Work is scheduled to commence in 2028 on the UK's first battery-electric trains for long-distance main line services, the Department for Transport (DfT) has announced. The 29 new Adessia Stream trains are expected to enter service in 2034 and will be constructed at Alstom's Litchurch Lane factory in Derby.
The government has stated that an investment of almost £1bn will support more than 350 jobs at Alstom and an additional 6,000 jobs across the UK supply chain. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the new trains would provide "faster, more reliable journeys to the north and thousands of British jobs for the next generation."
The DfT indicated that the trains will contribute to the Transpennine Route Upgrade's objective of increasing capacity by 30%, aiming for thousands of extra seats daily across the Pennines by the early to mid-2030s. Journey times are projected to be reduced by up to 10 minutes between Manchester and Leeds, and up to 14 minutes between Manchester and York.
The new fleet will operate between key northern destinations such as Liverpool Lime Street and Scarborough, Manchester Airport and Saltburn, and Manchester Piccadilly and Hull. The DfT also stated that journeys on the new trains would be "quieter, smoother and more reliable," offering "improved accessibility, more luggage space and onboard Wi-Fi."