British Rail Class 197

The British Rail Class 197 Civity[1] is a class of diesel multiple unit passenger train which will be built for Transport for Wales by Spanish rolling stock manufacturer CAF. A total of 77 units are to be built, comprising 51 two-car units and 26 three-car units.[4] Externally, these trains will look like a hybrid of both previous Civity UK designs; the Class 196 units that are being built for West Midlands Trains and Northern's Class 195 units. The layout of doors and windows along each side will be similar to the Class 195, but the cab ends will be fitted with unit-end gangways like the Class 196. Additionally, the three types can be distinguished by livery (due to being procured by different operators) and the fact that no 3-car Class 196s or 4-car 195s/197s have been ordered.

British Rail Class 197 Civity
In servicedue from 2022[1]
ManufacturerCAF
Built atBeasain, Spain (bodyshells)
Newport, South Wales (final assembly)
Family nameCivity
Replaced
Constructed2020 -[2]
Number under construction77 units to be built
Formation51 x 2-car units
26 x 3-car units
Fleet numbersTBC
Capacity116 seats (2-car)[3]
188 seats (3-car std. only)[3]

158 seats standard class
16 seats first class (3-car with first class section)[3]
Operator(s)Transport for Wales
Depot(s)Chester TMD
Machynlleth TMD
Cardiff Canton TMD
Specifications
Train length48.052 m (157.65 ft) (2-car)
71.402 m (234.26 ft) (3-car)
Car length24.026 m (78.83 ft) (driving cars)
23.35 m (76.6 ft) (intermediate cars)[3]
Doors1/3 - 2/3 layout[3]
Maximum speed100 mph (161 km/h)
Multiple workingWithin class
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) (Standard Gauge)

History

The current Wales & Borders rail franchise, operated by KeolisAmey, commenced on 14 October 2018. During the franchise period, the operator will oversee a full fleet replacement.[5] A batch of 77 brand new diesel multiple units (DMUs) has been ordered from CAF to form part of the replacement fleet (which also includes other new fleets and a small number of trains cascaded from other UK operators). It was announced that final assembly for these new DMUs would take place at CAF’s factory in Newport and that they would join the fleet between 2021 and 2023.[6]

In 2019, the class numbers for TfW's various new fleets were revealed, with the 77 DMUs identified as Class 197s.[7]

The first Class 197 Driving Motor carriage vehicle bodyshell had been assembled, welded and painted in Beasain, Spain by 12 February 2020; the bodyshells will be shipped to Newport for fitment of all components.

Operators

Transport for Wales

When built, Transport for Wales intend to deploy the Class 197 fleet to replace Class 158 and Class 175 units which operate various regional and regional express routes between Wales and England, such as the Cambrian Lines. They are also expected to replace Class 150/Class 153 units on the Conwy Valley line and allow extension of Liverpool Lime Street to Chester services into North Wales and south to Cardiff Central. 21 of the 2-car units will be fitted with ETCS signalling equipment to enable them to operate on the Cambrian lines; since late 2010, only ETCS-fitted trains can operate over the route.[8]

Fleet details
Class Operator Number Year Built Cars Unit nos.
Class 197 Transport for Wales 51 2020- 2 TBC–TBC
26 3 TBC–TBC

Variants

Four variants of the Class 197 have been ordered; it is not yet known whether these will be given separate subclasses. The planned fleet breakdown is as follows:

  • 21 units formed of 2 carriages (one DMSL and one DMS) and fitted with ETCS to allow operation on the Cambrian Lines[9]
  • 30 units formed of 2 carriages (one DMSL and one DMS)
  • 14 units formed of 3 carriages (one DMSL, one MSL and one DMC)[3] primarily for use between Swansea and Manchester – the DMC (Driving Motor Composite) carriage will contain a small first class section
  • 12 units formed of 3 carriages (one DMSL, one MSL and one DMS)

Specification controversy

In January 2020, it was revealed that franchise holder Keolis Amey Operations had specified Fainsa Comrail seats for the Class 197s, which are fitted to Thameslink’s Class 700 trains and Northern’s Class 195 units. The seats are described by some as "ironing boards" due to their hardness and have been criticised as uncomfortable to sit in for extended periods of time. The government-owned Transport for Wales intervened with £1.9m of additional funding to allow the specification to be changed.[10] Following this intervention, the Class 197s will now be fitted with Fainsa Sophia seats instead of the Fainsa Comrails originally planned,[11] despite the fact that the Class 800/1 IETs for Great Western Railway and LNER, which are fitted with Sophia seats, have still come under fire[12] for their uncomfortable seats. [13]

The Class 197 trains will also have fewer toilets than the Class 158 and Class 175 trains they are intended to replace. Both the 158s and the 175s have a toilet in every carriage (ie. 2 toilets per 2-car unit and 3 toilets per 3-car unit).[3] The Class 197s will have only 1 toilet in each 2-car unit and 2 toilets on a 3-car unit, meaning they will fail to meet the rail industry’s minimum standards for inter-urban services (which set a limit of 85 seats per toilet, which compares to 116 seats per toilet on a 2-car Class 197).[14] While TfW have claimed that this downgrade is “in line with toilet provision on new fleets being delivered to other operators”,[15] TransPennine Express have recently introduced new ‘Nova’ trains (Class 802, Class 397 and Mark 5A coaches) with less than 85 seats per toilet.[16]

TfW have claimed that ‘carriages will be bright, airy with open window space. We have carefully chosen a layout to ensure that customers have a comfortable journey, and, where possible, this includes aligning seats with windows so that customers can enjoy the beautiful countryside.’ [17] However, the published seat plans show at least one table with the view almost entirely blocked by a window pillar and many other seats with a restricted view.[18] This is because TfW chose the default window and door layout also used on Northern's Class 195 units, rather than specifying the improved window and door layout like West Midlands Trains did for their Class 196 units.

Liveries
Transport for Wales Class 197 2-car
Transport for Wales Class 197 3-car

See also

References
  1. @tfwrail (2 December 2019). "First up, our new Wales and Borders diesel trains, which are being assembled here in Wales, will be Class 197. These will enter service throughout the TfW network from 2022" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. "Trains for Wales under construction". Rail Business UK. DVV Media International. 2 December 2020. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  3. "Table 2B - Rolling Stock Minimum Requirements and Specifications - Sprinter / Rural Service Type" (PDF). Transport for Wales. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  4. Clinnick, Richard. "CAF confirmed for new Welsh franchise - all 77 trains to be assembled at Newport". Rail Magazine. Rail Magazine. Retrieved 20 March 2019.
  5. "KeolisAmey reveal new-look Wales trains and services". BBC News. BBC. 4 June 2018. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
  6. Barry, Sion (4 June 2018). "How Wales' railways will be transformed with new stations, trains and jobs through investment worth billions". WalesOnline. Cardiff: Reach. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  7. "Transport for Wales - Meet The Fleet". Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  8. https://web.archive.org/web/20110929042530/http://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/content/Detail.aspx?ReleaseID=5009&NewsAreaID=2 Cambrian ETCS fitment
  9. Clark, Rhodri (23 April 2020). "Concern about '197' interior spec". Modern Railways. Key Publishing Ltd. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  10. Clark, Rhodri. "Taxpayers pay 2m for 'better' seats". Wales Online. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  11. Clark, Rhodri (23 April 2020). "Concern about '197' interior spec". Modern Railways. Key Publishing Ltd. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  12. "No 'ironing board' seats on our trains, says Greater Anglia". Railnews.co.uk. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  13. "In photos: A trip on the new GWR Intercity Express trains – and my verdict". Urban75. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  14. Clark, Rhodri (23 April 2020). "Concern about '197' interior spec". Modern Railways. Key Publishing Ltd. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  15. Clark, Rhodri (23 April 2020). "Concern about '197' interior spec". Modern Railways. Key Publishing Ltd. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  16. "Train Seating Plans". TransPennine Express. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  17. Clark, Rhodri (23 April 2020). "Concern about '197' interior spec". Modern Railways. Key Publishing Ltd. Retrieved 3 October 2020.
  18. "Transport for Wales defend new Welshpool trains". My Welshpool. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
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