Virgin Trains‘ new state of the art Azuma train has made its first visit to Sunderland and Lincoln this week as preparations gather pace for their launch.
‘Azuma' is Japanese for ‘East' and will be rolled out on the East Coast from December 2018.
The Azuma passed through Doncaster and Lincoln before finishing its journey in Peterborough in the early hours of this morning (Thursday 19th April 2019).
The test run by Hitachi, Azuma's manufacturer, is part of the programme to prepare the east coast for the 65-strong fleet of Azuma trains. They will be rolled out from December 2018 on a two-year rollout programme.
What did the officials say?
David Horne, Virgin Trains Managing Director on the east coast route, added:
“Azuma will bring a new era of style in long-distance rail travel and we're excited to see preparations gather pace that will help transform services for passengers in Lincoln, Sunderland and across the east coast.”
Andy Rogers, Programme Director for Hitachi Rail Europe, said:
“Our rigorous test programme is moving apace ahead of the trains carrying passengers later this year on the East Coast main line. Over the coming months passengers and enthusiasts will be seeing plenty more of our British-built Azuma trains testing in Lincoln and Sunderland.”
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I Think There Should be some Brand New Direct Train services from Holyhead to Clacton on Sea, Great Yarmouth, Aberdeen, Portsmouth, Hastings, Brighton, Plymouth, Penzance, Scarborough and Dover Ferryport with some Brand New projects.
It will be good if Virgin Trains East Coast should introduce a new 2 hourly service between London King’s Cross and Lincoln that should take roughly 2 hours. Rather than using East Midlands Trains from London St. Pancras International and inter-changing at Nottingham to get the train to Lincoln.