Great British Railways - First Train in New Livery

[CR165022]

701006 hasn't been out for nearly a week, and the other specially-liveried 701 (701060, in lehgoland branding) for almost as long

701006 is currently split in half at Wimbledon

 

[TransportHub]

701006 hasn't been out for nearly a week, and the other specially-liveried 701 (701060, in lehgoland branding) for almost as long

The Legoland one is back out today, I just past it leaving Clapham (0643ish)

 

[720144]

357202 GBR Anglia unit 4, booked into passenger traffic today according to live rail record.

Update: failed at Pitsea this morning due to a problem with the doors.

 

[RUK]

Any interior differences?

The contract for mid-life corrosion repairs and re-liverying the Class 357s started under Trenitalia c2c doesn’t include any refurbishment done to the interior at all, not even a deep-clean of the interior, let alone replacing sagging seat cushions or moquette, or adding LCD screens or any charging sockets, whether that be 3-pin or any type of USB, unlike with those additions to other, newer Electrostars - that hasn’t changed with them going into GBR livery rather than into the white-and-magenta c2c livery.

 

[442Haz]

387172 involved in the Lewes derailment. 387304 is the unit with 3 carriages on their side. Glad to see no fatalities; demonstrates the strength of these units

 

[Snow1964]

I wonder if they’ll do anything to the interior of the Class 357 - the other Class 357s which have had their bodywork done and re-liveried haven’t had any special cleaning to their interiors at all. Were the Class 387 and Class 701 which were re-liveried given a deeper clean to their interior than usual? Being much newer trains, they wouldn’t need as much work done to their interiors as a Class 357 anyway.

A tender has been issued for class 357 refurbishment between September 2027 and September 2029

c2c operates a fleet of 12 X 720 and 74 X 357 vehicles across the Essex Thameside network. This concerns the 357 fleet. The units have been in service since approximately 2000.

Some previous upgrade/refurbishment of the total Fleet took place around 2016/2017 broadly including but not limited to the following areas; Flooring, heater panels, fixtures fittings, seats, cab floor, toilets refreshed. In addition, in 2016 these Units were, as part of a project called 'Intelligent Trains', fitted with Intelligent Gateway (Router), antennas, Ethernet backbone, CCTV, OTDRs, passenger information points, passenger Wi‑Fi access points and Ethernet switches passenger information points.

c2c is now considering its options in relation to refurbishing and upgrading the units to make them more aligned with future passenger and operator expectations.
Areas to be considered in potential scope may include but are not limited to:
- Interiors: Floors and covering, seats and coverings, toilets, panels, surfaces etc.
- Cabs: general condition and power/USB outlets
- At seat power considerations - PIS/Media Screens
- FF and interior CCTV
- Automatic passenger counting
- Remote (Cab) passenger communication reset functionality
- ASDO/SDO
- Air conditioning systems reliability improvements
- In addition, c2c currently operates a platform-based DOO legacy system which dates from 2000, on an East -West route, views are solicited as to whether it would be more cost effective to install an in cab modern alternative as platform cameras and mirrors approach obsolescence. Options should be particularly aware of installation and performance risk.

https://bidstats.uk/tenders/2026/W34/876806231

 

[Bringback309s]

Could these units receive GBR moquette? Assuming one will be designed...

 

[GEC465]

I assume the "GBR spec" interiors will be announced when the first one or these is done

 

[Northerngirl]

Could these units receive GBR moquette? Assuming one will be designed...

Moquette? Due to the wonderful great improvements we will be getting standardised straw on the floor and, if you are lucky, a uptured rusty bucket to sit on

 

[Class 466]

I assume the "GBR spec" interiors will be announced when the first one or these is done

I presume it’ll be these or the Northern 350/2s that’ll get it first.

 

[Ben Anslow]

I presume it’ll be these or the Northern 350/2s that’ll get it first.

I think they are getting bee network styling

 

[StephenHunter]

I think they are getting bee network styling

Can they have the GBR symbol on as well, like the trains back in the PTE days?

 

[Class 466]

I think they are getting bee network styling

It would make sense for them to be GBR with a nod to Bee Network rather than the other way around seen as they’ll be in Crewe and Blackpool amongst other non-bee network places

 

[Bletchleyite]

It would make sense for them to be GBR with a nod to Bee Network rather than the other way around seen as they’ll be in Crewe and Blackpool amongst other non-bee network places

GM liveried Sprinters and Pacers were seen all over the network in their day.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

GM liveried Sprinters and Pacers were seen all over the network in their day.

Yes, and what a mess that would have looked. Just like the Northern 150 looked stupid in Cardiff and the Valleys, the First Great Western branded HSTs looked stupid on Hull Trains, the Gatwick Express 387s look on Seaford shuttles, and the Welsh language signage does on GWR 175s mythering around Cornwall.

 

[43096]

GM liveried Sprinters and Pacers were seen all over the network in their day.

That was nothing… I believe NSE locos made it to Inverness.

 

[Toby3875]

Does anyone know when the Southern class 171s are due for repainting and when they could be reliveried into Gbr

 

[321362]

Might be an unpopular opinion but I've just been on the 720 in the new livery and I quite like it, I think it looks smarter than the old Greater Anglia livery which has been around for what feels like an age

 

[StephenHunter]

Might be an unpopular opinion but I've just been on the 720 in the new livery and I quite like it, I think it looks smarter than the old Greater Anglia livery which has been around for what feels like an age

It's a good livery... for a bunch of amateurs.

 

[TransportHub]

the Welsh language signage does on GWR 175s mythering around Cornwall.

Well Cymraeg (Welsh) and Kernewek (Cornish) are very similar, speakers of one can understand a fair bit of the other

 

[RUK]

With the middle coach of the 5-car Class 720 being in plain blue rather than the original u-shaped stripes concept, I wonder if that means that any locomotives in GBR livery will be in plain base blue as well, a lighter shade than BR Blue.

 

[Russel]

Just seen a post on Reddit of a 158/159 mid repaint in a blue base coat, so unless it's a ScotRail unit, my guess would be it's the first SWR 159 to get GBR livery?

https://www.reddit.com/r/uktrains/comments/1vyf01g/paint_job/

 

[318266]

Just seen a post on Reddit of a 158/159 mid repaint in a blue base coat, so unless it's a ScotRail unit, my guess would be it's the first SWR 159 to get GBR livery?

https://www.reddit.com/r/uktrains/comments/1vyf01g/paint_job/

I reckon this is just ScotRail. A lot of their units have been going down for overhaul inc. repaint, and the user's post history indicates they are (very defensively) Scottish.

 

[Russel]

I reckon this is just ScotRail. A lot of their units have been going down for overhaul inc. repaint, and the user's post history indicates they are (very defensively) Scottish.

Ah fair enough.

 

[XCTurbostar]

Just seen a post on Reddit of a 158/159 mid repaint in a blue base coat, so unless it's a ScotRail unit, my guess would be it's the first SWR 159 to get GBR livery?

https://www.reddit.com/r/uktrains/comments/1vyf01g/paint_job/

Appears to be be Salisbury depot based on THIS..
Note the roof planels and 45 degree lights. Its also worth noting the lights on this Class 158/159 do not resemble the smaller cluster on the SR Class 158s..
GBR Blue..?

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Appears to be be Salisbury depot based on THIS..
Note the roof planels and 45 degree lights. Its also worth noting the lights on this Class 158/159 do not resemble the smaller cluster on the SR Class 158s..
This is GBR Blue for sure..

This is good news, I think. When I saw 159103 emerge in SWR livery I thought, great, another waste of money repainting a unit into a soon-to-be obsolete livery.
Glad they've diverted the work to GBR livery for remaining work as per c2c 357s. They really should do the same for EMR and XC but as they're not publicly owned yet they can't, infuriatingly.

 

[CR165022]

The 159s are being done at Bournemouth not Salisbury. It's a ScotRail 158.

Also, the headlight covers the SR units have would have been taken off during repaint anyway so that isn't really a factor here.

 

[Islineclear3_1]

Why are Salisbury painting Scottish 158s!?

 

[CR165022]

They're not, it was never Salisbury. The 158s are being done in Scotland, the SWR 159s are being done in Bournemouth, but the unit in that photo isn't Salisbury nor a SWR unit, it's a SR 158 up in Scotland, unless I am very sorely mistaken here.

 

[XCTurbostar]

They're not, it was never Salisbury. The 158s are being done in Scotland, the SWR 159s are being done in Bournemouth, but the unit in that photo isn't Salisbury nor a SWR unit, it's a SR 158 up in Scotland, unless I am very sorely mistaken here.

Do you know where the SR 158 repaints are being done?