Southeastern has today unveiled a special Networker train in its iconic and original Network SouthEast livery to mark Railway200 – a year-long celebration marking the 200th anniversary of passenger rail services in the UK.
Unit number 465908 was unveiled at a special event at Charing Cross station this morning. The event brought together the Rail Minister Lord Hendy, former Network SouthEast colleagues, current Southeastern and Network Rail colleagues, partner organisations and suppliers, supporters of the Network SouthEast Friends organisation and leading figures from the rail industry to celebrate the proud history of Network SouthEast and the Networker fleet.
Chris Green, guest of honour and former Director of Network SouthEast, said:
“I remain immensely proud of everything Network SouthEast accomplished and the foundations it built for today’s railway – particularly in and around south-east London and parts of Kent. We showed what can be achieved by working together across track and train and putting customers at the heart of our decision making.
“Today’s event was a wonderful reminder of that period of time and an opportunity to recognise the role the Networker fleet played in developing Network SouthEast, as well as the role the fleet continues to play across Southeastern today. I am grateful for today’s recognition and I look forward to more strides forward in the coming years, too.”
Rail Minister, Lord Hendy, said:
“Today’s unveiling of the Railway 200 Networker was a great opportunity for railway colleagues, both past and present, and passengers to come together to celebrate this special year for the industry.
“The exciting year-long series of events and celebrations is not just a nod to the railway’s past; it’s a reminder of how far the sector has come in providing better services for passengers and the pivotal role they continue to play in society.”
Steve White, Managing Director, Southeastern, said:
“The Southeastern Railway can trace its roots back to 1836 and throughout this year we will be holding a series of Railway 200 themed events to commemorate how the railway has helped our region live, work and grow.
“Moreover, we want to appeal to a new generation of talent in our communities to consider a career in rail and to join us in writing the next chapter in our history, with a new generation of trains, as we work to build a railway which is purposeful and delivering economic growth, decarbonisation and social mobility.”
Network SouthEast (NSE) was formed in June 1986 and brought together the commuter services operating in and around the south east of England and London and was easily recognisable by its red, white and blue ‘signal toothpaste’ colour scheme across its stations and trains.
The creation and delivery of Network SouthEast was led by Chris Green, who at the time was the British Rail Sector Director for London & South East.
The aim was to provide a recognisable brand for customers, improve service quality and grow ridership.
A key catalyst for this transformation was the introduction of the Class 465, ‘Networker’ fleet which first entered passenger service in 1992 and are still going strong today.
The creation of the Railway 200 Networker started in the summer of 2024 with a small team from Southeastern, Angel Trains, Wabtec and designers Creactive. Although there were technical drawings of the NSE livery, they were missing some details we would expect on modern drawings.
More importantly, the livery design came from a period when accessibility requirements were much less developed, and it became apparent the original design did not meet today’s requirements. Balancing the historical accuracy of the design with modern accessibility requirements was a challenge but one the team was determined to overcome. As a result, the doors on the 465908 are grey (as opposed to blue) and there are other minor design touches to highlight door buttons and maintain minimum distances between other design elements.
The special repaint was funded by Angel Trains and carried out by Wabtec during the unit’s scheduled heavy maintenance.
Watch the unveiling video here:
ENDS
