New plans to replace inter- city train fleet
SCOTRAIL’S fleet of inter- city trains is due to be overhauled after ministers announced procurement plans for new vehicles.
Transport Scotland said on Tuesday the process to secure the new locomotives had begun, but cost and timescale for their delivery remain unknown, with a procurement notice due in the next few weeks and a “detailed timetable” to be announced when the contract is awarded.
The project will pursue a replacement for the High Speed Train ( HST) fleet operating on its routes between Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and Inverness.
In 2018 – when ScotRail was owned by Dutch company Abellio before being taken into public ownership – the current stock were introduced following a
£ 54 million refurbishment of older trains.
Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop said the procurement could facilitate a move from diesel to electric trains.
She said: “Over four million passenger journeys were made on InterCity trains in the last year. We want to maintain and where possible, increase that number choosing to go by train between Scotland’s cities.
“We want to replace the current Intercity fleet with trains which provide more comfort and accessibility for passengers on these routes.”
Joanne Maguire, the managing director of ScotRail, said the announcement was “good news for customers”.
Train drivers’ union Aslef heralded the announcement as a win for its members.
“The ( high speed trains) are simply not fit for purpose in the 21st century – whether we’re talking about driver and passenger safety or their environmental footprint,” said Aslef ’ s Scotland organiser, Kevin Lindsay.