Passengers' Panel

From my observations over the past few months, it seems that South West Trains has turned its attention to the new Desiro trains and neglected the diesel Class 170 and 159 trains. Sometimes rubbish is left overnight and you can tell that the carriages have not been cleaned, even though the guards claim that “all units are cleaned every night”. There are badly stained carpets and some tatty seats. Is the problem that there isn’t enough time to properly clean trains? And who checks to make sure that it is done? Are these trains on a programme of ongoing refurbishment?

I’m sorry that you have travelled in carriages that were not as clean as they should have been. Salisbury Train Care Depot is responsible for the maintenance, cleaning and presentation of the diesel stock operated by South West Trains. The introduction of the Desiro trains has had no impact on our existing schedule.

Every night, trains return to the depot for cleaning. Some are serviced there, others at Fratton or Exeter St Davids. We have identified a problem at Exeter and are working to resolve it. Each train is checked before leaving to ensure that it is up to standard. The 159s were on a rolling programme of carpet and unholstery cleaning every six months at our Clapham depot on Saturday nights. The depot has a machine designed specifically for carpets and upholstery. It cleans and dries so that the train can go back into service at 07:00 the next morning. The cleaning was suspended earlier last year because engineering work at Clapham depot prevented the trains from getting there. The cleaning has now been resumed.

The carpets present a particular problem because stains are very difficult to remove. We are looking at the possibility of cleaning them overnight and we also have an ongoing programme for re-covering and repairing seats. We have ordered 2,000 seat-back tables to replace existing ones that are stained by tea, coffee and graffiti. We are also replacing 1,000 worn or damaged seat bases (25% of the total), of which 293 have been fitted so far. In addition, a new design of seat-base cover will be introduced that is easier to replace and will immediately improve the look of the seats.

Pete Blackman, Depot Manager, Salisbury