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Wales & West

Overview
Franchise(s)	Wales & West 13 October 1996 – 13 October 2001
Main region(s)	Wales, South West
Other region(s)	West Midlands, North West
Route km operated	2525[1]
National Rail abbreviation	WW
Parent company	National Express

Wales & West^[2] was a train operating company in the United Kingdom that operated the South Wales & West franchise from 1996 until 2001.

The franchise was operated by Prism Rail from October 1996 until July 2000, when the firm was taken over by National Express.^[3][4] The company ceased to operate trains in October 2001, following a reorganisation of rail franchises.

Operations

Originally privatised under the name South Wales and West Railway, the company operated a network of local and middle-distance services in South Wales and the south west of England. These ranged from rural services in Cornwall and Pembrokeshire to urban commuter services in the Bristol area.

Longer-distance services operated under the Alphaline brand provided regular links to North Wales and the north west of England, as well as to the South Coast and London Waterloo.^[5]

Wales & West received considerable government subsidy. The first full financial year (1997/98) was supported by a payment of £70.9 million, with expenditure due to reduce to £38.1 million for its final trading year of 2003/04. The provisional claim from British Rail for the year 1996/97 had been £84.8 million, including an administered profit of £4.8 million.^[1]

Rolling stock

Wales & West inherited a fleet of Class 143, Class 150, Class 153 and Class 158s from British Rail. Wales & West also hired-in some locomotive-hauled trains on occasion.^[6]

Class	Image	Type	Top speed		Built
			mph	km/h
Class 143 Pacer		Diesel multiple unit	75	120	1985–1986
Class 150 Sprinter		Diesel multiple unit	75	120	1984–1987
Class 153 Super Sprinter		Diesel multiple unit	75	120	1987–1988
Class 158 Express Sprinter		Diesel multiple unit	90	145	1989–1992

Wales & West's fleet was maintained at Cardiff Canton and Exeter depots.

Enhancements

Wales & West carried out various enhancements to their 78-vehicle Class 158 fleet^[1] including new carpets, internal repainting and upgrades to air conditioning equipment. Seating was replaced throughout, with a revised layout offering a greater proportion of seats at tables and fewer airline-style seats.

One member of the Class 158 fleet was used to trial additional safety features. This included an airline-style lighting strip along the carriage aisle leading to the exits and illuminated arrows above internal doorways.^[7] In time, most of the company's trains also received an automated system of pre-recorded safety announcements.

Prism Rail also gave an undertaking to install passenger information displays at 205 stations.^[8] This ambitious project went on to cost Prism significantly more than expected, with no chance of recouping its investment – but the commitment was upheld and the project completed. Even the remote Sugar Loaf station that typically receives fewer than 100 passengers per year was equipped.^[9]

Other improvements committed to included:^[1]

• Raising punctuality targets from 90% to 92%


• Raising reliability targets from 99% to 99.5%


• Station improvements including waiting shelters and personal security features


• Re-staffing seven stations for an experimental period of 12 months

Corporate identity

By the end of the 1990s, the company had started to develop its own vehicle liveries to replace those inherited from Regional Railways. An experimental silver, blue and orange livery carried by 158867^[10] evolved into a dedicated silver and navy livery for the flagship Alphaline fleet.^[11] The rest of the fleet began to receive an array of different promotional liveries featuring locations from the company's operating area.^[12]

The shortened Wales and West name was adopted to replace the original identity of South Wales & West Railway, with various updates to the company logo taking place.

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  Initial logotype in use on vehicle branding
  

  
  

  
  


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  Early privatisation-era logo
  

  
  

  
  


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  Initial version of revised 'Wales and West' identity
  

  
  

  
  

Demise

In 2000 the Strategic Rail Authority announced its intention that a single all-Wales franchise should take over the majority of rail services in Wales.^[13] Accordingly, the Wales and West franchise ceased to operate in October 2001. Its operations in Wales and the Marches were merged into those of Cardiff-based Valley Lines and renamed as Wales & Borders. The remaining services in south west England began operating under the name of Wessex Trains.^[14]

References

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