HS2 trains to be built here in Derby as Alstom wins joint £2bn contract
NEW PRODUCTION LINE WILL BE SET UP AT CITY MANUFACTURER
THE next generation of Britain’s high-speed trains will be built in Derby after the Government awarded a £2 billion contract to a joint venture by Alstom - based at the city’s Litchurch Lane works and Hitachi Rail in County Durham.
The contract will see 54 trains built for HS2 phase one, including an initial 12-year train maintenance contract, and is expected to result in an additional 2,500 jobs in total.
Around 505 people will be directly employed by the two companies in the Midlands and the North in the design and manufacturing phase, including 49 apprentices and graduates working on the programme.
The extensive use of UK supply chain means that a further 2,000 indirect jobs are expected to be created elsewhere in the UK economy.
A new production line will be set up at Derby, where the second stage of fit-out and testing will take place.
The first stages, including vehicle body assembly and initial fit-out will be done at Hitachi Rail’s facility at Newton Aycliffe, County Durham.
All the bogies, which house the wheelsets, will both be assembled and maintained at Alstom’s Crewe facility.
The train will be Europe’s fastest operational train, capable of operating at maximum speeds of 225mph (360 km/h), significantly reducing journey times for passengers between London, the West Midlands and Crewe.
The fleet will be 100% electric, and be one of the world’s most energy efficient very high speed trains due to the lower train mass per passenger, aerodynamic design, regenerative power and latest energy efficient traction technology.
Each train will be around 200m long, with the option to couple two units together to create a 400m long train with up to 1,100 seats.
They are also expected to run on the existing network to places such as Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester.
Nick Crossfield, Alstom’s managing director, UK and Ireland, said: “HS2 is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform Britain by building a sustainable transport system fit for the 21st century.
“I am delighted that Alstom’s joint venture with Hitachi Rail has been selected to develop, build and maintain in Britain the next generation of high speed trains.”
A statement from the Government said that it is the first time the trains will be entirely designed and assembled on home soil, “supporting jobs in factories across the Midlands and North and in their supply chains, including apprentices and roles for young people”.
It added that they will “also be the fastest and lowest carbon per passenger km trains of their kind in the UK, minimising environmental impacts and helping decarbonise transport”.
And HS2 Ltd Chief Executive Mark Thurston added: “Today is a massive day for HS2. The trains that will be built at Derby and Newton Aycliffe will transform rail travel – offering passengers unparalleled levels of reliability, speed and comfort and help in the fight against climate change.
“I’d like to congratulate Alstom and Hitachi and I look forward to working with them as together we bring these exciting new trains to passengers across the UK.
Designed to be fully accessible, the interior layout will be decided following a two and a half year collaborative design process involving HS2 Ltd, the Department for Transport and the West Coast Partner, the operator of the trains when they first come into service.
The first train is expected to roll off the production line around 2027. Following a rigorous process of testing and commissioning, the first passengers are expected to be carried between 2029 and 2033.
A contract for trains to be built for phase two of HS2 announced as part of the Government’s Integrated Rail Plan recently, which will run into Derby from East Midlands Parkway, is yet to be put out to tender.
The trains that will be built at Derby and Newton Aycliffe will transform rail travel.
Mark Thurston