Seven months and a few minutes later than planned, News OnTheWight rode on the first Class 484 Island Line passenger train from Shanklin this morning (Monday).
The 40-year-old refurbished Class 484 trains (completed by VivaRail) are just like new, offering a much smoother, quieter ride, with a bright clean interior and even USB charging points in the seats.
Ticket machines at stations mean through rail tickets to the Mainland can be booked online and collected locally rather than having to take the train all the way to Ryde Esplanade to pick them up.
On the first train out of Shanklin the majority of passengers were rail enthusiasts, but there were a smattering of passengers thankful to not have to use the bus replacement that has been running for the last ten months.
More new features
The new trains also feature an announcement service (listen below) and LED displays, with information about the next station and any other relevant messages.
Genuine passenger
News OnTheWight spoke to one of the first passengers, planning to take the train to Ryde Pier Head to catch the FastCat.
He told us that the train was a better option than using his car to Ryde and then having to take a Beryl scooter to the ferry.
Missed connections
A power cut overnight meant the service was running several minutes later than timetabled (more on that coming very soon) and therefore had to terminate at Ryde St Johns station, meaning passengers hoping to catch the 6.45am FastCat missed their onward connections.
A taxi service was put on by South Western Railway to take the passengers to the Pier Head.
Watch the video of the train coming into Shanklin station at 6.15am on Monday 1st November.
