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{{Short description|Former Stagecoach-owned English train operator}}
{{About|the former operator of the South Western railway franchise|the current operator|South Western Railway
{{Use British English|date=July 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
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|regions= {{ubl|[[Greater London]]|[[Surrey]]|[[Hampshire]]|[[Isle of Wight]]|[[Dorset]]}}
|secregions= {{ubl|[[Berkshire]]|[[Wiltshire]]|[[Somerset]]|[[Devon]]}}
|fleet= {{ubl|373|1 [[British Rail Class 73|Class 73]] electro-diesel locomotive|11 [[British Rail Class 158|Class 158 ''Express Sprinter'']] sets|30 [[British Rail Class 159|Class 159 ''South Western Turbo'']] sets|45 [[British Rail Class 444|Class 444 ''Desiro'']] sets|127 [[British Rail Class 450|Class 450 ''Desiro'']] sets|91 [[
|franchise = [[South Western franchise|South West]]<br />4 February 1996 – 3 February 2007<br />[[South Western franchise|South Western]]<br />4 February 2007 – 20 August 2017
|stations = 213
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|abbr= SW
|map = [[File:South West Trains route map 2010.svg|300px|Route map]]
|successor = [[
}}
'''Stagecoach South Western Trains Limited''',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/05599788|title=STAGECOACH SOUTH WESTERN TRAINS LIMITED|website=[[Companies House]]|publisher=[[
SWT operated the majority of commuter services from its [[Central London]] terminus at [[
The area of operation was the former South Western division of [[Network SouthEast]], and was also roughly that of the [[Railways Act 1921|pre-1923]] [[London & South Western Railway]] (excluding everything west of [[Exeter St Davids railway station|Exeter]]). As part of the [[privatisation of British Rail]], SWT was taken over by [[Stagecoach Group|Stagecoach]]. In 2004, the franchise was retained by Stagecoach when re-tendered. In 2007, the franchise was merged with the [[Island Line (train operating company)|Island Line]] franchise to form a newly extended South Western franchise, which was won by Stagecoach. When next tendered, the franchise was awarded to [[
{{TOC limit|3}}
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As a consequence of the [[privatisation of British Rail]] during the mid 1990s, railway operations were segmented into various [[Passenger rail franchising in Great Britain|franchises]], one of which being the [[South Western franchise]]. These franchises were awarded to various privately owned companies following an evaluation of competitive bids. During 1995, it was announced that the [[Director of Passenger Rail Franchising]] had awarded the South West Trains franchise to the Scottish transport group [[Stagecoach Group|Stagecoach]].<ref>{{cite magazine |title= Bus firm Stagecoach is first franchisee | magazine = [[Rail Magazine]] |issue=269 |date=3 January 1996 |page=8}}</ref><ref>[http://data.companieshouse.gov.uk/doc/company/02938995 Companies House extract company no 2938995]. South Western Trains Limited.</ref> Operations commenced on 4 February 1996, with South West Trains' first train, the 05:10 [[Twickenham railway station|Twickenham]] to London Waterloo; it was the first privatised scheduled train to operate for 48 years.<ref name=indyfirstpriv>{{cite web |url = https://www.independent.co.uk/news/first-privatised-train-in-50-years-will-be-a-bus-1326620.html |title = First privatised train in 50 years will be a bus |work = [[The Independent]] |date = 31 January 1996}}</ref>
In April 2001, the [[Strategic Rail Authority]] awarded Stagecoach a new franchise for the region, its bid having been judged to be superior to those from its rivals, [[FirstGroup]] / [[
During the early days of its franchise, SWT gained notoriety for enacting severe cuts to its services, which were typically attributed to the shortage of drivers; the company sought to remedy this by seeking to hire additional drivers.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/south-west-trains-to-hire-drivers-after-pounds-90m-order-1261422.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220524/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/south-west-trains-to-hire-drivers-after-pounds-90m-order-1261422.html |archive-date=24 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=South West Trains to hire drivers after £90m order |newspaper=The Independent |date=14 May 1997 |access-date=27 April 2010 |location=London}}</ref> SWT also implemented significant improvements upon the network, including replacing much of the inherited British Rail-era [[rolling stock]], along with the refurbishment of most stations, which included increasing their accessibility to disabled passengers. There was also an emphasis on the improving the customer experience, such as better access to service information. During the early 2000s, improvements included the introduction of new rail services and the reopening of [[
===Changes===
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During December 2005, the [[Department for Transport]] (DfT) announced that [[Arriva]], FirstGroup, [[MTR Corporation|MTR]]/Sea Containers, [[National Express]] and Stagecoach had been shortlisted to tender for the new South Western franchise, which combined the South West Trains and Island Line Trains franchises; National Express later withdrew.<ref>{{cite press release |url= http://www.stagecoach.com/media/news-releases/archive/2005-12-20.aspx |title=Stagecoach Group shortlisted for South Western rail franchise |date=20 December 2005 |publisher=Stagecoach Group |access-date=4 February 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.dft.gov.uk/publications/rail-passenger-franchise-south-western-brief/ |title = South Western stakeholder briefing |publisher = Department for Transport |date = 4 April 2006}}</ref> In September 2006, the DfT awarded the franchise to Stagecoach, the new franchise starting on 4 February 2007, for a period of ten years.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5369688.stm |title=Stagecoach wins railway franchise |date=22 September 2006 |work=BBC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Stagecoach Wins South West Trains Contract |last = Davidson |first = Ros |url= https://www.theguardian.com/business/2006/sep/22/transportintheuk.money |access-date=25 September 2012 |newspaper=The Guardian |location =London |date=22 September 2006}}</ref>
Throughout the operation of the franchise, passenger numbers grew year on year, along with rapid spikes in numbers occurring in some years.<ref name = "railmag 2015"/> While many franchises required government funding to sustain their services, SWT operated without any [[
Major measures performed by SWT to expand the network's capacity included the substantial redevelopment of its [[London Waterloo station]] and the procurement of new rolling stock.<ref name = "railmag 2015"/><ref>{{cite press release |publisher = South West Trains |title = London commuters to benefit from longer peak time trains |date = 23 December 2011 |url = http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/extracapacity.aspx |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120117060738/http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/extracapacity.aspx |archive-date = 17 January 2012 |df = dmy-all |access-date = 23 December 2011 }}</ref> Christian Roth, SWT's engineering director, claimed in 2015 that the firm was in the process of delivering similar capacity improvements to the [[Thameslink]] programme at a tenth of the cost and a quarter of the time.<ref name = "railmag 2015"/> While some rival companies chose to pursue [[
Further measures were also proposed by SWT; Tim Shoveller, the company's managing director, periodically spoke out on his desire to eventually introduce [[Bilevel rail car|double-decker trains]] to serve its busiest commuter routes.<ref name = "railmag 2015"/> While typically viewed as an effective means of increasing capacity, such ambitions were complicated by multiple factors, the principal of which that there were no double-deck trains in operation that were believed to be suitable for SWT's needs, thus likely necessitating the development of an original design.<ref name = "railmag 2015"/> Procuring a small fleet of bespoke rolling stock would certainly incur a steep price rise over conventional rolling stock, while handling the increased dwell times typically necessary when operating double-deck trains would also adversely impact the timetable; finally, no such rolling stock could be operated until the completion of track lowering across substantial portions of the network, particularly around bridges and tunnels, for sufficient headroom to be achieved.<ref name = "railmag 2015"/>
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In March 2013, the [[Secretary of State for Transport]] announced the DfT was in talks with Stagecoach to extend the franchise until April 2019.<ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/franchise-announcement |title= Rail franchising: Railway plan puts new focus on passengers |publisher= Department for Transport |date=26 March 2013}}</ref> At one point, it seemed certain that the franchise would be renewed, information to that effect having been included on the Government's published Rail Franchise Schedule in October 2014.<ref name = "railmag 2015">{{cite news |url= https://www.railmagazine.com/operations/franchises/end-of-the-line-for-south-west-trains |title= End of the line for South West Trains? |work=Rail |location= Peterborough |date=5 August 2020}}</ref> However, in July 2015, Stagecoach confirmed that talks had failed and the franchise would be relet.<ref>{{cite news |title=South West Trains franchise 'out to competition' |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-33436408 |access-date=13 December 2015 |work=BBC News |date=7 July 2015}}</ref> This outcome was viewed by several industry commentators as being unexpected and inconvenient in its timing; the periodical ''Rail'' speculated that Stagecoach's rejection had been largely due to government officials feeling that the state was not receiving a sufficiently large share of the profits being generated.<ref name = "railmag 2015"/>
Stagecoach and a FirstGroup / MTR Corporation joint venture were shortlisted on 4 February 2016 to bid for the new franchise.<ref>{{cite press release |url= https://www.gov.uk/government/news/two-companies-shortlisted-to-compete-for-the-next-south-western-rail-franchise |title=Two companies shortlisted to compete for the next South Western rail franchise |publisher= Department for Transport |date=4 February 2016}}</ref> On 27 March 2017, the franchise was awarded to [[
==Services==
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From [[London Waterloo station|Waterloo]], SWT's London terminus, long-distance trains ran to southern England, including the major coastal population centres of Portsmouth, Southampton, Bournemouth, Poole and Weymouth. There were also trains to Reading, Exeter and Bristol, but these were not the principal fast services from London to those cities, which are operated from {{stnlink|London Paddington}} by [[Great Western Railway (train operating company)|Great Western Railway]]. The majority of its passengers were on suburban commuter lines in inner and south-west London, Surrey, east Berkshire, and north-east Hampshire.
After privatisation in 1996, the network changed considerably, no longer serving [[West Croydon railway station|West Croydon]], [[Sutton railway station (London)|Sutton]], 'Coastway' stations between [[Chichester railway station|Chichester]] and [[Brighton railway station|Brighton]], or the [[
As with most rail companies, non-folding bicycles were banned from peak-time trains to and from London. However, these restrictions applied only to cyclists boarding or alighting in the area bounded by Hook, Alton, Guildford, Reading and Dorking.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/cycle-policy.aspx |title=Cycle policy |publisher=South West Trains |access-date=26 December 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130430185237/http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/cycle-policy.aspx |archive-date=30 April 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The aim was to maximise available passenger space on the most crowded trains.
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===Routes===
South West Trains operated suburban and long-distance trains. Main destinations included: [[
===Main lines===
[[File:444029 at Woking.jpg|thumb|right|A [[British Rail Class 444|Class 444 Desiro]] unit used on longer-distance services on the electrified railway lines.]]
[[File:Gb-emudc-455732-2.jpg|thumb|right|A [[
[[File:Class159002 at Clapham Jcn.jpg|thumb|right|A [[British Rail Class 159|Class 159]] South Western Turbo unit at [[
The seven main lines operated by SWT were:
* The [[South West Main Line]] (SWML) to [[
* The [[Portsmouth Direct
* The [[West of England Main Line]] to [[Salisbury railway station|Salisbury]], [[
* [[Wessex Main Line]] (part): Salisbury to [[
* [[Heart of Wessex Line]] (part): [[
* London Waterloo to [[Portsmouth Harbour railway station|Portsmouth Harbour]] via [[Basingstoke railway station|Basingstoke]] and [[Eastleigh railway station|Eastleigh]]. Hourly service off-peak Mondays-Saturdays, merges with the Poole train on Sundays.
* London Waterloo to Reading via [[Staines-upon-Thames]], [[Ascot railway station (Berkshire)|Ascot]] and {{Stnlnk|Wokingham}}.
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===Suburban services===
Suburban services diverged from the above routes. Taken in order westwards from Waterloo, travelling down the SWML, they are:
* [[
** The [[Hounslow Loop
** The [[Windsor & Eton Riverside railway station|Windsor]] branch from [[Staines railway station|Staines-upon-Thames]]
** The [[Chertsey railway station|Chertsey]] loop line from [[Virginia Water railway station|Virginia Water]] to [[Weybridge railway station|Weybridge]]
** The Ascot to [[Guildford
* The [[
** The [[Chessington Branch
** The branch to Guildford from [[Leatherhead railway station|Leatherhead]]
* The [[Kingston
** The [[Shepperton railway station|Shepperton]] branch from [[Teddington railway station|Teddington]]; normally, these services run via New Malden, some peak services run via Twickenham
* The [[New Guildford
* The [[Hampton Court railway station|Hampton Court]] branch, also from Surbiton
* The [[Alton
===Other services===
* Southampton local lines: [[Salisbury railway station|Salisbury]] to [[Romsey railway station|Romsey]] via [[
* [[Lymington
*[[Island Line, Isle of Wight]], [[
* Southampton Central to [[Portsmouth & Southsea railway station|Portsmouth & Southsea]]
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====Coradia Juniper fleet (Class 458/0 – 458/5)====
[[File:458030 at Clapham Junction.jpg|thumb|A {{brc|458}} ''Juniper'' pre-modifications at [[
[[File:Class 458534 Blue at Clapham.JPG|thumb|A [[British Rail Class 458|Class 458/5]] ''Coradia Juniper'' post-modifications at [[
Thirty of these four-car units were ordered by South West Trains in 1998, to create extra capacity and to replace some of the ageing [[British Rail Class 411|Class 411 (4-CEP)]] trains, which at the time were on short-term lease. Deliveries of these trains began in 1998.
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However, later it was decided that, on or before the start of the new franchise in February 2007, the class would be reinstated and take over all operations on the Waterloo to Reading line, indirectly covering the loss of the Class 442. They have been fitted with new, larger destination screens that comply with the disability legislation, but the trains still fall foul in some other areas, such as the height of the door-open buttons.
All 30 Class 458 trains were split up and the 120 vehicles reconfigured into 36 five-car sets, incorporating 60 extra vehicles from the mechanically similar {{brc|460}} formerly used on [[Gatwick Express]] services.<ref name=Rail25Jan12>{{cite magazine |last= Clinnick |first= Richard |date= 25 January 2012 |title= Class 460 driving vehicles made redundant |
The first two of the five-car sets were delivered in October 2013, and underwent testing ahead of the introduction of the first ten-car train into service in December 2013. Passenger service started in March 2014,<ref>{{cite news |work=Railway Gazette |location= London |title= South West Trains prepares to introduce longer trains |url= http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/single-view/view/south-west-trains-prepares-to-introduce-longer-trains.html |date=23 October 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/longertrains.aspx|title=Improving Your Railway – Longer Trains|work=South West Trains|access-date=11 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140626050449/http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/longertrains.aspx|archive-date=26 June 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> with the work concluding in 2016, thereby rendering the Class 458/0 extinct.
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|2
|11
|[[
|{{nobr|1989{{ndash}}1992}}
|-
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|3
|30
|[[West of England Main Line|West of England]] / [[
[[
|{{ubl|{{nobr|159/0: 1992{{ndash}}1993}}|{{nobr|159/1: Converted 2006{{ndash}}2007}}}}
|-
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|5
|45
|Main Line Routes:<br>[[
[[
|2003{{ndash}}2004
|-
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|4
|127
|Main Line Routes: [[
<br>
Outer Suburban Routes:
[[
Limited Express and Inner suburban services
|2002{{ndash}}2006
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| colspan="7" | [[File:Class 450 South West Trains Diagram.PNG|640px]]
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[
| rowspan="2" |[[File:Reading SWT - 455721-455863.JPG|130x130px]]<br>[[File:Guildford railway station MMB 24 455853.jpg|130px]]<br>[[File:455904 D London Waterloo.JPG|130px]]
|align=center|[[Electric Multiple Unit|EMU]]
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|4
|91
|Inner Suburban Routes:<br>[[
|{{ubl|1982{{ndash}}1985|2004{{ndash}}2007 (refurbished)}}
|-
| colspan="7" | [[File:Class 455 South West Trains Diagram.PNG|640px]]
|-
| rowspan="2" |[[
| rowspan="2" |[[File:SWR 456 014 at Guildford.jpg|130x130px]]
|align=center|[[Electric Multiple Unit|EMU]]
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|36
|Outer Suburban Services:
[[
|{{ubl|2013{{ndash}}2016|(199{{ndash}}2002 as Class 458/0)|(2000{{ndash}}2001 as Class 460)}}
|-
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|5
|2
|[[
|2016{{ndash}}2017
|-
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|2
|6
|[[
|{{ubl|1938|1989{{ndash}}1992 (refurbished)}}
|}
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In 2000, South West Trains acquired eight 2-car [[British Rail Class 170|Class 170/3]] units to supplement its existing [[British Rail Class 159|Class 159]] fleet. They were used on London to Salisbury services as well as a new [[Southampton]] local service, and on [[Reading railway station|Reading]] to [[Basingstoke railway station|Basingstoke]] services. They were sometimes pressed into use on Waterloo-Exeter services but, as they were not fitted with end gangways for catering or [[selective door opening]] for the short platforms at some stations, this was not a regular route.
From late 2006 to mid-2007, the Class 170 units were gradually transferred to [[First TransPennine Express]] in exchange for a larger number of [[
====Preserved trains====
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<gallery>
File:Guildford railway station MMB 24 455853.jpg|The red livery symbolised short-distance journeys, such as the [[Hounslow Loop Line]]
File:Portsmouth and Southsea railway station MMB 02 450097.jpg|The blue symbolised medium distance services, such as the [[
File:Exeter St Davids - SWT 158883-159006 arrived from Waterloo.JPG|The white symbolised long-distance services, such as [[
</gallery>
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===Bournemouth===
{{Main|Bournemouth Train & Rolling Stock Maintenance Depot}}
Bournemouth depot is southwest of [[
===Clapham===
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===Northam===
{{Main|Northam Carriage Servicing Depot}}
[[Northam, Southampton|Northam]] depot was built by [[Siemens]] in 2002 as the home depot for the [[Desiro]] fleet as part of a 20-year maintenance contract.<ref>[http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/single-view/view/desiro-uk-demands-a-pit-stop-approach.html "Desiro UK demands a pit stop approach]". ''Railway Gazette''. 1 March 2002.</ref> It is located south of [[
===Effingham===
{{Main|Effingham Junction Carriage Holding Sidings}}
Located next to [[
===Salisbury===
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===Farnham===
[[Farnham Traincare Depot|Farnham depot]], in Weydon Lane, was opened by the [[Southern Railway (Great Britain)|Southern Railway]] at the time of the electrification of the Portsmouth and {{stnlnk|Alton}} lines in 1937.<
==See also==
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{{s-bef|before=[[Island Line (brand)|Island Line]]<br><small>'''Island Line franchise'''</small>}}
{{s-ttl|rows=2|title=Operator of [[South Western franchise]] |years=2007–2017}}
{{s-aft|rows=2 |after=[[
{{s-break}}
{{s-bef|before=South West Trains<br><small>'''South West franchise'''</small>}}
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{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Defunct train operating companies in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Rail transport in Surrey]]
[[Category:Rail transport in Dorset]]
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[[Category:Railway companies disestablished in 2017]]
[[Category:Railway operators in London]]
[[Category:Former Stagecoach Group rail services]]
[[Category:1996 establishments in England]]
[[Category:2017 disestablishments in England]]
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