THIS train is the first of a bigger, faster, and better fleet that will be arriving in Bolton.

Northern Rail has this week unveiled the vastly improved trains that it plans to introduce by 2020. The Bolton News was one of a handful of publications given exclusive access to the impressive new vehicles, which are currently under construction in Spain.

They boast significantly improved capacity and speed, as well as a raft of modern features including free Wifi and passenger information screens. Richard Allen, Northern Rail deputy managing director, said: “When I first stepped on the new train I thought, ‘Wow, this is fantastic’. It just feels like such a huge step change from what we have currently.

“It means stepping out of the 1980s and into 2018.”

First sight of the new trains will come as a welcome relief to Bolton’s rail users, who have endured years of misery on delayed and overcrowded services.

However, it remains uncertain exactly when the new trains will be introduced here — with Network Rail having pushed back its target date for completing the electrification of the Manchester to Preston railway line until December, 2018.

Bosses have said that the busiest routes, such as those through Bolton, will be prioritised when deciding where to launch the new vehicles, but the town’s infrastructure may not be able to accommodate Northern’s electric trains by the time they arrive in the UK.

At its factories in Spain, manufacturer CAF is building a total of 98 new trains for Northern — 43 electric and 55 new diesel units, which are a mixture of two, three, and four-car services — costing a total £490 million.

They will provide an increased capacity of around 40 per cent compared to current trains and will replace outdated pacer trains that must be removed by 2020.

The first of the electric and diesel services have now been built and are ready to be sent for testing in Romania and the Czech Republic, before heading to the UK for further tests later this year.

The trains, which have a lifespan of around 35 years, will also have a seat reservation system which passengers can access up to 10 minutes before departure.

They can travel at speeds up to 100mph, have power sockets at each seating area, and have air conditioning.

Mr Allen added: “On some of our oldest trains at the moment, the air conditioning is just opening a small window. The new trains have state-of-the-art air conditioning, free Wifi, they are very modern and feel bright and spacious inside. There is an electronic seat reservation system at every single seat, CCTV in every carriage.

“It’s tremendously exciting to see these trains and they do stand in comparison to anything else that is out there in the UK rail market.”

Northern currently runs 13,000 services a week, but the new trains will enable that number to grow to 16,000 by 2020.

Each train will have a toilet and space for two bikes and two wheelchairs.

Mr Allen said: “One of the key things that passengers say about Northern is that they are very keen on the cleanliness of the inside of the train. These new trains are very easy to clean.

“For example, the seat is bolted to the side of the train with a bracket. Some of the older trains have them bolted to the floor with legs, which makes them much harder to clean. The new trains are fully carpeted and have a fresh, modern interior.

“Passengers are also looking for a good place to sit and stand. The doors here open one-third and two-thirds of the way down the carriage. Some of our existing trains only have doors at the extreme ends of the carriage, which makes it harder to get on and off. All of these things add up to a much better experience for customers on-board. I was wowed by this and I hope our customers are too.”

See Monday’s paper for part two of our feature on the new Northern Rail trains, focusing on when Bolton passengers can expect to see the long-overdue improvements.