The first unit to be completed during a multi-million pound refurbishment of CrossCountry’s Class 170 ‘Turbostar’ fleet has returned to service with a bold new livery and brighter interior.
Arriva TrainCare is carrying out the refurbishments at its Crewe depot and is being funded by Porterbrook, the UK’s leading rolling stock financier and asset management company, which owns the fleet.
The return of Class 170 unit No. 170101 to CrossCountry’s inter-regional fleet marks a vital milestone in the programme, which will see the refurbishment of 29 trains totalling 80 carriages.
To provide increased capacity and help alleviate crowding on some services, the dedicated First Class section of the trains has been removed.
Other improvements include:
- Replacement of tables, seats, and carpets.
- Fitting new mains and USB plug sockets at all seats.
- Completely repainting inside and outside of all carriages.
- Refreshing the on-board toilets.
- Enhanced passenger information screens with more destination information.
- Increased Standard Class seating with the removal of the First Class area.
- New CCTV and automatic passenger counting equipment.
All Class 170 Turbostars are due to have been refurbished by 2028, and later this year work is due to start on refurbishing CrossCountry’s Voyager fleet.
CrossCountry started leasing the trains in 2007, and will operate inter-regional routes between Cardiff and Nottingham via Birmingham, and between Birmingham and Stansted Airport via Leicester. They will be maintained by West Midlands Trains at its Tyseley depot in Birmingham.
Shiona Rolfe, CrossCountry’s Managing Director expressed the view that it’s fantastic to deliver its first refurbished Turbostar train for passengers on inter-regional routes.
Knowing that these trains provide the bulk of the train service for a good portion of its network, they hope passengers enjoy the significant improvements in convenience and comfort.
Ben Ackroyd, Chief Operating Officer at Porterbrook, commented that as passenger needs evolve, it’s important that their trains do too, which is why they continue to invest in their fleets to ensure they meet customer expectations.
“We’re delighted to be supporting CrossCountry with this significant refurbishment project. The team at our Crewe depot have been working hard to deliver the major fleet overhaul, which will greatly improve the passenger experience – benefitting existing customers at the same time as encouraging even more people to travel on CrossCountry’s services.”
Russell Fletcher, Business Development Director at Arriva TrainCare
