floor trams will be assembled at Alstom’s La Rochelle plant based on the well-known Citadis series platform – the first time in metre-gauge! Certain components will come from Alstom’s Valenciennes sites.
Named Mongy after their builder, the combined 18 km of tram lines are among only three surviving first-generation tramway operations in France (along with St Etienne and Marseille), after all other systems in the country had been closed by 1966. New systems did not open until 1985 – the start of the new ‘light rail boom’ in the country.
