New ‘730s’ enter service on Birmingham’s Cross-City line

The first of the new Alstom Aventra Class 730 trains has entered passenger service on Birmingham’s busy Cross-City Line.

The line carries millions of passengers each year, and prior to the COVID pandemic was suffering from serious overcrowding.

Train operator West Midlands Railway (WMR) said the introduction of the Class 730 fleet represents the start of a new era for rail travel on the line, which connects Birmingham with destinations including Lichfield, Redditch and Bromsgrove.

They are designed to carry a third more passengers than the Class 323s they’re replacing. The latter are now 30 years old and have been a workhorse of the West Midlands region since their introduction in the mid-1990s.

The Class 730 fleet comprises 48 three-carriage trains in total, making a total of 144 new vehicles. Features include a spacious interior with walk-through carriages, accessible toilets, and WiFi and power points at every seat.

The new trains were originally due to enter service around three years ago, but COVID and technical issues at train maker Alstom delayed delivery. Further delays have been encountered as a result of the current industrial action on the railways.

The Class 730s will be phased into service on the Cross-City Line over the spring and summer months, as the Class 323s are withdrawn from service.

This means that the line will be served by a mixture of Class 730s and Class 323s for the next few months, with the transition expected to be fully complete by the autumn.

West Midlands Railway Managing Director Ian McConnell said: “The rollout of the Class 730s onto this key Birmingham commuter route is a vital part of our £1 billion investment in new trains and infrastructure, as we continue modernising our rail network.”

It is expected to run these trains on other occasions in the summer.