A number of GWR stopping trains between Penzance, Plymouth and Exeter have been suspended from today, as the operator continues to struggle with the problems it has been experiencing with 26 ex-Transport for Wales Class 175 units.

The Alstom-built 175s, which entered service more than two decades ago on the North Wales main line, were intended to replace GWR's short-formed ‘Castle’ class HSTs, which were becoming increasingly unreliable.

The 175s are intended for use on the Devon and Cornwall main line, to Okehampton and Barnstaple, and also on the Newquay and Falmouth Docks branches in connection with Mid-Cornwall Metro, but their absence has triggered day to day cancellations, including halving the services to Newquay and Falmouth on some days.

GWR says it has now chosen to suspend some services between Exeter and Penzance to make the remaining timetable more reliable.

The operator said: ‘The introduction of the 26 Class 175s is designed to improve capacity and resilience in Devon and Cornwall and provide a better experience for our customers. However, the 15 trains transferred to GWR to date have required a higher level of recommissioning work than expected following a prolonged period in storage and out of service. The introduction of these trains has been further affected in passenger service by technical issues, which now require immediate and targeted attention.

‘As a result, we know performance and punctuality on our routes in Devon and Cornwall hasn’t been good enough recently. There have been too many cancellations and delays, and customers and colleagues are rightly frustrated.

‘To address the consistent performance issues and the frequent short-notice cancellations brought about by the issues outlined above, we are planning a limited number of timetable reductions to come into effect from Monday, September 7.

‘These changes – six cancellations on a weekday, and a smaller number on a Saturday, between Penzance and Plymouth/Exeter – will help to provide certainty for customers instead of the ad-hoc cancellations we’ve had to make over recent weeks, and help protect capacity

‘To ensure we can deliver the long-term reliability and capacity benefits that we believe the Class 175s will bring, and so we can return to a full timetable as soon as possible, we’re introducing an improvement plan based around including key interventions which we believe will deliver a more robust and reliable fleet.

‘Enhanced pre-service assurances – once reported defects have been fixed, each unit will undergo additional checks to identify any related or emerging issues before the train returns to passenger service. The aim is to go beyond fixing the immediate fault and give greater confidence that the unit is ready for sustained operation.

‘We’ve introduced a Class 175 1000-mile [1600km] fault-free running period for each train before it goes into passenger service. Trains must complete the distance in simulated passenger operation without any significant faults occurring. This provides a more realistic test of reliability and greater confidence before trains are released into service.’ 

GWR has also carried out a forensic review of all reported defects.

Meanwhile, many CrossCountry trains were cancelled yesterday, because of a continuing shortage of drivers. Most routes were affected.

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