Refurbished and reliveried Class 319/4 No 319425 was introduced at Bedford on 26 October 2006 and after being named Transforming Travel by First Capital Connect Managing Director, Elaine Holt, ran as a special to Brighton and back for media, user group representatives and various stakeholders.

A total of 66 four-car units are being upgraded, consisting of 40 ‘319/4s’ and 26 ‘319/3s’, all the work being undertaken at Alstom’s Wolverton works. Apart from the new FCC livery, the interiors are being completely stripped out and are having new seat bases and moquette, the flooring in Standard Class and in the vestibules is being changed from carpet to lino, the walls and ceilings are being repainted with a graffiti resistant finish, toilets are being upgraded and internal lighting is much brighter and more economical. In addition, the number of grab poles are increased and are now brightly coloured pink to assist the visually impaired, and luggage stacks have been introduced as the trains call at both Luton Airport Parkway and Gatwick Airport.

In addition, the braking is being improved and modifications are being made to traction control equipment, both hardware and software. Door equipment is being overhauled with reliability modifications and reprofiling is taking place to the traction motors. The programme is scheduled to take four years to complete and First Capital Connect and Porterbrook Leasing are jointly investing £27 million in the project. With regard to future maintenance, Cricklewood Depot is to re-open for marshalling and cleaning and some maintenance is to be transferred to Hornsey Depot.