Northern’s recently appointed Director of New Rolling Stock Programmes, James Howard, has stated that the operator intends to buy ‘hundreds’ of new trains in a bid to transform travel for millions of rail customers in the region.
The statement comes as Northern begins planning to make the largest fleet investment in its history with the purchase of up to 450 trains across three phases – with the first set to see the procurement of roughly 130 units.
The trains are set to be received in the 2030s
© Canva
A final tender invitation was issued in November, with all submissions due next month (February 2026).
Northern intends to award the contracts by early 2027 and receive the first trains in 2030.
James Howard, Director of New Rolling Stock Programmes at Northern said:
This will be a step change for the North,” he said. “It will be the largest ever investment in our fleet, providing our customers with modern, reliable trains, and we are working to deliver them as quickly as possible.
Getting to this point hasn’t been easy but that only fuels our desire to see it through. I fundamentally believe Northern needs these new trains and our customers deserve them.
There has been significant investment in the infrastructure, with projects like the Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU), and we need modern trains to realise the benefits.
All new trains are set to be introduced on a phased basis and replace the oldest units in its fleet – most of which have been in service since the 1980s and 90s.
Current plans include the replacement of around two thirds of the existing fleet over the next 10 years.
With a selection of 11 different types of train; Howard has stated that he intends to refine the rolling stock at Northern’s disposal, reducing issues such as the need for separate training models across different trains.
James Howard, Director of New Rolling Stock Programmes at Northern
© Northern
Howard has also said that his team is focuses on improving level boarding by ensuring carriages can meet requirements at current platforms conforming to the network standard, with any subsequent platforms set to be upgraded or modified in the future.
All new trains will either be fully electric, battery powered or multi-modal, allowing the operator to maximise environmental benefits. Currently; 25% of Northern’s network is electrified, with plans in place to expand this in the coming years.
The rollout will begin with the introduction of a fleet of electric trains on a number of key routes, including those between York, Leeds and Huddersfield, with new trains then set to replace the oldest trains in the Northern fleet during the early 2030s.