Since the beginning of 2020, TfW’s fleet of 24 trains has been undergoing renewal at Arriva TrainCare’s centre in Crewe. Credit: Transport for Wales.

Transport for Wales (TfW) has concluded the work to upgrade its fleet of Class 158 long-distance trains.

Since the beginning of 2020, TfW’s fleet of 24 trains has been undergoing renewal at Arriva TrainCare’s centre in Crewe.

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These trains run on routes throughout the Wales and Borders network, covering the Cambrian Line in Mid Wales and services to North and West Wales.

The first train re-entered operations in February 2020.

These revamped trains feature enhanced facilities, such as USB charging points, re-covered seats, new carpets, along with new interior fittings.

The trains’ exterior has been rebranded with TfW’s grey and red livery.

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Furthermore, the electrical, heating and Wheel Slide Protection (WSP) systems have been improved.

These solutions are said to help in increasing the availability of the trains.

This work was executed under TfW’s $53.59m (£40m) refurbishment programme, which has also included the Class 175, 150 and 153 trains.

Besides, TfW aims to invest more than $1071.89m (£800m) for acquiring new trains that are expected to commence operations across the Wales and Borders network later this year.

TfW asset management head Jerry Howells said: “It’s fantastic to be able to deliver these improvements for customers, which they rightly expect to see on a modern railway network. We know being able to travel in comfort and charge devices on the go are incredibly important to our customers, whether they are travelling for 20 minutes or four hours, for business or pleasure.”

TfW refurbishment project manager Neil Morrey said: “While we are building brand new trains, they take time to build, and we want our customers to have a comfortable experience as soon as possible. We’re particularly proud to have delivered this work 102 days ahead of schedule and under budget.”

In 2020, TfW commenced the deployment of new ticket vending machines and operating smartcards across the Wales and Borders network routes in the UK.

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