THE introduction of new carriages for the Caledonian Sleeper has been further delayed until next year.
The carriages, which include en-suite showers and double beds, were expected to be operating between London, Glasgow and Edinburgh from the end of this month but the date has been pushed back to May 2019. They were originally due to be in operation April this year.
Operator Serco said 35 of 75 new carriages are still under construction in Spain and testing and regulatory approval is needed before they can operate. Passengers who booked for the new carriages will be offered refunds, Serco said.
Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said it was “a particularly disappointing development” after significant public investment. He has written to Serco asking for “full assurance on dates when we can expect to see new trains”.
Ryan Flaherty, Serco’s managing director at Caledonian Sleeper, said: “We are sorry we will not be able to launch the service this autumn and understand that customers who wanted to travel on them will be disappointed.”
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