most reliable electric trains in the country win award for c2c

c2c's fleet of Class 357 Electrostar trains has scooped the prize for the b est modern era electric multiple-unit in the country. The fleet of 74 trains has averaged over 43,000 miles over the last 12 months before developing any fault leading to a delay of more than 5 minutes, making them the most reliable main line electric trains in the Britain.

C2c received the accolade at the the inaugural annual 'Golden Spanners' awards held at the Modern Railways / Railway Forum 'Fourth Friday Club' lunch in London on Friday 25 November.

The award scheme is the brainchild of Modern Railways Industry & Technology Editor Roger Ford, known throughout the industry as 'Captain Deltic'. The scheme is aimed at promoting excellence in train maintenance in the UK.

We are pleased to be encouraging best practice in train maintenance through the Golden Spanners Awards said James Abbott, Editor of Modern Railways and Secretary of the Fourth Friday Club. Reliable trains make for a reliable railway.

Leila Frances, Route Director for c2c, said Our trains are among the most modern in the country, and have been key in putting c2c at the top, of the league for punctuality which currently stands at 96.9 average for the year for peak trains and 93.4% average for the year for all-day services.

The fact that the trains are so reliable is in no small measure the result of the efforts of the maintenance team that looks after them at East Ham Depot and this award is as much a recognition of their skill and dedication as it is of the reliability of the train itself, inherent in the design and build of the rolling stock.

Fleet Manager Tony Smith said, I am delighted for the staff whose hard work has been recognised in this way. We are immensely proud of our fleet of modern trains and take very seriously our responsibility of conveying some 25,000 people every weekday to and from their destinations. The combination of a good product and a skilled team of engineers dedicated to keeping the fleet on the move has resulted in the people of south Essex knowing that they have the most reliable fleet of electric trains running on main line routes anywhere in the country.

Addl Information:

c2c class 357 Electrostar trains (built in 1999/2000 and introduced into service from 2000) won the award for the Best Modern Era EMU with an average annual MPC of 43,180 - the highest of any main line suburban fleet in the country and the third highest MPC of any fleet in the country. They were manufactured by Bombardier, are operated by C2C and owned by Angel / Porterbrook.

All trains are serviced on a regular and rotating basis, just as with a car. As well as keeping the trains in good condition, regular servicing identifies potential faults so that they can be rectified thus avoiding a failure in service. The number of miles a train runs before a defect develops causing 5 minutes or more delay are referred to as miles per casualty (MPC). The annual average MPC for c2c's Class 357 EMU (EMU = Electric Multiple Unit) is 43, 180.

Sister company Silverlink's class 321 units won the award in the Best BR Era EMU (EMU = Electric Multiple Unit) category competing against 33 other train operator fleets. They have the second most reliable main line electric fleet in the country with an MPC of over 40,000.