A range of improvements are being made to trains on the Cross City line

Trains on the Cross City line (Lichfield - Birmingham - Redditch/Bromsgrove) are currently undergoing a major overhaul, to improve the experience for passengers on the line.

The trains are having a fully accessible toilet fitted, along with upgraded passenger information screens, new seat covers and a deep clean of the interior.

The improvements will help make travelling on the route easier for those requiring accessible facilities, and will bring the inside of the units up to modern standards, after 25 years of operating on the route.

The first Class 323 unit from the line to undergo this work re-entered service today (22 Feb).

Work will be undertaken on all Class 323 units operating on the Cross City line, and is due to be completed next year (2020).

Neil Bamford, engineering director for West Midlands Railway, said: “We are committed to improving the experience for passengers using our services. The installation of fully accessible toilets on the Cross City line is an important step in providing an improved experience for all. While this work is being completed, we are also taking the opportunity to have a major internal overhaul done on the trains. Once the project is complete, all passengers on the line will also benefit from up to date information screens, as well as a refreshed interior on these trains.”

Below are photos from the first completed unit (323217).

*For more photos, see the attached images

ENDS

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About West Midlands Trains

For further information on this release, call our press office on 03300 955150 or email press.office@wmtrains.co.uk

West Midlands Trains operates both West Midlands Railway and London Northwestern Railway services.

London Northwestern Railway services operate between Liverpool and Birmingham, and on the West Coast mainline to and from London Euston.

West Midlands Railway services operate to destinations across the West Midlands via Birmingham New Street.

For more information on these services visit westmidlandsrailway.co.uk or londonnorthwesternrailway.co.uk

The West Midlands Trains franchise started on 10 December 2017 and will run until 2025/26.

West Midlands Trains operates 1,300 services a day, manages 150 stations and provides over 70 million passenger journeys a year. Over the course of the franchise, West Midlands Trains will be investing £1 billion into the rail network to deliver new trains, improved routes and station upgrades. This will include 400 new train carriages across the network and space for an extra 85,000 passengers into Birmingham and London at peak times.

The franchise is a joint venture between Abellio (70.1% share) and East Japan Railway Company / Mitsui & Co., Ltd (29.9% share in a 50:50 split). Abellio is the international passenger transport subsidiary of the Dutch national railway company, Nederlandse Spoorwegen. In the UK, Abelllio operates ScotRail and Greater Anglia train services, Merseyrail services in a joint venture with Serco and buses through Abellio London. For more information visit www.abellio.com

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