TransPennine Express

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Image:185108 3-8-06 - Doncaster.JPG
Franchise(s):	TransPennine Express 1. February 2004 – January 2012
Main region(s):	Pennines
Other region(s):	North-East, Yorkshire, Lancashire, Cumbria
Fleet size:	45 (increasing to 60)
Stations:	67 (30 operated)
Parent company:	First Group/Keolis
Web site:	www.tpexpress.co.uk

TransPennine Express (TPE) is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates regular regional services in the north of England, including services linking the west and east coasts of England across the Pennines. The franchise has been granted for eight years to a joint operation by First Group and Keolis, with an optional extension of five years. It was created by removing the long-distance routes previously operated by Arriva Trains Northern and First North Western and merging them into a single franchise.

Launched on 1 February 2004, its services are split into three routes:

• North TransPennine: services run from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Middlesbrough, Scarborough and Hull, via Leeds and Huddersfield, to Manchester Piccadilly, Manchester Airport, and Liverpool Lime Street
• South TransPennine: services run from Cleethorpes and Grimsby, via Scunthorpe, Doncaster and Sheffield, to Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport
• North West: services from Windermere, Kendal, and Barrow-in-Furness, via Lancaster, Preston, and Bolton, to Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport (which do not cross the Pennines). Additionally, Blackpool to Manchester Airport express services have now become part of TransPennine Express.

[edit] Service patterns

The off-peak weekday service pattern is as below.

[edit] North TransPennine

The core route between Manchester Piccadilly and Leeds sees four trains per hour between the two cities. This is made up of an hourly Liverpool Lime Street to Scarborough service, an hourly Manchester Airport to Newcastle service, an hourly Manchester Airport to Middlesbrough service and an hourly Manchester Piccadilly to Hull service.

The Manchester to Liverpool sector is supplemented by Central Trains hourly service from Norwich to Liverpool, thus giving half hourly fast services between Manchester and Liverpool. Similarly, the service between Leeds and Newcastle is boosted by an hourly Virgin Trains service; York to Newcastle is also supplemented by GNER’s services. Both Virgin and GNER run faster (125mph vs 90mph), but have more restricted stopping patterns. It can be faster for passengers wishing to travel to Durham or Newcastle to change off TransPennine Express at York.

[edit] South TransPennine

An hourly service operates from Manchester Airport to Cleethorpes via Mancester Piccadilly, Stockport, Sheffield, Doncaster and Scunthorpe. The Manchester to Sheffield sector is supplemented by Central Trains hourly Liverpool to Norwich service, thus giving a half hourly fast service frequency between Manchester and Sheffield.

[edit] TransPennine North West

An hourly service operates between Manchester Airport and Lancaster, then continuing every two hours alternating between Barrow-in-Furness and Windermere, the latter via Oxenholme. Combining with Northern Rail’s twice-hourly service, this gives at least three trains per hour between Manchester Piccadilly and Preston. Recently (2006) services between Blackpool and Manchester have also moved to First TransPennine Express, but have yet to be fully integrated into the system (maps, timetables etc). Additionally, the Manchester Piccadilly to Glasgow Central and Edinburgh service, operated by Virgin Trains, runs two-hourly between Manchester Piccadilly, Preston, Lancaster, and Oxenholme.

[edit] Operating information

First TransPennine Express is one of the few train operating companies in the United Kingdom running 24 hours a day, including through New Years Eve night. For example, trains run between York and Manchester Airport at least every two hours every night of the week.

The franchise is currently operated with Class 158 and Class 175 diesel multiple units. In March 2006, new Class 185 units, constructed in Germany by Siemens, entered service, and will eventually take over most services, alleviating some of the chronic overcrowding on certain areas of the network. Once there are enough Class 185 in service, the Class 175 units will be transferred to Arriva Trains Wales, from whom they are currently sub-hired. The Class 175 units are only used west of the Pennines, on the Manchester Airport to Barrow-in-Furness/Windermere trains.

A new depot at Ardwick, about a mile east of Manchester Piccadilly, is nearing completion, and will be the base for the Class 185 fleet. A smaller depot, to provide stabling and lighter maintenance east of the Pennines, is being built at York and at Cleethorpes.

It was planned to operate all services with the new Class 185 units. However, weight restrictions on the Hull-Leeds line mean the Class 185 units are limited to 75mph east of Leeds. To solve this problem and create extra capacity across their network First TransPennine Express will take on the nine-strong, lighter Class 170 Turbostar fleet currently used by South West Trains (SWT) on their Waterloo–Salisbury–Exeter services. In return SWT will receive six surplus Class 158 units from First TransPennine Express which will be upgraded to the same standard as SWT's Class 159 units. The Class 170 Turbostars are to be refurbished to the same standard as the new Class 185 units and will used on Hull services. This move is expected to occur in late 2006/2007.

The state-of-the-art TransPennine Express control centre is in Bridgewater House, Manchester. The previous Arriva control centre was at York, and is now the Northern Rail control centre.

New units are being delivered in the new First Great Western -style ‘neon’ livery. The first eight units were sent over in First’s old livery, and are were converted to the new one (see the photograph at the beginning of this article) using vinyl wraps. This is due to a change of heart on the original First Rail livery which was widely agreed as being 'dull'.

[edit] Future services

The realignment of franchises that will occur in 2007 will see the current Central Trains franchise split between three new franchises. Central Trains' current Citylink service between Norwich and Liverpool will become the responsibility of the East Midlands franchise. However, due to the significant distance of this route, there is a proposal that it be split in two, with Nottingham as the intermediate terminus, should this prove to be better in terms of punctuality and value for money. The East Midlands franchise would control the Norwich-Nottingham service, with TransPennine Express taking over the Nottingham-Liverpool service.

On 31st October 2006, it was announced that from December 2007, subject to contract, Transpennine Express will operate frequent services between Manchester Airport and Glasgow/Edinburgh, replacing the current Manchester Picadilly-Scotland service provided by Virgin Cross Country. It was announced that the 100 mph Class 185s would be used to run the services, replacing the faster Class 220s and 221s currently used by Virgin, although there is currently much debate over whether they will have enough units to cover a frequent service to Scotland. There is some rumour regarding the aquistion of class 180s from First Great Western, which become available in December 2007.

In 2005, the company considered introducing a couple of High Speed Trains on the Manchester Piccadilly–Newcastle routes, to cope with high passenger numbers during the Royal Ascot at York event, but this was deemed to be too expensive.

A major uncertainty at the moment is if the 3-car 185 fleet cope will be able to cope with the growth in passenger numbers in the future. The addition of a fourth coach into some of the new trains is a possibility and has mentioned regularly by many sources, but the government are still assessing First TransPennine Express's long-term viability before any more money is committed to the franchise.

[edit] Name Change

From 10 December 2004, TransPennine Express changed its name to First TransPennine Express. However from November 2006 this is being changed back to Transpennine Express following complaints from Keolis.

[edit] External links

• Official web site
• Photographs of TransPennine Express trains from freefoto.com

Categories: Post-privatisation British railway companies | First Group railway companies | First Group Companies