S stock delivery & introduction - discussion

Final S Stock train joins the fleet
10 November 2016
192nd S Stock delivered to Ruislip depot
We celebrated a major milestone today when the final S Stock train was delivered to Ruislip depot. The train is the last of 192 built in the UK by Bombardier as part of the Four Lines Modernisation (4LM) programme that is transforming the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines. This delivery brings to an end the largest ever order for a fleet of trains in the UK at just over 1,400 carriages.
The S Stock trains bring massive benefits to our customers. They are longer and more spacious, with brighter, air-conditioned interiors and dedicated spaces for wheelchair users. They replace the older D Stock trains, which will be fully phased out by spring 2017.
Interim Capital Programmes Director (Major Projects), said: “This momentous delivery means that we have completed the S Stock roll-out a couple of months early, against a DfT milestone that was set as long ago as October 2010.”

The final delivery marks the completion of nine years of collaborative working across multiple project teams, suppliers, Operations and Fleet staff on one of the world’s oldest and most complex railways.
Interim Programme Director (Systems) said: “Much has changed over this time and the teams have faced many challenges, but the enthusiasm and commitment to deliver the works safely has not wavered. Everyone who has contributed to this milestone should hold their heads high and be immensely proud of their achievement.”
Operations Director, Sub-Surface Lines, added: “Thank you to Bombardier and 4LM colleagues for bringing the S Stock to our railway. Thank you also to the LU Fleet team who now maintain these trains, supported by our partners at Bombardier.”
New signalling and control systems
Work is underway to completely overhaul our ageing signalling and control systems across the sub-surface lines. The new automatic train control (ATC) signalling will allow us to run more trains, more quickly and reliably, contributing to a 33 per cent increase in capacity across the four lines by 2023.
The new signalling is being provided by Thales and is similar to the systems now successfully being used on the Jubilee and Northern lines, where performance and reliability have significantly improved and journey times have been cut.
Each of the new trains will now be fitted with a communications-based train control system at Bombardier’s factory in Derby in a rolling programme over the next couple of years.
We are already testing the new signalling system on a modified train at our Old Dalby track in Leicestershire to ensure that London's passengers benefit from a fully tested system before it starts to go live in 2018.
Challenges ahead
Interim Capital Programmes Director (Major Projects) added that his team’s next significant challenge was “to use all the lessons learnt and our talented, experienced people to deliver the ATC signalling systems at the earliest possible date”. He said: “This is critical to unlocking capacity for our customers in London, increasing revenue and reducing costs.”
Meanwhile, Operations Director, Sub-Surface Lines spelt out the focus for Operations: “Our priority now is to complete our extensive training programme to ensure that we are equipped for the challenges ahead. We also need to increase the availability of the newly delivered fleet to ensure we provide the full passenger service everyday whilst supporting the ATC modification programme.”

If you want to know more about the Four Lines Modernisation programme, watch this: link