Published on: Thursday, 13 August 2015
Last updated: Wednesday, 5 October 2016
Major upgrade through partnership withEversholt Rail
Ten Abellio Greater Anglia Class 321 trainsare to be fully refurbished in a major upgrade programme delivered inpartnership with Eversholt Rail.
The electric trains, which operate onservices to Southend, Chelmsford, Witham, Braintree, Colchester, Clacton,Harwich and Ipswich, will benefit from a positive transformation of theon-train customer environment, including:
New, more comfortable seating throughout
Air-conditioning fitted throughout
New heating systems
Larger vestibules for improved boarding and alighting
Wi-fi facilities enabled throughout
Power sockets installed throughout
New, energy efficient lighting
Improved space allocation for buggies, bicycles and luggage
New flooring, ceiling panels and windows
Upgraded equipment monitoring systems toimprove train reliability
The full refurbishment for ten trains fulfils a commitment made at the start ofthe current short franchise to try and agree a full refurbishment deal for asmall number of Class 321s. It follows on from the recent announcement of amore minor refresh for 40 Class 321s (with new seat covers and better lighting)and, with the 17 Class 321s which benefitted from a refresh after they arrivedin East Anglia from London Midland four years ago, it means 67 of the 94 Class321s will have received recent customer-focused improvements.
The first refurbished train is due to becompleted around the end of this year, with work carried out by Wabtec Rail ata dedicated production facility in Doncaster, with state of the art systems andprocesses.
Abellio Greater Anglia’s Managing Director Jamie Burles said: "I amdelighted we have been able to agree this major upgrade for ten of our Class321 trains, transforming the customer environment on these carriages which areused by many thousands of our passengers every day. With air conditioning, newseats, new lighting, new toilets, Wi-Fi and power sockets, customers will see areal step change in the quality of the on-train experience, to offer a better,more comfortable journey.
“We are pleased to have worked in partnership with Eversholt Rail and WabtecRail to agree this significant train upgrade programme, which along with themajor refresh already underway for the intercity trains, plus other refreshprojects for the Class 360 trains and some of the other Class 321s, means thatpassengers on the Great Eastern Main Line are seeing some substantialimprovements to trains on this key route connecting London and East Anglia. Wewill continue to improve service quality for the remainder of our franchise,building on the £35.5 million programme of investment already announced."
Andy Course, Chief Operating Officer Eversholt Rail, said: “Our £60m investmentin the Class 321 Renatus upgrade will provide a transformation for the EastAnglian passengers and demonstrates our long term and continued commitment toenhancing our assets.”