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Question from stuving

DfT (speaking for the IEP programme) described the bimode trains as 10-car trains that can be run half length on less busy services. There was an implied promise that every service that needs 10 cars will run at that length. There are a lot of members of this forum who don't believe there are enough of them to achieve that, even on the current timetable. But the services in the new mini-franchise already show an increase in the number of 10-car services over the IEP planning timetable, and further increases in demand are to be expected.

So what do you do if - no, when - you need more units than the contract gives you, firstly on the odd day and then (a bit later) on every day? Run short overcrowded trains and pretend the SET fleet was never meant to be big enough? Bring out some of the better HSTs that you hid at the back of a shed without telling anyone? Wait a year or two (to make sure SET works, and wasn't a huge mistake) then bang in a request for an increase in the fleet size?

And how long before this happens?

There are enough SET carriages to allow us to replace a single HST with a 10-car or a 9-car. A nine-car SET has 576 standard seats, and a 10-car will have 580. Both compare well to the 504 on the biggest HST today.

In addition, the 5-car option actually helps us use the carriages much more efficiently - for example, this would give us the much more sensible option of running a 5-car SET to Camarthen, where loadings are relatively low,  freeing up the other 'half' to work a different route.

We should also remember the huge increase in service frequencies we intend to offer - a 70% increase (54 extra trains a day between Paddington and BTM and BPW) between Paddington and Bristol - which also significantly drive capacity improvements.

Hi Ben

Are you able to also confirm the First class seating capacity for both 5 and 9 car trains? Thanks

It is worth remembering that we are not just getting SETs. We will also be getting class 387 and 365 EMUs for the Thames Valley which will give a significant increase in capacity there. We intend to offer a high quality EMU service for commuters in the Thames Valley and that should enable us to release capacity in the SET fleet to provide more room for longer journeys. We have already said that some SET services will not be stopping at stations between Bristol Parkway and Paddington which is an example of how we will be using the fleets in a different way to better match demand.

Digging them out now!

It is 36 on a 5 car and 71 on a 9 car.

Thanks Ben and for taking time out to answers questions this evening.

This does appear to make sense. However, there is (as far as I know) no planned frequency improvement on the London to Swansea route. While I am happy to take your word for it that the loadings west of Swansea are relatively low, Cardiff and Swansea are major cities and the draft diagrams published by DfT showed an alarming number of solo 5-car sets diagramed between Cardiff and Swansea. This included the morning Carmarthen service which would appear to arrive in Cardiff at peak time.

My appologies for 'missing the boat' with questions in-advance, but but if you don't mind, I would also like to ask what (if any) future is in store for the summer Saturday crowd-buster services on lines not included in the route-clearance programe for 26m vehicles. Namely, these services are:

• The 'Pembroke Coast Express',
• The 'Weymouth Wizard' and
• the un-named Pembroke Dock train