Farewell Lap for Old South Western Railways Train Stock
Final run for the 455s includes a trip on the District Line
The new Arterio train is in the foreground with the 455 behind. Picture: SWR
November 7, 2025
South Western Railway has announced a one-day farewell tour for its Class 455 red commuter trains, a nostalgic send-off for units that have carried passengers from local stations including Chiswick, Brentford and Putney for more than four decades. The special charter, organised with the Branch Line Society, will visit familiar suburban termini and a handful of less-frequented stretches of track, with just 400 charity tickets on sale for the event on Sunday 21 December.
For local rail enthusiasts the inclusion of the District Line’s short but notable branch between East Putney and Wimbledon is a headline moment. That link, long used by SWR stock on special workings and diversions, will give a rare chance to experience a Class 455 on a route more commonly associated with London Underground services. The branch’s tight curves and the sight of mainline rolling stock threading historic platforms make it an interesting addition to the farewell itinerary.
The Class 455 fleet first entered service in the early 1980s and became a familiar, red-liveried presence on suburban workings into London Waterloo. South Western Railway says the 10-car Arterio trains arriving to replace them will offer a marked increase in capacity and passenger comfort: each new train will carry over 50% more customers than a 455, and provide modern features including Wi-Fi, charging points, accessible toilets and air conditioning. SWR will press on with rolling out 90 Arterio units across the suburban network, where they are already running into the hundreds of services each day.
The farewell tour is aimed at marking the cultural as well as operational significance of the 455s. The Branch Line Society — a long-standing volunteer organisation for rail enthusiasts — is partnering with SWR to run the charter, with profits from the limited number of tickets to be donated to three charities: The Alex Wardle Foundation, Macmillan Cancer Support and The Railway Children. The tour will call at suburban favourites such as Epsom and Kingston and also include more unusual calls, among them Haslemere on the Portsmouth Direct Line, with the final route to be confirmed nearer the date.
SWR’s engineering leadership has framed the charter as a way to recognise the trains’ service and to give enthusiasts a last opportunity to ride them in passenger service.
Tickets are priced at £45.50 and further details will be available from the Branch Line Society’s website when they go on sale on Monday 10 November, and SWR has noted the final itinerary may be adjusted closer to the date.
Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism. Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets. We've always done that and won't be changing, in fact we'd like to do more. However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do. We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area. A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site. One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute. If you do support us in this way we'd be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor. For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you'd like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site. |