Chiltern Railways secures modern trains to transform customer journeys

Chiltern Railways is delighted to share that they have secured newer and more trains to provide more capacity for customers on journeys between London and Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and the West Midlands.

Over the last three years, Chiltern Railways has been working hard to replace its oldest 47-year-old (Mark 3) carriages. These newer trains will enter service on a phased basis early next year and mark a major milestone in our 2030 Vision to modernise and decarbonise Chiltern’s trains, delivering easier, greener, and better journeys for customers.

This is a really positive outcome for Chiltern Railways’ customers and the communities they serve. Chiltern is a high-performing and growing operator, and this decision will support economic growth by delivering high quality and reliable service for its customers.

The newer trains will operate on one of Chiltern’s three main routes, between London and the West Midlands, offering improved reliability and onboard facilities. These include power sockets at every seat, reliable Wi-Fi, First Class carriages, live customer information screens, bike storage and noise-reducing technology for quieter journeys. Crucially, the newer trains meet modern accessibility standards to ensure all customers, especially those with reduced mobility, can travel in comfort.

These modern trains will help strengthen growth and connectivity across the region, building on the £1.5bn in social value Chiltern Railways delivered in 2024.

Next steps and introduction into service:

Chiltern Railways has been working on the business case for newer and more trains for over a year and now have approval from the Department for Transport. This means they can now begin mobilising the newer trains. They expect the newer trains to be introduced gradually over the next 12 months, with the first of them operating from early 2026.

Alongside this, discussions with industry partners continue to confirm the details of additional timetabled services to meet growing demand across the network. They expect to launch these services from December 2026 and will provide further details next year.

Chiltern Railways is making progress with Phase 1 of its plan — improving its existing trains — and Phase 2 — modernising and increasing seating capacity — is now confirmed with today’s announcement. They continue to push on Phase 3 — new battery-electric trains — and the critical infrastructure investments needed for full decarbonisation and a further expansion of services. They are working with Network Rail on an initial business case to introduce battery-electric powered trains powered by partial electrification on short distance London commuter routes and will be in touch with further details in the autumn.

For more information please visit: https://www.chilternrailways.co.uk/more-trains-newer-trains

ENDS