DESIGNS for new state-of-the-art trains for the London Underground being built in East Yorkshire are being unveiled tomorrow.

Siemens Mobility will be showcasing the progress being made through its £200m investment in a new rail manufacturing site in Goole to build the new Piccadilly line Tube trains.

The facility will create up to 700 direct jobs, with a further 250 roles during the construction phase and an additional 1,700 indirect supply chain opportunities.

The new train factory is scheduled to open in 2023 when it will begin manufacturing the Tube trains, and will be complemented by a neighbouring research, development and innovation cluster and supplier facilities.

Siemens Mobility global CEO Michael Peter will be joined by the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan for the update and unveiling of the detailed design on a webcast.

Andy Lord, managing director of London Underground, will also be sharing his vision for the trains and how passengers will benefit.

Meanwhile, train carriages that have carried millions of passengers are being put to new use by the next generation of rail engineers at the facility.

Three former Heathrow Express carriages, that ran for 25 years between central London and Heathrow Airport, have been moved to the site.

The units were known for their industry-leading passenger experience and luxurious interiors and clocked up three million miles in service each year.

They will now be fitted out for use as a facility for training apprentices and hosting schoolchildren and other visitors. They have been rebranded with information about the Goole investment and Siemens Mobility’s work at the forefront of the UK rail industry.

As a business employing thousands of essential workers that have supported critical national infrastructure through the pandemic, Siemens Mobility has also designed one carriage with thank you messages to the NHS for helping the country through the COVID-19 challenges.

Sambit Banerjee, managing director of rolling stock and customer services for Siemens Mobility in the UK, said: “These trains, which were part of a fleet that carried six million travellers a year, have come to the end of their passenger life but now have an important new role as part of our Goole rail village.

“They will form the perfect backdrop for our apprentices to learn new skills, for schoolchildren to be inspired to be part of a new pipeline of talent for the rail industry, and for other visitors to appreciate the latest digital technologies that are revolutionising the rail network.

“A group of our talented young graduates and apprentices are working on plans to design and equip the trains for their new use and we’re looking forward to visitors experiencing them in the future.”