The Hitachi A-train is a family of rail rolling stock built and designed by Hitachi Rail using a common base and construction techniques. The stock is designed to facilitate a number of product life-cycle improvements including ease of manufacture, increased energy efficiency, and recyclability.

Description

The "A-train" design concept includes several elements. The primary feature is that vehicle car bodies are constructed from double skin aluminium extruded sections, which are friction stir welded,[1] creating a strong body. Other features include hollow, extruded mounting rails on the vehicle body to which modular components are attached.[2]

Initially the A-train family consisted of multiple units designed and built by Hitachi, for use on the railway system in Japan. It comprises trains for both commuter and limited express services. The modular design enables both production and refurbishment to be undertaken faster.[2] Due to the low heat input of friction stir welding, high strength, excellent crashworthiness and minimal distortion can be achieved.

Japanese trains

Hitachi has provided a number of trains based on the A-train concept for use in Japan:[3]

A-train family overseas

For their products overseas, the Hitachi A-train has different designations by Hitachi depending on their type.[4][5]

  • AT100 = high-density urban trains
  • AT200 = suburban, commuter and regional trains.
  • AT300 = intercity high speed and long-distance trains
  • AT400 = high-speed 'bullet' trains

Hitachi have been marketing the A-train family overseas. Both the Chongqing Monorail in China and the Sentosa Express Monorail in Singapore utilise A-train derived cars.

In 2005 Hitachi received an order from Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) for six 8-car trains, based on the Japanese 885 series, designated as TEMU1000, for operation on the main line between Taipei and Hualien.[6] Deliveries of the trains began in late 2006, with the first public test of the new trains in March 2007.[7][8] Two more sets were purchased in December 2014, and delivered in early 2016.[9]

In 2007, Korail ordered eight 4-car express trains branded as the Trunk-Line Electric Car (TEC) to Hitachi. The car bodies, bogies and power systems were made in Japan, but were assembled at SLS Heavy Industry in Changwon, Korea. A significant number of the components were replaced by Korean parts. The trains were for deployment on "Rapid Train" services on the Gyeongbu Line and Janghang Line between Seoul Station and Sinchang station, branded Nuriro and with a maximum speed of 150 km/h (93 mph).

In 2018, the Taiwan Railway Administration placed a new order for 50 12-car EMU3000 series sets, to be delivered between 2021 and 2024.[10] The first set was delivered on July 31, 2021, with service entry scheduled for the end of the year.[11]

Between 2019 and 2021, the first Hitachi AT100 units arrived in Bangkok for the SRT Dark Red Line and SRT Light Red Line, which opened on 2 August 2021. These trains are coloured red, and are very reminiscent of a typical Japanese commuter train. 15 units form 6-car sets, while 10 form 4-car sets.

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom became the first country outside Japan to place a major conventional rail order for Hitachi when Southeastern ordered 29 electric multiple units for use on domestic services on the High Speed 1 line. These are designated as Class 395 units, which are standard gauge with the ability to operate at speeds of up to 225 km/h (140 mph).[2] Southeastern branded these trains as the Javelin, a reference to the 2012 Summer Olympics.[12]

Hitachi gained further ground in the UK market when it was announced in 2009 that an A-train based design similar to that of the Class 395, initially named the Hitachi Super Express, was the preference for the government's Intercity Express Programme tender to replace InterCity 125 and InterCity 225 sets on the Greater Western and InterCity East Coast lines. These units were classified as Class 800 electro-diesel 'bi-mode' units (powered by AC overhead wires where available, and by underfloor diesel generators beyond the extents of electrification) and Class 801 electric multiple units sets powered purely by AC overhead wires. The train specification allows for the conversion of Class 800s to Class 801s, as it is assumed that electrification will continue to expand.[13] The units would form as part of the Hitachi AT300 product, joining the Class 395 in the same family.

The choice of Hitachi units was controversial, as it would see little final manufacturing in the UK in comparison to the foreign-owned but domestically manufactured Bombardier option,[14] leading to a campaign to reverse the decision. However, it was economics that became a sticking point, with the weight of the Bombardier design creeping up. The decision was postponed due to the difficulty of government borrowing.[15]

After winning the franchise, Abellio ScotRail announced they would purchase Hitachi AT200 trains (designated as Class 385) for their commuter services.[16]

In March 2015, after the initial order of the Class 800 units, Great Western Railway (or First Great Western as it was at the time) ordered 29 bi-mode Class 802 units which would also join the AT300 product. These units have little difference over the Class 800 units, except that the 802s have a higher power output as-built to cope with gradients in Devon and Cornwall, and have larger fuel tanks. Being bi-mode, they will use overhead electric power between London Paddington and Newbury stations.[17] Having initially ordered 29 units, it was later announced that there would be an increase of up to 36 units on order. The first of the Class 800s entered service with GWR in October 2017 and the first of the Class 802s entered service with GWR in August 2018, with all of the units branded as Intercity Express Trains (IET) by GWR.[18][19]The first unit with London North Eastern Railway (the current holder of the InterCity East Coast franchise) entered service in May 2019 after a delay, with their first trains in service being Class 800s. Their Class 801s entered service afterwards in September 2019. Separately from GWR, these trains are branded as Azuma, which is 'east' in Japanese.[20]

Many other UK operators have bought Hitachi AT300 trains, including orders for Class 802 units by TransPennine Express (branded as Nova 1) and Hull Trains (branded as Paragon).[21][22] East Midlands Railway have ordered Class 810 units (branded as Aurora), Lumo purchased Class 803 units and Avanti West Coast have ordered Class 805 and Class 807 units (branded as Evero).[23][24][25]

In December 2024, Hitachi Rail stated in a press release that it had entered into a contract with FirstGroup and Angel Trains to lease 14 new five-car electric, battery-electric or bi-mode trains for First Rail's open-access operations, which will be manufactured at Newton Aycliffe, with their delivery expected to commence in late 2027. These trains will be used on a newly announced London-Carmarthen route, and to increase the number of carriages on the existing Lumo and Hull Trains services. The agreement includes an option to add 13 more trains to the order if more of First Rail's recently submitted open-access applications are successful.[26]

In April 2025, Grand Central announced plans to order a fleet of 9 new five-car tri-mode trains, built by Hitachi Rail. These are planned for delivery in 2028 and will be known as the Class 820.[27][28]

ClassImageTypePowerOperatorBrandNo. built
/on order		Cars per
set		Unit nos.Year built
385/0AT200EMUScotRaileXpress463385001-3850462015–2019
385/1ScotRaileXpress244385101-3851242015–2019
395AT300 [29]SoutheasternJavelin296395001-3950292007–2009
800/0Bi-modeGreat Western RailwayIntercity Express Train (IET)365800001-8000362014–2018
800/1London North Eastern RailwayAzuma139800101-8001132014–2018
800/2London North Eastern RailwayAzuma105800201-8002102014–2018
800/3Great Western RailwayIntercity Express Train (IET)219800301-8003212014–2018
801/1EMULondon North Eastern RailwayAzuma125801101-8011122017–2019
801/2London North Eastern RailwayAzuma309801201-8012302017–2019
802/0Bi-modeGreat Western RailwayIntercity Express Train (IET)225802001-8020222017–2019
802/1Great Western RailwayIntercity Express Train (IET)149802101-8021142017–2019
802/2TransPennine ExpressNova 1195802201-8022192018–2019
802/3Hull TrainsParagon55802301-8023052019
803EMULumoNone55803001-8030052020–2021
805Bi-modeAvanti West CoastEvero[30]135805001-8050132021–2024
807EMUAvanti West CoastEvero[30]107807001-8070102020–2024
810Bi-modeEast Midlands RailwayAurora335810001-8100332020–present
820Tri-modeGrand Central[31]95

References

  1. ^ "History, Principles and Advantages of FSW". Japan Railway & Transport Review. ' (42): 10–16. Hitachi Transportation Systems. Archived 2011-07-19 at the Wayback Machine.
  2. ^ Hitachi's Entry into the European Railway Market Archived 2016-07-29 at the Wayback Machine - Japan Railway & Transport Review No. 42 (pp.10–16)
  3. ^ "A-trains Delivery Records", www.hitachi-rail.com, archived 13 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "Hitachi unveils modular EMU designs". Railway Gazette International. 2014-07-22. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
  5. ^ "AT300 - Intercity High Speed". www.hitachirail-eu.com. Archived from the original on 2020-02-21. Retrieved 2020-01-10.
  6. ^ "Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) has ordered six tilting A-Train concept emus from Hitachi, Japan, at a cost of about 9 billion yen". International Railway Journal. Archived from the original on 2012-10-23.
  7. ^ "Hitachi is Boosting up Railway System Business in Taiwan". Tilting Train Project. Hitachi. Archived from the original on 2009-07-26.
  8. ^ "TRA conducts test ride of tilting trains". Taipei Times. 2007-03-21.
  9. ^ "台鐵購太魯閣新車 今抵台中港" (in Traditional Chinese). 蘋果日報. 2016-01-12. Archived 2016-01-19 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-08-25.
  10. ^ Ibusuki, Shinichiro & Shiga, Yuichi (2019-01-16). "Hitachi wins Taiwan order for 600 train cars". Nikkei Asia. Retrieved 2021-08-25.
  11. ^ Strong, Matthew (2021-07-30). "Taiwan's newest train for east coast service arrives from Japan". Taiwan News. Retrieved 2021-08-25.
  12. ^ "Javelin train speeds into London". BBC News. 2008-12-12. Retrieved 2020-02-28.
  13. ^ "Agility Trains Announced as Preferred Bidder for Intercity Express Programme". Hitachi.
  14. ^ "Anger over new UK trains contract". BBC News. 2009-02-12. Retrieved 2010-05-04.
  15. ^ RAILNEWS. "Government backs away from IEP decision - Railnews - Today's news for Tomorrow's railway". www.railnews.co.uk. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  16. ^ "Class 385 for Scotland". www.hitachirail-eu.com. Archived from the original on 2020-05-17. Retrieved 2020-04-25.
  17. ^ "First Great Western plans AT300s to Cornwall". Railway Gazette International. 23 March 2015. Archived from the original on 2020-12-24. Retrieved 2015-05-31.
  18. ^ "GWR unveils new fleet of IETs". BT. Archived from the original on 6 July 2016.
  19. ^ "All aboard the new Intercity Express trains that will transform journeys across Britain". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2020-02-28.
  20. ^ "LNER". Brand Cooke. Retrieved 2020-02-28.
  21. ^ Holden, Michael (2019-07-09). "Milestone for Transpennine Express with Nova 1 Trains". RailAdvent. Retrieved 2020-02-28.
  22. ^ "Hull Trains Reveals Name of New Fleet". www.hulltrains.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-02-28.
  23. ^ "Aurora brand for East Midlands Railway Class 810 inter-city fleet". Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  24. ^ "East Coast Trains Class 803 production begins". Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  25. ^ "Avanti West Coast confirms new trains for Holyhead and Liverpool as Class 805s and 807s". RailAdvent. 2020-06-09. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  26. ^ McIlroy, Doug (2024-12-06). "Fourteen new trains to drive first rail open access growth". Hitachi Rail via mynewsdesk. Retrieved 2024-12-07.
  27. ^ "Grand Central to receive new £300 million battery hybrid fleet". Grand Central. 2025-04-04. Retrieved 2026-03-19.
  28. ^ Stubbings, David (2026-03-17). "Grand Central tweaks Cleethorpes plan - confirms class number of tri-mode sets". Rail Magazine. Retrieved 2026-03-19.
  29. ^ "AT300 - Intercity High Speed". www.hitachirail-eu.com. Archived from the original on 2020-02-21. Retrieved 2020-01-10.
  30. ^ "Avanti West Coast adds more seats with summer timetable change". Avanti West Coast. 2 June 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  31. ^ "Arriva orders battery ‘80x’ fleet for Grand Central". Modern Railways. 2025-04-03. Retrieved 2026-03-20.

Further reading