An initial 30 four-car Class 321 electric multiple units will be rebuilt with revamped interiors by Wabtec Rail, in a £60 million deal.
Owned by Eversholt Rail and used by Abellio Greater Anglia, the ‘321s’ will be rebuilt in a similar fashion to 321448, which was released into traffic at the end of 2013.
Branded the Renatus, the rebuilt trains will undergo a time-based overhaul where they will be fitted with Passengers of Reduced Mobility - Technical Specification for Interoperability (PRM-TSI)-compliant interiors. Eversholt spokesman Wendy Filer told RAIL: “Engineering work has already commenced, and the first unit is due into works later in 2015.”
- For more on this story, see RAIL 776, published on June 10.
Andrewjgwilt1989 - 07/06/2015 13:16
As Abellio Greater Anglia will not be getting brand new commuter trains but instead to keep the 94x Class 321's and 72x Class 317's (except Class 317/7/8's are with London Overground if TFL are to order more Class 378 Electrostars for the West Anglia metro and Romford-Upminster lines). Class 321's do need a lot of refurbishment and to have new floors, seats, lights, doors, traction motors and also to be air-conditioned with new air-conditioning vents fitted on top of the trains carriages as well replacing the windows with double glazed windows and air-vents by side of the windows for extra air-conditioning. The Class 321's are 32 years old but they are still very good reliable electric multiple unit trains that serves most parts of Essex and into Ipswich to/from London Liverpool Street.