These trains, called Electrostars, and the diesel version called Turbostar, were originally designed by Adtranz, the train manufacturer which is now part of Bombardier. They got off to a shaky start in 2000, but after a lot of work by the engineering teams they are well established and reliable. But when the initial orders were complete, the production line at Derby was shut down. Now, there are new orders, for example, from London Overground, and the production line has been reopened, demonstrating the industry's confidence in the design. It is likely that it will comprise a high proportion of new build for in the forseeable future, for example, as replacements for classes 313/507/317 and 455 as these become due for replacement. The trouble is that the design, never entirely satisfactory, needs a thorough overhaul to get rid of the things that are wrong with it and take advantage of technical developments; for example, because of changes in the way the infrastructure is managed, i...
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