A TRAINBUILDER is ramping up work on next generation East Coast Mainline rolling stock after test models arrived in the region.

Hitachi Rail Europe today (Tuesday, March 20) welcomed two five-car training models ahead of a major fleet overhaul later this year.

The stock, which were shipped into Teesport from Japan, are capable of running on electric and diesel power and will be used to tutor drivers and crew members employed by operator Virgin Trains.

The update comes just days after The Northern Echo revealed Hitachi has now made 30 trains for the Government’s Intercity Express Programme (IEP) at its £82m factory in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, with 24 in service on the Great Western Mainline.

Rolling stock for Scottish commuter lines is also expected to begin passenger operations in the coming weeks, with assembly of the company’s East Coast trains, known as Azuma, scheduled to begin in earnest on its North-East production lines this summer.

Hitachi says its 65-strong Azuma fleet, which complements its Great Western work in a wider IEP deal, will provide thousands of extra seats and increase capacity into London King’s Cross by nearly 30 per cent at peak times.

Last month, a model built in the company’s Japanese homeland underwent testing between Edinburgh and Inverness, and the business now has five trains operating in test phases.

Andy Rogers, Hitachi’s programme director, said its Teesport delivery represents another tick in the box for the company’s East Coast endeavour.

He said: “We are proud to be building a fleet inspired by Japanese bullet-train technology here in the UK.

“Our comprehensive test programme is making great progress with the new trains performing very well on the East Coast Mainline.”

Aileen Jordan, Azuma director at Virgin Trains, added: “We’re excited to have reached yet another milestone with the arrival of these two trains.

“With them comes the opportunity for our drivers and on-board crews to use them for training ahead of Azuma coming into service later this year.”

Last month, officials at Hitachi, which the Echo previously revealed now employs more than 1,000 workers at its Aycliffe base, played down fears that operator Stagecoach’s woes could have a bearing on its East Coast supply deal.

Stagecoach oversees the Virgin Trains East Coast service under the Inter City Railways banner after taking on the route alongside Virgin, attracting great focus in the process, from the publicly-run Directly Operated Railways.

However, it is only expected to oversee the franchise for “a small number of months” after the Government said it “got its numbers wrong”.

But Hitachi told the Echo its manufacturing timetable remains on schedule, despite what issues Stagecoach may be enduring at present.

A source added work will continue as normal, citing the fact that the trainbuilder’s contract was signed as part of the Government’s IEP venture, rather than with a specific operator.