British Rail Class 803

The British Rail Class 803 AT300 is a type of electric multiple unit being built by Japanese rolling stock manufacturer Hitachi for new operator East Coast Trains.[1] Based on the Hitachi A-train design, a total of five 5-car units will be produced.

British Rail Class 803 AT300
Proposed design for the Hitachi Rail class 803
ManufacturerHitachi
Built atHitachi Newton Aycliffe
Family nameA-Train
Entered service2021 (planned)
Number under construction
  • 5 × 5-car sets
Fleet numbers803001–005
Operator(s)East Coast Trains
Line(s) servedEast Coast Main Line
Specifications
Car body constructionAluminium
Maximum speed125 mph (201 km/h)
Electric system(s)25 kV 50 Hz AC overhead lines
Current collection methodPantograph
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge

Background

In 2015, following an announcement from the Office of Rail and Road that it would be allowing open-access operators to bid for additional rail paths on the East Coast Main Line between London and Scotland, FirstGroup put in a proposal to operate open-access services between London and Edinburgh. Under its plan, First would seek to directly compete with existing road, rail and air services by offering all standard class with an average ticket price of approximately £25. The proposal for the new service was approved in May 2016,[2] with it due to commence in October 2021.[3]

In March 2019, First announced that it had signed an agreement with Hitachi to procure a total of 5 new five car trains from its A-Train product line for its East Coast service. These were to be electric AT300 units similar to the Class 801 units obtained for LNER.[4] Unlike the Class 801, another non-bi-mode AT300 variant which despite being designed only for electrified routes carries a diesel engine per unit for emergency use,[5] the new units will not be fitted with any, and so would not be able to propel themselves in the event of a power failure. They will however be fitted with batteries to enable the train's on-board services to be maintained, in case the primary electrical supplies would face a failure.[6] It was announced in November 2019 that they would be classified as Class 803.[7]

The units are financed by Beacon Rail with a 10 year maintenance contract. The first body shell arrived at Hitachi Newton Aycliffe in April 2020.[8]

Operations

East Coast Trains plan to retain only standard class accommodation throughout their new Class 803 units, with no first class accommodation at all. All units will also have on-board buffets, air conditioning, power sockets and free Wi-Fi.[9]

Fleet details
Class Operator No. built Year built Cars per set Unit nos.
Class 803 East Coast Trains 5 2020 5 803001–005

References
  1. "First orders AT300s for ECML open access operation". www.railmagazine.com. Retrieved 2019-12-27.
  2. "Budget East Coast Train Service Is Approved". Sky News. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
  3. "New team and trains for First Rail's new Edinburgh-London service". www.firstgroupplc.com. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
  4. "FirstGroup and Hitachi announce new partnership for high speed trains linking London and Edinburgh". FirstGroup. 21 March 2019. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
  5. "Development of Class 800/801 High-speed Rolling Stock for UK Intercity Express Programme" (PDF). Retrieved 2020-06-21.
  6. Clinnick, Richard (22 March 2019). "First orders AT300s for ECML open access operation". Rail. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
  7. "Enter Classes 803 and 804". Today's Railways UK. Platform 5. December 2019. p. 65.
  8. "[UK] The first FirstGroup AT300 arrives in the UK". Railcolor News. 2020-04-17. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
  9. 2019-03-21T11:14:51+00:00. "Trains ordered for 2021 launch of 'high-quality, low fare' London – Edinburgh service". Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 2019-12-27.
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