Twelve of the new trains being built by Siemens for Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) have entered the testing phase. The trains are tested against a variety of measures, including putting the vehicles in a climatic chamber to assess their endurance in extreme weather conditions.
The entire order consists of 25 newly-built Class 717 Desiro City trains and is expected to be phased into service from late autumn this year until next spring. The Class 717s will replace the existing Great Northern fleet of Class 313 trains, built in the late 1970s, and will operate on Great Northern suburban services from Welwyn Garden City, Hertford and Stevenage to and from Moorgate in the City of London. Bringing a 27 per cent increase in fleet capacity, these trains are a key element of RailPlan 20/20, the programme by Great Northern’s parent company Govia Thameslink to carry 60,000 more passengers through, in and out of central London.
The Siemens-built trains will offer passengers a range of benefits including more space on board thanks to full width inter-vehicle gangways, climate-controlled air-conditioning, and advanced information systems providing updates in real time. All carriages are equipped with full Wi-Fi functionality and power points.
The 25 six-car trains, financed by Rock Rail Moorgate (a joint venture between Rock Rail Holdings and Aberdeen Standard Investments), represent the first fleet of trains to be introduced into the UK using a new model for financing rolling stock. For the first time financing has been provided through direct long-term investment from pension and insurance companies. The value of the project is £200 million (EUR 227 million).
Share on:
