Julian Purvey (Letters October 23) says that the change to class 442 Gatwick Express units has been a shambles. He does not explain his reasons for saying this but I absolutely disagree with him. The class 442s are the best trains running on the Brighton line at present and I think their introduction has been a great success.

Being retired I no longer commute daily, but I do travel on peak-hour services between Brighton and London often enough to be able to form a valid opinion. Whenever I can I deliberately plan to travel on trains formed of class 442 stock because they are far more comfortable than the class 377s, the trains that Southern normally uses.

John L Hyde-Smith
Belton Road, Brighton

I have to disagree with Julian Purvey regarding the class 442 trains used by Southern on the Brighton line. In my experience they are among the best trains in the country, with comfortable seats, ample legroom and smooth riding qualities – vastly superior to many more modern trains like the Virgin Pendolinos. However their Achilles heel is that they only have two single doors per carriage, which means they are not best suited to high-volume airport and commuter traffic. It would be a better use of resources for Southern to use class 377 trains on Gatwick Express services and transfer the 442s to the longer-distance Eastbourne, Littlehampton and Bognor to London services where their higher levels of comfort would be more appropriate.

Shawn Buck
Lawrence Road, Hove