The first passenger working was the 07.47 Lowestoft - Norwich.
Stadler was awarded a contract worth around £610m in October 2016 to supply 58 Flirt UK sets in regional (class 755) and inter-city (class 745) variants. The order comprises 10 12-car EMUs for London - Norwich services; 10 12-car EMUs for Stansted Express airport services; 24 four-car bi-mode (diesel and electric) trains for regional services; and 14 three-car bi-mode trains for regional services.
The order is part of a £1.4bn programme to renew the entire Greater Anglia train fleet, which also includes 665 class 720 Aventra EMU cars from Bombardier.
The class 755s were authorised for passenger operation by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) last month.
The order is being financed by Rock Rail East Anglia, a joint venture between Rock Rail, Aberdeen Standard Investments and GLIL Infrastructure.
The introduction of the class 755s on regional routes in East Anglia will enable Greater Anglia to dispense with its class 153, 156 and 170 DMUs. Greater Anglia has also been hiring locomotives and coaches from Direct Rail Services to operate some services on the Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth lines pending the introduction of the new trains.
