Avanti West Coast's Class 390 Pendolino 390125 is the first fully refurbished Pendolino and has taken to the tracks for the first time this morning.
The Pendolinos were first introduced nearly two decades ago in July 2002, but passengers onboard today's 05:05 Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston service were the first to travel on the refurbished Pendolino.
Passengers can now enjoy new seats, a revamped shop and better onboard information.
390125 is rostered to operate the following services on the 25th April 2022
- 0505 Manchester to Euston
- 0807 Euston to Liverpool
- 1047 Liverpool to Euston
- 1857 Euston to Manchester
The £117m project to refurb the entire Pendolino fleet has been two years in the making, with improvements including:
- 25,000 new Standard Class seats
- Conversion of one First Class carriage to provide 2,000 extra standard class seats.
- New onboard shop
- New lighting and carpets
- Passenger information screens (PIS)
- Additional luggage space in standard class
- Power points at every seat
- Refurbished toilets
- New First and Standard Premium seats
The remaining 55 sets are set to undergo the same treatment at Alstom's Widnes site. The second set is due to be back in service early next month.
The upgrade plan will continue until 2024 when the last of the trains is set to leave Widnes.
These refurbished trains will run alongside new Hitachi trains from 2023 which will replace the outgoing Voyager trains.
Rail Minister Wendy Morton said: “The iconic Pendolino is back and better than ever before. This refurbished version of the classic fleet is a fantastic example of our cutting-edge rail network and how our railways are leading the way in creating a cleaner, more environmentally friendly and modern transport system.”
Managing Director of Avanti West Coast, Phil Whittingham, said: “This investment has been one of the key promises to our customers and they will see a dramatic transformation of our well-loved fleet. The refurbished Pendolinos look and feel like new trains with state of the art technology as well as brand new seats that promise best-in-class comfort.”
Peter Broadley, Managing Director Services, Alstom said: “We are delighted with the launch of the newly modernised Pendolino. Working closely with our partners at Avanti West Coast and Angel Trains, we have created something truly special for the customers travelling on the West Coast Mainline. Our team at Widnes have created something amazing and we are incredibly proud of the final product. We hope it secures the future of the Pendolinos on the West Coast for many years to come”.
Malcolm Brown, CEO of Angel Trains, said: “We are delighted to see the first of our new refurbished Pendolino trains re-enter passenger service. As one of the UK's most iconic fleets, this project demonstrates how, through sustainable methods, existing trains can be renovated to provide a top-tier passenger experience. It has been a pleasure to collaborate with our industry partners to deliver a fast, comfortable, and low carbon mode of transport for passengers on the West Coast Mainline.”
Why have they introduced Standard Premium? What do you get for your money? A better seat ? What’s wrong with the now new standard class seats.
Some alignment of First Class was needed but there is only now 18 FC.
We should be able to have broadly similar standards in our Inter City trains.
Why have they been allowed to do this.
The toilet flush button is located behind the toilet seat. This is a longstanding and known disability issue due to reach, dexterity and visability, it is also against the EuroSpec regulations. Why did Avanti choose not to address this issue when refurbishing the toilets in this latest upgrade?
Probably to ensure the seat is down when the toilet is flushed [on a moving train].
Nice work Alstom and Avanti West Coast. The Class 805 and Class 807 AT300s will also have new seats and interiors the same as well when these new rolling stocks do enter service next year.