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Get ready to ride the Adelante!
From the Swindon Advertiser, first published Friday 23rd Mar 2001.
First Great Western has revealed the name of its new fleet of 14 high speed trains.
Eighty million pounds has been invested in new rolling stock, due to come into service in May, to be collectively known as Adelante.
The new name translates from the Spanish term for `moving forward' and is also used as a Spanish greeting.
Mike Carroll, managing director of First Great Western, said: "The name was chosen after close consultation with our staff and customer focus groups who felt the name reflected the innovative image of the new train.
"Linguists will know that Adelante is a Spanish word with positive connotations suggesting speed, modernity and reliability as well as a greeting used to welcome people. We felt this aptly described the new generation of high speed trains, the first of which is due to enter service during the summer of this year."
Until now, the trains, worth £5.7m each, have been recognised under the manufacturer's labels of `Class 180' or `Coradia 1000'. Individual trains will still be numbered, but First Great Western will refer to the fleet by its generic name.
The investment in the Adelante fleet will increase First Great Western's passenger capacity by 25 per cent on all routes and the new trains will initially cater for Swindon travellers on routes operating between London Paddington and South Wales, Bristol and the Cotswolds.
Operating alongside the existing High Speed Train fleet they will provide customers with a more frequent service, high levels of comfort and the opportunity to travel on the very latest in transport technology. The trains will reach speeds of up to 125mph on some stretches of track.
The first new trains to enter service since the privatisation of the rail industry in 1996, they are all fitted with Automatic Train Protection (ATP) equipment designed to help prevent crashes like those at Southall and Paddington.
n First Great Western will be operating an amended weekend timetable at the weekend due to Railtrack engineering work and continuing speed restrictions.
On Saturday and Sunday, Railtrack is carrying out engineering work at Reading station which will affect all trains to and from London Paddington as fewer platforms than usual will be available.
Some trains on the Bristol line will be cancelled on both days, and passengers travelling to and from Gloucester and Cheltenham will in most cases have to change at Swindon.
Services to and from the west of England will be diverted via an alternative route not calling at Newbury or Pewsey and adding up to 45 minutes on journey times.
Special bus services will operate between Swindon and Newbury and Pewsey. Thames Trains will also be running services between Newbury and Reading.
Special timetables detailing the amendments will be available this week.
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