Would It Be Sensible To Transfer The Euston And Blackpool North Service From Avanti West Coast To High Speed Two?
Currently, Avanti West Coast’s Euston And Blackpool North service is just one train per day.
- It stops at Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western and Preston stations.
- An HS2 service could serve Blackpool North station perhaps four or five times a day.
- To save paths, it could join and split at Crewe with one of the Manchester services.
- If Blackpool North station were On HS2, it could stop at Old Oak Common station.
- Blackpool North station now has a connection to Blackpool tramway.
- Platforms at Blackpool North station can take an 11-car Pendolino or 8-car 200 m. HS2 train.
- HS2 would shorten the journey time to London, by about 30-40 minutes.
- The Blackpool tramway would be expanded to bring travellers to HS2.
- It might help to level-up Blackpool and the surrounding area.
- I don’t think there would be any pathing issues.
I feel this could be an interesting possibility.
Ministers Sack Top Rail Adviser Who Spoke Out Over HS2 Train Debacle
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Times.
This is the sub-heading.
Chris Gibb, an industry veteran, said plans to shorten HS2 trains would likely inflate costs, slow services beyond Birmingham and result in fewer seats
These three paragraphs add more details.
A leading government adviser has been fired for criticising Whitehall plans to reduce the length of HS2 trains, it can be revealed.
Chris Gibb, a non-executive director of the nationalised train operator, is understood to have had his contract terminated by ministers this weekend after allegedly breaching media engagement rules.
Gibb was appointed to the board of the Department for Transport Operator Limited (DFTO) in 2020, having worked in the rail industry for more than 40 years. DFTO is the state-owned company that oversees train companies as they are brought into full public ownership.
This paragraph appears to detail what Gibb has said that caused offence.
Gibb said there was “no doubt that if HS2 opened by replacing 11-coach Pendolinos with eight-coach trains, these would be full and leave people behind on day one”.
So I will audit, what he said.
Now that Leeds is not going to be served by HS2, Manchester Piccadilly, is the only station other than Birmingham Curzon Street, that will terminate 400 m. trains, and the Birmingham station will be brand-new, so hopefully, that will be designed for the right capacity.
Manchester Piccadilly currently handles three trains per hour from London.
- Milton Keynes Central, Rugby, Stoke-on-Trent, Macclesfield and Stockport
- Nuneaton, Stoke-on-Trent and Stockport
- Stafford, Crewe, Wilmslow and Stockport
Trains are usually Class 390 11-car Pendolino with 607 seats
These will be replaced by.
- 200m. train – Euston and Macclesfield via Old Oak Common, Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent.
- 400m. train – Euston and Manchester Piccadilly via Old Oak Common, Birmingham International and Manchester Airport.
- 400m. train – Euston and Manchester Piccadilly via Old Oak Common and Manchester Airport.
- 400m. train – Euston and Manchester Piccadilly via Old Oak Common and Manchester Airport.
Trains will be 200m 8-car HS2 train which will have 504 seats. 400m trains will be two trains running as a pair.
I can add up the hourly seats.
Currently, if the three trains per hour are 11-car Pendolinos, then the hourly London-Manchester capacity is 1821 seats.
On HS2, if the four and a half trains per hour are 8-car HS2 trains, then the hourly London-Manchester capacity is 9 x 504 or 4536 seats, or a 149% increase in capacity.
- And HS2 doesn’t serve Macclesfield, Stockport or Wilmslow!
- Four 200m. HS2 trains would give a 121 % increase in capacity.
- Perhaps, as there is spare capacity on HS2 between Crewe and London, another service could be fitted into the hourly scheme of things.
How about Blackpool?
How Many 8-car HS2 Trains Would Be Needed To Replace The Capacity Of The Current Service?
To provide an hourly London-Manchester capacity of 1821 seats with 8-car HS2 trains would need around 3.6 trains.
Even in the unreal world that in which politicians exist, I doubt fractions of a train exist.
So I suspect, a practical timetable could be.
- 200m. train – Euston and Macclesfield via Old Oak Common, Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent.
- 200m. train – Euston and Manchester Piccadilly via Old Oak Common, Birmingham International and Manchester Airport.
- 200m. train – Euston and Manchester Piccadilly via Old Oak Common and Manchester Airport.
- 200m. train – Euston and Manchester Piccadilly via Old Oak Common and Manchester Airport.
This would be 2016 hourly seats, which is an increase of about 10 %
Please check my figures, as they could explain a lot.
Is This Why Purists Say The Midland Main Line Must Be Electrified?
In How Far Will A Class 897 Train Travel Without Using The Electrification?, I showed that the Class 897 train, can go for 120 miles on its internal power sources.
I also showed that the Hitachi Class 80X trains with batteries can do the same.
But if you look at distance on the Midland Main Line, some are greater than 120 miles.
- St. Pancras and Chesterfield – 146.1 miles
- St. Pancras and Derby – 128.3 miles
- St. Pancras and Doncaster – 157.3 miles
- St. Pancras and Leeds – 187.2 miles
- St. Pancras and Nottingham – 126.4 miles
- St. Pancras and Sheffield – 160.0 miles
So to get all the way to Chesterfield, Derby, Doncaster, Leeds, Nottingham or Sheffield from St. Pancras, a train with a longer range is needed.
Conservative thinking means electrification, as we know it works.
You might also say, that the electrification on the Midland Main Line, just sort of peters out South of Leicester.
But thinking about it!
- The electrification on the East Coast Main Line doesn’t cross the Forth Bridge.
- The electrification on the West Coast Main Line finishes at Dunblane.
- The electrification on the South Wales Main Line finishes at Cardiff.
- Few branch lines in East Anglia are electrified.
- The East-West Line is not to be electrified.
Did the accountants prune too hard?
They may have done!
- But we do need a a zero-carbon train for routes longer than 120 miles.
- And so do many other routes across the world.
- The more you turn it round in your mind, the more you need a zero-carbon fuel with all the flexibility, range and ease of refuelling of diesel.
In my mind the only fuel that can do this is hydrogen.
Conclusion
If we want to run zero-carbon services over very long distances, we will need to use hydrogen power.
I also think, that my logic here, will apply to buses and coaches, so any needing a range over a certain size will need hydrogen.
As the purists won’t have hydrogen at any price, this means they won’t accept anything other than full electrification or battery-electric.
But bigger batteries are heavier and self-defeating, so electrification is the only way.
No Panic At The Pumps … South Koreans Just Stop Driving On Wednesdays
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Times.
This is the sub-heading.
President Lee Jae-myung has urged the public to ‘save every drop of fuel’ and introduced a number-plate rotation to keep drivers off the road
These first three paragraphs deeply illustrate the differences between the energy situation in North and South Korea.
From the lookout point atop Mount Dora, in the heart of the demilitarised zone that has separated the peninsula since 1953, you can clearly see where South Korea ends and North Korea begins.
The trees that proliferate across Korea’s undulating topography come to an abrupt halt. On the land that sits beyond, a farmer can be seen guiding an ox pulling a plough.
Sealed off from the world economy for 73 years, communist North Korea has resorted to cutting down much of its vegetation to burn for fuel. Democratic South Korea, by contrast, has established deep global trading ties that allow the country to import vital natural resources it cannot produce domestically.
North Korean communism certainly can’t be considered green.
I find these two paragraphs extremely significant.
South Korea may have to import almost all of its crude oil, but the country plays a huge role in refining it into petrol, diesel and jet fuel before shipping it around the world. This means that demand from overseas for Korea’s refined products is greater than ever, which has forced the government to step in. The country’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy has implemented mandatory caps on refined petroleum products.
Of all South Korea’s refined products, kerosene, or jet fuel, is the most in demand. The country is one of the biggest exporters of jet fuel in the world. The US, for instance, relies on it for 70 per cent of its total jet fuel imports.
They could also be problematical for the country, as they will surely need to replace these jet fuel exports with exports of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
Most viable processes, that I’ve seen need the following ingredients.
- Lots of hydrogen or masses of GWhs of electricity to make it.
- Some carbon atoms, which can even be captured from the air or a gas-fired power station.
- Some form of Fischer-Tropsch process to force the atoms to make sustainable aviation fuel.
There are several companies that can do this, with British ones seeming to often to be connected to Oxford University.
There is also this Anglo-Korean connection over hydrogen.
I asked Google AI, who are investors in innovative hydrogen production company; HiiROC, which is a spin-out of the University of Hull, and received this answer.
HiiROC, a UK-based developer of “turquoise” hydrogen technology, is backed by a consortium of major industrial and financial players, including Centrica, Melrose Industries, HydrogenOne Capital Growth, Hyundai, Kia, Wintershall Dea, VNG, and Cemex Ventures. The company has raised over £40 million to develop its thermal plasma electrolysis technology.
Note the presence of two of the biggest Korean companies ; Hyundai and Kia.
HiiROC is also five times more efficient than traditional electrolysis.
Google AI says this about South Korean offshore wind.
South Korea is aggressively developing its offshore wind sector, targeting 14.3 GW to 15 GW of installed capacity by 2030, with over 116 projects and 44 GW of capacity under development. The country aims for a 2030 renewable energy share of 20-30%, leveraging floating technology for massive projects like the 3.2 GW Jindo project.
It appears to me, that South Korea will replace their market share of the jet fuel market with sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).
I’m also sure, that if the Koreans need to produce more hydrogen to make more SAF to power the world’s aircraft, Centrica will help them to rent some of our empty seas.
I can see the Koreans, with a little help from their friends, including the UK, dominating the SAF market.
How Not To Resurface An Intersection
I took these pictures in the City of London at the North end of Moorgate this morning, where the road is crossed by Eldon Street and Ropemaker Street.
Note.
- I had only gone to the area to get a 141 bus to travel home and found that no buses were running on Moorgate.
- There was no information or signs displayed to help travellers.
- The Marks and Spencer’s store appeared to be completely cut off.
- I believe that this road is the responsibility of the London Borough of Islington, not the City of London.
- Luckily, Leon was unexpectedly open, so I popped inside to have a delicious Full English, gluten-free breakfast and a cup of tea, before my walk.
- Also, one of their staff was tall enough to see over the road works and ascertain, that the buses were running in Finsbury Square.
With difficulty, I was able to walk to the next bus stop on Finsbury Square and get safely home.
I have a few thoughts.
This Was Mushroom Management At Its Worst!
All it needed was a few signs on the bus stop by Moorgate station and dotted around the site to explain the situation, but no-one took the responsibility to provide the information.
Surely, This Is The Type Of Site, Where Hydrogen Powered Construction Equipment Should Be Used!
- It would provide better atmosphere for workers and passers-by.
- Some equipment would be quieter.
Full fleet Of 27 Hydrogen Trains On German Network Will Not Be Deployed Until 2026 — More Than Three Years Late
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Hydrogen Insight.
This is the sub-heading.
Full fleet of 27 hydrogen trains on German network will not be deployed until 2026 — more than three years late
The Alstom fuel-cell trains were ordered back in 2019 in a €500m contract and were supposed to be fully operational in December 2022… but problems have persisted.
To read the rest of the article, I need to register, but from this article, for my argument, I only only need the fact that the trains are three years late.
But the introduction of hydrogen buses into service hasn’t been without its problems in the UK and projects have been dropped.
So have Alstom decided to take a closer control of the technology to bring this flagship project on track? Hence the deal, I talked about in Alstom And Cummins Make A Deal On Hydrogen Rail Technology.
Will the del also breathe new life into the agreement I talked about in Alstom And Eversholt Rail Sign An Agreement For The UK’s First Ever Brand-New Hydrogen Train Fleet?
This is Alstom’s visualisation of the Hydrogen Aventra.
But I certainly think, that a multinational hydrogen-tri-mode train built in Derby by a French-owned company on a proven and reliable 125 mph platform, with German fuel cells, running on Cheshire hydrogen, through spectacular Welsh countryside could be an easy proposition to sell to Fat Controllers.
World Cup 2026: Fans To Pay $150 For Train Ticket To Stadium
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on DW.com.
This is the sub-heading.
Transportation costs for World Cup fans traveling to US stadiums could be more than 10 times higher than regular fares. Local officials and FIFA bosses are trading blame for the increased prices while fans feel fleeced
These three paragraphs add some detail.
Football fans trying to get to MetLife Stadium from New York City for the World Cup matches this summer will have to pay $150 (€127) for a round-trip, according to local transportation officials.
The price is almost 12 times higher than the usual $12.90 fare for the 15-minute trip from Penn Station in Manhattan to the stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
“We are going to charge $150 for our roundtrip ticket on our system. So from New York to MetLife, MetLife back to New York,” said Kris Kolluri, the president and CEO of NJ Transit.
For less than the equivalent of $150 dollars, I could get a ticket from my house to any of the Premier League grounds in England and some will take a lot longer than 15 minutes.
Welcome to Trumpland, where the World Cup is primarily to make money.
Eurowings Launches New Routes From London Gatwick To Germany
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on aviation24.be.
This is the sub-heading.
Eurowings has officially launched operations at London Gatwick Airport, introducing new connections to Germany as part of its summer expansion.
This two paragraphs add more details.
The airline now operates 13 weekly flights to Cologne—its only UK link to the city—since 29 March. This has been complemented by a six-times-weekly service to Stuttgart, launched on 14 April. Both routes are served from Gatwick’s North Terminal.
The move strengthens connectivity between the UK and key German economic and cultural centres, targeting both business and leisure demand while feeding into Eurowings’ wider European network.
I talked about more Gatwick services in Condor Celebrates Inaugural Flight Of New Frankfurt–London Gatwick Route.
But to check, there weren’t others, I asked Google AI,”Which Airlines Have Started Using Gatwick Since January 2026?” and received this answer.
As of April 2026, London Gatwick has launched its largest airline expansion in a decade, welcoming nine new carriers—Jet2, Air France, Condor, Eurowings, AnimaWings, AirAsia X, Air Arabia, Beijing Capital Airlines, and Pegasus—for the 2026 summer season. These airlines offer new connections across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, with many commencing operations in March and April 2026.
Key Airlines and Launch Dates (2026):
Jet2 (March 26): Launched its first flights, building to 29 destinations, with six based aircraft.
Air France (March 29): Returned to Gatwick, offering twice-daily services from Paris.
Condor (April 1): Launched three daily flights to Frankfurt.
Eurowings (March 29): Commenced services to Cologne and Stuttgart.
AnimaWings (March 22): Started six weekly flights to Bucharest.
Pegasus (June 15): Starts operations to Istanbul.
Beijing Capital Airlines (June 24): Commences flights to Qingdao.
AirAsia X (June 26): Returns to London, offering flights to Kuala Lumpur via Bahrain.
Air Arabia (June 26): Starts twice-daily flights from Sharjah.
This influx of carriers has allowed Gatwick to offer over 230 destinations in the summer 2026 schedule, restoring connectivity to its highest level since 2019.
It must increase the need for a second runway.
At least Gatwick’s plans seem well advanced, as this visualisation shows.
Gatwick With Two Runways
This appears to me to be a good efficient design.
- The new runway is on the left.
- It looks like the secondary North runway, used when the current main runway is under maintenance, is still in place.
- Between the two runways is a massive new terminal.
- Note the station in the bottom right corner, with the Brighton Main Line going across.
- The red line is a shuttle, that takes passengers between the current North and Main terminals, the new terminal and the train station.
- Little demolition seems to have taken place.
But in some ways, where the runway is built is irrelevant, if Crossrail and the improved Thameslink work as they say on their trains.
These two high-capacity railways will give Heathrow and Gatwick a shared terminal called London, that unfortunately for them, they will share with Stansted, Luton, HS2 and Eurostar.
I feel though, that because of Brexit, we’ll see a decision before the end of the year and possibly in the next few weeks.
British governments have fiddled for far too long!
How Do Alstom Fuel Their Hydrogen Trains?
I have not seen this question answered, so out of curiosity, I asked Google AI and received this answer.
Alstom fuels their hydrogen trains, specifically the Coradia iLint, using high-pressure gaseous hydrogen stored in tanks on the roof. The hydrogen combines with oxygen via fuel cells to generate electricity, which powers the electric traction motor, with only water and heat emitted. The trains refuel at specialized hydrogen stations in roughly 15 minutes.
Key Aspects of Alstom’s Hydrogen Fueling System:
Fueling Station: The trains are powered by specialized hydrogen filling stations, such as the Linde station in Bremervörde, Germany, which supplies gaseous hydrogen.
Refueling Process: The process is designed to be a “drop-in” replacement for diesel, with a filling time similar to that of diesel trains, providing a range of over 1,000 km.
Fuel Cell Technology: Inside the train, a fuel cell module (typically located on the roof) separates hydrogen molecules into protons and electrons, creating a flow of electricity.
Energy Storage: The system uses lithium-ion batteries to store excess energy from the fuel cells and energy recovered from braking.
Hydrogen Source: While some hydrogen is currently produced through conventional methods (steam reforming), there is a strong shift towards using green hydrogen produced from renewable energy on-site.
The Coradia iLint has a top speed of 140 km/h and serves non-electrified lines as a zero-emission alternative to diesel.
How Far Will A Class 897 Train Travel Without Using The Electrification?
I have not seen this question answered, so out of curiosity, I asked Google AI and received this answer.
LNER’s upcoming Class 897 “tri-mode” trains are designed to travel approximately 120 miles (around 193 km) on battery power alone when not using 25 kV overhead electrification. These 10-car Civity UK trains, ordered from CAF, are expected to operate on electric, diesel, or battery, with the latter used for sustainable, emission-free, quiet running near stations and on non-electrified sections.
Key details regarding the Class 897, as highlighted by LNER’s announcement and related news, include:
Operational Capability: They are designated as tri-mode, capable of running on 25 kV AC overhead electric, onboard battery power, or diesel.
Intended Usage: The battery power is primarily intended for use on the approach to and departure from stations.
Range: The batteries are reported to offer a range of roughly 120 miles.
Introduction: The units are expected to be delivered from 2027 to serve the East Coast Main Line.
Branding: The trains will operate under the new Great British Railways (GBR) branding.
Most of the information used by Google AI came from an article in Railway Gazette International in early 2026.
It certainly looks like Great British Railways will have at least one 125 mph, 120 mile range express away from the wires.
I also asked Google”Do Hitachi Battery Electric InterCity Trains Have Problems?” and received this answer.
While Hitachi’s battery-powered intercity trains have shown promising results in trials, particularly regarding fuel savings and emissions reduction, there are some potential challenges and considerations. These include safety concerns related to lithium battery fires, especially in the event of a crash or derailment, as well as range limitations for longer journeys. However, the technology is continuously evolving, and Hitachi is actively working to address these issues.
That seems fairly positive.
There is also this article on the BBC, which everybody should read, which is entitled Will New Battery-Powered Trains Replace Diesel, And Are They Safe?.
In The Data Sheet For Hitachi Battery Electric Trains, I look at the data sheet, that Hitachi published in late 2023.
These were my conclusions about the data sheet.
These are my conclusions about Hitachi’s battery packs for Class 80x trains, which were written in November 2023.
- The battery pack has a capacity of 750 kWh.
- A five-car train needs three battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
- A nine-car train needs five battery-packs to travel 100 miles.
- The maximum range of a five-car train with three batteries is 117 miles.
- The maximum range of a nine-car train with five batteries is 121 miles.
As battery technology gets better, these distances will increase.
Hitachi have seen my figures.
They also told me, that they were in line with their figures, but new and better batteries would increase range.
It looks like Great British Railways will have at least two 125 mph, 120 mile range express trains away from the wires.
125 mph trains with a 120 mile range on batteries, will revolutionise UK train travel.
LNER’s Class 897 Trains
In the Wikipedia entry for LNER, this is said about LNER’s new ten CAF tri-mode trains.
In November 2023, LNER placed an order for 10 ten-car tri-mode (electric, diesel and battery power) Civity trains from CAF. In August 2024, it was announced that the units will be designated Class 897 under TOPS.
According to their Wikipedia entry, it appears the Class 897 trains will be delivered from 2027.
Can I Build A Schedule For The Introduction Of New Trains, Services and Batteries?
I think that I can from the information that is out there.
- East Coast Main Line – December 2025 – Introduction of Lumo between London King’s Cross and Glasgow
- West Coast Main Line – Spring 2026 – Introduction of Lumo between London Euston and Stirling
- Midland Main Line – 2026-2027 – Introduction of EMR Class 810 trains between London St. Pancras and Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and Sheffield.
- East Coast Main Line – From 2027 – Introduction of LNER Class 897 trains between London King’s Cross and Yorkshire.
Note.
- The two Lumo services use trains already in service.
- The Class 810 trains for EMR are being debugged and introduced at the present time.
- The only new trains are the Class 897 trains for LNER.
- The introduction of the Class 897 trains will allow LNER to withdraw some trains for refurbishment and fitting of batteries.
This would mean that before the next general election, almost the full timetable between London and the North of England and Scotland would have been implemented using diesel-electric technology.
Is it a low-risk start to the full electrification of services to the North?
The second-phase would see battery-electric trains introduced.
I believe that Grand Central’s new trains would be brought into service first.
- The new trains are scheduled to be introduced in 2028.
- Grand Central will still have the diesel trains for backup.
- Their new trains would be similar to the other Hitachi trains.
- It looks like they could be doing some splitting and joining.
After the Grand Central trains had been introduced successfully, the trains for the other Hitachi operators would have batteries fitted.
I suspect short routes like Lincoln would be electrified with battery-electric trains first.
There might also need to be short lengths of electrification erected, so that trains could be charged to send them on their way.
Other routes could also be electrified in the same way.
- Basingstoke and Exeter
- Shrewsbury and Aberystwyth – 81.5 miles
- Bristol and Penzance
- Cardiff and Swansea – 45.7 miles
- Crewe and Holyhead – 105.5 miles
- Edinburgh and Aberdeen – 130.5 miles
- Edinburgh and Inverness – 175 miles
- Reading and Bristol Temple Meads – 82.4 miles
- Reading and Cheltenham Spa – 84.5 miles
- Reading and Exeter – 137.5 miles
- Reading and Penzance – 269 miles
- Reading and Plymouth – 189.5 miles
- Reading and Taunton – 128:15 miles
- Reading and Western Super Mare – 101.4 miles
- Reading and Worcester Shrub Hill – 84.5 miles
- St. Pancras and Chesterfield – 146.1 miles
- St. Pancras and Derby – 128.3 miles
- St. Pancras and Doncaster – 157.3 miles
- St. Pancras and Leeds – 187.2 miles
- St. Pancras and Nottingham – 126.4 miles
- St. Pancras and Sheffield – 160.0 miles
If this technique could work for main lines, surely a scaled-down version with smaller trains would work for branch lines.
Conclusion
Consider.
- It looks to me, that someone has planned this thoroughly.
- There will be a lot of 125 mph trains with a 120 mile range on batteries, running before the next election.
It all fits together extremely well.
It could be the first phase of a cunning plan to use battery-electric trains to electrify the UK’s railways.
Passengers will also see benefits, from when Lumo runs its first train into Glasgow Queen Street station.
I don’t think Hitachi’s trains have any problems, but there is enough float in this plan to make sure, it can be implemented on time and on budget.
The Anonymous Widower 