New Hitachi trains to replace Super Voyagers
Twenty-three trains built by Hitachi will enter traffic with Avanti West Coast from May 2022.
Thirteen five-coach bi-modes and ten seven-coach electric multiple units will be built by the Japanese company at its Newton Aycliffe facility in County Durham, in a £350 million deal funded by Rock Rail West Coast.
They will be identical to the Class 800/801 trains in traffic with Great Western Railway and LNER, and will replace the fleet of 20 five-coach Class 221 Super Voyager diesel multiple units.
“These new trains will help us really improve travel for passengers with more services, more seats, a better journey experience, enhanced catering and added comfort,” said First
Rail Managing Director Steve Montgomery.
Avanti West Coast (AWC) said the EMUs will be used between London Euston, the West
Midlands and Liverpool, while the bi-mode units will run from Euston to North Wales.
The trains will not have tilt capability, but their acceleration and braking is designed to make up for that. They will be capable of 125mph running. In terms of capacity, the EMUs will have 453 seats and the bi-modes 301 seats. This compares with 258 seats in a ‘221’.
AWC also claims that the Hitachi trains reduce particulate matter emissions by more than 90% and nitrogen oxide emissions by more than 60%.
The Avanti deal also means that since 2013, Hitachi will have spent some £1.6 billion with UK suppliers in the construction of Class 385s for ScotRail and its various Class 800-802 fleets.
“Based on Japanese bullet train technology, our new trains have proven to be the modern intercity train of choice, increasing passenger satisfaction wherever they run,” said Hitachi Rail Group CEO Andy Barr.
The deal also includes an agreement for maintenance of the trains, which will be carried out at Alstom’s Oxley depot. A joint team from Hitachi and Alstom will maintain the fleet.