Northern Class 195 Civity Fleet
UK (Northern England; Manchester, Liverpool, Barrow-in-Furness, etc.) · 2017–2022 (built), 2019 (first service)
The judgement call
Account-gated at launchThe decision to order new rolling stock was driven by a ministerial direction to phase out Pacer trains, highlighting political and public pressure on fleet modernization. - The selection of CAF, capable of delivering both DMU and EMU variants from the same platform, demonstrated a strategic approach to fleet commonality and cost efficiency. - The incident near Grange-over-Sands, involving a derailment due to defective track, underscores the critical interface between rolling stock performance and infrastructure maintenance. - The focus on a wide and spacious vestibule area with flip-down seats reflects an understanding of passenger flow and capacity management in busy regional services.
Key engineering challenges
Designing and manufacturing a new fleet of diesel multiple units to replace older Pacer trains and enhance passenger experience across Northern England. - Ensuring the Civity platform could be adapted for both diesel (Class 195) and electric (Class 331) variants to simplify maintenance and driver familiarity. - Implementing modern passenger amenities such as air conditioning, power sockets, Wi-Fi, and improved passenger information systems. - Addressing structural issues, such as cracks on yaw damper brackets, which required investigation and management to ensure long-term reliability.
Project facts
- Client / owner
- Eversholt Rail Group (owner); Northern Trains (operator)
- Lead contractor
- CAF (Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles)
- Lead designers
- CAF
- Project type
- vehicle/fleet programme
- Scale
- 58 units (25 x 2-car Class 195/0, 33 x 3-car Class 195/1); 2-car unit length: 48.05 m; 3-car unit length: 71.40 m; Max speed: 100 mph (160 km/h); Power output: 390 kW (520 hp) per engine (2 or 3 engines per unit)
- Disciplines
- Mechanical; Electrical; Systems; Software
- Standards & frameworks
- UK railway standards
Sources: British Rail Class 195 - Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Rail_Class_195) - Rail Engineer: Northern's trains from Spain (https://www.railengineer.co.uk/northerns-trains-from-spain/) - Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) report on Grange-over-Sands derailment (implied by Wikipedia content)