New £2.7bn trains on the wrong tracks

THE troubled East Coast mainline has hit another glitch – its new £2.7billion trains can only run on diesel north of York.

The electric-diesel Hitachi Azuma 800 trains generate high levels of electromagnetic waves that turn signals on older equipment north of York from green to red and forces the carriages to stop.

The line was renationalised in June for the third time in 12 years after Stagecoach and Virgin incurred heavy losses.

Labour’s Lord Adonis, who ordered the trains, said: ‘They had ten years to get these issues right. They’ll be much more expensive to operate.’