Train operator First Great Western is to put an extra 48 carriages on the tracks between February and September 2012 in an effort to deal with overcrowding on some of the South East's busiest trains.
Earlier this week the Department of Transport announced it would be funding the new carriages, which will mean an extra 4,500 seats for travellers into London Paddington from the west, including Swindon, Didcot and Oxford across the morning and evening peaks - an increase of around nine per cent.
The extra carriages, which will cost a total of £28.9m by the expected end of the First Great Western franchise in April 2013, aim to alleviate commuter problems. All of the 10 most crowded trains in South East England are First Great Western services in or out of Paddington. Four of those 10 trains serve Oxford, and at least one of those trains has twice as many passengers as seats.
On Paddington to Oxford services, five-coach 125 MPH Adelante trains will be replaced by three-coach 100 MPH Turbo trains. Each Adelante has 287 seats. Rail Minister Theresa Villiers MP said: “We are determined to tackle overcrowding and provide better, more comfortable journeys for passengers. These extra carriages will enable existing services to be lengthened which will significantly increase their capacity.
“Adding carriages to some of the busiest routes in the country is a key part of the major programme of rail capacity expansion which we have promised to deliver. This is a vital way to respond to passenger concerns about crowding and provides important support for economic growth.”
But the Thames Valley branch of passenger group Railfuture said the increased provision didn't go far enough. A spokesman said: "The 46 extra carriages announced today will barely keep pace with one year’s increase in passenger numbers. Even with the new carriages, passengers at busy times will be paying more in real terms for even less chance of getting a seat than they had a few years ago. Rail passenger growth has been underestimated many times. Railfuture hopes current predictions don’t lead to under-investment.”
Since 2003 passengers at Oxford have risen by 1.8 million, nearly 50 per cent, and 487,000, or 47 per cent, at Didcot Parkway. In January fares will be hiked by three per cent more than inflation.
First Great Western managing director Mark Hopwood said: “We’ve seen an ever increasing demand for travel on our services. While that demand is gratifying in one respect, it can lead to overcrowding on peak services, which is why we’ve been working for some time to secure additional carriages.
"We have worked hard to put together an innovative deal that really maximises the benefit to customers from the rolling stock currently available. This investment - some £29 million - will deliver thousands of extra seats for customers across our network. I’m delighted we’ve been able to reach this deal with the Department for Transport."
