CrossCountry to introduce increased capacity trains across the Midlands

Credit: Department for Transport

Following a £2.5 million investment from the government, UK rail operating company, CrossCountry, has announced that it will introduce improved trains onto its network from May 2020 which will see an additional 20,000 seats into service. 

The UK’s Rail Minister made the announcement, stating that passengers travelling on CrossCountry services from Birmingham to Nottingham, Leicester and Cardiff will see the introduction of longer trains on some services, with over 5,000 seats to be available weekly. The remaining 15,000 extra seats each week are planned to be in place from mid-2021, including to and from Cambridge and Stansted Airport.

Chris Heaton-Harris, the Rail Minister for the UK, said: “Investing in transport is essential to levelling up the country, as we look to modernise our rail network and restructure the industry to put passengers at the heart of the railway. But we want to fund benefits to address pressing needs and improve journeys for passengers in the short-term, as well as in the future. More seats mean more people can travel, increasing access to opportunities and better connecting our regions.”

The funding provided by the UK government was agreed by the Department for Transport and CrossCountry in order to help limit overcrowding on the operator’s services. Work is currently underway for further improvements in the future when more rolling stock will be available, especially for longer distance routes that CrossCountry serves.

CrossCountry’s Managing Director, Tom Joyner, said: “We are delighted to now be able to get on and deliver these benefits for our customers, with improvements to the journey experience and three new community groups to bring our train services closer to the places we serve. Most importantly, many of our trains have become increasingly busy as more and more people choose rail for their journeys. This delivers the biggest increase in seats for our services in more than 13 years, helping customers enjoy a relaxing and comfortable journey every day. These improvements will deliver an immediate boost for rail users in the Midlands, with the promise of even more to come on other routes in the near future.”