Trains may be swapped (From Witney Gazette)

Trains may be swapped

6:48am Thursday 17th January 2008 in Headlines

FIRST Great Western's unwanted Adelante trains, which are being phased out on Oxford-London route, could form part of a swap deal that would see the rail firm acquiring an extra InterCity 125 High Speed Train.

FGW's sister firm, Hull Trains, which had agreed to take two Adelantes as cover for a train damaged in an accident, is now thought to be considering taking five of the trains to replace its four Meridian units, with these moving to East Midlands Trains.

In turn, EMT would pass an HST to FGW, which wants an extra train as a so-called 'hot spare', ready for use if another set fails, as part of plans to improve performance on its services, which are among the least punctual in the country.

The remaining nine Adelante trains may move to Wales to operate on the Cardiff-Holyhead service.