A brand new fleet of trains for a brand new train company has come a step closer, with London Midland signing a deal with Bombardier and train leasing company Porterbrook for 12 2-car trains and 15 3-car Turbostar trains.

The new trains, known as Class 172, are part of the multi million pound investment London Midland is making in new trains in the first years of its new franchise which started on 11th November.

These new trains will be the second new fleet the company will introduce and will replace some of the oldest trains in the current fleet, the Class 150s which operate on the London Midland City routes in the West Midlands. Manufacturers Bombardier will produce the light, modern diesel trains in Derby. The new fleet will boast state of the art technology as well as environmental advances.

London Midland Managing Director Steve Banaghan says the deal will bring a whole new quality of service for passengers in the West Midlands:

"We are very pleased to be able to confirm the order for new trains for London Midland today. This is part of the £243 million we are spending in order to bring our passengers a more reliable, more comfortable and more modern rail service. When we launched the franchise three weeks ago, we promised to take our passengers somewhere new - and that means a new generation of trains.

"The new Turbostars are efficient, reliable, comfortable and set new standards for environmental performance, both in their manufacture and in their operations."

The new Turbostar trains are due to come into service in two years' time. From the end of next year, London Midland will be introducing its first new fleet, the Class 350 "Desiro" trains, which will operate on the longer distance London Midland Express routes to London, Birmingham and Liverpool.

------------------------

What Bombardier have to say on the story -

Bombardier Transportation has won a major order for its next generation “Green Trains”. The contract is for 12 2-car trains and 15 3-car trains worth 129 million euros ($189 million US) and is from Porterbrook Leasing for train operator Govia for services on the London Midland franchise. The units will be delivered between Q1 2010 and with the final delivery by the end of Q2 2010.

Commenting on the order, President of Bombardier’s Mainline & Metros Division, Stephane Rambaud-Measson, said: “I am delighted that Bombardier has won this important contract for our next generation DMU Class 172 vehicle. This vehicle will be the lightest modern DMU in its class and will meet the very latest standards in emissions. Using the modular platform of our award winning TURBOSTAR train, Bombardier is able to make step changes in technology and environmental attributes of the vehicle, whilst providing the financiers and operators with a proven, low-risk, and reliable product.”

Production of the new TURBOSTAR trains will take place in Bombardier’s Derby plant, with bogies being produced at Bombardier’s Siegen site in Germany. The units will feature the renowned, sophisticated BOMBARDIER MITRAC system, offering proven reliability and energy efficiency and offering applications to secure safe and economically optimized traction power.

Colin Walton, Chairman of Bombardier in the UK, added: “Our new Green Trains, the next generation of TURBOSTAR trains, provide an environmentally-friendly product with lower weight, reduced CO2 emissions, lower fuel consumption and the trains are made with over 90% recyclable materials. This order will allow us to re-start our TURBOSTAR production line providing much welcomed work for our Derby site. The new TURBOSTAR trains would also be an ideal replacement for the aging “Pacer” trains in the UK and I will be discussing this possibility with the operators of the Pacers in the near future.”

Stephen Banaghan, Managing Director of London Midland said: ”The new TURBOSTAR trains are good news for London Midland passengers. The trains will completely transform the travelling experience of people who are currently using the ageing Class 150s in the West Midlands, and will also assist us is meeting our targets for continuous improvement in punctuality and reliability.”

Porterbrook Managing Director, Paul Francis, said “This will be the twenty fifth order that Porterbrook has placed for TURBOSTAR trains bringing our fleet to circa five hundred vehicles. This demonstrates our confidence in the product and we are delighted to be working with London Midland and Bombardier to develop the next generation of TURBOSTAR trains in the Class 172. With lower weight, better fuel efficiency and lower emissions the new train will help in improving further the environmental and sustainability benefits of rail”