The British Rail Class 331 '' Civity'' is a class of electric multiple unit built by CAF, owned by Eversholt Rail Group, and currently operated by

Northern Trains Northern Trains, branded as Northern, (legally Northern Trains Limited) is a publicly owned train operating company in England. It is owned by DfT OLR Holdings for the Department for Transport (DfT), after the previous operator Arriva Rail ...

. A total of 43 units have been built31 three-car units and 12 four-car units. Construction of the trains started in July 2017 and they were phased into service from 1 July 2019.

History

The announcement of the new trains was made by Arriva UK Trains when it was confirmed that it would become the next operator of the Northern franchise from 1 April 2016. CAF were selected by Arriva as they were the only manufacturer able to produce both new diesel () and electric multiple units from the same platform, the '' Civity'', thus increasing familiarity for drivers and reducing maintenance costs once in operation. Bombardier submitted a bid to produce electric units based on their new '' Aventra'' platform, but was unable to offer the matching DMU that Arriva required. Furthermore, Bombardier already had a long order book for ''Aventra'' units and Arriva believed CAF were in a stronger position to guarantee on-time delivery of the units. At the time of placing the order, the £500 million value and 101-unit size made it CAF's largest-ever contract for a European customer. Construction started in July 2017, with the first completed unit being unveiled on 31 January 2018. Testing began in the UK in September 2018, and in March 2019, a four-car Class 331 unit (331111) became the first train to be completed at CAF's Llanwern factory. On 28 June 2019, the new trains were launched by a special service for the media. Regular passenger service with the Class 331 (along with its diesel counterpart, the ) started on 1 July 2019.

Description

Arriva UK Trains stated its aim for a "step-change in quality" for the new trains when compared with older trains in the Northern fleet such as the '' Pacers'' and '' Sprinters''. The interior, layout and driver cab of the Class 331 (EMU) are identical to their sister units, the Class 195 (DMU) with the only difference being power generation and drivetrain. The 331s have a 'doors-at-thirds' arrangement, and a top speed limited to . The units have

air conditioning Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C or AC, is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior environment (sometimes referred to as 'comfort cooling') and in some cases also strictly controlling ...

, power sockets, one toilet per train, open gangways between individual carriages, passenger compartment

CCTV Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly tr ...

, provision for wheelchair passengers and wi-fi system. All trains fitted with an automated audio information system, as well as display screens six in each carriage ensuring all passengers have an unobstructed view to at least one. These screens convey a variety of information from station arrival times and informing alighting passengers when they need to be in a different carriage due to platforms being too short to accommodate the train. Northern selected a "wide and spacious" vestibule area to allow for quicker passenger flows when boarding and disembarking to minimise dwell times which can result in delays. These large spaces around the doors offer a degree of flexibility as to how this space can be used with flip-down seats and standing space in times of overcrowding where the objective is ensuring more passengers can board. The units are not fitted with fixed luggage racks as these often reduce capacity on peak-time commuter trains space is provided around the flip-down seats adjacent to the doors to store luggage and prams thus not impacting on the capacity of the train or safety for passengers wishing to alight or board. The Class 331 electric units are noted for their quick acceleration putting them among the fastest accelerating EMUs in the United Kingdom with a rate of 1.3m/s². This allows the units to accelerate from 0 to in 45seconds - by comparison, the ex-British Rail Class 321/322 units have an acceleration rate of 0.55m/s² and which takes them over 2minutes to attain the same speed. It is envisaged this improved acceleration result in efficiencies and improved punctuality on commuter routes with multiple stops across the Northern network. The units are designed with a projected lifespan of 35years and it is planned they will operate beyond 2050 with maintenance and refurbishment. Other features included are digital seat reservation systemhowever these are to future-proof the train and Northern do not envisage using these on many, if any routes. Although the vast majority of services will operate as three or four-car formations, some three-car units will be doubled up to form six-car services. As a result, they are fitted with Automatic Selective Door Operation (ASDO) for use on routes where station platform lengths are not sufficient to fully accommodate the train. This ASDO is linked to an automated system which informs the passengers through both announcements and the passenger information screens located in each saloon.

Routes

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exis ...

, the Class 331 units replaced the eight and trains operating alongside the fleet of units on / to / and Leeds to stopping services. In the North West, the 331s were deployed on inter-city electrified services from to and services from to Blackpool North. The 331s were also introduced on the to Blackpool North route and the Liverpool Lime Street to Crewe via Manchester Airport - the longest service in Northern's network with 29 stops.

Named units

* 331106 – ''Proud To Be Northern'' * 331110 – ''Proud To Be Northern''

Fleet details

Vehicle numbering

Individual vehicles are numbered in the ranges as follows, with the last three digits of each vehicle number matching those of the unit to which the vehicle belongs: European Vehicle Numbers for the fleet are devised by prefixing the domestic vehicle number with type code 94, country code 70, and a leading zero; "94700...".

Livery illustration

References

External links

{{Civity UK, state=collapsed

331 __NOTOC__ Year 331 ( CCCXXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Bassus and Ablabius (or, less frequently, year 1084 ' ...

CAF multiple units Train-related introductions in 2019 25 kV AC multiple units