KeolisAmey has been officially confirmed as the new Luas Operations and Maintenance Contract operator.
The contract announcement by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) and the National Transport Authority (NTA) comes following a cooling off period after the company became the preferred bidder in the tender process.
The Keolis and Amey offering is a joint venture between a French multinational and British maintenance contractor company.
Last month Transdev lost the contract to run the service after operating it for the last 22 years.
The contract, which is valued at approximately €1.3bn, was signed today and services are expected to commence under the new contract from 1 September 2026.
The Contract is for an initial term of seven years, with an option to extend for a further six years.
TII and the NTA said the new contract provides for several additional elements including an enhanced timetable with additional services at peak times to be introduced in 2027.
Anne Shaw, CEO of National Transport Authority said the new contract is an important step in the continued development of the Luas as a high-capacity, sustainable and reliable public transport service for Dublin.
"With the planned future extension to Finglas and the rollout of new trams that will increase capacity, this next phase will help meet growing demand and make it easier for people to choose public transport," she said.
Over the coming months, the current Luas operator Transdev will facilitate the transition to KeolisAmey as the current O&M contract awarded in 2019 will come to an end.
TII has confirmed that it expects the vast majority of Luas staff will opt to transfer to KeolisAmey in accordance with the Transfer of Undertakings Regulations Law governing transfer regulations.
KeolisAmey have good experience operating similar contracts in other jurisdictions including the Docklands Light Railway in London since 2014, where they were recently awarded a new eight-year contract for the service. They also run Manchester's Metrolink light rail network.
Lorcan O’Connor, CEO at Transport Infrastructure Ireland thanked Transdev for their dedication in operating Luas for over 20 years as he welcomed the new contract announcement.
"I am very pleased to be able to award this new contract to an experienced team in Keolis Amey as we enter a new and exciting phase for Luas," said Mr O'Connor. "We are procuring much needed new trams to increase capacity and are prioritising the delivery of Luas extensions.
