22.08.17
First MTR takes charge of new South Western franchise
South Western Railway (SWR) has this week started work operating services in London and the south of England on the new South Western franchise.
Earlier this year, the franchise was awarded to the joint venture between First Group and Hong Kong-based MTR, First MTR, who will take over from South West Trains, who had previously run services in the region.
As part of the new franchise, passengers can also look forward to a £1.2bn investment to run over seven years, and will see a number of improvements to services.
By December 2020, the SWR mainland fleet will see the addition of 92 new Aventra trains, and the rest of its trains will be refurbished and refreshed, leading to a capacity boost of 52,000 seats.
SWR is also aiming to add more services and quicker journeys, as well as inject £90m into investing in station improvements and will also support local communities by providing greater connectivity.
“Together with our partners MTR, we will connect millions of customers every week, while investing to improve the network now and in the future,” said Tim O’Toole, FirstGroup chief executive officer.
“Our experienced leadership team, working alongside thousands of our dedicated SWR colleagues, will deliver the tangible improvements that customers and stakeholders told us they want.”
And Jeremy Long, chief executive officer for European Business at MTR, assured passengers that the company had a long track record of improving passengers’ journeys around the world and a strong reputation for efficiency, operating performance and quality of delivery.
“Together with FirstGroup we will bring this to bear for passengers in London and the south west, and help deliver a major programme of upgrades across the South Western network,” he added.
Finally, Andy Mellors, managing director of SWR, thanked the previous franchise operator for doing a great job during the Waterloo and South West upgrade programme work, going on to say that he knew it had been a challenging few weeks for customers traveling in the area.
“I’d like to thank everyone for their patience and understanding during this time. The outcome of this improvement work will deliver the infrastructure needed to support the increased capacity plans we need for the future.”
The franchise changing over also follows First MTR agreeing to fare caps on the London to Exeter line after the Competition and Markets Authority raised concern about a lack of competition on the route.
Top Image: a South West Trains Class 159 diesel on the West of England Main Line in south Somerset. c. Joe Dunckley
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