Siemens has been put forward as the preferred bidder for a £200 million fleet of new air-conditioned trains which will run to and from Stevenage and Letchworth to Moorgate.

Govia Thameslink Railway, which operates the Great Northern service, says the 25 six-carriage trains will give passengers a ‘superior’ journey once they come into service on routes to Moorgate by the end of 2018.

The fleet, a variant of the Class 700 Desiro City which is being built for the new Thameslink service, will replace Class 313 trains built in 1976/77, will also serve passengers travelling between Welwyn/Hertford to Moorgate in central London.

Following a consultating with passenger groups and stakeholders train features include full width gangways, air-conditioning, real-time passenger information and power points throughout

The fleet is an investment worth more than £200 million, and Govia will run a financial competition to provide the capital funding..

The rail operator’s fleet director, Gerry McFadden, said: “Coupled with the seven-day-a-week service to Moorgate that we started last month, these new trains will give our passengers a superior, modern comfortable journey with more capacity, improved reliability, air conditioning and passenger information systems that can be remotely updated to provide real-time information.

“This is just one of four new train fleets we’re bringing in, introducing almost 1,400 new train carriages to the network, and we’re delighted to be appointing Siemens as our preferred bidder.”

Dr Jochen Eickhol from Siemens’ mobility division said: “Siemens is delighted to be appointed preferred bidder to replace the Class 313 Moorgate trains.

“We are looking forward to finalising the contract later this year.”