Rolling stock › In serviceData updated 6 October 2026

Chiltern Explorer (Class 68 and Mark 5A) unverified

Chiltern's newest trains, branded Chiltern Explorer: a Class 68 diesel locomotive and five CAF-built Mark 5A coaches, driven from a cab in the end coach when the locomotive is pushing. Built for TransPennine Express, which ran them from 2019, they replaced Chiltern's Mark 3 sets between London and Birmingham in 2026.

Drawing to come

Type

Diesel-electric locomotive and coaches

Builder

Stadler Rail Valencia, formerly Vossloh España (Class 68); CAF (Mark 5A coaches)

In service

since 2019

Operators

Chiltern Railways

Formation

A Class 68 locomotive and five Mark 5A coaches, with a driving trailer at the other end

Trains in fleet

13

Fleets

Chiltern Railways: 13

Top speed

100 mph (the coaches are designed for 125 mph)

Power

Diesel-electric locomotive (Caterpillar C175-16 engine, 2,800 kW) at one end and a driving trailer at the other; Chiltern runs them on HVO

Car width

2.70 m

Profile

main-line

Air-conditioned

Yes

Seats per train

291

Total capacity

30 first class and 261 standard (64 + 59 + 69 + 69), counted from Chiltern's seat plans. RAIL (2018) gives the same per coach, not counting 6 tip-up seats in coach B. Chiltern's fact sheet rounds this to 68 seats a carriage, and Beacon Rail gives 286

Status

In service since 26 January 2026: 13 sets, all due in service by December 2026. Chiltern leases 68019-032 from Beacon Rail (13 for service and one spare) and 68018 for rescues. The last Mark 3 set ran on 18 March 2026.

This page is marked unverified: its figures haven’t yet been confirmed by an official source or a published history. The foot of the page says what’s in doubt.

Car types

Sources

How we source figures →

• Chiltern Railways' newest trains now serving the West Midlands, Chiltern Railways, 27 January 2026 (first Chiltern Explorer in service on Monday 26 January 2026; 13 trains, all available from December 2026; replacing four loco-hauled Mark 3 sets)
• Chiltern Railways secures modern trains to transform customer journeys, Chiltern Railways, 5 August 2025 (13 Mark 5A trains from Beacon Rail to replace the Mark 3s; HVO fuel; stop-start)
• New trains: your new Chiltern Explorer trains have arrived, Chiltern Railways, accessed 6 October 2026 (First Class; four toilets, one accessible; four bikes; two accessible areas, in the First Class coach; Class 68s with stop-start; HVO fuel)
• Chiltern Explorer fact sheet (v1), Chiltern Railways, January 2026 (13 trains of 5 carriages including a First Class carriage; 100 mph)
• Seat diagrams A - E (Chiltern Explorer coach plans), Chiltern Railways, 2026 (coaches A to E: seats per coach (64, 59, 69, 69 and 30 first), wheelchair spaces, toilets, bike space, vestibules)
• First TransPennine Express Mk 5As arrive in UK, RAIL, 29 May 2018 (formation 68+TF+TS+TS+TS+DTS; each coach's length, seats and weight; train 131.84 m with the locomotive; 100 mph; built by CAF in northern Spain, delivered from May 2018)
• First of TPE's new Mk 5As enters passenger service, RAIL, 3 September 2019 (first passenger service on 24 August 2019, 68027 with set TP09; FO 115xx, TSO 127xx, DTS 128xx)
• CAF's Mark 5 coaches, Rail Engineer, 26 August 2021 (13 five-car sets and a spare driving trailer; Mark 5A 22.2 m long, 2.7 m wide; designed for 125 mph, run at 100 mph; bar couplers within the set, buffers and buckeyes at its ends; 2,800 kW Class 68s; Beacon Rail the owner)
• Mk5A, Beacon Rail (CAF; 100 mph; bogie wheelbase 2,250 mm, bogie centres 16,000 mm; 286 seats; 170 t)
• Cl.68, Beacon Rail (Stadler; 2,800 kW; 317 kN; 160 km/h; Bo-Bo; 85.5 t)
• UKLIGHT diesel-electric locomotive, BRLL to be used by DRS, UK (data sheet LDEUKLIGHTBRLLDRS0816e), Stadler Rail, 2016 (file dated April 2018) (UKLight (Class 68): Stadler Rail Valencia; Caterpillar C175-16 2,800 kW, ABB electrics, AC/AC; 160 km/h; Bo'Bo'; up to 500 kW train supply; side elevation and end view (undimensioned))
• Vossloh España unveils Direct Rail Services Class 68, Railway Gazette International, 16 December 2013 (Vossloh España, Valencia; about 85 t; C175-16 rated 2,800 kW; 1,100 mm wheels; 160 km/h)
• More leasing and maintenance details for Chiltern Railway's replacement Class 68 fleet, RAIL, 8 August 2025 (68019-032 leased from Beacon (13 service, one spare) and 68018 for rescues; push-pull system for the Mark 5As; Chiltern's Mark 3 locomotives 68010-015 hired from DRS until March 2026)
• Chiltern steps up work on new Class 68 fleet ready for 2026 entry, RAIL, 20 October 2025 (ten sets a day in use, one spare and two in maintenance; HVO fuel)
• Depot & Facilities Requirement for the Long Term Maintenance of Class 68 Locomotives & Mk5A Coaches (preliminary market engagement notice 012495-2026), The Chiltern Railway Company, on Find a Tender (GOV.UK), 11 February 2026 (13 Mk5a sets and 15 Class 68s, all in service by 1 December 2026; leased from Beacon Rail)
• Chiltern loco-hauled changeover is complete, The Railway Hub (reporting by Pip Dunn), 27 May 2026 (last Mark 3 service on 18 March 2026 (68011 and AL04); Chiltern set formations, e.g. CH04 of 11504, 12712-714 and 12804)

unverified Class 68 length 20.50 m: worked out from RAIL's 2018 figures (131.84 m for the train with the locomotive, less its five coach lengths). Wikipedia gives the same; Stadler's data sheet gives no dimensions, how many of the 13 sets are in service in October 2026 hasn't been confirmed: Chiltern planned four by March and all 13 by December 2026, doors: one single-leaf sliding plug door at each end of each coach side, from Wikipedia and from the vestibules on Chiltern's seat plans; not from a drawing, Mark 5A height: not published by CAF, Beacon Rail or Chiltern, Mark 5A width: Rail Engineer gives 2.7 m; Wikipedia gives 2.75 m, build dates: the Mark 5As were built in Spain and delivered from 2018 (RAIL); Wikipedia gives 2017-2018 at Beasain. No source read gives the build years of 68018-032