Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the value for money for the public purse of South Western Railway’s recent decision to withdraw their fleet of Class 442 trains.

The impact of Covid-19 on passenger numbers travelling on South Western Railway services has been significant, and is not expected to return to previous levels when restrictions are lifted for some time. The Class 442 fleet is no longer needed to deliver SWR’s planned timetable. SWR has decided to withdraw it with immediate effect and cease the programme of modifications that were underway to avoid incurring further costs to the taxpayer to reintroduce and operate these trains. The withdrawal of the fleet is expected to save circa £8million per year in operational costs.

The Class 442s would have been withdrawn in August 2024 in any event as the trains are not compliant with requirements for Persons with Reduced Mobility. This decision brings this forward and removes a fleet that is not fully accessible from the Rail Network sooner than originally planned.