British Rail Class 196


The British Rail Class 196 Civity is a class of diesel multiple unit built for West Midlands Trains by Spanish rolling stock manufacturer CAF. A total of 26 units have been built; 12 two-car units and 14 four-car units.
They are the first train of the Civity family to feature end gangways.

History

Shortly after the announcement that a consortium of Abellio, Mitsui and JR East had been awarded the West Midlands franchise, West Midlands Trains confirmed they had placed an order for 26 diesel multiple units based on CAF's Civity platform.
The first completed unit started testing at the Velim railway test circuit in December 2019.
The first vehicle arrived at Tyseley TMD in Birmingham on 17 April 2020, having travelled by ship from Cuxhaven to Hull. Revenue services using the new fleet began on 17 October 2022, on services between Shrewsbury and Birmingham.

Operators

West Midlands Trains

West Midlands Trains use the Class 196 fleet to replace their 23 Class 170/5 Turbostar units on services between Birmingham and Shrewsbury via Telford. They also run on Birmingham to Hereford services from 2023, with occasional appearances on the Snow Hill Lines.

Chiltern Railways

Six 2-car units will be allocated to the initial services operated on the East West Rail route between Oxford and Milton Keynes, the service was planned to start in 2025 but has since been delayed.

Fleet details

Named units

Some units have received names:
  • 196001: Graiseley Wolves
  • 196002: Jess Carter
  • 196004: Sir Edward Elgar
  • 196101: Charles Darwin
  • 196102: ''The Shropshire Flyer''