Slow Trains In The North
I was asked a few hours ago, as to why would TransPennine Express want to get rid of their Class 350/4 trains.
These ten 110 mph trains were only delivered in 2013 -2014, so why should TransPennine Express replace them?
They work Manchester Airport to Glasgow and Edinburgh services, but they have two major problems.
No Wi-Fi
It looks like none of the Class 350 trains have wi-fi, so possibly passing them on now3, will give that problem to the new owner.
They Are Only 110 mph Trains
The trains are being replaced with Class 397 trains from Spanish manufacturer; CAF.
I suspect the Class 397 trains have a few advantages over the Class 350 trains.
- The new trains are probably built with wi-fi.
- The interiors are custom-designed for the Scottish and Manchester Airport markets.
- The trains are five-cars as opposed to four.
- The capavity of the new trains is 286 seats as opposed to 229.
But the major difference is that the Class 397 trains are 125 mph trains, like the Class 390 trains used by Virgin.
Looking at times between Glasgow and Preston on the West Coast Main Line, it would appear that the Class 390 trains are up to twelve minutes faster than the current Class 350 trains, so when both companies are running 125 mph trains will we see an improvement in both?
Similar improvements will probably happen on the East Coast Main Line, where the Class 397 trains will be mixing it with Class 800 trains.
Could The Class 397 Trains Handle 140 mph?
This question has to be asked, as at some point in the next few years, when the signalling allows, there may be possibilities for 140 mph. running on both the West and East Coast Main Lines.
I would hope that the Class 397 trains can be uprated to allow 140 mph running.
Will The Class 397 Trains Get In The Way Of HS2 Trains?
HS2 could reach Crewe as early as 2027 and the trains will take to the West Coast Main Line to go North.
I hope that the Class 397 trains are future-proofed to share a line with these new trains.
Other Trains On The West And East |Coast Main Lines
There are other trains that will use the West and East Coast Main Lines, which will not be able to operate at speeds in excess of 125 mph.
- 100 mph Class 185 trains
- 125 mph Class 220 trains
- 125 mph Class 221 trains
- 100 mph Class 319 trains
- 125 mph InterCity 125 trains
I suspect these trains will have to be kept away from the two main lines to Scotland.
Conclusion
The Class 397 trains will have to be capable of being uprated to 140 mph.
I also suspect that any train not capable of holding 140 mph may not be allowed on the West and East Coast Main Lines.
I Like This!
This article in the Guardian is entitled Virgin Trains and six other companies agree to sell advance tickets on the day.
Goodeee!
This is said,
The Rail Delivery Group (RDG), which represents the train operators and Network Rail, said customers of Grand Central, Greater Anglia, Northern, TransPennine Express, Virgin Trains East Coast, Virgin Trains West Coast and those using the Caledonian Sleeper from London to Scotland can now also buy Advance tickets for many trains on the day of travel.
The price of football has just dropped, as I can buy my ticket to Ipswich on Saturday morning and might make a saving.
Where Is London Midland Going?
This excellent article on Rail News is entitled Franchising timetable slips again.
This is the first two paragraphs.
THE Department for Transport’s franchising timetable is slipping again, possibly because of delays introduced by the snap General Election.
The winner of the West Midlands franchise should have been announced in June, ready for the new contract to start in October.
It is now getting very tight for a new West Midlands franchise, currently held by London Midland, to start in October.
The Current Fleet
The current fleet is a mixture of diesel and electric multiple units, most of which are in reasonable condition, although it does need a certain amout of updating and the addition of some new or refurbished trains.
- I don’t think any of the trains have wi-fi, whereas some of their competitors have it installed.
- The several Class 153 trains probably need replacing or augmenting with larger units.
- More 100 mph electric units are probably needed for the West Coast Main Line.
- More Class 350 trains from TransPennine Express must be a possibility.
- I wouldn’t be surprised to see some Class 769 trains going to the new franchise to work partially-electrified routes.
But the train fleet doesn’t look like it will need a massive number of replacement trains.
Planned And Proposed Lines Around Birmingham
The next few sections detail some of the developments either in progress or proposed.
The Chase Line
The Chase Line electrification should be complete by May 2018 and this will need more electric trains.
Although, I do wonder if the new franchise might use the new electrified route to introduce new services.
The Cross City Line
The Cross-City Line electrification to the newly-rebuilt Bromsgrove station should allow a new three trains per hour (tph) electric service to start across Birmingham in May 2018.
Unless of course, the electrification is late.
The Camp Hill Line
The Camp Hill Line is another cross-Birmingham route and effectively acts as a loop for the Cross-City Line.
It is a long term aim of Birmingham to reopen this line to passengers and the new franchise could include this line in their plans.
Wikipedia talks of a £170million pound scheme to reopen the line with the following features.
- Three tph
- Three new stations
- A connection to Moor Street.
But as the line is open to freight and long distance passenger traffic, I do wonder if now that responsibility for this line has been devolved, that something simpler could be done in the short term to increase services across Birmingham.
Kenilworth Station
Kenilworth station should open this year on the Coventry to Leamington Line.
It will probably open with single-car Class 153 trains, which will probably be totally inadequate.
I wonder if the Coventry and Leamington Line could run back-to-back services with the Coventry to Nuneaton Line, thus creating a Leamington to Nuneaton service via Kenilworth, Coventry and Coventry Arena.
The North Warwickshire Line
The North Warwickshire Line links Birmingham with Stratford-on-Avon and has an alternative name of the Shakespeare Line.
Plans exist to extend this line South to Honeybourne station on the Cotswold Line.
Under Possible Future Development in the Wikipedia entry for the Warwickshire Line, this is said.
The Shakespeare Line Promotion Group is promoting a scheme to reopen the 9 miles (14 km) of line south of Stratford to Honeybourne where it would link to the Cotswold Line. Called the “Avon Rail Link”, the scheme (supported as a freight diversionary route by DB Schenker) would make Stratford-upon-Avon station a through station once again with improved connections to the South, and would open up the possibility of direct services to Oxford and Worcester via Evesham. The scheme faces local opposition. However, there is a good business case for Stratford-Cotswolds link.
I think we’ll see something in the new franchise about developing this line, as there is a lot of potential for a train operator.
- Direct services between Stratford-on-Avon and Oxford, where there is a connection to Bicester Village. Tourists would love that!
- Connection of the housing development at Long Marston to Birmingham.
- Could Stratford-on-Avon or Honeybourne become the terminus of a service from Leamington, Coventry and Nuneaton.
It would also give DB Schenker, their freight diversion.
A Bi-Mode Train For The West Midlands
The lines around Birmingham are very much like those around Liverpool and Manchester, with a mix of electrified and non-electrified lines.
More trains are needed and needed very soon to make the most of the following.
- New stations like Bromsgrove and Kenilworth.
- New electrification like the Chase Line to Rugeley and the Cross-City Line to Bromsgrove.
- Reopened lines like the Camp Hill Line.
- Capacity on electrified lines through Birmingham, Coventry and Wolverhampton.
I suspect that an ideal train for the West Midlands would have the following characteristics.
- 100 or even 110 mph on 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- Perhaps 90 mph on diesel power.
- Possibly a range of perhaps a dozen miles on batteries.
- Four coaches.
- A modern interior.
- Wi-fi
This specification could have been written for one of Porterbrook’s Class 769 trains. Batteries might need to be added, which is something Porterbrook may do if a customer needs the feature.
But it doesn’t have to be a rebuilt train from the 1980s, as I suspect Class 755 trains, which are bi-mode Stadler Flirts as ordered by Greater Anglia would do the job well.
And who’s in the mix to run the new West Midlands franchise? Abellio, who recently won the new Greater Anglia franchise.
So could we see some flirting around Birmingham?
Regional Services
The current franchise runs services to Liverpool, but not Manchester.
Applications in the past have been made to run to Preston and I suspect that the new franchise will seek to improve services to Crewe, Liverpool, Manchester, Manchester Airport and Preston, although some of these routes will be opposed by Virgin.
As Manchester Airport seems to be developing as a rail hub, perhaps we’ll see the new franchise serving the important airport!
Conclusion
It will be interesting to see the plans of the new franchise, when they are announced.
But as this brief analysis and speculation shows, I think that there will be an order for new or refurbished bi-mode trains.
The Anonymous Widower 