British diesel multiple-unit (DMU) train built by CAF
TheBritish Rail Class 196Civity is a class ofdiesel multiple unit built forWest Midlands Trains by Spanish rolling stock manufacturerCAF . A total of 26 units have been built; 12 two-car units and 14 four-car units.[ 11]
They are the first train of theCivity family to featureend gangways .
Shortly after the announcement that a consortium of Abellio, Mitsui and JR East had been awarded the West Midlands franchise, West Midlands Trains confirmed they had placed an order for 26 diesel multiple units based on CAF'sCivity platform.[ 12]
The first completed unit started testing at theVelim railway test circuit in December 2019.[ 13]
The first vehicle arrived atTyseley TMD in Birmingham on 17 April 2020, having travelled by ship fromCuxhaven toHull .[ 14] [ 15]
West Midlands Trains [ edit ] West Midlands Trains use the Class 196 fleet to replace their 23Class 170/5 Turbostar units on services betweenBirmingham and Shrewsbury via Telford . They also run onBirmingham to Hereford services from 2023,[ 16] Snow Hill Lines (Dorridge & Stratford-upon-Avon to Worcester).[ 17]
Six 2-car units will be allocated to the initial services operated on theEast West Rail route between Oxford and Milton Keynes, the service was planned to start in 2025 but has since been delayed.[ 18] [ 19]
Class Operator Qty. Year built Cars per unit Unit nos. 196/0 West Midlands Trains 12 2019–2022 2 196001–196012 196/1 14 4 196101–196114
Some units have received names:
196001:Graiseley Wolves [ 20] 196002:Jess Carter [ 21] 196004:Sir Edward Elgar [ 22] 196101:Charles Darwin [ 6] 196102:The Shropshire Flyer [ 23] ^ In passenger service, up to four units may work together so long as the train contains no more than eight vehicles. When out of service, the maximum number of units remains four but the maximum permissible length increases to ten vehicles.[ 1] ^a b Fletcher, Steven (26 August 2020)."The Railways (Interoperability) Regulations 2011, as amended - CAF WMT Class 196 Diesel Multiple Unit -Technical File: RTV-T41340-R004" (PDF) . Letter to Paul Simmons (Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles). London: Office of Rail and Road. UK/51/2020/0049.Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved30 November 2022 . ^ Moore, Kyle."Video: First glimpse of brand new West Midlands Railway trains" .Birmingham Updates . Updates Media. Archived fromthe original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved17 December 2019 . ^ "Class 196 fact sheet" (PDF) . Birmingham: West Midlands Trains. 12 October 2022.Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved30 November 2022 .^ Stubbings, David (8 January 2026)."Porterbrook acquires West Midlands Trains' '196' and '730' fleets" .Rail Magazine . Retrieved8 January 2026 . ^ "New maintenance contract for 170s". News.Today's Railways UK ^a b "West Midlands Trains Launches CAF '196'Modern Railways . No. 890. Stamford: Key Publishing. November 2022. pp. 12– 13. ^ Booth, Janine (18 April 2023)."West Midlands Railway: new train fleet enters service on Hereford Line" . RailAdvent. Retrieved18 April 2023 . ^ "May Timetable Change: Sunday 21 May 2023" . Birmingham: West Midlands Trains. Retrieved13 April 2023 .^a b Vosman, Quintus (13 January 2020)."New British fleets undergo testing in Velim" .International Railway Journal . Falmouth: Simmons-Boardman Publishing. Archived fromthe original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved2 July 2020 . ^a b c Powerpacks with 6H 1800 for Railcar Applications (PDF) (01/20 ed.). MTU Friedrichshafen GmbH. 20 April 2020. Archived fromthe original (PDF) on 21 April 2021. Retrieved30 November 2022 .^ Fender, Keith; Sheratt, Philip (June 2018). "West Midlands prepares for new fleets".Modern Railways . Vol. 75, no. 837. Stamford: Key Publishing. p. 78. ^ Briginshaw, David (12 December 2017)."New West Midlands franchise orders 107 trains" .International Railway Journal . Falmouth: Simmons-Boardman Publishing. Archived fromthe original on 19 December 2017. Retrieved27 May 2018 . ^ "West Midlands Trains reveals first Class 196 DMU" .Rail Business UK . Sutton: DVV Media International. 18 December 2019. Archived fromthe original on 18 December 2019. Retrieved30 November 2022 .^ Clinnick, Richard (19 May 2020)."First brand new CAF train delivered to West Midlands Trains" .Rail Magazine . Peterborough: Bauer Consumer Media.Archived from the original on 26 September 2021. Retrieved11 July 2020 . ^ "New West Midlands Railway fleet enters passenger service" . Birmingham: West Midlands Trains. 17 October 2022.Archived from the original on 21 October 2022. Retrieved17 October 2022 .^ "West Midland Railways launches Class 196 fleet".Rail Magazine . No. 969. Peterborough: Bauer Consumer Media. 2 November 2022. pp. 12– 13. ^ "New Trains - Class 196" . Birmingham: West Midlands Trains. Archived fromthe original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved19 September 2020 .^ "Chiltern Railways selected as operator for the first stage of East West Rail - Oxford to Milton Keynes" .www.chilternrailways.co.uk (Press release). Chiltern Railways. Retrieved25 March 2025 .^ "No date for passenger services on EWR". News Front.Modern Railways ^ "Naming Update".Railways Illustrated . No. 243. May 2023. p. 23. ^ Butlin, Ashley (August 2025). "Multiple Units". Stock update.The Railway Magazine ^ "West Midlands Railway Class 196s named".Today's Railways UK . No. 255. May 2023. p. 58. ^ "Shed Talk". Units.Rail Express British Rail Class 196 at Wikimedia Commons
Media related toBritish Rail Class 196 at Wikimedia Commons