Northern has announced that the first nine trains in a £500m new fleet will start carrying customers from Monday 1 July.
Nine trains will begin operating on routes between Cumbria and Manchester Airport, Liverpool and Manchester Airport, and between Doncaster and Leeds.
The rest of the 101-strong fleet of new trains will be rolled out in the coming months.
Each of the new trains features free Wi-Fi, air-conditioning, at-seat power and customer information/media screens with real-time information.
The new trains have been funded by Eversholt Rail Group and built in Spain and in Wales by train manufacturer CAF.
What did the officials say?
Richard Allan, Deputy Managing Director, Northern, said:
“These new trains are the biggest investment in local rail services in the North for a generation and the whole Northern team is very proud and honoured to be able to introduce them to our customers on three of our routes from 1 July.
“These new trains represent a huge improvement in design, quality and overall experience for our customers.”
Rail minister, Andrew Jones, said:
“We have already seen the introduction of refurbished trains as part of Northern's investment. The unveiling today of brand new trains shows that transformation continues on the north's rail network.
“This is a true milestone, providing passengers with more spacious, reliable and comfortable journeys.
“I am delighted that we will see the first services running in July. Together with new fleets on Northern, TransPennine Express and the Azumas on the East Coast, we are one step closer to saying goodbye to outdated trains and the start of a more modern rail network fit for people across the north.”
David Sidebottom, Director for Transport Focus, said:
“Passengers tell us their priorities are for a better value for money, punctual and reliable rail service where they can get a seat. Northern passengers will welcome the first of these new high-quality trains as part of the much needed transformation of rail services across the north and an important step in rebuilding trust in the railway.”
Steve Timothy, Client Relations Director, Eversholt Rail, said:
“It's fantastic to see these new trains now entering service. It's the culmination of a lot of hard work over three years between Arriva Rail North, Eversholt Rail, CAF and other regional and national stakeholders to make it happen for the Northern customer. We hope passengers will get acquainted quickly and enjoy the new ambience.
CAF UK Director, Richard Garner said
“This is an important day for CAF. We are extremely pleased to see our trains going into service and play a huge part in transforming this region's railway. These trains will provide a significant change in service quality and performance for Northern's customers”.
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Anything to replace those pacer bus deathtraps, wonder when they will start appearing on my local route from Southport though as the pacer buses are just deathtraps.
So both the Class 195 DMU and Class 331 EMU will enter service from 1st July. About time.
Plus it’s farewell to the Class 142 Pacers.
Grenada Reports say WiFi not working ?,,,,
Is that realy something to worry about as it can be fixed later on. Besides the 150’s etc dont have it so it’s not too big a loss.:p