Four train manufacturers have been invited to bid for one of the largest single orders of trains since rail privatisation. The trains are to be delivered over three years between 2012 and 2015. The new contract will allow older trains to be replaced and bring around 400 additional carriages into service.

Alstom, Bombardier, Hitachi and Siemens pre-qualified through a screening process run by the Department of Transport earlier this year.

"This tender for some 1,200 new Thameslink carriages, including around 400 additional carriages on top of those being replaced, forms a vital part of our £5.5 billion plan to significantly increase capacity through central London on the First Capital Connect service between Brighton, Bedford and other destinations which will become part of the network in 2015. When the trains start to arrive in 2012, passengers will see many peak time trains lengthened by 50%, from 8 to 12 carriages. By the end of 2015 there will be trains running every 2 to 3 minutes into and out of central London”, Transport Minister Andrew Adonis announced Thursday.

According to First Capital Connect, who operates Thameslink, the new trains will have to meet the demands of very different groups of passengers.

“For the first time in UK, the mainline trains will also serve the city travelers, calling every 2-3 minutes in London central stations, so the key challenge is to accommodate both long and short distance passengers as smoothly as possible”, commented for airrail NEWS Roger Perkins, Thameslink Programme Communications Manager.

Perkins said that one of the challenges for trains manufacturing companies is to create spacious carriages with dedicated luggage area and state of art information technology.

“We are encouraging the train building companies to use modern technology and creative solutions to maximize the space on the trains. One of the solutions could be the passenger information system, announcing which carriages are already packed out and which could accommodate some more travelers”, - Perkins added.

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