New Piccadilly line trains to enter service for the first time in 50 years - but not until the end of 2025

3 October 2024, 15:35

Commuters will be able to take the first new Piccadilly line trains deployed on the line in 50 years - but they will have to wait to the end of 2025.

They are being produced by technology giant Siemens, who are fitting the new trains with air conditioning and giving commuters more headroom. The walk-through trains have also been constructed in a way that allows four-of-the-nine carriages to "float" on top of the rails, without the use of wheels.

Driverless journeys were also trialled on the futuristic new trains, but there are no plans to implement this feature in London.

The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and Transport Secretary Louise Haigh recently visited the Siemens "rail village" in Yorkshire, which will produce 80 per cent of the trains. The upgrade to the line has cost Transport for London (TfL) nearly £3 billion, with the project already being £62 million over budget.

There will be a total of 94 new Piccadilly line trains, which will all be in service by 2028. The complete launch of the new models was scheduled for 2027, but cash-flow worries prompted TfL to ask for a delay in the full launch.

Sadiq Khan hails tube upgrades

The joint chief executive and managing director of Siemens UK has said that he hopes to expand the company's contract with TfL. He hopes to build a new fleet of trains for the Bakerloo line and, later, the Central and Waterloo & City lines.

Sadiq Khan has said that he hopes the opening of the new Siemens factory, which cost £200 million, will show that investment in London's transport network can create more jobs.