Following a European negotiated procedure in March 2023, the Eurométropole de Strasbourg and CTS – the city’s public transport operator – selected Alstom to supply new trams. The first of the 39 new tram trains ordered arrived at CTS depot Kibitzenau production unit on the evening of Thursday 5 June 2025. Transported in three sections by road from Alstom’s site in La Rochelle, this new low-floor tram was assembled over the last few days at the CTS depot in Kibitzenau. This will be followed by a phase of equipping the train with the latest on-board equipment, such as the operating assistance system, and then a testing phase. These tests will consist of checking the train’s compliance and endurance (functioning of the computer, braking and safety systems, safety, maintenance, etc.) with a view to obtaining authorisation to put this new rolling stock into service. This is scheduled for mid-November 2025, coinciding with the launch the West tram line F to Wolfisheim, which will serve 20,000 residents and 7,100 additional jobs. Thus, 12 Citadis trams will be added to the tram fleet by the end of 2026 as part of its development. Six more of these trams will be delivered by the end of the year, and the rest in 2026.
Increased passenger capacity
With greater capacity than previous generations of trains, the new Citadis will enable a gradual increase in the network’s passenger capacity from 2025 onwards.
An additional twenty-seven units have also been ordered to replace the 27 Eurotrams, for delivery by 2028. The Eurotrams that are reaching the end of their service life. By the end of 2026, 10 three-car Eurotrams with a capacity of 200 passengers will be taken out of service.
Features:
Measuring 45 metres long and 2.40 metres wide, the new Citadis trams offer a capacity of 286 passengers. Among the main new features are:
- increased glass surfaces, enhancing passengers’ sense of comfort and safety;
- seats at the rear of the driver’s cabs to provide more seating space; and gangways for greater fluidity.
- Compliant with the PMR (Persons with Reduced Mobility) decree, the trams are equipped with door opening buttons at the correct height, wider seats and areas reserved for wheelchair users and pushchairs.
To facilitate access for people with reduced mobility, the new trams also offer also offer:
- Level access for greater fluidity on board;
- Omnipresent lighting throughout the tram, both inside and outside, allowing for better visibility of the opening and closing of doors and helping passengers, including PRMs, to locate them;
- Loudspeakers for visually impaired passengers, as well as an audible signal to indicate the position of the doors.
For a more comfortable and safer journey, the trains are air-conditioned and equipped with a dynamic passenger information system and a video surveillance system.
The cabin also offers increased comfort for drivers, thanks to the ergonomics of the designed in consultation with CTS driversand en, hances their safety with the addition of an emergency exit window to facilitate evacuation in case of emergency.
Designed from the outset in accordance with current German regulations, these new trains will be certified in accordance with BOStrab, the German federal decree on the construction and operation of trams in Germany. They will primarily run on line D, which serves the city of Kehl in Germany, as well as line A.
Energy-efficient, environmentally friendly trams offering optimal availability
While providing passengers with a higher level of service and comfort, these Citadis 3 trams will reduce energy consumption by at least 20% compared to current equipment, thanks to a new motor, efficient climate control and 100% LED lighting. These trams are eco-designed, 95% recyclable and 98% recoverable.
The new trams have also been designed to reduce preventive maintenance operations by 16% over their 30 years of commercial service. Maintenance issues have been addressed through an optimised selection of spare parts, facilitated by eco-design principles, as well as improved accessibility of components to simplify maintenance.
Trams designed and assembled in France
Ten of Alstom’s sixteen sites in France are involved in the manufacture of these Citadis trams:
- La Rochelle, for design and assembly;
- Le Creusot, for bogies;
- Ornans, for motors;
- Valenciennes Petite-Forêt, for spare parts and interior fittings;
- Villeurbanne, for on-board electronics and cybersecurity;
- Aix-en-Provence, for tachometer units;
- Tarbes, for electrical equipment;
- Alstom Flertex (Gennevilliers and Saint-Florentin), for brake linings;
- Alstom Ibre (Sens), for brake discs;
- Saint-Ouen, for design.
(Info: CTS / Alstom)
