Hull Trains reaches a milestone with entire new fleet arriving in Europe

A test Class 802 in Hull station

Hull Trains has revealed its new trains are on schedule to arrive in the UK later in 2019 and once they are launched, Hull Trains will have the youngest entire fleet in the country.

The fifth and final train in the new £60 million fleet has arrived in Europe for internal fitting having been built at Hitachi Rail’s manufacturing plant in Kasado, Japan. 

Richard Vernon, Fleet Project Engineer at Hull Trains, said getting the entire new fleet – which will replace the current fleet – into Europe was a milestone moment for the firm.

He said: “To get all the trains to Europe was a big step for us. It means no more shipping will be needed because to get them from Italy to the UK they will be rail hauled across, which is a fairly swift process.

“Getting the start of the interiors built was exciting because we were seeing the physical trains taking shape for the first time. In Italy we are now working on Hull Trains specific interior parts in reality and this process has been two years in the making.”

The five new Class 802 Hitachi trains will replace the entire current fleet of Class 180s and revolutionise travel from Hull to London.

The first of the trains is due to arrive in the UK on 29 August 2019, and following test runs and staff training, all five trains will be included into the timetable one by one. By 31 December 2019, the entire new fleet will be in use.

Passengers may catch a glimpse of the trains on the East Coast Main Line from as early as September as Hitachi Rail carry out test runs, known as a “rattle run.”

“It will be an exciting day, not just for everyone at Hull Trains, but for the region as a whole, when the first train arrives in the UK,” said Richard. “I’m confident we will comfortably hit our schedule.”

Louise Cheeseman, the firm’s MD is confident the arrival of the entire new fleet will not only transform rail travel from Hull to London, but revolutionise the entire rail network.

Louise said: “I’m anticipating we will be the best train operating company in the UK come November when we start introducing our new trains. We will have £60 million of trains for the people of Hull and those who travel down the line – there is no other company which can offer that.”

Hull Trains need three trains to run its service, but by December will have five brand new trains, instead of the current four in the fleet, which will make a significant difference in reducing cancellations.

The technology involved will also mean Hull Trains can continue to run trains where overheard wires have been damaged, which has affected services in the past.

One of the shells while they were being built in Hitachi’s factory