“We expect the competition for the next East Midlands long-term franchise to deliver those improvements to the rolling stock that are required.”
That was the response from Transport Minister Claire Perry on November 4 to a Commons Written Question asking what plans the Secretary of State for Transport has for replacement of HST trains on the Midland Main Line.
Perry had told Philip Hollobone (Conservative, Kettering): “The Department considers that franchisees are normally best placed to procure the rolling stock that they require to deliver the necessary levels of service and capacity.”
Under the Department for Transport’s present plan, published in July 2015, the East Midlands Trains franchise is due to end after the current Direct Award extension on March 4 2018, although the Transport Secretary can extend this by up to a year.
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Alan Taylor - 18/11/2015 22:32
It would be great if we could have a British designed and built replacement for the HST when the time comes. A train that builds on the engineering excellence that embodies the future proofed HST design and takes its excellent qualities and makes them better, such as no engines under the carriages making them quiet to ride on and hear the station announcements, room for luggage in the vestibules so you don't have to struggle with them in the passenger areas, roomy luggage racks that actually fit the bags people carry, quiet pneumatic doors that automatically open without you having to press a button and then have the door close on you....to name but a few. The HST is a far better train than the Voyager derivatives. 40 years and still going strong. Still doing 125 mph. As a nation we should celebrate these amazing trains and the British engineers who designed and developed them. They are outstanding!
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Anthony Sneath - 19/11/2015 23:10
While the mainline re-equipment is important, the bread and butter locals must not be forgotten. Several trains which serve Lincoln are class 153 and at times are so overcrowded that passengers have been turned away. I have suggested elsewhere that a loco and (say) 4 coaches be hired in to boost peak time capacity with the 153 released to strengthen the other service (Newark-Grimsby and Peterborough -Lincoln) Also (if they prove themselves) the class 230/ D trains on the Matlock Newark Castle services allowing other services to be strengthened. For the mainline, some 5 car dual mode Hitachis would help out as the electrification progresses
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Mike imeson - 21/11/2015 15:49
As a journalist I was on the first HST train to Cardiff, and also to Edinburgh. The HST took us to Inverness from KX last summer and I still thrill at the realisation they are 40 years old, but don't look it or ride it. I also thrill to see them on the East Midlands services through my station ... Giants whe compared to their current replacements. I often wonder whether the BR ..yes good old BR... team that designed them ever got the recogition they deserved.
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