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Refurbished CrossCountry Voyager train revealed

News imageCrossCountry An image of the newly refurbished CrossCountry Voyager train inside a warehouse at the launch event. The train has bright shiny red paint with a white X on the driver's door.CrossCountry
CrossCountry says it will refurbish all 70 of its Voyager fleet over the next two years

Train operator CrossCountry has revealed the first of its refurbished Voyager trains, part of a £75m investment to upgrade its fleet.

The company's trains carry passengers on long-distance journeys across Britain, connecting the South West and South Coast of England to the Midlands, North West, North East, and Scotland.

CrossCountry has previously been criticised for overcrowding on its services, and last year introduced an additional 12 trains to its Voyager fleet to increase capacity on its network.

The company's managing director Shiona Rolfe said: "This train marks an important step in our commitment to improving the experience for everyone who travels with us."

News imageCrossCountry Image shows the inside of a refurbished CrossCountry train carriage. The carriage is empty and has black fabric seats with grey tables,CrossCountry
News imageCrossCountry A refurbished CrossCountry train on some tracks at what appears to be a train depot. The train is painted red with a white cross near the driver's door.CrossCountry

The refurbishment was carried out by staff at the Derby Litchurch Lane facility, where the new train was revealed on Tuesday.

There are 70 CrossCountry Voyager trains, originally built in 2000, in operation across the UK.

The company says it aims to refurbish all of them within the next two years, by improving the interior and exterior, adding new seating, creating more legroom and improving CCTV.

News imageCrossCountry The inside of what appears to be a first class carriage of a refurbished CrossCountry Voyager train. There are group seats with tables on one side of the train and a row of indivudal seats with tables on the other.CrossCountry
News imageCrossCountry Rows of seats on an empty carriage on a refurbished CrossCountry voyager train. The image shows seats on either side of the photo, with red arm rest levers on the right and blue ones on the left.CrossCountry

In 2024, CrossCountry was severely criticised by the then transport secretary Louise Haigh for its plan to cut services to offset a backlog in driver training.

At the time, the company acknowledged its poor service and apologised for the inconvenience of the new timetable.

In 2023, its franchise was extended by the Department for Transport until October 2027, with the possibility it could be extended for another four years after that.

News imageCrossCountry Image shows refurbished seats on the Crosscountry Voyager train. The seats are made out of black fabric and have red handles for stability.CrossCountry
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