Osborne is Part of the Journey for Passengers to Benefit from £210M Train Order for UK’s Busiest Commuter Network

This week, Osborne was part of the official opening of the former Eurostar International Platforms at Waterloo. Attended by the Rail Minister, and host of other dignitaries, the event was used to formally launch the train lengthening programme and increase in capacity at Waterloo that is planned over the next two years.

John Dowsett, Osborne Managing Director for One Team Wessex explained, “As part of the early phase of the capacity scheme, Osborne has upgraded the current infrastructure to platforms 21 and 22 as an interim measure. This will allow the use of previously dormant platforms during periods of disruption whilst the wider scheme is developed. This has helped us bring some of the benefits to our customers quicker.”

Plans for a £210million fleet of new trains to benefit passengers on the UK’s busiest commuter rail franchise moved forward this week, as South West Trains announced that  30 new five-carriage Desiro City trains will boost capacity providing more than 18,000 extra peak-time  passengers every day travelling into London Waterloo, the country’s busiest station. The train order will also allow for a further 6,000 daily peak-time passengers once infrastructure upgrades are completed on the mainline and Hounslow loop.

The first of the 150 new carriages will begin arriving in 2017, with all set to be in service by early 2018. Around 140 new jobs will also be created as a result of the new trains order. More employment opportunities will also be created for engineers, drivers, guards and maintenance staff in a further boost for the rail sector.

The new trains will be maintained by South West Trains at Wimbledon depot, which has recently benefitted from £6million worth of investment to deliver improved maintenance facilities and with further investment planned.

Tim Shoveller, Chief Executive for the South West Trains-Network Rail Alliance, said:

“These exciting plans will deliver the biggest step-change in capacity and service to our customers on the network in decades. As well as providing extra space for passengers using our services now, the combination of investment in the infrastructure and these new trains will create space at Waterloo that is the essential first step to allow an increase in capacity for our longer distance, mainline services. We will also continue to work with our industry partners to develop options for the longer term.”