A 11 million inhabitants region
Rhine-Ruhr transport authorities VRR and NWL named Keolis as preferred bidder on 7 July to operate future commuter rail services in Rhine-Ruhr‘s metropolitan region, the largest in Germany.
Formal award of the contract is subject to a 10-day standstill period, and Keolis is expected to take over from incumbent DB Regio in December 2019. Keolis was selected for the Lot A contract, which will run for 12 years and covers services which total 4.8 million train-km/year. The new contract will mainly provide services to cities around Dortmund.
Committed to increasing passenger satisfaction
Through this contract Keolis will focus on bringing its mass transit expertise to delivering an excellent level of service and improving passenger satisfaction. Timetables will be reviewed and services will operate at 15 or 30 min intervals, with more frequent services during the peaks.
Keolis continues to extend its footprint in Germany
This award follows two other major successes achieved by Keolis Deutschland in 2015: a new contract to operate the Teutoburger Wald train Network, which starts in December 2017, and the renewal of the Hellweg Netz rail contract, both in North Rhine-Westphalia region.
We are honoured VRR chose us to operate this commuter service. Rhine Ruhr area includes cities that are very dense and we will draw from our expertise operating mass transit services around the world to improve the service and contribute to making the area more livable for citizens.