Rolling stock › In serviceData updated
Class 458 Juniper unverified
Alstom's Juniper, built for South West Trains and refurbished by Alstom at Widnes, finishing in December 2024, as 28 four-car 458/4s for SWR's suburban routes. With the Arterios taking over, many are now stored.
Drawing to come
- Type
- Electric multiple unit
- Builder
- Alstom, Washwood Heath, Birmingham
- Built
- 1998–2002
- In service
- since 2000
- Operators
- South Western Railway
- Formation
- 4 cars (458/4)
- Trains in fleet
- 28
- Fleets
- South Western Railway: 28
- Top speed
- 100 mph
- Power
- DC third rail
- Car height
- 3.77 m
- Car width
- 2.80 m
- Seats per train
- 234
- Total capacity
- SWR: 234 standard-class seats; the 12 first-class seats in two compartments are declassified
- Status
- 28 four-car units, owned by Porterbrook: a few still run on suburban routes from Waterloo, and the rest are stored. The five-car 458/5s left service in March 2026.
This page is marked unverified: its figures haven’t yet been confirmed by an official source or a published history. The foot of the page says what’s in doubt.
Car types
| Code | Car | Length | Doors per side |
|---|---|---|---|
| DMCO | Driving motor composite open (DMCO): a first-class compartment (declassified) and standard class | 21.01 m | |
| TSO | Trailer standard open (TSO) | 19.94 m | |
| MSO | Motor standard open (MSO) | 19.94 m |
Sources
- Class 458 Juniper (Class 458/4), South Western Railway, accessed 6 October 2026 (four-car 458/4s; routes; 234 standard seats and 12 declassified first-class seats; built by Alstom, in service from 2000)
- SWR not ruling out using refurbished '458s' on Portsmouth line as fleet is deployed on suburban routes, Rail, 3 January 2025 (£25m Alstom refurbishment of 28 Porterbrook sets at Widnes; 100 mph; built at Washwood Heath 1998-2002; history of the 458/5)
- Refurbishment of SWR's Class 458 fleet complete, Railvolution, December 2024 (refurbishment completed 12 December 2024; 234 seats; 75 to 100 mph)
- Class 458 (account of a lecture by Peter Summerhays of South West Trains, 4 April 2000), The Locomotive & Carriage Institution, 4 April 2000 (first train in service on 25 February 2000)
- FOI2025/000335: stock lists of train fleet (reply and 'SWR Fleet Vehicle Numbers' spreadsheet), South Western Railway (released under FOI via WhatDoTheyKnow), 17 June 2025 (28 458/4 units (458401-458428) and their vehicle numbers)
- "An accumulation of failings": West of England Line problems laid bare, Rail, 18 February 2026 (decision not to use the refurbished 458s)
- Regional Review notices: June 2026 ('Class 458 units stored') and August 2026 ('Class 458 continues in service'; 'More class 701/5 units return from storage'), Southern Electric Group, 24 June and 25 August 2026 (458s stored (June 2026) and still in service (August 2026))
- British Rail Class 458, Wikipedia, accessed 6 October 2026 (car dimensions; formation; units in use and stored, September 2026)
unverified how many are in use: Wikipedia (citing Rail Express, September 2026) lists 8 with SWR and 20 stored; the Southern Electric Group's reviews say 'Class 458 units stored' (June 2026) and 'Class 458 continues in service' (August 2026); Rail (February 2026) reports SWR's decision not to use the refurbished 458s in its new timetable, lease end: not confirmed from a primary source (reports vary between March and August 2027), car lengths (21.01 m driving, 19.94 m intermediate), width 2.80 m and height 3.77 m: Wikipedia only, formation DMCO-TSO-MSO-DMCO: Wikipedia; SWR's page confirms first class in two compartments, one at each end, supply voltage: 750 V DC (Wikipedia), doors: not stated in a source read