Recently, London Northwestern Railway (part of West Midlands Trains) introduced its new trains, the Class 730/2.
The electric Class 730/2 fleet is made up of 36 five-carriage trains – a total of 180 new carriages.
Like most new electric trains from Alstom (nee Bombardier), these are based on the Aventra family of trains(which is deployed on The Elizabeth Line, London Overground, Greater Anglia, c2c and South Western Railway.
This will bring an overall 20% increase in capacity on routes to and from Euston.
The fleet will initially be rolled out between Northampton and London Euston, calling at stations including Milton Keynes Central, Tring and Watford Junction. Later this year, the fleet will enter service on the Trent Valley Line between Crewe and Euston, calling at stations including Lichfield Trent Valley, Nuneaton and Rugby.
In terms of passenger experience, they offer open gangways, charging points at every seat and intelligent air conditioning.
The trains feature 406 seats per five-car unit – a significant jump from the previous trains, which had 266 seats (140 seats more). In typical working, the Class 730/2s will operate in pairs, offering 812 seats across 10 carriages. Surprisingly, this offers more seats than a formation of three Class 350 trains.
The trains will primarily be maintained at LNR’s traction maintenance depot in Bletchley, Buckinghamshire, which has undergone £80million in upgrade work to accommodate them, with them able to operate 110mph to use the fast lines where possible
In Quotes
Ian McConnell, LNR managing director, said:
“Our fantastic Class 730/2 fleet is the cornerstone of our £1billion investment into the railway. These trains will make a real difference, bringing more capacity and modern features to the millions of commuters and leisure travellers who use our services to and from London each year.
“We are excited to bring these new electric trains onto our network from today, with the whole fleet expected to be rolled out by the end of 2026. I am certain they will prove a hit with our customers.”
Dominic Booth, chief executive officer of LNR’s parent company Transport UK, said:
“We’re proud that as part of our £1billion transformation investment, London Northwestern Railway is introducing a whole new fleet of British-made Class 730 trains.
“These state-of-the-art electric trains will enhance our customers’ experience and significantly increase overall capacity, allowing us to serve more passengers across the West Coast Main Line and at London Euston.”
Rob Whyte, Alstom’s UK and Ireland managing director, said:
“We are all incredibly proud to see the Class 730/2 fleet – designed and built right here in the UK at our Derby facility – enter service. These state-of-the-art trains represent a major step forward in sustainable, high-capacity rail travel and are a testament to the dedication and expertise of our teams.
“This milestone reinforces Alstom’s commitment to delivering innovation that transforms the passenger experience and supports the future of British rail.”
Rollout
With the trains in squadron operation since 6th June, six sets of trains (operating as pairs) have entered service, with further units to enter service mid-August. These trains follow the similar three-car Class 730/0 trains, which were initially deployed between Tring and London, before being sent to their homes in the West Midlands, operating on the Cross City Line in Birmingham, between Wolverhampton and Walsall and between Rugeley and Birmingham International.
As noted above, the full fleet should be in squadron service by the end of 2026.
These 36 trains have a job – to replace a subclass of the Class 350 fleet – the Siemens Desiro Class 350/2. These will slowly be withdrawn (with seven units out of the 37 built) and stored, as these trains had higher leasing cost compared ot the rest of its fleet (the Class 350/1, 350/3 and 350/4 are owned by Angel Trains, whilst the Class 350/2 are owned by Porterbrook Leasing).
For passengers, extra seats on such a busy line will always be welcome, as well as the standing room for the shorter hops. Along with charging points, underfloor heating in the winter and air conditioning for the rest of the year, they should offer a reasonable passenger experience…
… depending on the seats.
Alas, that’s one thing passengers can never agree on. One person’s posture-correct seat is another person’s ironing board..
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