Melbourne’s First G Class Tram Enters Passenger Service

The first of Melbourne’s 100 new G Class trams has entered passenger service. Alstom is building the fleet locally under a €700 million contract and will maintain it at a new facility in Maidstone.

Alstom has put the first Next Generation G Class tram into passenger service in Melbourne, Australia. It is the first vehicle delivered under a contract for 100 trams awarded in 2022. The €700 million agreement also covers long-term fleet maintenance. Alstom will carry out the work at a purpose-built facility in Maidstone, in Melbourne’s western suburbs.

G Class Tram Is Built Locally in Melbourne

Alstom is assembling the new trams at its Dandenong plant. According to the company's press release, 65% of the vehicle’s content comes from local suppliers, the highest share achieved by an Australian tram programme. The project has supported more than 2,000 direct and indirect jobs. Alstom has also invested over AUD 40 million, around €24 million, in its Dandenong site to expand local production capacity.

Ling Fang, Alstom’s Asia-Pacific President, said the programme combines the company’s existing tram technology with local manufacturing. "As the G Class carries passengers for the first time, the tram’s journey signifies what makes Alstom unique: leading global technology combining with unrivalled localised presence, to deliver a truly Australian-built tram for our customer," she said.

Passengers Helped Shape the New Melbourne Tram

More than 1,000 people and organisations contributed to the tram’s design. The consultation involved disability groups, drivers, the Public Transport Users Association and other passenger representatives. Their feedback was used to adapt Alstom’s Flexity 2 platform to the specific needs of Melbourne’s tram network, which the company describes as the largest in the world.

The G Class has a low-floor interior, regenerative braking, wider aisles and more doors than older vehicles. It can carry more than 150 passengers and has been designed to improve access for people with reduced mobility. Alstom describes it as "the most accessible tram yet introduced in Melbourne."

Melbourne Will Introduce the G Class in Stages

The new fleet will enter service gradually across Melbourne’s tram network. The first vehicle begins a longer programme that will continue as further trams leave the Dandenong production line.

Alstom has been manufacturing trams at the site for more than 70 years. The company says more than 80% of the vehicles currently operating on Melbourne’s network were built there. Maintenance of the G Class fleet will be handled at Alstom’s new Maidstone depot. The site brings the company’s design, manufacturing and servicing work for the programme together within Victoria.

Victorian Government Backs Local Tram Production

Guillaume Tritter, Managing Director of Alstom Australia and New Zealand, credited the Victorian Government’s investment and its cooperation with the manufacturer for bringing the tram into service.

"The G Class journey into passenger service has been made possible thanks to the financial investment made by the Victorian Government and a spirit of understanding, collaboration and problem-solving that has defined this programme from its early days," he said.

"The determination and trust placed by the Victorian Government to build here in Victoria is commendable. NGT is proof that rolling stock can and should be built here in Australia by Australians for Australians."

The G Class is one of several locally delivered Alstom projects to enter service in Australia during 2026. The company has also introduced the first X’trapolis 2.0 train in Victoria and the first Australind train in Western Australia.