Merseyrail's new fleet of trains continues to be hit by faults, problems and subsequent delays with the operator blaming a 'varied' number of issues.
The long-awaited roll-out of the new fleet of Class 777 Merseyrail trains finally got underway at the end of January after years of delays and setbacks.
The Kirkby line was the first to see the introduction of the new trains. The roll-out was said to be completed on that line at the beginning of March, with attention then turning to the Ormskirk route.
READ MORE: Big Liverpool plans that could be given the go ahead this week
But passengers began noticing issues with some of the new trains, often leading to delays and cancellations. At one stage the ECHO revealed that the entire fleet had to be temporarily taken off the network because of a software issue. Other commuters commuters noticed repeated issues that Merseyrail described as 'teething problems.'
The problems have persisted, to the point that trains from the old fleet have often been seen on the Kirkby line in recent weeks, despite the fact the route should now be only running with 777s.
One commuter who regularly uses the Kirkby line to get to work told the ECHO: "I travel on the Kirkby line daily and struggle to remember a time before frequent cancellations, delays or issues.
"The issues started when the new trains were put on the line. Sometimes I will still get on an old train on the Kirkby line, even though it is supposed to be fully operated with new trains now.
"There always seems to be 'signalling issue' on the Kirkby line. This is followed with trains being stopped and then an old train being put into the rotation. It's worrying to still be seeing issues months after the launch."
The problems have not been confined to the Kirkby line, with new trains now being rolled out on the Ormskirk route.
One regular Ormskirk commuter said: "It was depressing getting to the station this morning to see a big cancelled message on the announcement board, saying the next train would be in 40 minutes. Others arriving at the station seemed annoyed but resigned.
"Later I noticed that the Kirkby line had two cancellations on it that same morning. Kirkby is meant to be all new trains now while Ormskirk is still switching over."
They added: "Last week I caught eight trains on the Ormskirk line and all but one of them were the old trains. It makes me wonder what is going on with the new fleet. Are they actually all working? I would love to know."
The ECHO has asked for an explanation on the continued issues affecting the new fleet of trains and for some more details about what it is that is causing the faults
The operator accepted that the 'teething problems' are continuing and said the faults affecting the new fleet are varied.
Zoe Hands, Chief Operating Officer at Merseyrail said.: “As the roll out of the new fleet of trains continues on the Merseyrail network, we have seen teething problems that are common with most new fleets of this nature.
"The faults themselves are varied. For example, the trains passenger information system can malfunction, showing the train as not in service. Whilst this seems a fairly minor fault, it’s critically important that we tackle such issues as they arise to ensure the continued success of the fleet roll out programme as a whole.
"Where we do need to remove a train from service, we are working hard to provide an alternative train to minimise disruption to our passengers. For those that have been disrupted, we offer our sincere apologies and thank them for their patience as we continue to work through issues as they arise.”
It was not made clear whether the continued issues would affect the timeline of the roll-out of the new trains on other parts of the network.
READ MORE:
Holly Willoughby's 'tough' announcement as she returns to ITV This Morning
Paedo fireman, pub thug and Maccies flasher among 9 crooks jailed this week
Big Liverpool plans that could be given the go ahead this week
Second child was also swept into air in zorb ball at festival as nine-year-old remains in hospital
