Various questions pertaining to Caledonian Sleeper: FOI release

Information requested

1.  To ask for comparative data and / or a summary by appropriate person or persons which directly addresses the pre-order performance and the actual performance / expectations of the newly procured CAF Mk5 carriages. This comparison must address, or at least, provide brief answers in regards to the following points;

• The mechanical reliability of the Mk5s - does this meet the expectations of the Scottish Government and Serco Caledonian Sleeper Ltd wished at the moment of ordering from CAF?
• The satisfaction of staff working on board the Mk5s - how does staff satisfaction measure on the Mk5s versus the older rolling stock they used to work before 2019? What issues have staff raised about these new trains - and what are CAF / Serco Caledonian Sleeper Ltd / Scottish Government doing to rectify this / these issues
• The satisfaction of passengers travelling on board the Mk5s - how does passenger satisfaction measure on the Mk5s versus the older rolling stock they used to travel on before 2019? What issues have passengers raised about these new trains - and what are CAF / Serco Caledonian Sleeper Ltd / Scottish Government doing to rectify this / these issues? Has passenger satisfaction increased or decreased both overall and on individual aspects such as comfort, ride quality, ambience, and the quality of facilities onboard?

2.  To ask for comparative data and / or a summary by appropriate person or persons which directly addresses the current performance of the newly procured CAF Mk5 carriages from staff and passenger perspectives.
Such data / summaries must address the following questions as much as possible;
"Is this considered an improvement to the older rolling stock? What are the advantages / disadvantages? Have any concerns been raised by passengers or staff? If so, how are these being addressed?"
These questions must be individually addressed in relation to the following aspects of service;

• Ride quality
• Ambience
• Facilities on board (specific reference to berths, club car, seated car, and toilet facilities) AND the quality of them
• Rolling stock performance of both Mk5s and Serco Caledonian Sleeper Ltd leased locomotives
• Pricing structure

3.  To ask for a summary from the Scottish Government and / or Serco Caledonian Sleeper Ltd in regards to the possible points for improvements that have been identified in relation to the operation of the CAF Mk5 rolling stock, from both a mechanical, passenger, and staff perspective. Has CAF been consulted in regards to these, if applicable - and are they involved with workable solutions (please specify)? What is the timescale for such improvements to take effect?

Response

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested. The reason why we don't have the information is explained below.

The Scottish Government does not hold data, all but one, in the form requested by your question. The exception is for passenger satisfaction where the Scottish Government does receive data for each year, which is provided by Transport Focus, the independent watchdog for rail, bus, coach and tram passengers and for users of the Strategic Road Network (SRN) and reported independently.
This information can be located via accessing the following link:-
https://www.transportfocus.org.uk/research-publications/publications/caledonian-sleeper-guest-satisfaction-survey-2/
However, we do not yet have a year’s data for Mk5 only operation so comparison with Mk3 operation cannot yet be made.

I can confirm that Serco Caledonian Sleeper Ltd is engaging with Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) to address a range of teething defects as is normal with new vehicle

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.