Arriva Trains Merseyside[1] was a train operating company in England owned by Arriva that operated the Merseyrail Electrics franchise from January 1997 until July 2003, when the Merseyrail railway franchise was transformed into the local Merseyrail concession, owned by the Merseyrail Passenger Transport Executive (Merseytravel).
 | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Franchise(s) | Merseyrail 19 January 1997 – 20 July 2003 |
| Main region(s) | Merseyside |
| Other region(s) | Lancashire Cheshire |
| Fleet size | 53 |
| Stations called at | 67 |
| Stations operated | 66 |
| Parent company | Arriva |
| Reporting mark | ME |
History
editThe Merseyrail Electrics franchise was awarded by the Director of Passenger Rail Franchising to MTL with operations commencing on 19 January 1997.[2] MTL retained the Merseyrail Electrics brand.
On 18 February 2000, MTL was purchased by Arriva,[3][4] and on 27 April 2001, rebranded as Arriva Trains Merseyside.[5]
On 23 April 2003, Serco-Abellio were awarded the Merseyrail Electrics franchise with the services operated by Arriva Trains Merseyside transferring to Merseyrail on 20 July 2003.[6]
Rolling stock
editArriva Trains Merseyside inherited a fleet of Class 507 and Class 508 electric multiple units from Regional Railways. It also inherited a fleet of Class 73 locomotives and Class 936 EMUs for use on infrastructure trains; these were sold in 2002.
| Class | Image | Type | Top speed | Number | Routes operated | Built | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mph | km/h | ||||||
| 73 | Loco | 80 | 129 | 4 | Northern Line Wirral Line |
1962 | |
| 507 | 
|
EMU | 75 | 120 | 32 | Northern Line Wirral Line |
1978–1980 |
| 508/1 | 
|
EMU | 75 | 120 | 21 | Northern Line Wirral Line |
1979–1980 |
| 936 | 
|
EMU | 60 | 97 | 3 | Northern Line Wirral Line |
1955–1956 |
Depot
editArriva Trains Merseyside's fleet was maintained at Birkenhead North Depot.
References
edit- ^ Companies House extract company no 3007941 Arriva Trains Merseyside Limited formerly Merseyrail Electrics Limited
- ^ "Local bus company MTL wins the Merseyrail Electrics franchise". Rail Magazine. No. 296. 15 January 1997. p. 11.
- ^ Recommended Cash Offer for MTL Services Archived 14 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine Arriva 18 February 2000
- ^ "Arriva buys MTL for £84m". Rail Magazine. No. 378. 8 March 2000. p. 13.
- ^ "Name changes for Arriva TOCs". Rail Magazine. No. 408. 2 May 2001. p. 9.
- ^ Osborne, Alistair (24 April 2004). "Merseyrail franchise goes Dutch". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 May 2023.