Mind the generation gap

What will help the introduction of the Class 710 is Bombardier’s experience with the Class 378s. These were built by Bombardier for LO and first delivered in 2009. Today there are 57 five-car trains in use. Some were originally delivered as three-car trains, but as TfL progressively invested in substantial upgrades to the infrastructure (including longer platforms) these were quickly extended to four-car, and in 2015 the entire fleet was lengthened again to five-car to provide the needed passenger capacity. 

How much of the ‘378’ platform can you put on the Aventra? Or has Bombardier gone back to the drawing board?

Simmons explains: “Everything we’ve learned from the Electrostar is built into the Aventra.”

Rennoldson elaborates: “From a technical perspective, we understand the operation of London Overground. When it comes to some of the decisions around maintenance periods for the Class 710 it’s already been optimised because we understand the operation.”

Based at Ilford and Willesden for maintenance, the contract stipulates high performance targets for the trains. They will have similar interiors to the Class 378s, with a strong Overground ‘look-and-feel’ , distinguishing them from the Class 345s for Crossrail. This is evidence of Bombardier’s  ability to customise Aventra to suit the different operations, and brands, of its customers. It is anticipated that the impact the ‘378s’ have had on the London Overground network in terms of reliability and attracting people into using the improved rail network will be replicated with the ‘710s’.

Says Simmons. “The Class 710s will be operating on more than one part of the Overground network- remote enough from each other to drive a maintenance strategy different from Class 378 which are maintained by us at London Overground’s New Cross Gate depot.  The  trains operating on West Anglia routes will be maintained at our Ilford facility, but those boosting capacity on the Gospel Oak to Barking line and other Overground lines will be based in Willesden. We will be expanding our maintenance operation quite substantially.

“We’re going to be investing in Willesden Depot, Ilford and putting in some additional facilities at Chingford where a lot of trains are stabled overnight. When you look at London from a maintenance perspective, we’ll have fleet operation maintenance at New Cross Gate, Willesden and Ilford, and a light maintenance facility at Chingford. It will amount to quite a sizeable operation. “

This is on top of what TfL has already invested in additional stabling at Wembley C Sidings and Silwood (near Surrey Quays), and in extending New Cross Gate Depot for the longer Class 378s. 

Bombardier took to heart LO’s requirement for a high performing, high capacity train when bidding for the contract. Rennoldson explains: “When we were bidding for the West Anglia project it was clear TfL’s focus was on capacity, passenger comfort and reliability.”

TfL’s specification is likely to have been influenced by London’s  continuing growth  and experience on the North and East London Lines, where the Class 378 trains prompted a huge surge in usage.

Rennoldson elaborates: “LO put staff on stations, so people feel safer. The stations are very bright and clean. New trains are introduced and suddenly it becomes much busier. People realise that it’s a comfortable, reliable service and start to use it more.”

Drawing on what has made Class 378 such a success, Class 710 will also feature wider doors and through gangways to help passengers board and alight quicker. 

He says of the technology built into the train: “One thing about the Aventra platform is that it features a lot more equipment for infrastructure monitoring, which means a lot more operational data is available for analysis.

“The trains have overhead line monitoring as a standard feature, and track monitoring equipment is also standard. So the operators don’t need to come and ask us to include it – it’s part of the build now.” That can help Network Rail identify, and fix, any problems much quicker. 

Would the difference in capabilities between the ‘710s’ and the ‘older ‘378s’ cause complications? Is the ‘378’ already too old to be upgraded to current and future specifications?

Rennoldson explains: “The ‘710’ features a system that is functionally very rich and provides an extensive reporting capability, which is very useful for operations. The ‘378’ still reports back a lot of information, but not as much as the Aventra, and operators have expressed an interest in getting additional higher quality data. 

“To that end we’ve been having conversations with operators about what else we can do to the Electrostars to start approaching the functionality of the Aventras. It’s a very hot topic for both passengers and operators.”

He adds: “The Train Control Management System (TCMS) is eminently upgradable.

“We already do a lot of work on the TCMS, which is fitted to all of the Electrostars. We routinely install software updates to the TCMS to improve reliability, but we won’t necessarily develop any additional functionality. If operators require that then they discuss their particular needs with us. Passenger functions are a great example, where some TOCs will come to us and say we’re happy to invest to specifically develop a TCMS data feed or function, to enable key data to be taken off the train quickly. And you could upgrade the entire Electrostar fleet to do that. But is it required for reliability? No. Is it required for rail operation? No. Do operators like it? Yes. If they’re prepared to invest in those options, as it allows them to improve their passenger service, it’s not a problem. 

“It’s like the difference between an older car and a modern car. Modern cars have a lot of new features built into them. With older cars you can retrofit some of those features.”

Is technology moving so fast that trains built five, six, seven years ago are already regarded as dated?

Simmons elaborates: “We built the Aventra platform to accommodate various options, so there’s a degree of flexibility that allows the exchange and upgrade of equipment. We can install whatever the customer wants. It’s a matter of what’s specified in the contract.”

So, the older, vastly successful Electrostar has now been superceded by a new design that will transform the lives of millions of passengers per year. It will be able to do everything expected of a modern train built in the latter half of this decade. Bombardier has invested heavily in the Aventra concept. It’s already paying off in London - and it’s not unlikely that Aventras could become as widely used as Electrostars too.

• This feature was published in RAIL 793 on February 3 2016