Merseyrail’s reduced timetable will not be used to speed up the testing of its delayed fleet of new trains, according to the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.
Last week the train operator announced that it was reducing services to every half an hour across the majority of the network having only returned to its pre-pandemic timetable of providing services every 15 minutes back in April. It said this was due to unexpected wear on the current train’s wheel bearings, with managing director of Merseyrail, Andy Heath, apologising for the disruption and unable to say when services will be back to normal.
While the reduced timetable will be a point of frustration for commuters, the ECHO asked the Combined Authority, who is overseeing the delivery of the new fleet, if more space on the network will now provide an opportunity to speed up the testing programme of the delayed trains.
READ MORE: Merseyrail announce timetable change as trains resume on Kirkby and New Brighton line
This comes after Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram suggested that the return of the 15-minute timetable meant there were “less slots” to test the brand new trains which have been in the works for a number of years. Speaking to the ECHO at an event in May, Mayor Rotheram outlined that the brand new trains need to undergo 500 miles of fault free testing before they can be introduced to passenger services.
Mr Rotheram told the ECHO: “We can't introduce the trains until they've been rigorously tested - 500 miles of fault free testing. They have to run on the tracks and they can only run at certain times. Currently we’re back to [trains every] 15 minutes so there are less slots.”
When asked by the ECHO if the timetable reduction will allow for the new trains to be tested at a quicker rate, a spokesperson for the Combined Authority said there will be no changes to the speed of the testing programme despite the potential of more space on the network. A spokesperson for the Combined Authority ECHO: "There is no change to the current testing programme."
While Merseyrail’s ageing fleet is experiencing issues with what it says is wear on its wheel bearings, the brand new state of the art trains have hit a number of delays since they were purchased by the Combined Authority. A deal to purchase a 52-strong fleet of state-of-the-art new trains from a Swiss manufacturer was finalised in 2016, but the project to deliver the new Merseyrail trains has been slowed down, with the global pandemic being one of the main reasons, as well as flooding in the factory they were being made.
Disruption to the network was also caused by platform upgrade work which took place in 2019, with testing of the new fleet beginning in the region last year. The Combined Authority however remain confident that the first of the new Merseyrail trains will be operational before the end of the year - once the 500 miles of fault-free testing has been met.
Speaking to the ECHO in May, Metro Mayor Rotheram said: “Everyday the new trains aren’t on the tracks is a blow. I'm not over egging that at all. I'm desperate to see them [in operation for the public] but I have to be patient.
“We will see Liverpool Central to Kirkby station one first. I’m desperate for that to happen before the end of this year.”
