Avanti West Coast is celebrating its new timetable, and in the process, introducing its new Evero family of trains.
Class 805 Evero at Penmaenmawr on the North Wales Line
Six trains out of a fleet of 23 have entered service – these being the of the 5-carriage Class 805. The Evero fleet will be comprised of 10 seven-carriage electric trains (807) and 13 five-carriage bi-modes (805). They have been introduced as the June timetable change goes into effect.
They will initially serve routes from London to the Midlands, Chester, North Wales and then in the North West, with plans to operate services to Blackpool and Liverpool.
The Class 805 has 299 seats, 16 percent more than the Voyager trains which served this part of the network.
Switching between electric and diesel, the bi-mode versions will principally operate on the London to North Wales route while the electric trains will be focused between London, the West Midlands and Liverpool.
Onboard, the Everos will feature two wheelchair-accessible seats in a 5/7 carriage configuration, whilst 10 carriage configurations will have four wheelchair-accessible seats. In terms of amenities, Evero trains have a power socket and two USB sockets at each pair of seats in Standard Class, plus wireless charging on tables. In First Class, there are power points and USB sockets at every seat. Each seat in Standard Class will have a personal dimmable light.
Meanwhile, the onboard Accessible toilets feature a discreet entry mode for carers.
For those interested, Avanti West Coast has a welcome page about the new train at https://www.avantiwestcoast.co.uk/travel-information/onboard/about-our-trains/evero.
In Quotes
Managing Director of Avanti West Coast, Andy Mellors said:
“The introduction of our new timetable and the Evero fleet marks an exciting new chapter for our people and customers.
“The investment is also a key part of our plans to support the UK rail industry, and our wider commitment to improve customer experience on the West Coast Main Line.”
Entry into service
Class 805 Evero at Llanfairfechanon the North Wales Line
A total of six Evero Class 805s will initially be used on each weekday. The remainder of the fleet will be introduced on the network in due course. Railforms UK has an active track of wha
The £350m fleet will be maintained at Alstom’s Oxley depot in the West Midlands and will work alongside the existing Pendolino trains that were introduced in 2022.
As to the longer term and how they’ll deal with passenger use and abuse, we’ll have to see. Thankfully these trains are based on “known quantities” – being a derivative of the Hitachi Intercity Express Programme/Train (or the Hitachi Super Express AT300 series).
This has been rolled out far and wide over the UK network, including operations by Great Western, LNER (branded as Azuma), Hull Trains, Transpennine Express and Lumo.
We’ll see as things develop as these trains transition from a testing environment to live passenger use and operation
Images, Avanti West Coast
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