Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 24 March 2026 to Question 120876 on Northern Trains: Rolling Stock, what the ten Northern Trains routes with the highest number of short-formed services were in the last 18 months; and for each route, how many and what proportion of services operated with fewer carriages than planned.

The ten Northern Trains routes with the highest number of short-formed services over the last 18 months – with the proportion of total services along these routes included – are displayed in the table below.

It should be noted that these figures are for all services along these routes, regardless of the time of day or the day of the week. This means that these figures include all very early or late services, as well as all weekend services, some of which are very lightly used and where short-forming therefore does not impact on passengers.

To address short-forming, Northern has begun discussions with train manufacturers to procure around 250 new train sets to replace the oldest trains in its fleet. Approximately two-thirds of its existing fleet is targeted to be replaced in the next ten years. The initial order, which is due to enter service in 2030-31, will consist of 130 units: 92 diesel-hybrids to replace its Class 15Xs, 30 electric and diesel-hybrid trains to support the TransPennine Route Upgrade, and 8 battery-powered trains to test their potential as an alternative to diesel-hybrids.

In the meantime, Northern is talking to other operators to identify any suitable rolling stock that could be cascaded to provide additional capacity or replace trains that have reached the end of their lives. Where any such additional stock is used is an operational matter for Northern, based on the demands on its services and the capacity of its depots and staff.