UK: South Western Railway has awarded Alstom a 4½-year Technical Support & Spares Supply Agreement for its Class 701 Arterio electric multiple-units.
The £66m contract announced on November 5 covers round-the-clock technical support for 60 10-car and 30 five-car units owned by Rock Rail which are belatedly being introduced on suburban routes from London Waterloo.
Alstom will have a team of almost 40 people at SWR’s Wimbledon Traincare Depot and Network Rail’s Basingstoke Rail Operations Centre. It will also supply spares for heavy and light maintenance, with a team of five engineers focused on data capture and analysis from trains in service to support predictive maintenance and performance improvements.
‘This new agreement with South Western Railway marks a significant milestone in our long-standing partnership. We’re proud to continue supporting the Arterio fleet with our technical expertise and predictive maintenance capabilities’, said Steven Harvey, Services Director UK & Ireland at Alstom. ‘Our dedicated team is committed to ensuring these Alstom-built trains deliver the highest standards of performance and reliability for fare-paying passengers.’
SWR’s Head of Fleet Delivery James Wale said ‘the introduction of the Arterio fleet is transforming journeys for customers on routes across our suburban network with increased capacity and comfort. As we continue the rollout of the fleet, we warmly welcome this new agreement with Alstom, and the technical and maintenance support they will provide over the coming years.’
