Passengers' Panel

Replacing the white Desiro Class 444 trains with blue Desiro Class 450s on the Portsmouth to London line benefits the minority of passengers but will cause discomfort for the vast majority as the seats are narrower, less padded and have rows where three passengers sit instead of two. Why not extend trains by a carriage or two rather than swapping classes of trains? What are the long-term plans for coping with the predicted increase in passenger numbers on this route?

The replacement of 444s by 450s will provide more than 140 much-needed additional seats in a 12-carriage train, so will offer more capacity on the busier part of the route between London Waterloo and Haslemere. We cannot extend the 10-carriage 444s because it would make the train too long for most platforms, including London Waterloo (a 444 carriage is longer than a 450 carriage). While this change will provide some short-term relief to crowding, it requires other stakeholders, such as the government and Network Rail, to commit to investment in more substantial changes to accommodate future growth.

Peter Brooks, Commercial Timetable Manager

For more information regarding this matter please read an open letter written by our Managing Director Stewart Palmer