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Early visualisation of a HS2 train.
Early visualisation of a HS2 train.

Trains

HS2’s British built bullet-style trains will transform rail travel, offering passengers unparalleled levels of reliability, speed and comfort, and will help in the fight against climate change. They are also a major boost for UK train-building.

In 2021, HS2 Ltd confirmed that a Hitachi/Alstom joint venture (JV) has been awarded the contracts to build Britain’s next generation of high-speed trains in a major deal set to support 2,500 jobs across the UK.  Due to start rolling off the production line around 2027, the eight carriage trains measuring 200 metres in length, will be manufactured across three UK factories. Hitachi’s Co Durham plant will handle vehicle body assembly and initial fit-out before transferring further fit-out and testing work to Alstom’s historic Derby works.

The landmark contracts – worth an initial c.£2bn – will see the JV design, build and maintain a fleet of 54 state-of-the-art high-speed trains that will operate on HS2.

Due to start running on the HS2 rail network within 10 years, HS2 trains have been marked out as the most environmentally-friendly in the world.  The trains will be less carbon intensive throughout their lifecycle than any other high speed train in design, production or operation today. They are the first trains in the world to achieve the British Standards Institute’s PAS 2080 global accreditation.

Work during the train’s detailed design will optimise the weight of its carbody, wheelsets and cabling; and build more of the train with recycled and recyclable material.

Great effort is also going into reducing the train’s energy consumption, including improvements in its aerodynamics, which has led to it becoming the first high speed train in the world to have a smooth, dynamically efficient underside, cutting its drag coefficient.

Finally, the train’s traction system and electric motors will be highly energy efficient, reducing energy demand.

Capable of speeds of up to 225mph (360km/h), the fully electric trains will also run on the existing network to places such as Liverpool, Manchester, the North West and Scotland. Building on the latest technology from the Japanese Shinkansen ‘bullet train’ and European high-speed network, they will be some of the fastest, quietest and most energy efficient high-speed trains operating anywhere in the world.

Specified to provide seamless direct journeys via the HS2 and conventional networks, each train in the fleet will undergo a period of rigorous static and dynamic testing before high speed passenger services begin.

HS2 train depots

Calvert Infrastructure Maintenance Depot

Calvert Infrastructure Maintenance Depot

This is the main depot for HS2 from which maintenance teams and equipment can reach the entire 312km (194 miles) of track in Phase One.

Washwood Heath Depot

Washwood Heath Depot

This is where HS2 trains will be maintained, serviced and stored when not in use, and includes the Maintenance Building and control centre.

Train-building in the UK

In another major boost for train-building in the UK, all the bogies (which house the wheelsets) will both be assembled and maintained at Alstom’s Crewe facility – the first time since 2004 that both jobs have been done in the UK.

The design, manufacture, assembly and testing of the new trains will be shared between Hitachi Rail and Alstom.

  • The first stages including vehicle body assembly and initial fit-out will be done at Hitachi Rail’s facility at Newton Aycliffe, County Durham; and
  • The second stage of fit out and testing will be done at Alstom’s Litchurch Lane factory in Derby.

The first train is expected to roll off the production line around 2027. Following a rigorous process of testing and commissioning, the first passengers are expected to be carried between 2029 and 2033.

Designed for everyone

Designed to be fully accessible, the interior layout of the trains will be decided following a two and a half year collaborative design process involving HS2 Ltd, the Department for Transport and the West Coast Partnership, the operator of the trains when they first come into service.

Serving destinations such as Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, and London, HS2 trains will operate seamlessly between HS2 and the existing rail network halving many journey times across the UK. Each train will be around 200m long, with the option to couple two units together to create a 400m long train with 1,100 seats.

The train will also benefit from Hitachi Rail’s pioneering low noise pantograph – the arm which collects power from the overhead wires. Developed in Japan, this technology will make it one of the quietest high-speed trains in the world, and use regenerative braking to boost energy efficiency.

It will also be 15% lighter and offer 30% more seats than comparable high-speed trains in Europe – such as the Italian ETR1000 built by JV between Hitachi Rail Italy and Alstom.

Alongside, design, manufacturing and testing, the contract also included 12 years of maintenance with optional extensions over the estimated 35-year life of the rolling stock. The fleet will be maintained at a new maintenance depot being built by HS2 Ltd at Washwood Heath on the outskirts of Birmingham, creating more than 100 jobs and additional apprenticeship opportunities.

Key Facts

225mph Britain’s next generation of high-speed trains will reach speeds of 225mph (360km/h) and will also run on the existing network.

400m long Each train will be around 200m long, with the option to couple two units together to create a 400m long train.

1,100 seats HS2’s state-of-the-art fleet of high-speed trains will each have 1,100 seats when two 200m units are added together.

Early visualisation of an HS2 train.

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