EUROPE: Virgin Group confirmed on October 9 that an order for 12 Avelia Stream high speed trains had been signed with Alstom, including 30 years of maintenance. It also announced Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse-inspired social spaces at stations and integration of flight bookings into its rail offering. Virgin Trains is seeking to begin running services between London and continental Europe in 2030, competing against Eurostar. The new entrant reports that UK rail regulator ORR has now published the signed agreement between Virgin and incumbent cross-Channel operator Eurostar that will see Virgin’s trains maintained at the Temple Mills International depot in east London. In August, Virgin Trains received ‘pre-approval’ from ORR to use High Speed 1 to provide six daily London – Paris services in each direction from October 2030 to March 2031, increasing to 10 daily paths (April – September 2031) and then 13 daily paths (October 2031 – December 2040). It will also run four daily trains between London and Brussels (February 2031 – December 2040), and three return trips per day between London and Amsterdam, starting in September 2031. However, its access rights on the relevant networks in France, Belgium and the Netherlands have yet to be formally confirmed. Red and black The images released on October 9 show the single-deck Alstom Avelia Stream trainsets ordered by Virgin carrying a red and black livery. The single-deck, non-tilting trainsets will feature a distributed traction arrangement, offering a maximum speed of 300 km/h. The manufacturer has confirmed that the trains will be assembled at the Savigliano plant in northern Italy, which was the design and production base for the Class 390 Pendolino trainsets ordered for the West Coast Main Line in the 1990s when Virgin Trains was a UK rail franchise holder. Railway Gazette International understands that the 12 trains are likely to be delivered through the same production lines that are currently being used to assemble another batch of 12 Avelia Stream EMUs for private operator NTV-Italo. This order was confirmed by Alstom and Italo during a presentation at the InnoTrans trade show in Berlin on September 23, when Italo CEO Gianbattista La Rocca said that he expected the trainsets to enter service in its home market from 2027. The Virgin effect The operator said that its affiliates across the Virgin portfolio would support the customer experience for cross-Channel rail passengers. Virgin Voyages’ onboard dining will influence the food and drink offering, while Virgin Hotels’ focus on comfort and design will help inform the development of seating and onboard spaces, the company said. Virgin Atlantic’s Clubhouses will help inspire pre-departure and onboard social spaces, giving passengers more flexibility to work, relax or socialise. Virgin said it would also explore how its rail and airline networks could work more closely together, making it easier for international customers arriving in London with Virgin Atlantic to continue to France and other European destinations, while connecting passengers from France into Virgin Atlantic’s global aviation network. Josh Bayliss, CEO of Virgin Group, said ‘Virgin has a proud history in UK rail. With our latest venture we are drawing on more than four decades of experience across travel and hospitality to create something genuinely new. This time, we’ll be connecting London with some of Europe’s greatest cities and giving passengers a distinctive new choice in cross-Channel travel. ‘We’re confident that more journeys between the UK and Europe will be made by train’, he added. ‘We’re adding capacity for millions more international rail journeys each year, growing the market as a whole. We’re looking forward to seeing our distinctive red and black trains travelling across Europe.’ Andrew DeLeone, Europe Region President at Alstom, said the manufacturer was ‘incredibly excited to be working with Virgin once again, a brand we greatly admire for its commitment to innovation, customer experience and growing sustainable rail travel. Across Europe, passengers are increasingly looking for more seamless cross-border high speed rail connections, and this project will help deliver exactly that.’ ‘Our Avelia Stream platform combines proven high speed performance with outstanding energy efficiency, passenger comfort and operational flexibility. As both the train supplier and fleet maintainer, Alstom will support Virgin throughout the full lifecycle of the project — from delivery into service through to long-term operations — helping to ensure a reliable, high-quality service for decades to come.’ Virgin Trains’ Channel Tunnel plans are ‘moving at pace’
EUROPE: Virgin Group confirmed on October 9 that an order for 12 Avelia Stream high speed trains had been signed with Alstom, including 30 years of maintenance. It also announced Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse-inspired social spaces at stations and integration of flight bookings into its rail offering.
Virgin Trains is seeking to begin running services between London and continental Europe in 2030, competing against Eurostar. The new entrant reports that UK rail regulator ORR has now published the signed agreement between Virgin and incumbent cross-Channel operator Eurostar that will see Virgin’s trains maintained at the Temple Mills International depot in east London.
In August, Virgin Trains received ‘pre-approval’ from ORR to use High Speed 1 to provide six daily London – Paris services in each direction from October 2030 to March 2031, increasing to 10 daily paths (April – September 2031) and then 13 daily paths (October 2031 – December 2040).
It will also run four daily trains between London and Brussels (February 2031 – December 2040), and three return trips per day between London and Amsterdam, starting in September 2031. However, its access rights on the relevant networks in France, Belgium and the Netherlands have yet to be formally confirmed.
Red and black
The images released on October 9 show the single-deck Alstom Avelia Stream trainsets ordered by Virgin carrying a red and black livery. The single-deck, non-tilting trainsets will feature a distributed traction arrangement, offering a maximum speed of 300 km/h.
The manufacturer has confirmed that the trains will be assembled at the Savigliano plant in northern Italy, which was the design and production base for the Class 390 Pendolino trainsets ordered for the West Coast Main Line in the 1990s when Virgin Trains was a UK rail franchise holder.
Railway Gazette International understands that the 12 trains are likely to be delivered through the same production lines that are currently being used to assemble another batch of 12 Avelia Stream EMUs for private operator NTV-Italo.
This order was confirmed by Alstom and Italo during a presentation at the InnoTrans trade show in Berlin on September 23, when Italo CEO Gianbattista La Rocca said that he expected the trainsets to enter service in its home market from 2027.
The Virgin effect
The operator said that its affiliates across the Virgin portfolio would support the customer experience for cross-Channel rail passengers. Virgin Voyages’ onboard dining will influence the food and drink offering, while Virgin Hotels’ focus on comfort and design will help inform the development of seating and onboard spaces, the company said. Virgin Atlantic’s Clubhouses will help inspire pre-departure and onboard social spaces, giving passengers more flexibility to work, relax or socialise.
Virgin said it would also explore how its rail and airline networks could work more closely together, making it easier for international customers arriving in London with Virgin Atlantic to continue to France and other European destinations, while connecting passengers from France into Virgin Atlantic’s global aviation network.
Josh Bayliss, CEO of Virgin Group, said ‘Virgin has a proud history in UK rail. With our latest venture we are drawing on more than four decades of experience across travel and hospitality to create something genuinely new. This time, we’ll be connecting London with some of Europe’s greatest cities and giving passengers a distinctive new choice in cross-Channel travel.
‘We’re confident that more journeys between the UK and Europe will be made by train’, he added. ‘We’re adding capacity for millions more international rail journeys each year, growing the market as a whole. We’re looking forward to seeing our distinctive red and black trains travelling across Europe.’
Andrew DeLeone, Europe Region President at Alstom, said the manufacturer was ‘incredibly excited to be working with Virgin once again, a brand we greatly admire for its commitment to innovation, customer experience and growing sustainable rail travel. Across Europe, passengers are increasingly looking for more seamless cross-border high speed rail connections, and this project will help deliver exactly that.’
‘Our Avelia Stream platform combines proven high speed performance with outstanding energy efficiency, passenger comfort and operational flexibility. As both the train supplier and fleet maintainer, Alstom will support Virgin throughout the full lifecycle of the project — from delivery into service through to long-term operations — helping to ensure a reliable, high-quality service for decades to come.’
Virgin Trains’ Channel Tunnel plans are ‘moving at pace’
Source: Railway Gazette
