A HIGHLY-ANTICIPATED fleet of air-conditioned London Underground trains have been delayed by another year.
The new £3 billion tube were expected to be in use by the end of the year.
The launch of the “game-changing”;fleet on the Piccadilly linewill now be delayed by up to a year, according to The Standard.
This massive blow to London commuters comes after the fleet was revealed to be the first “deep level”; Tube trains to be air conditioned.
The eagerly-awaited fleet, which consists of 94 trains, will offer 10% more capacity as well as wider doors for quicker boarding, walk through carriages, and CCTV.
They will replace an “age expired”; fleet of which dates to 1973.
The update will enable peak-hour frequencies to be increased from 24 to 27 trains an hour, and will eventually see 36 trains running each hour, equivalent to the Victoria line.
(TFL)originally announced the first new Piccadilly line train would enter passenger service by the end of 2025.
However, TfL publicly confirm on Friday, June 20 that the new trains are now not expected until the “second half of 2026”;.
This delay has been caused by unexpected difficulties in introducing the first new train to challenging “real life”; conditions onLondon Undergroundinfrastructure.
The new trains are understood to have performed well on the test track.
While first batch of trains are being built bySiemensin Vienna, , the bulk of the order will be assembled at Siemens’ new factory in Goole, east .
A source told The Standard that the electrical equipment underneath the new trains was “not in the right alignment”;.
TfL confirmed on Friday that “the start of a rigorous programme of testing the interactions with the infrastructure and systems is delayed until the summer”;.
Part or full closures of the Piccadilly line will continue over the weekends to prepare the stations for the new nine-carriage trains.
Stuart Harvey, TfL’s chief capital officer, who is in charge of the introduction of the new trains, spoke on the latest update.
“It will obviously be disappointing for customers that they will have to wait a bit longer for the new trains, and I regret that,”; he said.
“But I would like to assure Londoners and visitors to our city that we are working extremely closely with Siemens to ensure that the new trains can be introduced as soon as possible.”;
He estimated that the first fleet will come into operation “in the second half of next year”;, with a new “window”; set between July and December 2026.
“Siemens and TfL are absolutely focused on trying to achieve the July end of the window,”; he said.
“But it’s too early to say we can get that yet.”;
He added that the hope is that all 94 trains will be in service “18 to 20 months”; after the first one starts running.
This would meaning the entire fleet would be in operation by the end of 2027 or early 2028.
This delay means Underground passengers face an additional summer of soaring temperatures on the Picadilly line.
The first new Picadilly train arrived in London last October, and wasspotted overnight on Underground tracks in west London in March.
The TFL rep said the new trains would have a “transformative effect”; in the capital.
The Piccadilly line connects King’s Cross and the West End withHeathrow airportand beyond and is used for more than 10% of all daily Tube journeys – about 160 million trips a year.
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