Insides turn yellow as Merseyrail unveils bright new look

WERE you under the impression that livery was a symptom of too many units of booze? Not this time, my friend.

The insides of the Merseyrail fleet - rather than your own - are about to turn yellow.

All Merseyrail carriages are to get a new vibrant look as part of an £8.5m upgrade. Sunnier shades will replace boring neutral tones on panels and seats which have become worn under the intimate weekly weight of 110,000 rear ends will get some new cloth.

And litter bins. There will be litter bins.

 "The overall look will be sharper and more colourful, providing a cleaner and more visually appealing environment for passengers. Colours have been chosen to match the external livery," says Merseyrail, adding that the complete refurb will take 12 months.

"Internal panels will be refinished in brighter shades, and there will be a greater use of yellow. Passenger doors will have a new two-tone white and orange colour scheme.  Seats will be re-upholstered in a fresh, smart design. There will be new labelling throughout, as well as litter bins, following passenger feedback."

Kirkdale

Both interior and exterior improvements are part of an £8.5 million upgrade of the Merseyrail fleet. £5.5 million of this has come from rolling stock company Angel Trains, through a revised lease agreement with Merseytravel. £3 million has been provided by Merseyrail shareholders, Abellio and Serco.

"Coupled with the external livery, the aim of the internal refresh is to ensure that the standards customers have come to expect are maintained till a wholesale fleet modernisation is implemented. Work will be carried out at a purpose-built facility at Merseyrail’s Kirkdale depot," they say.

"The new exterior livery features six different themes that reflect attributes of the Liverpool city region, including tourist attractions, shopping and sport. The work, which started last year, is undertaken at our depot at Birkenhead North. Each train takes a week to be transformed into the new livery, and we expect the last train to be completed by April 2015."