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Home Train Operating Companies SWR keeps Class 707 trains for longer to help capacity

SWR keeps Class 707 trains for longer to help capacity

SWR has said that Class 707 trains are set to continue serving South Western Railway (SWR) until August 2022.

This will help the train operator improve its capacity on the network’s suburban routes.

Originally, 12 out of 30 of SWR’s 707 fleet was due to move to the Southeastern network but, following an agreement signed between the two train companies, SWR’s lease on the units has been extended until August 2022.

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The move will help SWR while it waits for its new £1 billion Alstom Arterio trains, the rollout for which had been altered.

SWR said it is waiting for manufacturer Alstom to supply a train that performs to specification and will deliver consistently better journeys for customers and colleagues. When they do, SWR said it will begin its extensive programme of testing, training and business mobilisation.

Anticipating its new fleet of trains, SWR said it refrained from spending significant sums — at a time of significantly reduced passenger numbers — on overhauling trains due to be retired and replaced, resulting in pre-Omicron challenges around fleet availability and capacity.

Other measures the train operator has taken to maximise fleet availability post-restrictions include:

  • The recruitment of additional engineers to increase the capacity of maintenance and safety programmes.
  • Control teams adapting the timetable to deliver available carriages to where they are most needed. This involves closely monitoring customer demand and changing the calling patterns on some services to relieve pressure at the busiest stations.
  • Reconfiguring existing train formations to provide more capacity on SWR’s suburban lines.

Claire Mann, SWR’s managing director, said: “Prior to the outbreak of the most recent coronavirus variant, the delay to the Arterio roll-out had created a challenging situation on parts of our network and I’d like to apologise to our customers and thank them for their patience during this testing time.

“I want to assure our customers that we have comprehensive short, medium and long-term plans in place to really get to grips with this challenge and protect customer journeys once people again return to the railway.

“Retaining the Class 707s is a key part of our medium-term approach, and I’d like to thank Southeastern for working with us in such a constructive way to support the wider interests of all railway users.”

David Wornham, Southeastern passenger services director, said: “This short lease extension won’t negatively affect our customers as we will be able to adjust our timetable as required to make sure we have enough capacity. We agreed to a small change in the transfer schedule as we understand the challenges SWR is facing and we want to help out. I look forward to introducing the remaining trains onto our busier metro routes in the summer when I hope passenger numbers will be closer to pre-pandemic levels.”

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