More Class 442s removed from GTR services

Govia Thameslink Railway has removed a further four Class 442s from traffic, as more Class 387/2s enter traffic on the Brighton Main Line.

GTR removed 442404/418/ 423/424 from traffic on May 20. They will be stored on the GTR network for the time being - it is planned that 442404/423 will be stored at Three Bridges (they are currently at Stewarts Lane), while the other pair are currently at Eastbourne.

They follow 442422, which was removed from traffic in April and stored at Arlington Fleet Services’ Eastleigh Works.

It is planned that all but six of the trains will be removed from traffic throughout the year, although no home has yet been found for the trains long-term. They are owned by Angel Trains.

GTR plans to retain six ‘442s’ for its Eastbourne-London Bridge route, with the rest being replaced by the Class 387/2 fleet now being introduced.

There are 24 Class 442s, each one a five-car electric multiple unit. They are capable of 100mph and are used on the third rail system. There were plans to use them as hauled stock on TransPennine Express routes under one franchise bid, but sources suggest re-engineering costs were prohibitive.

This is not the first time the ‘442s’ have been sent off-lease. In 2007 South West Trains dispensed with the trains, following a decision to retain the Class 458 fleet and order 17 Class 450s. The ‘442s’ then spent around a year out of traffic before Southern leased them to replace Class 460s on the Gatwick Express route, which had been merged with the Southern franchise.

This decision, combined with extending London Victoria-Gatwick Airport services to Brighton, proved controversial because the ‘442s’ were replacing trains built specifically for the airport service. Their narrower doors and reduced luggage space was criticised by users and the airport, and eventually led to the order of the 27 Class 387/2s.

Class 442s were introduced by Network SouthEast in 1988 for the newly electrified Weymouth services from London Waterloo.