Published on: Friday, 13 March 2015
Last updated: Wednesday, 5 October 2016
The train operator has invested in 56 additional cleaners, 40 of whom will focus on ensuring that litter is removed from trains and that the on-board toilet facilities are clean.
Initially they will board trains at Cambridge, Chingford, Clacton, Colchester, Harwich, Hertford, Ilford, Ipswich, London Liverpool Street, Norwich, Shenfield and Southend seven days a week, at various times during the day and night.
In addition, 10 temporary staff will focus on de-icing train doors during cold mornings to prevent cancellations and will assist with general on train cleaning as the weather improves.
The mobile cleaners will be easily identifiable by their high-visibility tabards which display ‘Train Presentation’ on the back.
An £30,000 investment in new cleaning equipment means that the cleaning team will be able to target the trains with rechargeable hand-held and back-pack vacuum cleaners to remove crumbs and debris from seats and floors.
In addition to the on train cleaning, four additional temporary staff in Ilford Depot’s exterior train cleaning team are helping to improve the appearance of Abellio Greater Anglia’s fleet of Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) trains, cleaning them by hand, carrying out additional screen and window cleaning and replacing damaged seat covers.
The Class 315, 317, 321, 360 and 379 electric trains operate on Greater Anglia’s routes from London Liverpool Street to Braintree, Cambridge, Chingford, Clacton-on-Sea, Enfield Town, Harwich Hertford East, Ipswich, Stansted Airport, Southend Victoria and Walton-on-the-Naze.
An additional two employees based at Norwich’s Crown Point Depot will focus on cleaning the doors and vestibule on the InterCity fleet.
Further initiatives that have been made possible through the investment in additional cleaning staff include:
- Increasing overnight vacuuming
- Steam cleaning of coach and vestibule carpets and matting at Orient Way, Clacton and Cambridge depots. (As the weather improves, steam cleaning equipment will be used on all sets)
Abellio Greater Anglia’s Customer Service Director, Andrew Goodrum, said, “Creating a clean and pleasant travelling environment is a key franchise commitment and this additional investment demonstrates our determination to make a real difference for our customers. Our new cleaners will provide an extra focus on trains, giving attention where required for improved passenger comfort.”