British Rail Class 701
| British Rail Class 701 Arterio | |
|---|---|
Class 701 ‘Arterio’ at Kingston | |
Interior of a Class 701 | |
| In service | 9 January 2024 – present |
| Manufacturer | |
| Built at | Derby Litchurch Lane Works |
| Family name | Aventra |
| Replaced | |
| Constructed | 2019–2024 |
| Number built | 90 |
| Number in service | 11 (as of May 2025) |
| Formation |
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| Fleet numbers |
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| Capacity |
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| Operators | South Western Railway |
| Depots | |
| Lines served | |
| Specifications | |
| Doors | Double-leaf sliding plug (2 per side per car) |
| Maximum speed | 100 mph (160 km/h) |
| Traction system | Bombardier IGBT Inverter |
| Traction motors |
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| Power output |
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| Acceleration |
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| Deceleration | 0.9 m/s2 (3.0 ft/s2) |
| Electric system(s) | 750 V DC third rail |
| Current collector(s) | Contact shoe |
| Bogies | Flexx B5000 |
| Braking system(s) | Electro-pneumatic (disc) and rheostatic/regenerative |
| Safety system(s) | |
| Coupling system | Dellner |
| Multiple working | Within subclass /5 only |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
The British Rail Class 701 Arterio is a class of electric multiple unit passenger train built by Bombardier Transportation (now Alstom) at Derby Litchurch Lane Works. Built on the Aventra platform, they are operated by South Western Railway, and operate some services between Waterloo and Windsor. In the future the trains are planned to operate services on the Reading, Windsor and South West London suburban lines.
Ordered in 2017, the trains were originally due to enter service from mid-2019, but were subject to several delays which prevented this. By December 2023, 50 units had been accepted by SWR.
SWR began their phased entry into service from January 2024. They will eventually allow the withdrawal of SWR's fleets of Class 455 units and the cascade of the Class 458 fleet to longer-distance services.