Bright new hope for the future of rail

ON TUESDAY, one of the hottest days of the year, passengers travelling on the Reading to Waterloo line were stuck outside Wokingham after a signal failure.

The carriages they were stuck in were jammed, sealed and hot.

Quite simply, these human sardines were starting to roast under the excessive heat – and there were many comments on social media to complain about their treatment.

So news that the new franchise owners for the Waterloo line will be bringing in brand new trains and carriages from 2019 is welcome news.

Wifi, charging points and air conditioning will bring us into the 21st century, while the promise of wider entrances and better seats will also be welcomed.

And with extra capacity, the chances of getting a seat will be higher too.

Manufacturers say that they can reach speeds of up to 100mph, but we doubt many local commuters will see those speeds on our lines.

We welcome the decision to build the new trains in Bombardier’s workshops in Derby as well.

Sadly the promise of tomorrow’s world remains just that for the moment: the first trains will not arrive on our platforms until the summer of 2019, with the intention of completing the fleet by 2020.

However, they will be hotly antcipciated. We’re looking forward to the new age of the train.