TransPennine scraps Mk3 plan

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TRANSPENNINE Express has scrapped plans to use two short rakes of Mk3 carriages, hauled in top-and-tail mode by Class 68 locos, on Liverpool to Scarborough workings from July.

The use of two four-carriage sets formed from the former Virgin West Coast and more recently Greater Anglia WB64 set was aimed at improving passenger capacity problems, but also to give customers a taste of what was to come when the new Mk5A push-pull carriage sets come on stream later in the year.However, the two rakes would have been inaccessible for wheelchair users and could have meant delays for passengers waiting for accessible services.

Following concerns raised, alongside discussions with the Department for Transport and other stakeholders, TPE says the plan has been abandoned.

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TPE has said it will use the sets for driver training, and as part of this on-going process has been using Class 68 Nos. 68027 and 68032 between York and Scarborough.
PICTURE: RICHARD LILLIE

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