Bombardier wins Crossrail train contract

Listen to this article

Transport for London and the Department for Transport have named Bombardier as the winner of the £1 billion Crossrail train order.

Bombardier’s site in Derby will supply 65 trains and a new maintenance depot at Old Oak Common.

Announcing the order confirmation, TfL said: “This contract will support 760 UK manufacturing jobs plus 80 apprenticeships. An estimated 74 per cent of contract spend will remain in the UK economy.

“The construction of the maintenance depot at Old Oak Common will see 244 jobs, plus 16 apprenticeships. When fully operational the depot will support 80 jobs to maintain the new fleet of trains.”

The new Crossrail train will be based on Bombardier’s new Aventra platform, which was originally developed for the failed Thameslink bid.

Dr. Francis Paonessa, managing director, Bombardier Transportation UK, said: “Today’s decision is a credit to the efforts of our entire workforce in the UK, [pullquote align=”right”]Procurement of the rolling stock and depot is just one more step in delivering this new railway and making it a reality for millions of passengers.[/pullquote]including our 1,600 strong Derby-based design, engineering and manufacturing team who form a global centre of excellence for the rail industry, as well as our outstanding maintenance teams who support train operators right across the country and particularly in London as demonstrated during the London 2012 Olympics.”

As well as providing a boost for Bombardier Derby, TfL has said the contract will support the equivalent of 55,000 full-time jobs around the rest of the UK after confirming that at least 25 per cent of the contract’s value will go to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Colin Flack, executive director of the Rail Alliance said he was “excited” by the opportunity to help deliver Britain’s next generation of trains in the UK.

He added: “As the only organisation working across the entire spectrum of the railway supply chain and across the whole of the UK we will make sure we mobilise our membership to ensure that the UK rail supply chain rises to the challenge.”

Andrew Wolstenholme, chief executive of Crossrail, said: “Crossrail will transform rail services in London and the South East. Procurement of the rolling stock and depot is just one more step in delivering this new railway and making it a reality for millions of passengers.

“Crossrail Limited has conducted this procurement in a fair, objective and transparent manner and in full compliance with the regulatory framework.”

The contract award is subject to a 10-day standstill period.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Latest Rail News

ORR review leads to 50% reduction in maximum fees for ticket refunds

New rules will mean that from 2 April the maximum fee that train operators and ticket retailers can charge...

More like this...