Stadler regional bi-mode trains for Greater Anglia is being tested in Switzerland and in the same time, new intercity and Stansted Express trains are being assembled in another factory nearby.
The first four-carriage bi-mode train to be assembled is now being tested at Stadler’s commissioning centre in in Erlen. The train’s body is now connected to the wheels – known as the bogies. The driver’s cab is mounted and the diesel engines have been fitted.
Although the train is yet to be fitted with seats, wifi, toilets, and bicycle racks, it is possible to drive it and carry out safety and performance tests on it, to make sure all necessary standards are met.
Stadler is making a total of 58 trains for Greater Anglia, including 38 “bi-mode” trains that can switch between electricity and diesel power, which will run on rural routes in Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Cambridgeshire.
Stadler’s factory in Bussnang is full of Greater Anglia trains in various stages of production, including the welding of carriage bodyshells together and the installation of technical equipment, cabling and lighting.
The company is building 24 four-carriage and 14 three-carriage bi-mode trains, which from next year will run between Norwich and Sheringham, Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft and Cambridge; Ipswich and Felixstowe Lowestoft, Cambridge and Peterborough; and Marks Tey and Sudbury.
The company is also producing ten electric intercity trains and ten electric Stansted Express trains.
The new Stadler trains are financed by Rock Rail East Anglia, a joint venture between Rock Rail, Aberdeen Standard Investments and GLIL Infrastructure, and will be leased to Greater Anglia.
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