First MTR signs £895m deal with Bombardier for new SWT trains [RTM]
Date: 20/06/2017
FirstGroup and MTR have today announced that they have signed an order with Bombardier worth £895m to deliver 90 new trains to support its South Western franchise.
The news follows the franchise, (which is due to start on 20 August this year) being awarded to the partnership between the FirstGroup and MTR in March, and is expected to provide a 46% boost to peak capacity on its suburban routes into Waterloo.
RTM reported earlier this year that First MTR was reportedly dropping £200m worth of new Class 707 Desiro City trains currently being built by Siemens. The first of these arrived in the UK in December last year. However, a spokesperson for the partnership told RTM that they will continue to roll-out the new rolling stock, but once the Aventras are fully in place by December 2020 it will look to cascade the 707s to other parts of the network. He added that this falls under First MTRs plans for a homogenous fleet of trains.
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Tags: x FirstGroup x Bombardier
