A fleet of new, state-of-the-art trains, which will transform the way people travel in and around the city region will be arriving in 2020 as part of a £460 million investment by the Combined Authority.

The new, publicly-owned trains are being manufactured and maintained by Swiss manufacturer, Stadler, and will replace the near 40-year-old fleet that currently runs on the network – one of the oldest in the UK.

They will be safer, faster and more reliable than the ones they replace and transformative for passengers in wheelchairs or with prams, bicycles and luggage.

It’s not just individual passengers who’ll benefit, but the whole city region economy. A better rail service is expected to bring an economic boost of £70 million every year as well as up to 1,000 new jobs.

• Improved accessibility – Thanks to the sliding step technology, it will be easier for everyone to get on and off the trains. This will also make Merseyrail the most accessible traditional network in the country.
• More capacity – the trains will be able to carry more than 50% more passengers while retaining the same number of seats. This will help them better cater for rising passenger numbers, both now and in the future.
• Faster – the trains will be faster, cutting journey times by 10%, up to eight minutes on some end-to-end routes.
• An expanded network – the trains will have the ability to eventually run beyond the current Merseyrail boundaries to places like Skelmersdale, Wrexham and Warrington.

“By 2020, Merseyrail passengers will be travelling in style on board a fleet of new, state-of-the-art trains which will transform travel in Liverpool City Region and, potentially, beyond.

“Merseyrail is one of the top performing networks in the country, despite having to operate 40 year-old trains – the oldest fleet in the country – and so this is a very welcome development for the Liverpool City Region.

“These new trains will be publicly owned, which means that they are being designed specifically to suit our city region’s rail network, with features that local people have said they want to see. They will be better for the city region and better for us all.”