UK: Non-accessible rolling stock withdrawals start

[John Ashworth]

Non-accessible rolling stock withdrawals start with Greater Anglia Mk 3s

The first round of dispensation deadlines for UK rail fleets passed on March 31, with trains that failed to meet accessibility regulations withdrawn by that date. Greater Anglia’s entire fleet of Mk 3s, totalling 118 passenger vehicles, did not meet the deadline as they were due to have been replaced by Stadler Class 745s. The next deadline for GA to meet is April 18, by which date 15 non-refurbished Class 317s will have to be treated or be withdrawn. All told, of more than 1,500 vehicles to which the Government gave dispensation to continue operating into 2020, half were part of GA’s fleet...