The Hitachi-Alstom consortium contracted to build the high-speed trainsets for HS2, has consulted the public regarding the design on the new vehicles.
Starting in early 2024, different customer groups, ranging from people with reduced mobility to cyclists and young families, have been invited to get a feel for life-sized wooden mock-ups of the trains at Hitachi-Alstom High-Speed’s (HAH-S) facility in Derby in order to help the engineers working on the project understand how the levels of comfort and accessibility are perceived and could be refined.

Feedback Process
The process involved a review of different options in the areas of boarding / alighting, the positioning of grab rails and testing the toilet layout – particularly for wheelchair users.
Life-sized mock-ups have been made of other sections of the train, such as the café shop, the bicycle storage and the pushchair storage areas.
The feedback has been collected as part of a refinement process in order to tweak the designs to better serve passengers and staff.
Niall Simmons, Hitachi-Alstom High Speed Collaborative Design Manager, said:As we progress towards delivering the next generation of high-speed trains for HS2, the feedback from passengers has been invaluable. Their insights are helping us refine the design to ensure that our trains not only meet but exceed expectations for accessibility, comfort and convenience. Engaging with a diverse range of future passengers, including those who may not typically consider train travel, has been crucial in shaping the features that will make a real difference to their experience.

Design Features
As passengers like to be able to see their luggage during their journey, both the overhead and under-seat storage spaces have been maximised.
The 54 trains will also feature a mix of airline-style seats in rows and four table seats per carriage to provide a variety of options. All seats will be able to recline – impacting the passenger experience of both the person in the seat and the person sitting in the seat behind. They’ll also have their own reading light and coat hook. The airline-style seats also have a smartphone and tablet holder.
As a result of the feedback from the user group sessions, the designers have repositioned the grab handles near the doors, created a ‘step-free’ solution for passengers at HS2 stations – the ones on the new HS2 Phase 1 line, not those on the West Coast Main Line – rearranged the USB-C sockets and tray tables and adjusted the wheelchair spaces in order to improve the ultimate passenger experience.
There are more user group sessions still to come during which the passenger seat design is to be finalised and the interior LED lighting system is to be optimised so the trains have good ambient lighting through the day and across the year.
After the design is finalised, production on the trains is to start in 2027. Bodyshell welding and electrical installation will be led by Hitachi’s County Durham plant, after which the interior fit out will be delivered by Alstom in Derby. Alstom is also manufacturing the bogies. This is being done at their site in Crewe – this is the first time in almost 20 years that bogies have been manufactured in the UK.

HS2 Phase One is expected to be operational between 2029 and 2033. The operator will be West Coast Partnership (WCP).
James Dawson, Senior Rolling Stock Engineer, HS2 Ltd, said:We’re designing HS2 to provide a step-change in the passenger experience so that it’s accessible to everyone – and especially to people who don’t currently think train travel is for them or don’t consider in the first place.
I’m confident that work with Hitachi and Alstom, plus our innovative design refinement approach, will deliver a quality product that stands the test of time.