The British government contends that passengers across the North will benefit from faster, more reliable journeys because of a roughly £1 billion investment in new trains.
Alstom has signed contracts worth €1.2 billion with TransPennine Express to supply and maintain a new fleet of battery-electric trains. The new trains aim to help deliver TransPennine Route Upgrade’s ambition to boost capacity by 30% with thousands of additional seats a day across the Pennines by the early to mid-2030s.
The fleet of 29 battery-electric TransPennine Express trains is set to be built at Derby’s historic Litchurch Lane Works. Proponents said the deal will support more than 350 highly skilled jobs in Derby, alongside 40 apprentices and 40 students, while backing a further 6,000 jobs across the UK supply chain and generating around £360 million for the wider economy.
The new trains will operate services between key destinations across the north: Liverpool Lime Street and Scarborough, Manchester Airport and Saltburn, and Manchester Piccadilly and Hull. Officials argue passengers will also benefit from faster services, with journey times cut by up to 10 minutes between Manchester and Leeds and up to 14 minutes between Manchester and York.
The battery-electric Adessia Stream trains, the first of their kind on a UK main line route, will provide emission-free travel on non-electrified sections of the railway. The trains are due to be built from 2028 and enter service from winter 2034.
Be the first to comment