Gdańsk signs €120m Pesa order for Poland’s longest trams

POLAND: Gdańsk’s public transport operator has signed a contract worth more than €120m with domestic manufacturer Pesa for 20 new trams. At nearly 47 m long, they will be the longest in Poland, with the first due to arrive in February 2029.

City-owned operator Gdańskie Autobusy i Tramwaje and Bydgoszcz-based manufacturer Pesa signed the 524.2m złoty agreement on September 2, following Pesa’s selection as preferred supplier in July. The first vehicle is due to arrive within two and a half years, with deliveries to be completed by September 2029.

Unlike previous rolling stock renewal orders in Gdańsk, the five-section trams will be additional vehicles, with their arrival taking the Gdańskie Autobusy i Tramwaje fleet to 159 trams, 90 of them built by Pesa.

Mayor Aleksandra Dulkiewicz said the order formed part of a wider programme intended to support rapid development in the south of the city. ‘Gdańsk is undergoing rapid change, and its southern part is developing particularly dynamically, so we must prepare public transport today to meet the needs of the ever-growing population’, she said. ‘We are building a new tram line between Gdańsk Południe and Wrzeszcz, designing a depot, and purchasing modern, high-capacity rolling stock that will be able to handle these changes.’

The purchase, described by the city as its largest investment in public transport vehicles to date, is being financed through a preferential loan backed by Poland’s EU Recovery & Resilience funding, which carries a 1% interest rate.

Higher capacity

The trams, provisionally designated Twist 3.0, will be 46.8 m long and 2 460 mm wide, compared with 2 400 mm for Gdańsk’s existing fleet. Capable of accommodating 321 passengers, including 100 seated, they will offer significantly more capacity than the city’s current 30 m trams, which carry around 200 passengers.

Each vehicle will have four powered radial bogies, a configuration intended to support operation on the future Gdańsk Południe – Wrzeszcz route while reducing noise and wear on wheels and track. According to the city, Pesa received maximum technical scores in the tender, including for interior and exterior noise levels and aisle width.

Passenger access will be through seven wide doors on each side. Equipment will include automatic air-conditioning, 17 passenger information screens and USB-A and USB-C charging points.

A driver-assistance system using cameras, radar and LiDAR will monitor the vehicle’s surroundings in real time and provide warnings, with automatic braking available in critical situations. The trams will also have event recorders, 18 interior cameras and eight external cameras.

Pesa CEO Krzysztof Zdziarski described the vehicles as a significant engineering project. ‘Designing and building the longest trams in Poland, nearly 47 m long, is a significant yet carefully considered engineering challenge’, he said. ‘We have combined high capacity with advanced safety systems and solutions that enhance travel comfort. Gdańsk will receive modern, quiet, and reliable equipment tailored to the needs of rapidly developing routes.’

Infrastructure preparation

Gdańsk is also adapting its infrastructure for the longer fleet. Several stops serving the city’s growing southern districts are being extended, although the city says most are already capable of accommodating the new vehicles.

Meanwhile, a new depot is being developed on Warszawska Street, with the construction programme intended to allow some of the new trams to be stabled there before the full facility is completed.

Pesa says it will train more than 60 GAiT technical staff, drivers and future driving instructors for the new trams. One of the vehicles will be specifically equipped for driver training.