Manufacturer Hitachi Rail Constructed 2015- | Family name A-Train | |
 | ||
In service Due to enter service in December 2017 Built at Kasado, Japan
Newton Aycliffe (UK) Replaced Class 156
Class 158
Class 170
Class 314 | ||
The Class 385 is an electric multiple unit being built by Hitachi Rail for Abellio ScotRail. A total of 70 units are planned to be built, divided into 46 three-car and 24 four-car sets. The new trains are being procured to operate services on newly electrified lines in the Central Belt on a mixture of both suburban and inter-urban routes.
Contents
History
In October 2014, immediately after being awarded the ScotRail franchise, Abellio, a subsidiary of the Dutch national rail operator Nederlandse Spoorwegen, announced that it had concluded an agreement with the Japanese manufacturer Hitachi Rail to procure 234 new EMU carriages from its AT-200 product series for use on routes in Scotland that were being electrified. These new trains, which will be formed into a mix of three and four-car units, are intended to operate along the main Glasgow to Edinburgh via Falkirk Line from September 2017, and across Central Scotland. The electrification programme, and purchase of new EMUs to operate services, will allow a subsequent cascade of the diesel multiple units currently used elsewhere on the network.
The order for the new EMUs was the first operator-based purchase of a Hitachi product for use in the UK following the IEP procurement, and its subsequent construction of its new facility at Newton Aycliffe in County Durham. The bulk of the new fleet will be constructed there, with the first seven units being built at Hitachi's main factory in Kasado, Japan. Construction of the first units began in November 2015, the first units were delivered in December 2016 and service entry is scheduled for September 2017.
An additional ten 3-car units will be purchased by Abellio if Transport Scotland exercise the option to extend the Scotrail contract from 7 to 10 years. These units would enter service in 2023.
Operation
The Class 385 units are primarily intended for services originating from both Edinburgh and Glasgow. The main operation will be on the Glasgow to Edinburgh via Falkirk line, which is the principal and fastest route between Scotland's two major cities and is now electrified under the Edinburgh to Glasgow Improvement Programme due for completion by December 2016.
The new trains will also operate on the newly electrified Croy, Dunblane and Shotts lines as well as replacing existing stock on the currently electrified Carstairs, North Berwick and Cathcart Circle Lines. This will allow for the replacement of ScotRail's Class 314 fleet, and allow for the cascading of a number of Class 156, Class 158 and Class 170 units.
Fleet details
1: ^ Conditional on Abellio ScotRail franchise being extended.