New train breaks down on Day 1

Four Electrostar 377 trains picked up their first paying passengers on the Seaford-Newhaven-Portsmouth line on Tuesday.

But rail bosses worst nightmares became a reality when one of the new sleek green and yellow trains refused to leave Seaford Station because of a power supply fault.

Evening rush hour services between Seaford and Brighton were thrown into turmoil as it emerged it would have to be taken to Brighton for repairs.

Delays worsened when there was a points failure at Newhaven Harbour station. Travellers, who had already waited up to 30 minutes for a train at Lewes, were forced to disembark at Newhaven to be bussed the final stretch of their journey to Seaford.

A South Central spokeswoman said the breakdown was 'unfortunate'. She explained: 'There was a technical fault with the power supply to the train. It was very unfortunate but we were running three other new trains throughout the network that were working successfully.'

She added that the train had travelled 1,500 miles fault-free during tests.

South Central plans to add two new trains per week to its fleet on the coastal line until all the old-style slam door carriages are replaced.

The trains, which are similar to Thameslink rolling stock used on the Brighton-London line, can travel at up to 100mph and are equipped with an electronic information display board, linked to a global positioning system. This accurately transmits the train's position during its journey.

Each carriage is air conditioned, with airplane-style seating and fitted with CCTV surveillance cameras for increased passenger security.

Long-suffering rail passengers had expected the new rolling stock to start replacing the slam door carriages, some up to 40 years old, in August.

However, months passed and the new trains were nowhere in sight. South Central revealed there had been technical problems with the carriages' automatic doors and further test runs were needed.

Govia, parent company of South Central, has ordered 700 carriages, the equivalent of 182 new trains, at a cost of 856 million.