NORTHERN has started to refresh some of its fleet of more than 150 veteran diesel Pacer vehicles, giving them new upholstery and improved lighting.
The Class 142s and their relations are among the older examples of rolling stock in service, dating from the mid-1980s, and they are also getting new flooring as well as repainted interiors and vestibule ends.
The company said 58 vehicles are included in this upgrade programme, and that the refreshed units will be seen on routes serving Morpeth, the Durham Coast, Saltburn and Whitby, as well as on the cross country line between Carlisle, Hexham and Newcastle.
Engineering director Stuart Draper said: "We are known to have some of the oldest trains on the network and this refurbishment project is testament to our passengers that we are committed to improving their journeys with us.
"Customers have told us they’d like to see an improvement in the on-board environment and we’re passionate about acting on these requests. These refurbishments to our fleet in the North East add to the carriages we have already improved and we hope passengers will notice the developments as we plan more for 2013.”