Hull Trains is an

open-access Open access (OA) is a set of principles and a range of practices through which research outputs are distributed online, free of access charges or other barriers. With open access strictly defined (according to the 2001 definition), or libre op ...

railway operator in England owned by the multinational transport company

FirstGroup FirstGroup plc is a British multi-national transport group, based in Aberdeen, Scotland.Hull /

Beverley Beverley is a market town, market and minster (church), minster town and a civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, of which it is the county town. The town centre is located south-east of York's centre ...

and London King's Cross. It has a track-access agreement until December 2032. Hull Trains was originally established in 1999 in the aftermath of the

privatisation of British Rail The privatisation of British Rail was the process by which ownership and operation of the railways of Great Britain passed from government control into private hands. Begun in 1994, it had been completed by 1997. The deregulation of the industr ...

in response to the low volume of trains between Hull and London King's Cross operated by the incumbent franchise. Their initial track-access agreement was granted in December 1999, permitting operations to be launched on 25 September 2000. Hull Trains' track-access agreement has been extended multiple times since commencing operations. Ownership was originally divided between an 80 percent stake held by the

train operating company A train operating company (TOC) is a business operating Passenger Trains, passenger trains on the Rail transport in Great Britain, railway system of Great Britain under the collective National Rail brand. TOCs have existed since the Privatisation ...

(TOC)

GB Railways GB Railways was the parent company of a number of train operating companies, running the Anglia Railways franchise from January 1997 and launching Hull Trains and GB Railfreight. GB Railways was also involved in the management of the Estonian r ...

, while the former

British Rail British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...

managers Mike Jones and John Nelson held the remainder. A majority stake in the company was acquired by FirstGroup in August 2003, leading to its rebranding as ''First Hull Trains'' five years later. FirstGroup made it a wholly-owned subsidiary by buying out the other shareholder in the venture during August 2014; that same year, the Hull Trains name was readopted. Hull Trains initially ran three services per day, this was progressively expanded in response to passenger numbers to as many as seven services per day by December 2006. In addition to increasing service frequency, the number of cars per train was also raised to boost capacity. Hull Trains initially operated a small fleet of three-car Class 170 ''Turbostar''

diesel multiple unit A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple-unit train powered by on-board diesel engines. A DMU requires no separate locomotive, as the engines are incorporated into one or more of the carriages. Diesel-powered single-unit railcars are also ...

s (DMUs); six years later, it exchanged these for four-car Class 222 ''Pioneer'' DMUs, followed by several five-car Class 180 ''Adelante'' DMUs and

InterCity 125 The InterCity 125 (originally Inter-City 125New trai ...

HST sets. Early services were limited to a maximum speed of , the introduction of the Class 222 enabled speeds to be raised to . , all of Hull Trains' services are operated a fleet of five Class 802 ''Paragon''

bi-mode multiple unit An electro-diesel multiple unit (EDMU) or bi-mode multiple unit (BMU) is a form of a multiple unit that can be powered either by electric power picked up from the overhead lines or third rail (like an electric multiple unit – EMU) or by u ...

s (BMUs). In 2020 and 2021, multiple temporarily suspensions of service were enacted due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Regular services were resumed on 12 April 2021.

History

In 1999, there was only one through train per day each way between Hull and London King's Cross, GNER's '' Hull Executive''. During May 1999, former

managers Mike Jones and John Nelson lodged an application to operate an

service through their Renaissance Trains business. A

joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acces ...

was formed with the

(TOC)

, which took an 80% shareholding, while Jones and Nelson each held a 10% stake in the new entity. In December 1999, a four-year track-access agreement was granted to Hull Trains by the

Office of Rail Regulation The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the economic and safety regulation of Britain's railways, and the economic monitoring of National Highways. ORR regulates Network Rail by setting its ...

. According to rail industry periodical ''Rail Express'', the application had been vigorously resisted by the incumbent train operators, such as

West Anglia Great Northern West Anglia Great Northern, commonly shortened to ''WAGN'', was a train operating company in England. It operated the West Anglia Great Northern franchise between January 1997 and March 2004, as well as the Great Northern franchise between Apri ...

. Furthermore, national infrastructure owner

Railtrack Railtrack was a group of companies that owned the track, signalling, tunnels, bridges, level crossings and all but a handful of the stations of the British railway system from 1994 until 2002. It was created as part of the privatisation of ...

had allegedly demonstrated a poor ability in identifying potential paths for the service. In Hull Trains' favour was the support of several prominent figures, including

members of parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

, who were keen to support an initiative that would provide Hull with improved transportation. On 25 September 2000, Hull Trains officially launched its operations with its first service departing King's Cross station. Early passenger numbers were encouraging. However, an early blow to the company came in the form of widespread disruption resulting from the

Hatfield rail crash The Hatfield rail crash was a railway accident on 17 October 2000, at Hatfield, Hertfordshire. It was caused by a metal fatigue-induced derailment, killing four people and injuring more than 70. The accident exposed major stewardship shortcomi ...

; months of speed limitations and temporary line closures heavily impacted services, albeit softened somewhat by compensation payments for lost income issued by Railtrack. In its first year of operation, Hull Trains reportedly carried roughly 80,000 passengers. During September 2002, Hull Trains' track-access agreement was extended by ten years. In August 2003, through the purchase of GB Railways by the British transport conglomerate

FirstGroup FirstGroup plc is a British multi-national transport group, based in Aberdeen, Scotland. In June 2008, Hull Trains was rebranded as ''First Hull Trains'', as well as adopting FirstGroup's corporate blue, pink and white colours as its livery. During January 2009, the firm's access rights were extended until December 2014, and in February 2010, these rights were further extended until December 2016. That same year, its services comprised 1.25 million seats annually. In August 2014, FirstGroup purchased the remaining 20% shareholding in the business. In January 2015, the track access agreement was extended until December 2019. That same year, the firm also resumed trading as Hull Trains. During March 2016, First Hull Trains obtained approval for a further 10-year open-access agreement until 2029, allowing it to proceed with ordering five Class 802 electro-diesel multiple-unit trains which had been announced by the operator on 3 September 2015. In 2017, Hull Trains was named as the Best UK Train Operator, having scored 97% satisfaction rate for its services, according to the National Rail Passenger Survey. At late March 2020, Hull Trains temporarily suspended all services due to the

. Throughout the pandemic, there was concern that the company would be unable to survive without help from the government. However, Hull Trains was able to resume services on 21 August 2020. In October 2020, a three-year extension on Hull Trains' access rights was granted. Following the implementation of a second lockdown directed by the British government, Hull Trains announced on 2 November 2020 that it would once again be temporarily suspending all services from 5 November 2020. After the second lockdown ended, Hull Trains resumed service on 3 December 2020 with a limited timetable. Following a third lockdown's implementation, Hull Trains announced on 5 January 2021 that it would be once again temporarily suspending all services from 9 January 2021. Regular services were resumed on 12 April 2021. In August 2021 the track access agreement was extended until December 2032.

Services

Hull Trains operates up to five daily return services between Hull and London King's Cross on weekdays and a twice-daily service between

and King's Cross. At weekends there are five daily services between Hull and King's Cross only. Hull Trains began operating three services per day on 25 September 2000. In December 2002, a fourth daily service started, followed by a fifth in May 2004, a sixth in May 2005, and a seventh in December 2006. On 4 February 2015, one service per weekday was extended from Hull to

in each direction. In December 2015, one service was extended to Beverley at weekends. In May 2019, a further service in each direction was extended from Hull to Beverley on weekdays.

Expansion proposals

In 2008, First Hull Trains applied for track access rights to run services between

Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor at ...

and London King's Cross via

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

under the

First Harrogate Trains First Harrogate Trains was a proposed open access operator with ambitions to run passenger services between Harrogate and London King's Cross via York. The company proposed to run from Harrogate to London King's Cross with up to four services ...

banner and from

Cleethorpes Cleethorpes () is a seaside town on the estuary of the Humber in North East Lincolnshire, England with a population of 38,372 in 2020. It has been permanently occupied since the 6th century, with fishing as its original industry, then develo ...

to King's Cross via

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincol ...

and Spalding. In January 2009, the Office of Rail Regulation released its decisions on the ECML route planning and rejected First Harrogate Trains' application.

Rolling stock

Current fleet

In September 2015, Hull Trains announced a £60million order for five new five-car bi-mode high-speed trains from

Hitachi () is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Ni ...

with seating for 320 people. In its proposed track access application, Hull Trains confirmed that these would be Class 802s. In August 2019, Hull Trains announced that it would branding its new trains as the 'Paragon' fleet. The first unit entered service on 5 December 2019, with the Class 180 fleet not seeing service again following service suspension on 19 March 2020 due to the

. In the Class 802 units, Coach A is standard seating with wheelchair accommodation, Coach B and Coach C are both standard seating, Coach D is both standard- and first-class seating and Coach E is completely first-class seating with wheelchair accommodation. In response to customer requests, the units do not have a cafe bar compared to the Class 180 units they replaced.

Past fleet

Hull Trains 222 approaches Doncaster on 4th September 2007

When Hull Trains was initially established, one early obstacle was a shortage of viable rolling stock.

Brush Traction Brush Traction is a manufacturer and maintainer of railway locomotives in Loughborough, England. It is a subsidiary of Wabtec. History Hughes's Locomotive & Tramway Engine Works Henry Hughes had been operating at the Falcon Works since t ...

was approached with a request to build additional Class 43 power cars, but this provide to be uneconomic due to the need for extensive updates to comply with up-to-date safety legislation; instead, successful negotiations were completed to lease 3-car Class 170 ''Turbostars'' from sister

company

Anglia Railways Anglia Railways was a train operating company in England, owned by GB Railways and later FirstGroup, that operated the Anglia franchise from January 1997 until March 2004. History The InterCity Anglia franchise was awarded by the Director of P ...

. When Hull Trains commenced operations on 25 September 2000, it was exclusively operating a fleet of Class 170. There was at least one occurrence of an Anglia Railways Class 86 and

Mark 2 Mark 2 is the second chapter of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. In this chapter, the first arguments between Jesus and other Jewish religious teachers appear. Jesus heals a paralyzed man and forgives his sins, m ...

set operating as far as

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

. When the

Strategic Rail Authority The Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom set up under the Transport Act 2000 to provide strategic direction for Rail transport in the United Kingdom, the railway industry. Its motto was 'Brita ...

changed its policy on allowing

assets to be hired out, Hull Trains needed to acquire its own fleet. It ordered four 3-car Class 170 ''Turbostars'', the first entering service in March 2004. These were intended only as an interim solution as four 4-car Class 222 ''Pioneers'' were ordered at the same time, but because the former were part of a speculative order already placed by

Porterbrook Porterbrook is a British rolling stock company (ROSCO), created as part of the privatisation of British Rail. Together with Angel Trains and Eversholt Rail Group, it is one of the three original ROSCOs. Porterbrook was established in March 19 ...

they would be available in time. The Class 170 ''Turbostars'' entered service in March 2004. It was planned that after being replaced, they would then be used on new services, but these services were never introduced, so the Class 170 trains were transferred to

First ScotRail First ScotRail was a train operating company in Scotland owned by FirstGroup which operated the ScotRail franchise from October 2004 until March 2015. Prior to October 2004, trains were run by ScotRail (National Express). First ScotRail was s ...

. The Class 222 ''Pioneers'' entered service from May 2005. Their introduction allowed for the maximum speed of Hull Trains' services to be increased from , both shortening journey times and being more easy to slot around high speed services on the

East Coast Main Line The East Coast Main Line (ECML) is a electrified railway between London and Edinburgh via Peterborough, Doncaster, York, Darlington, Durham and Newcastle. The line is a key transport artery on the eastern side of Great Britain running broa ...

During 2006, the number of first class passenger seats was increased on each train from 22 to 33 by reconfiguring their interiors, which included the removal of some standard class seating. In January 2007, a Class 222 ''Pioneer'' was damaged when it was dropped off a maintenance jack; it would ultimately take two years to repair. After a period of making do with only three trains, in January 2008 a Class 86 electric locomotive was hired from the AC Locomotive Group to haul a set of Mark 3s hired from Cargo-D for weekend London King's Cross to

services. The first set of five-car Class 180 ''Adelante'' units entered service with First Hull Trains in April 2008. In total, four sets were introduced releasing the locomotive-hauled fleet and the three Class 222 ''Pioneer'' sets. The latter was transferred to

East Midlands Trains East Midlands Trains (EMT) was a British train operating company owned by the transport group Stagecoach, which operated the East Midlands franchise between November 2007 and August 2019. Following the Department for Transport (DfT) award ...

along with the unit that was damaged. The Class 180s enabled First Hull Trains to provide more capacity by its additional carriage, but when the units first arrived they were plagued by technical difficulties, and a period of poor reliability for the company followed. However, First Hull Trains were able to improved reliability since their introduction. The Class 180s were also given a refresh internally with new seat covers and a deep clean. New catering facilities for first class were also provided, and externally the units were repainted in FirstGroup's neon blue livery. Following further reliability problems with the Class 180s, an

InterCity 125 The InterCity 125 (originally Inter-City 125New trai ...

HST set was hired from

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...

in February 2019. In April 2019, Hull Trains introduced another HST to its network following more reliability problems. Both of these HST sets returned to GWR in December 2019. Following the introduction of the Class 802 units, the Class 180 units were transferred in stages to

East Midlands Railway Abellio East Midlands Limited, trading as East Midlands Railway (EMR), is a train operating company in England, owned by Abellio, and is the current operator of the East Midlands franchise. History In March 2017, the Department for Transport a ...

to replace EMR's three six-carriage HSTs inherited from Grand Central. The first two units transferred to

Derby Etches Park Derby Etches Park is a railway traction and rolling stock maintenance depot (T&RSMD) operated by East Midlands Railway, and situated in Derby, England. The depot is located to the east of Derby railway station. InterCity and Diesel Multiple ...

in January 2020 after a period in storage at Crofton Depot, and the final two followed in summer 2020.

Depots

Maintenance of the Class 180 ''Adelantes'' was undertaken at

Old Oak Common Depot Old Oak Common TMD was a traction maintenance depot located west of London Paddington, in Old Oak Common. The depot was the main facility for the storage and servicing of locomotives and multiple-units from Paddington. The depot codes were OC f ...

alongside

First Great Western Great Western Railway (GWR) is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that operates the Greater Western passenger railway franchise. It manages 197 stations and its trains call at over 270. GWR operates long-distance inter-city ...

's fleet until this depot closed in 2018. Two sets (or occasionally three if there were no sets on maintenance) were stabled and serviced each night in Hull sidings by Hull Trains staff (where there were usually two fitters on at night to undertake basic fault repair and diagnostics) with fuelling and emptying of toilet tanks being undertaken at

Arriva Rail North Arriva Rail North, branded as Northern by Arriva (legal name Arriva Rail North Limited) was a train operating company in Northern England which began operating the Northern franchise on 1 April 2016 and inherited units from the previous operato ...

Botanic Gardens TMD Botanic Gardens TMD is a traction maintenance depot in Kingston upon Hull in Yorkshire, England. As built it was one of the principal steam engine sheds in the Hull area, Botanic Gardens was the one closest to the main Hull Paragon station and i ...

. The third service set was stabled at either

Bounds Green Bounds Green is a residential suburb just north of Wood Green, in the London Borough of Haringey in north London. Parts of it are also known as New Southgate, but most of New Southgate lies in the London Borough of Enfield to the north-west. B ...

or Old Oak Common as service requirements dictated. A day fitter was based at Hull from Bombardier at

Crofton TMD Bombardier Services Site - Crofton is a traction maintenance depot located in Crofton, West Yorkshire, England. The depot is situated on the Wakefield Line and Pontefract Line at the eastern end of ''Crofton Junction'' and is located near the n ...

. The Class 802s are maintained by Hitachi at Bounds Green depot.

References

Citations

Sources

External links

* * {{Railway stations served by Hull Trains FirstGroup railway companies Open-access train operating companies Railway companies established in 2000 Rail transport in Kingston upon Hull Renaissance Trains 2000 establishments in England British companies established in 2000