Northern responds to Pacer retention criticism

A spokesperson said: “As a result of further delays in the construction and delivery of our new trains from manufacturer CAF, a small number of Pacers units will need to be retained for a short period of time in 2020 to deliver the planned daily timetable with the right capacity for our customers. This situation is not unique to Northern.

“We understand that customers will be disappointed and we are finalising proposals for customer support and offers for customers on those routes on which Pacers will be used in 2020.

"Those proposals will need to be reviewed by Rail North Partnership, the Leeds-based organisation that manages the Northern and TPE franchises on behalf of Transport for the North and the Department for Transport. 

“From today, Monday 21^st October, we will have 29 of our 101 new trains in service for customers and a further 27 new trains are in final testing or being used for driver training.

“The introduction of new trains from July meant the first Pacer was retired in August, with the majority of Pacers still planned to be removed by the end of this year.

“We agree the North deserves the best possible rail service and are working hard to improve performance and reliability for customers.”