Northern fails to start planned retirement of much-maligned Pacer trains

Train operator Northern has blamed delays to infrastructure improvements, including the Manchester-Bolton electrification, for not starting to retire its much-derided Pacer fleet.

The operator had pledged to start phasing out the 100-strong “buses on rails” carriages before the end of this year.

But it has admitted it has yet to begin the process, according to The Guardian newspaper.

The delay has been met with anger from passenger groups who are fierce critics of the antiquated “cattle trucks” and incensed at January fare increases averaging 3.1%.

A Northern spokesman said: “The delays to infrastructure improvements, including Manchester-Bolton electrification, meant that the May 2018 timetable was rewritten in 16 weeks, rather than 40 weeks, and one ongoing consequence of the delays to electrification is that we can’t yet use electric trains on Manchester-Bolton.

“This means the diesel trains that continue to operate on that route have yet to be redeployed elsewhere on our network.

“As a result, we need to continue to operate the Pacers and we are still working on the phasing of their retirement.”

He said the company still aimed to retire all Pacers by the end of 2019.

Kate Anstee, who founded the Northern Resist passenger group, said: “There is no sign of these Pacers being faded out as promised by Northern, and, indeed, we have been told by Northern staff that in fact when the new modern units are provided they will have the capacity to run anywhere in the country, which could result in them being moved to meet demand in other parts of the country.”

Ellie Harrison, of the pressure group Bring Back British Rail, said: “The rolling stock companies are profiting, the train-operating companies are profiting – meanwhile passengers are being hit with fare increases and are stuck with cattle trucks for trains.”

Pacers were created in the 1980s from the carcasses of a British Leyland bus and four-wheeled wagon frames.

They are renowned for their lack of comfort and the piercing noise they make when braking or going round a tight corner.

Angel Trains, which owns 79 of the Northern Pacers and a further 15 in Wales, said it expected them all to disappear within the next 15 months.