East Midlands Railway promises passengers more seats and faster trains with £400m investment in new fleet

New Japanese bullet-style trains with air-conditioning and Wi-Fi will run on routes from Lincoln and Nottingham to London as part of an ambitious programme which includes more services.

Abellio UK, the firm awarded the new eight-year East Midlands Railway (EMR) franchise, yesterday confirmed it has now awarded a £400 million contract to Hitachi Rail to build a pioneering new fleet of intercity trains.

The new state of the art intercity trains will start operating in 2022 and will serve the main cities and towns on the Midland Main Line including Nottingham, Leicester and Lincoln as well as London St Pancras. 

The new trains will offer significant advances on the existing fleet, with passengers benefiting from more seats and modern interiors.

Abellio say they have ordered 33 five-carriage trains, which will regularly be operated in 10-carriage formations. 

The trains will include features that passengers and local stakeholders have said they want to see, including air conditioning, free Wi-Fi throughout, plug sockets and better passenger information screens. 

There will also be an improved and more consistent ‘seven day’ catering service in both 1^st and Standard Class.

The new Hitachi trains are quieter and greener, meaning lower carbon emissions and a better environment for passengers, stations and communities along the route. They have the ability to run using electric overhead lines wherever possible, taking advantage of the £1.5 billion Midland Main Line upgrade and, when running in diesel mode, will cut harmful emissions (particulate matter) by up to 90% compared to the legacy High Speed Trains.

Dominic Booth, Abellio (UK) Managing Director said the firm have ambitious plans for the East Midlands rail network.

He said: “These new trains form the centrepiece of our ambitious plans for a complete replacement of all the trains on the East Midlands Railway and are a more than £600 million investment to really improve the region’s railway. 

“They will respond to what our passengers have told us they want with more frequent services, faster journeys between the East Midlands and London, and provide more capacity with 80% more seats into London in the morning peak”.