Rail Vehicle Dispensation: Great Western Railway Class 230 Fast Charge Unit
The title of this post, is the same as that of this page on the UK Government web site.
The page is an interesting read, but I do feel, that it marks a big step on introducing the Class 230 trains on the Greenford Branch between West Ealing and Greenford stations.
I should say, that I’ve used the Class 230 trains several times and there are trains and platforms with worse passenger access problems on the UK network.
Battery-Powered Train Breaks Distance Record
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
A battery-powered train has broken the world record for the longest railway journey on a single charge.
These three introductory paragraphs add more details.
The Great Western Railway (GWR) train – a specially adapted former District Line train – travelled overnight along a 200-mile (322km) route from Reading and back again, via London Paddington and Oxford.
It reached 140 miles (225km), breaking the record on Brunel’s Maidenhead Bridge at about 04:00 BST.
The previous record of 139 miles (224km) was set by German train company Stadler Deutschland in Berlin on 10 December 2021.
This was an impressive demonstration of the capabilities of battery-electric trains.
Will This Record Be Beaten?
200 miles is impressive, but there was also this paragraph in the article.
At the end of the journey GWR said there was a remaining battery charge of 22% which it estimated would have allowed the train to travel about a further 58 miles (93km).
So it looks like 258 miles should be possible.
Four other companies are also developing battery-electric trains.
- Alstom at Derby
- CAF at Newport
- Hitachi at Newton Aycliffe
- Siemens at Goole
- Stadler in Switzerland.
Note.
- All except Stadler have UK factories.
- Siemens and Stadler have delivered trains in Germany.
- This page on the Hitachi Rail web site is entitled Intercity Battery Trains.
- This page on the Hitachi Rail web site is entitled Hitachi Wins New UK Contract To Build Intercity Battery Trains. The customer is Grand Central Trains.
- Hitachi have been running a prototype for some months, in the UK.
The competition is hotting up and the record will certainly be soundly beaten.
Do Hitachi Battery Electric InterCity Trains Have Problems?
I asked Google the question in the title of this post and got this answer.
While Hitachi’s battery-powered intercity trains have shown promising results in trials, particularly regarding fuel savings and emissions reduction, there are some potential challenges and considerations. These include safety concerns related to lithium battery fires, especially in the event of a crash or derailment, as well as range limitations for longer journeys. However, the technology is continuously evolving, and Hitachi is actively working to address these issues.
That seems fairly positive.
There is also this article on the BBC, which everybody should read, which is entitled Will New Battery-Powered Trains Replace Diesel, And Are They Safe?.
In The Data Sheet For Hitachi Battery Electric Trains, I look at the data sheet, that Hitachi published in late 2023.
These were my conclusions about the data sheet.
These are my conclusions about Hitachi’s battery packs for Class 80x trains, which were written in November 2023.
- The battery pack has a capacity of 750 kWh.
- A five-car train needs three battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
- A nine-car train needs five battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
- The maximum range of a five-car train with three batteries is 117 miles.
- The maximum range of a nine-car train with five batteries is 121 miles.
As battery technology gets better, these distances will increase.
Hitachi have seen my figures.
They also told me, that they were in line with their figures, but new and better batteries would increase range.
125 mph trains with a 120 mile range on batteries, would revolutionise UK train travel.
LNER’s Class 897 Trains
In the Wikipedia entry for LNER, this is said about LNER’s new ten CAF tri-mode trains.
In November 2023, LNER placed an order for 10 ten-car tri-mode (electric, diesel and battery power) Civity trains from CAF. In August 2024, it was announced that the units will be designated Class 897 under TOPS.
According to their Wikipedia entry, it appears the Class 897 trains will be delivered from 2027.
Can I Build A Schedule For The Introduction Of New Trains, Services and Batteries?
I think that I can from the information that is out there.
- East Coast Main Line – December 2025 – Introduction of Lumo between London King’s Cross and Glasgow
- West Coast Main Line – Spring 2026 – Introduction of Lumo between London Euston and Stirling
- Midland Main Line – 2026-2027 – Introduction of EMR Class 810 trains between London St. Pancras and Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and Sheffield.
- East Coast Main Line – From 2027 – Introduction of LNER Class 897 trains between London King’s Cross and Yorkshire.
Note.
- The two Lumo services use trains already in service.
- The Class 810 trains for EMR are being debugged and introduced at the present time.
- The only new trains are the Class 897 trains for LNER.
- The introduction of the Class 897 trains will allow LNER to withdraw some trains for refurbishment and fitting of batteries.
This would mean that before the next general election, almost the full timetable between London and the North of England and Scotland would have been implemented using diesel-electric technology.
Is it a low-risk start to the full electrification of services to the North?
The second-phase would see battery-electric trains introduced.
I believe that Grand Central’s new trains would be brought into service first.
- The new trains are scheduled to be introduced in 2028.
- Grand Central will still have the diesel trains for backup.
- Their new trains would be similar to the other Hitachi trains.
- It looks like they could be doing some splitting and joining.
After the Grand Central trains had been introduced successfully, the trains for the other Hitachi operators would have batteries fitted.
I suspect short routes like Lincoln would be electrified with battery-electric trains first.
There would also need to be short lengths of electrification erected, so that trains could be charged to send them on their way.
Other routes could also be electrified in the same way.
- Basingstoke and Exeter
- Birmingham and Aberystwyth
- Bristol and Penzance
- Cardiff and Swansea
- Crewe and Holyhead
- Edinburgh and Aberdeen
- Edinburgh and Inverness
- Reading and Taunton
- Swindon and Gloucester
If this technique could work for main lines, surely a scaled down version with smaller trains would work for branch lines.
Conclusion
Consider.
- It looks to me, that someone has planned this thoroughly.
- It all fits together extremely well.
It could be the first phase of a cunning plan to use battery-electric trains to electrify the UK’s railways.
Passengers will also see benefits, from when Lumo runs its first train into Glasgow Queen Street station.
I don’t think Hitachi’s trains have any problems, but there is enough float in this plan to make sure, it can be implemented on time and on budget.
New Rail Station For Mid Devon
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Exeter Today.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Devon is set to benefit from a major transport funding boost as the Government today confirmed plans for a new railway station in Cullompton and approved a long-awaited upgrade to the A382 between Drumbridges and Newton Abbot.
The announcement, part of a £92 billion national transport investment programme, includes over £47 million to reinstate passenger services between Portishead and Bristol — and, crucially for Devon, two brand-new stations along the Exeter to Taunton line, one of which will be in Cullompton.
It does appear, that according to its Wikipedia entry, Collumpton station has been a bit on-and-off.
In the October 2021 budget, development funding of £5m was allocated for the reopening of Wellington and Cullompton stations. However, in 2024 the Minister of State for Rail, Peter Hendy, stated that the proposed reopening of Cullompton station would no longer be funded by the UK government. Following the government’s spending review in June 2025, funding was confirmed for the station.
But now it appears to be definitely on.
This Google Map shows, the railway and the M5 passing Collumpton.
Note.
- The M5 runs North-South across the map, with Junction 28 about half-way.
- North-west of the junction are Collumpton Motorway Services.
- The Bristol-Exeter Line runs North-South to the West of the services.
This second Google Map shows the Northern end of the services.
Note.
- Parking at the services appears rather limited.
- Trucks seem to be parked at the Northern end of the services.
- I feel there would be space to put a platform on either side of the rail lines.
- I doubt a bridge with lifts would be a problem.
- The station could share the facilities of the services.
- Could some of the fields to the West of the railway be used to create parking?
- The station could be built to accept nine-car Class 802 trains.
Collumpton station could be built to have a high capacity and direct access to the town and the M5.
I have some thoughts.
Could Collumpton Station Function As A Parkway Station?
I believe it certainly could for Exeter, Bristol and even London.
In Darlington Station – 26th June 2025, I showed how Network Rail are creating a 650-place car park at the station, which could be a major draw for travellers.
Could a large car park be provided here to attract travellers?
South West Rail Resilience Programme
This is the first paragraph of this article on Modern Railways.
The Government has paused the third phase of Midland main line electrification to Sheffield and Nottingham, plus the final phase of the South West Rail Resilience Programme (SWRRP), which involves strengthening cliffs at Holcombe.
If the final phase of the South West Rail Resilience Programme is paused, what happens if God decides to block the line through Teignmouth.
I have thought for some time, that one of the purposes of Okehampton Interchange station is to provide an alternative route to the South-West.
If the sea should destroy the coastal railway, as it did a few years ago, then passengers for the South-West could be ferried to and from Okehampton Interchange station by high-speed hydrogen-powered coaches along the A30, to catch trains to Exeter and London.
So, I would build a hydrogen filling station at Collumpton services, so that if the sea destroys the coastal railway again, the alternative of hydrogen coaches is ready.
If Okehampton Interchange station can also be used as an alternative, two alternatives might just ensure that the alternative routes never need to be used.
GWR Battery-Powered Trains Could Be Used In Future
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
Battery-powered trains could be used more frequently after a successful trial by Great Western Railway (GWR).
These three paragraphs give more details.
The rail company says using former underground trains and a rapid-charging system has shown the technology could replace its existing diesel fleet.
The year-long trial was held in west London but the trains will eventually be rolled out in the Thames Valley.
GWR says it can now prove the concept works and hopes to take the initiative to government.
A couple of weeks ago, I used similar trains between Wrexham Central and Shotton stations, which I wrote about in Vivarail Trains And Wrexham Central Station – 6th June 2025.
FirstGroup Applies To Run Rail Services Between Hereford And London via Cwmbran
The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from FirstGroup.
These first two paragraphs, add more detail to the title.
FirstGroup plc has submitted the first phase of an application for a new open access rail service between Hereford and London to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR).
FirstGroup plans to expand its open access rail operations as part of its successful Lumo business, building on Lumo’s existing service which has transformed long-distance connectivity between London and Edinburgh. This has helped materially grow rail demand on the East Coast Mainline in recent years, through a new and enhanced choice for customers and providing more trains to more destinations.
These are some more points from the press release.
Route and Frequency
The news item says this about route and frequency.
FirstGroup’s proposal is for two return journeys a day (one on Sundays) between London Paddington and Hereford, calling at Bristol Parkway and Severn Tunnel Junction as well as providing direct London services at Cwmbran, Pontypool & New Inn and Abergavenny.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the route between Bristol Parkway and Pontypool & New Inn stations.
Note.
- Bristol Parkway station is in the South-East corner of the map.
- Severn Tunnel Junction station is marked by the blue arrow in the middle of the map.
- The electrified South Wales Main Line connects Bristol Parkway and Severn Tunnel Junction stations.
- From Bristol Parkway, the electrified Great Western Main Line goes to London Paddington via Swindon and Reading.
- From Severn Tunnel Junction station the South Wales Main Line goes West to Newport, which is on this map and then to Cardiff, Swansea and West Wales.
- Pontypool & New Inn station is in the North-West corner of the map on the Welsh Marches Line between Newport and Crewe stations.
- Welsh Marches Line is connected to the South Wales Main Line at Maindee triangular junction, which is a few miles East of Newport station.
- Cwmbran station is on the Welsh Marches Line between Newport and Pontypool & New Inn stations.
After a quick look on Wikipedia and Real Time Trains, it appears that few if any trains run in either direction between Cwmbran and Severn Tunnel Junction stations using the North-East side of Maindee junction.
Lumo’s trains would use this route to go between Bristol Park and Pontypool & New Inn stations via Severn Tunnel Junction, and Cwmbran.
This second OpenRailwayMap shows the Northern part of the route between Pontypool & New Inn and Hereford stations.
Note.
- The orange track is the Welsh Marshes Line between Newport and Crewe.
- Pontypool & New Inn station is in the South-West corner of the map.
- Abergavenny station is on the West side of the map.
- Hereford station is in the North-East corner of the map.
Looking at the route as a whole, it is a very simple route.
- Trains go as fast as traffic allows, non-stop to Bristol Parkway station.
- Trains then take the South Wales Main Line with a single stop at Severn Tunnel Junction station to Maindee Junction, just to the East of Newport.
- Trains then take the Welsh Marches Line to Hereford stopping at Cwmbran, Pontypool & New Inn and Abergavenny stations.
It is an innovative route, that has these advantages.
- It uses a little-used leg of Maindee Junction.
- London Paddington and Maindee Junction is electrified.
- The fastest Hitachi trains seem to take about one hour and forty minutes between London Paddington and Maindee Junction.
As direct trains between Newport and Hereford take around fifty minutes, a time of two-and-a-half hours between London Paddington and Hereford could be possible.
This would compare with current Great Western Railway services, which take upwards of two hour and forty-five minutes, which often have a change of train.
Lumo Trains Should Be Faster Between London Paddington And Bristol Parkway
This may seem surprising, but most if not all current services stop between London Paddington and Bristol Parkway, stop at Swindon and Reading.
Cutting out a stop saves a few minutes on the journey.
New Trains
The news item says this about new trains.
The new Hereford service would support further investment in new trains. In December 2024 FirstGroup placed a £500m order for 14 trains from Hitachi Rail in County Durham. The Group has an option for a potential second order of similar size and the Hereford fleet would form part of this option.
Yesterday, I went to North Wales and used Avanti West Coast from Euston. The trains both ways were new Class 805 trains, which are bi-mode versions of Lumo’s Class 803 trains. These Class 805 trains travel all the way between Crewe and Holyhead on their diesel engines, so the much shorter leg between Maindee Junction and Hereford will definitely be in range.
But Hitachi are developing battery-electric versions of these trains and as there-and-back between Maindee Junction and Hereford is only 88 miles, I wouldn’t be surprised in a couple of years that Cwmbran, Pontypool & New Inn, Abergavenny and Hereford stations have a direct electric service from London.
Services At Hereford
The news item says this about services at Hereford station.
For Hereford, the two direct London paths each weekday would increase services on this flow from four today, to six. The new services would help mitigate the current large gaps in the timetable with additional daytime and evening arrivals into London, giving Hereford more regular connectivity. The new services would also provide the stations on the route with new direct journey opportunities to Bristol Parkway.
I also believe it would be a faster, fully electric service.
Services At Abergavenny
The Wikipedia entry for Abergavenny station says this about services at the station.
With a few exceptions, the weekday daytime service pattern typically sees one train per hour in each direction between Manchester Piccadilly and Cardiff Central, with most trains continuing beyond Cardiff to Swansea and West Wales. There is also a two-hourly service between Cardiff and the North Wales Coast Line to Holyhead via Wrexham General. These services are all operated by Transport for Wales. The northbound Premier service from Cardiff to Holyhead calls here on Monday to Fridays but the southbound service does not call here.
Note.
- The station has partial step-free access
- The station has 74 parking spaces.
Two trains in each direction would improve the services at Abergavenny station.
Services At Pontypool & New Inn
The Wikipedia entry for Pontypool & New Inn station says this about services at the station.
On weekdays and Saturdays, there is generally a two hourly service between Holyhead and Cardiff in the middle of the day, with additional peak time services southbound in the mornings and northbound in the evenings for commuters to Newport and Cardiff. These include services between Manchester Piccadilly and West Wales via Crewe and Swansea. From December 2013 the evening northbound Arriva “Premier” service train began to call at Pontypool for the first time. The southbound service in the morning does not call here. On Sundays, an irregular service operates, with 8 trains calling southbound and 10 northbound. These mainly run between Manchester and Cardiff.
Note.
- The station is step-free with lifts.
- The station has 150 parking spaces.
Two trains in each direction would improve the services at Pontypool and New Inn station.
Services At Cwmbran
The Wikipedia entry for Cwmbran station says this about services at the station.
Services that stop at Cwmbran in both directions are all operated by Transport for Wales and include the hourly service between Manchester Piccadilly, Cardiff Central and West Wales and the two hourly service between Holyhead and Cardiff Central. Most Sunday services only run on the former route (there are only two services each way to/from Holyhead).
Note.
- The station is being made step-free with lifts.
- The station has 76 parking spaces.
Two trains in each direction would improve the services at Pontypool and New Inn station.
The Heads Of The Valleys Road
The A465 or Heads of the Valleys Road could be considered the South Wlaes equivalent of the North of England’s M62 Motorway.
This description is from the first paragraph of the Wikipedia entry.
Approximately following the southern boundary of the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park, the Ordnance Survey Pathfinder guide describes it as the unofficial border between rural and industrial South Wales. The A465 provides an alternative route between England and the counties in South West Wales and to the ferries to Ireland.
This Google Map shows its route between Merthyr Tydfil and Abergavenny.
Note.
- Merthyr Tydfil is in the South-West corner of the map.
- Abergavenny is in the North-East corner of the map.
- The full length of the road is just under seventy miles.
- The Heads of the Valleys Road connects to all the towns, that are the Northern termini of the South Wales Metro.
- At it’s Western end, the A 465 connects to the M4 near Swansea.
The news item says this about the tourism benefits of the service.
The new service is expected to have positive economic and social benefits for the communities it serves. Both of FirstGroup’s open access services Lumo and Hull Trains are on track to deliver more than £1.4bn in economic benefits along their routes and FirstGroup hopes to have a similar positive effect for the South Wales and Herefordshire communities.
The service should also provide a convenient link for visitors travelling to the Brecon Beacons/ Bannau Brycheiniog National Park; Blaenavon World Heritage Site and cathedral city of Hereford, driving growth and supporting jobs in the area’s tourism sector.
I do wonder if other tourism related services will be developed at Pontypool & New Inn, Abergavenny and Hereford?
Monmouthshire
This paragraph from the Wikipedia entry for Monmouthshire gives a flavour of the Welsh county.
The county is rural, although adjacent to the city of Newport and the urbanised South Wales Valleys; it has an area of 330 square miles (850 km2) and a population of 93,000. After Abergavenny (population, 12,515), the largest towns are Chepstow (12,350), Monmouth (10,508), and Caldicot (9,813).
I was surprised that the population of the county, was as high as 93,000.
This second paragraph, lists the railway stations.
Monmouthshire is served by four railway stations: in the south are the Severn Tunnel Junction railway station at Rogiet on the South Wales Main Line, which connects South Wales to London; and Chepstow railway station and Caldicot railway station on the Gloucester–Newport line; and in the north, Abergavenny railway station on the Welsh Marches line.
Severn Tunnel Junction and Abergavenny stations will be served by Lumo’s new service.
From my experience of using parkway stations in East Anglia with connections to London, I suspect residents of several towns outside of Monmouthshire will use these two stations for trips to the capital.
Are plans in place for extra parking and bus services?
Travelling To And From Heathrow Airport
I wouldn’t be surprised if Lumo picks up quite a few passengers, who are going to and from Heathrow.
Consider.
- I suspect Severn Tunnel Junction to London Paddington will take about one hour and forty minutes, with just the single stop at Bristol Parkway.
- The Elizabeth Line to the Airport will take 28 minutes and cost £13.90, according to Transport for London.
- The Elizabeth Line is an easy step-free change from National Rail at Paddington.
- Elizabeth Line trains between Paddington and Heathrow are every six minutes.
- It’s not a very long walk at Heathrow between the Elizabeth Line and the terminals.
- Driving from say Monmouth to Heathrow will take about two-and-a-quarter hours and cost you to cross the Severn Bridge and for parking.
If your local Great Western Main Line station is between say Chippenham and Cardiff, you might be surprised at how fast and affordable it can be to go to and from Heathrow by Great Western Railway and Elizabeth Line.
When Lumo starts running to Heathrow, I am sure it will be faster, as the trains will not stop East of Bristol Parkway station.
Running In Conjunction With Services Between London Paddington And Carmarthen
The news item says this about running services in conjunction with Lumo’s services to Carmarthen.
The service would operate in conjunction with the planned service from London to Carmarthen which is due to launch in December 2027, and it is anticipated it could begin at the same time.
Consider.
- Both routes are identical between London Paddington and Maindee Junction.
- Both routes could share depots.
- Hitachi’s trains can split and join with alacrity.
- Class 800, 801, 802 and 803 trains have twenty-six metre cars, which mean a five-car train is 130 metres long.
- Bristol Parkway station has 280 metre long platforms. Pairs of trains could split and join here.
- Seven Tunnel Junction has three 171 metre long platforms. Pairs of trains could not use this station, unless the platforms were lengthened.
- Newport station has three platforms longer than 278 metres. Pairs of trains could split and join here, if the Hereford trains reversed direction.
I suspect if trains split and joined, it would be at Bristol Parkway station.
Note that Bristol Parkway station has 1,800 car park spaces, so Lumo could target passengers wanting to park and take the train to London, Cardiff, Newport and other Welsh destinations.
Co-operation With Great Western Railway
In Does Innovation Get Mr. Ed Miliband Better Prices To Doncaster?, I talked about the ticketing on the East Coast Main Line.
It appears to me, that if you put more seats on a popular route, like King’s Cross and Doncaster, then the availability drives down prices.
I also believe that if the tickets are all available through a common walk-up system, then this fills the seats.
The system has now been applied to the West Coast Main Line and I believe that if Great Western Railway and Lumo collaborated on ticketing, this would improve competition between London Paddington, Bristol Parkway and Cardiff.
There is also the issue of train rescue.
Supposing a pair of five-car Hitachi trains broke down with a fault, that allowed the train to be towed to the nearest station, so that passengers could be disembarked.
Hitachi trains are designed, so that up to twenty-four trains can be joined together in rescue mode.
That would certainly be an impressive sight.
After 104 Years UK’s Longest Train Route Is Cancelled For Ever
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Times.
These three paragraphs describe the last journey.
With a muted fanfare the UK’s longest train rolled out of Aberdeen on Friday morning for its final sojourn down to Penzance, ending a service that connected both ends of the country for more than 100 years.
The 8.20am CrossCountry train took 13 hours and 20 minutes, with stops at 35 stations along the way, to cover the 774-mile route. Passengers spent more than two hours of the journey in the stations.
The service, which was launched in 1921, headed south through York, Bristol, Taunton and Truro on its way past some of the country’s finest landscapes, and arrived in Penzance at 9.31pm.
Looking at a ticket site and it appears that by using two trains from Aberdeen to King’s Cross and Paddington to Penzance you can be a few minutes faster, if you know your Underground.
This route will get quicker.
- As the East Coast Main Line rolls out its new digital signalling, this should speed up trains, by allowing some running at 140 mph instead of the current 125 mph.
- LNER will also be bringing their new tri-mode (electric/battery/diesel) trains into service, which could give some speed improvements on the diesel section North of the Forth Bridge in terms of speed and ride noise, especially as ScotRail will be partially electrifying part of this section.
- GWR should also be upgrading some of their fleet to tri-mode, which should improve speed and ride noise on the sections, where the route is not electrified.
- CrossCountry could compete, by buying new trains, but it would be a big financial risk, as the London route should get quicker, as track improvements and increased use of digital signalling speed up services from London to Aberdeen and Penzance.
CrossCountry ‘s owner; Arriva isn’t standing still, but have applied for extra Grand Central open access services on the East Coast Main Line to Scunthorpe and Cleethorpes and a new service from Newcastle to Brighton via Birmingham, which will partly fill the gap caused by the loss of the Aberdeen and Penzance service, by linking with GWR at Reading and LNER at Newcastle.
Arriva Group Invests In New Battery Hybrid Train Fleet In Boost To UK Rail Industry
The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from Arriva Group.
These four bullet points act as sub-headings.
- Order worth around £300 million for fleet of new trains, which will increase seats by 20 per cent, improving capacity and connectivity.
- 45 rail cars to be manufactured at Hitachi Rail in the North East and financed by Angel Trains, helping secure highly skilled jobs and unlocking a new advanced manufacturing opportunity for rail.
- State-of-the-art ‘tri-mode’ train technology has proven its ability to cut emissions and fuel costs by around 30 per cent to support UK Government’s decarbonisation agenda.
- Announcement is made from Hitachi’s Newton Aycliffe factory and attended by the Secretary of State for Transport, Heidi Alexander MP.
These three paragraphs give more details.
Arriva Group announced today an order for nine cutting-edge battery hybrid trains to replace its entire Grand Central fleet, providing a major boost to regional economies and offering passengers more comfortable, greener travel options.
The order for 45 Hitachi Rail ‘tri-mode’ cars, which have the flexibility to run on electrified and non-electrified tracks, along with a 10-year maintenance contract, represents an investment of around £300 million. Tri-mode means the trains can be powered using electricity, battery or diesel.
It follows approval by the rail regulator for extended track access rights for Grand Central’s existing services through to 2038, with the investment underpinning Arriva’s long-term commitment to UK rail and to delivering sustainable public transport solutions to communities up and down the country and across Europe.
The trains will be built by Hitachi at Newton Aycliffe.
I have some further thoughts and questions.
What Distances Will The Trains Run Away From Electrification?
The distances that the various services will run away from electrification are as follows.
- King’s Cross and Bradford Interchange – Doncaster and Bradford Interchange – 52.1 miles.
- King’s Cross and Cleethorpes – Doncaster and Cleethorpes – 52.1 miles.
- King’s Cross and Sunderland – Longlands junction and Sunderland – 48.5 miles.
It would appear that a train with a range away from electrification of 55 miles would be enough, if there were to be charging at all the destinations.
Will The Trains Be Able To Take The Great Northern And Great Eastern Joint Line (GNGE) Diversion Via Lincoln On The East Coast Main Line?
I discussed using this diversion in detail in London And Edinburgh By Lumo Using the Joint Line Diversion.
In that post, I said this.
The January 2024 Edition of Modern Railways says that the diversion is approximately 90 miles or 145 kilometers.
If the trains have a 90 mile capability on batteries and/or diesel, they will be able to use the diversion.
As Hull Trains, LNER and Lumo all need this ability to take the GNGE Diversion, I suspect, it will be a tick-box on the order form for the trains.
When Will The Trains Be In Service?
The news item says this.
The trains will be delivered in 2028 under a 10-year leasing arrangement, in partnership and financed by Angel Trains.
Will The New Trains Be Faster?
They might save a couple of minutes, if Doncaster is the first stop.
Will The New Trains Be Quieter?
The news item says this about noise and emissions.
State-of-the-art ‘tri-mode’ train technology has proven its ability to cut emissions and fuel costs by around 30 per cent to support UK Government’s decarbonisation agenda.
Hitachi have said that the diesel engines will not run in stations.
Could The Trains Run Grand Central’s Routes Carbon-Free?
In The Data Sheet For Hitachi Battery Electric Trains, I came to these conclusions
- The battery pack has a capacity of 750 kWh.
- A five-car train needs three battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
- A nine-car train needs five battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
- The maximum range of a five-car train with three batteries is 117 miles.
- The maximum range of a nine-car train with five batteries is 121 miles.
As battery technology gets better, these distances will increase.
If I was choosing the trains for Grand Central, the trains would be able to operate these routes without using diesel.
- Doncaster and Bradford Interchange and return.
- Doncaster and Cleethorpes and return.
- Longlands junction and Sunderland and return.
Passengers might not like to have noisy passengers.
Probably, the best insurance policy to avoid running out of battery power, would be to have perhaps fifty metres of electrification at terminal stations. Hitachi claim they can offer a nice line in short lengths of electrification.
Quiet Trains Should Attract Passengers
I’ve seen it before and also with buses.
The Number Of Trains Ordered
The basic order is for nine trains, but Railway Gazette says this.
Arriva welcomed the ‘swift decision-making’ by ORR and the backing of the Department for Transport and Network Rail. It has also submitted applications to run more trains to Bradford and introduce services to Cleethorpes, and has an option to buy more trains if these are approved.
I’ve read somewhere that the option is for three extra trains.
So that’s a total of twelve, which would replace the ten Class 180 trains and two Class 221 trains, that Grand Central Trains currently run.
What About Chiltern Railways And CrossCountry?
Train operating companies Chiltern Railways, CrossCountry and Grand Central Trains are all wholly owned subsidiaries of Arriva Trains UK, who are described like this in the first paragraph of their Wikipedia entry.
Arriva UK Trains Limited is the company that oversees Arriva’s train operating companies in the United Kingdom. It gained its first franchises in February 2000. These were later lost, though several others were gained. In January 2010, with the take-over of Arriva by Deutsche Bahn, Arriva UK Trains also took over the running of those formerly overseen by DB Regio UK Limited
Arriva is ultimately owned by American infrastructure investment company; I Squared Capital.
Both Chiltern Railways and CrossCountry have trains, that are coming to the date, when they will need to be replaced and similar trains to those ordered by Grand Central could be suitable. to replace some.
Chiltern Railways have six rakes of Mark 3 coaches, that are hauled by diesel locomotives between London Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street stations, These rakes of coaches could be replaced by Hitachi tri-mode trains, of perhaps five or six cars.
Chiltern Railways also have about sixty assorted diesel multiple units totalling up to about 150 carriages.
CrossCountry Trains have twenty-nine two- or three-car Class 170 trains and sixty-one four- or five car Class 220 or 221 trains. All these ninety trains were built this century and are diesel-powered.
The Government’s policy of net-zero by 2050, would probably mean a significant number of these smaller diesel multiple units need to be replaced by 2030.
If the Grand Central Trains new Hitachi trains are a success, then changing the longer four-, five- and six-car trains for similar Hitachi trains, would be a low-risk replacement strategy for I Squared Capital, that could be applied at Chiltern Railways and CrossCountry.
I can also see a need for a two-, three- or four-car tri-mode train for Chiltern Railways and CrossCountry.
Was The Date Of The Announcement Significant?
In October 2020, I wrote Hitachi Targets Export Opportunities From Newton Aycliffe and I believe that tri-mode trains like these that Grand Central have ordered could have export opportunities.
One country for exports has possibilities and that is the United States.
- Hitachi AT-300 trains like these don’t need expensive high-speed tracks and there are probably many lines in the United States, where these trains could fit existing tracks.
- This page on the Hitachi Rail web site is entitled Hitachi Rail in the USA and Canada.
- In the UK, companies like GWR, LNER, Southeastern and TransPennine Express effectively use theHitachi trains as fast commuter trains on some routes.
- Trump’s tariffs would only be 10 % on these trains.
- The Grand Central version looks very stylish!
- Hitachi’s battery technology is owned by Turntide Technology, who are a US company.
- For some routes, the trains would probably only need to be battery-electric.
Has the experience of running Chiltern Railways, CrossCountry and Grand Central Trains convinced I Squared Capital, that running railways is a good investment?
Have I Squared Capital identified some railroads in the United States, that could follow a similar upgrade path to Chiltern Railways?
Was it significant that the order was announced the day after Trump’s tariffs?
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Fast Battery-Electric Hitachi Trains Between Paddington And Bristol Temple Mead Stations
It was when I was writing Thoughts On Lumo’s Proposed Paddington And Paignton Service, that I realised how significant Hitachi’s battery-electric high speed trains will be.
This page on the Hitachi web site gives this overview of their Intercity Battery Trains.
A quick and easy application of battery technology is to install it on existing or future Hitachi intercity trains. Hitachi Rail’s modular design means this can be done without the need to re-engineer or rebuild the train and return them to service as quickly as possible for passengers.
Replacing one diesel engine with just one battery reduces emissions by more than 20% and offers cost savings of 20-30%. Our intercity battery powered trains can cover 70km on non-electrified routes, operating at intercity speeds at the same or increased performance.
For the purpose of this exercise, I will assume the following.
- All trains are five-car trains.
- They were all originally manufactured as Class 800, 802 or 805 trains.
- They were all originally manufactured with three 750 kW Rolls-Royce mtu diesel generators.
- One diesel generator in each train has been replaced by a 750 kW battery-pack of the same size, weight and performance.
According to Hitachi’s web page, that I quote above, this gives intercity speeds at the same or increased performance, for 70 km. on non-electrified routes.
I will now look at how a Hitachi battery-electric high speed train would handle the line between London Paddington and Bristol Temple Mead stations.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the electrification between Chippenham and Bath Spa stations.
Note.
- London Paddington and Bristol Temple Mead stations are 118.3 miles apart.
- The blue arrow indicates Bath Spa station.
- Bristol Temple Meads station is 11.5 miles to the West of Bath Spa station.
- Chippenham station is in the North East corner of the map.
- Black lines are not electrified.
- Red lines are electrified with 25 KVAC overhead wires.
- The 93.9 miles betweeen London Paddington and Chippenham is fully-electrified.
- Red and black dotted lines are being electrified.
- The 24.4 miles between Chippenham and Bristol Temple Mead stations is not electrified.
- The residents of Bath Spa are not keen for the railway through Bath to be electrified.
The single battery-pack in the train, will have to propel the train between Chippenham and Bristol Temple Mead stations.
- On arrival at Chippenham, the battery will have been fully charged on the 93.9 miles from London Paddington.
- The train will be switched to battery power and proceed through Bath Spa station to Bristol Temple Meads station.
- The 24.4 miles between Chippenham and Bristol Temple Mead stations is only 39.26 km. so it is well within range of a single battery pack.
- The trains will be able to reach Bath, as fast as the track allows, so they could have come much of the way from London Paddington at speeds approaching 125 mph.
Hence my belief that Bath Spa could be reached in around an hour without any stops from London Paddington and Bristol Temple Meads in a very fast time.
There may be a need to top up the battery at Bristol Temple Meads station for London trains to return to the electrification at Chippenham or for other trains to continue their journey through Bristol.
This could be handled by some lengths of electrification in platforms in Bristol Temple Meads station, where the Hitachi trains terminate.
However, I feel Network Rail will be able to avoid the sensitive and possibly very challenging electrification through Bath.
Conclusion
London Paddington and Bristol Temple Meads via Bath Spa trains would be substantially speeded up. Especially, if the first stop out of London Paddington were to be Bath Spa station.
Great Western Railway would only cut out the stops if they wanted to speed up services.
Who’d have thought, that powering services by batteries, would speed up services?
The Anonymous Widower 