Avanti West Coast has announced that the partnership with Bombardier has resulted in a complete refresh of the entire Voyager train fleet.
The £8.3m investment was completed by Bombardier in Ilford, East London.
The 20 trains were refreshed and now have new Standard Class seat covers, carpets and a revamped toilet. Older lighting has now been upgraded to use LEDs.
The interior panels have also been refinished in paint and vinyl wraps, and the door grab handles have been coated in an anti-microbial finish.
A timelapse of the work can be viewed below:
Avanti West Coast Senior Project Manager, Adrian Bullock, explained: “This investment has delivered a step-change to the Voyager's onboard environment. Our customers will really notice the difference.”
“It's given the trains a new lease of life, and they will continue to serve our customers for the next two years with great distinction.”
The 20 Voyager trains currently operate on non-electrified sections Avanti network, including to Holyhead and Scotland. They will remain in service until 2022 when they are replaced by Hitachi Class 805 and 807 trains.
Eric Holmes, Head of UK Services, Bombardier Transportation said; “We are very pleased to have completed this project for our friends at Avanti West Coast. The team at our Ilford facility have performed exceptionally well, despite the challenge of COVID-19, and have delivered a high-quality product on time and on budget. We are all proud of what we have delivered to our customer.”
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But in 3-4 years the Avanti West Coast Class 221 Voyager DEMUs is to be replaced by the Class 805 Bi-Mode IET (including the Class 807 Electric IET) that Avanti West Coast have ordered. And therefore the Class 221s to be cascaded to CrossCountry or if they don’t want the Class 221.
Then perhaps East Midlands Railway, Abellio ScotRail, Northern, Transport for Wales, TransPennine Express, Chiltern Railways or Grand Central could inherit the Class 221 Voyagers.
Done all that work on the interiors but the train left Ilford still in its exterior Virgin livery