Transport Secretary unveils major investment in passenger rail for north of England

摘要

Investment approaching a quarter of a billion pounds in passenger rail travel in the north of England, and the creation of 100 new jobs, has been formally unveiled today by the Rt. Hon. Douglas Alexander MP, Secretary of State for Transport. The official opening of Siemens' new ￡30 million train maintenance depot, along with an exclusive introduction to the first of the ￡200 million fleet of 51 Siemens-built 185 Pennine Class trains for First TransPennine Express, took place at the site of the new depot in Ardwick, Manchester. The entire project is the culmination of a successful partnership approach between the government, fleet owner HSBC Rail, train manufacturer and maintainer Siemens Transportation Systems and service operator First TransPennine Express. The Ardwick depot will be complemented later this year by another ￡10m maintenance facility currently being built in York. These investments, along with the new trains, will help to transform the quality of service for passengers on the strategically important TransPennine routes.