Great Western Railway (GWR) has acknowledged that previously unidentified problems with the new trains entering its fleet have contributed to the recent disruption to Dartmoor Line services.

The admission came after this paper contacted the train operator to ask why there appeared to be an increase in train fault-related disruptions to the service. From August 19-25, GWR reported reduced service on the Dartmoor Line on three separate occasions, all attributed to train faults.

A GWR spokesperson said the Class 175 trains, introduced in 2025, had required extensive recommissioning work and expanding passenger use had revealed previously unidentified faults in the fleet that needed repair.

The spokesperson added: “Since the start of this month, 94 per cent of branchline services have run, with almost 85 per cent arriving within three minutes of schedule. That said, we know there is more to do to deliver the level of service customers expect, and we’re sorry to anyone who’s been affected.

“We’ve already put in place plans to improve performance, uplifting our monitoring and maintenance regimes in response, and we are working closely with our colleagues and their trade union representatives to drive further improvements.

“Our focus now remains on delivering the long-term reliability and capacity that these services will bring to the communities we serve.”

Class 175 units are two- and three-car diesel passenger trains. They were originally built between 1999 and 2001, but have recently entered GWR stock to serve local and regional lines in Devon and Cornwall.

GWR said in its Annual Customer and Stakeholder Report from 2024/25 that the trains would primarily serve the Penzance to Exeter main line and the Barnstaple and Okehampton branch lines to increase “resilience” in the region, “strengthen local services”, and enable the retirement of older models and reallocation of others across the wider GWR network.