LONDON — The first of 10 new Elizabeth line trains has left Alstom’s Litchurch Lane factory in Derby as Transport for London moves to increase capacity on what has become the UK’s busiest single railway service.
The milestone comes as the Elizabeth line marks four years since opening in May 2022. More than 850 million passenger journeys have been made on the line, which links London and the southeast with direct east-west rail service through the capital.
The new Aventra Class 345 trains are being built with government funding and are intended to help meet rising demand, including future service needs tied to the planned Old Oak Common station for High Speed Two.
Once all 10 new trains are in service, the Elizabeth line fleet will stretch nearly 10 miles in total and have a capacity of about 120,000 passengers, more than Wembley Stadium.
Alstom is building the trains at its Litchurch Lane facility, a major rail manufacturing site in Derby. The factory opened in 1876, and the city has been associated with British railway manufacturing since 1839. The site is now described as the UK’s only remaining facility capable of designing, engineering, manufacturing and testing trains from scratch for domestic and export markets.
Each nine-car Elizabeth line train includes five miles of welding, 50 miles of cabling, more than 47,700 screws and 31,700 bolts. The trains are expected to be manufactured, tested and introduced into service over this year and next.
TfL officials said the new trains are part of the effort to increase capacity on a line that now carries hundreds of thousands of passengers daily.
The fleet expansion also comes as businesses point to the Elizabeth line’s economic effect. New data from Excel London shows 49% of visitors now travel through nearby Custom House station, using the line’s direct connections to Heathrow and across the city. Since the Elizabeth line opened, Excel said visitor numbers have increased by nearly 20%, with guests also staying longer to network and meet.
Officials said the growth underscores the need for additional trains as the Elizabeth line continues to reshape travel patterns across London.
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