photo: Alpha Trains/Alpha Trains and PTS at InnoTrans 2026, Berlin, Germany
Eleven Bombardier Talent diesel trains are heading to Poland after Alpha Trains completed their sale to Public Transport Service and Modertrans Poznań. The units will now be overhauled and homologated for the Polish network, with the first six due to be handed over in December 2026.
Alpha Trains has completed the sale of 11 Bombardier Talent diesel multiple units to Public Transport Service (PTS) and Modertrans Poznań. The deal follows an agreement first announced at TRAKO 2025 in Gdańsk. Together with Poznań Mayor Jacek Jaśkowiak, the parties closed the deal during InnoTrans 2026 in Berlin. The trains, originally built by Bombardier, now part of Alstom, have been operating in Germany and will now begin a second life on the Polish market.
11 Talent DMUs Will Be Overhauled for Poland
The fleet consists of three-car Talent DMUs with a maximum speed of 120 km/h. Each train offers 137 seats, air conditioning and wheelchair-accessible toilets. The units are also designed to operate in multiple formations, allowing operators to couple trains when additional capacity is needed.
Before entering passenger service in Poland, all 11 units will undergo a comprehensive overhaul and the homologation required for operation on the Polish railway network. PTS and Modertrans will carry out the work, with facilities in Paterek and Poznań involved in the programme.
The partners are still working towards their original target of having the first trains ready for Polish operation within 18 months.
First Six Talent Trains Due in December 2026
"The first six Talent units will be handed over in December 2026," said Stephan Wegert, Commercial Director of Alpha Trains. He said the project shows how the secondary rolling stock market can help operators that need additional capacity without waiting years for completely new trains.
"This transaction demonstrates the value that well-maintained secondary-market fleets can deliver to operators facing urgent capacity requirements," Wegert said.
"Together with PTS and Modertrans, we are enabling the rapid and cost-effective introduction of modern rolling stock in Poland. We are pleased to have found partners with the technical expertise, homologation experience and workshop capacity needed to bring these trains into service in Poland."
Why Poland Still Needs Diesel Multiple Units
Many routes across Poland are still not electrified, meaning operators continue to need DMUs even as investment in electrification and battery or hybrid technologies grows. Finding new diesel trains is becoming more difficult, however, as manufacturers increasingly shift their focus towards electric and alternative-propulsion fleets.
That creates an opening for refurbished trains already proven elsewhere in Europe. For operators, the main advantage is time. An overhauled and homologated existing vehicle can generally be introduced faster than waiting for a completely new train to be designed, manufactured and approved.
The Talent programme is aimed at filling a relatively immediate fleet need rather than waiting for longer-term infrastructure or rolling stock programmes.
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PTS and Modertrans Expand Their Modernisation Work
For Public Transport Service, the Talent fleet becomes another project in a growing portfolio of used rolling stock brought to the Polish market.
"The Talent units represent another major milestone in PTS’s growing portfolio of secondary rolling stock projects," said Robert Karwasz of PTS.
"PTS is already delivering several overhaul, modernisation and polonization programmes, and the Talent project is the next step in this development. For this particular programme, we are working together with Modertrans and Alpha Trains to meet the needs of the Polish market and to provide the workshop capacity required in Paterek and Poznań."
Modertrans already carries out maintenance and modernisation work on diesel and electric multiple units for several Polish operators, so the new programme should bring additional work to the Poznań rail industry while giving the former German trains the technical changes needed for their new operating environment.
Alpha Trains Could Bring Up to 50 Talent DMUs to Poland
Alpha Trains says it sees further potential for Bombardier/Alstom Talent trains in Poland and could make up to 50 DMUs available over the coming years, depending on customer demand and individual project requirements. That would make Poland a much larger market for the second-hand Talent fleet.