Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of trains on the East Midlands Railway Sheffield to London service a) had the requisite number of carriages and b) were short formed in each year between 2022 and 2026.

The Department can provide the percentage of trains which were short formed on East Midland Railway’s Sheffield to London service for the last three full calendar years.

In 2023, 115 EMR trains between London and Sheffield were short formed, which constitutes 1 per cent of total trains, in 2024, 204 trains were short formed, which constitutes 1.7 per cent of total trains, and in 2025, 342 trains were short formed, which constitutes 2.9 per cent of the total. From Sheffield to London, in 2023, 104 trains between were short formed, constituting 0.9 per cent of total trains, in 2024 105 trains were short formed, constituting 0.9 per cent of the total, and in 2025, 131 trains were short formed, constituting 1.1 per cent of total trains.

EMR’s new Aurora bi-mode trains, which will deliver much-needed additional seats compared to the class 222 trains they are replacing on EMR’s intercity routes, have now started to enter passenger service and will continue with a phased rollout through 2026. EMR has put in place plans which will minimise the passenger impact of this fleet transition. However, to protect a reliable service for passengers, a small number of services may operate with shorter trains than usual reducing capacity during this transition period.