Great Western Railway (GWR) has taken home two accolades at the Golden Spanner Awards.
The spanners recognise improvements in train maintenance practice and reliability. Three categories of trophy are awarded: Gold for best in class, Silver for most improved over the last year, and Bronze for the fastest average recovery time following an incident.
This is not guesswork on the part of judges. Figures are calculated using Miles per Technical Incident (MTIN) Moving Annual Average data, a TIN being recorded where a train is stopped for three minutes or more due to a rolling stock issue. Trains are broken down into categories based on age and type.
GWR took Gold in the Most Reliable HST category, thanks to their Castle Class fleet, which got a 42 per cent improvement in reliability.
The annual awards also saw GWR get a Bronze spanner in the Ex-BR Diesel Multiple Units category for its Class 165s, maintained by Reading and St Philips Marsh depots. The training and technical backup was described at the awards as “one of the best on the whole network.”
