221136 short-formed?

[6Gman]

Saw 221136 yesterday and sure it was only 4 coaches! Is it short-formed, and if so how and why, or do I just need an eye test?

 

[WarrenTManager]

Isn't this one of the units reformed to enable 221144 to come back into service

 

[louis97]

I believe this is one of the sets to be reduced to make use of the VT spare driving vehicles.

 

[PHILIPE]

Discussed here:-


http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=134460&page=10&highlight=voyager+221144

 

[sufian123]

no its not short formed. XC are giving two coaches from a five 221. Virgin will take them and return th original 2 carriages for 221144. so by giving to short formed for xc, and allowing virgin to stay five coaches for their voygers.

 

[D365]

no its not short formed. XC are giving two coaches from a five 221. Virgin will take them and return th original 2 carriages for 221144. so by giving to short formed for xc, and allowing virgin to stay five coaches for their voygers.

Not quite, two five-car units are sacrificing a coach each, so that CrossCountry will end up with three four-car units instead.

 

[ValleyLines142]

221140 is the other unit which will lose/has already lost a coach.

 

[SprinterMan]

Not quite, two five-car units are sacrificing a coach each, so that CrossCountry will end up with three four-car units instead.

So Virgin are no longer going to vehicle-swap with XC then? This means that 221143 will be running around with 2 buffet cars.

 

[6Gman]

Anybody know which vehicles have been removed from 221136/40?

 

[sprinterguy]

Anybody know which vehicles have been removed from 221136/40?

221140 is still operating as a 5-car unit at present. It's 60986 that has been removed from 221136.

 

[Crossover]

I can't help but think only the UK would bodge up the rolling stock like this (certainly in so much as the referenced 143 having 2 buffet cars)

 

[Townsend Hook]

I can't help but think only the UK would bodge up the rolling stock like this (certainly in so much as the referenced 143 having 2 buffet cars)

Does it really matter though? Just a few seats here and there. Virgin were obviously happy with the arrangement when 142 and 143 were made up to five car, and XC are up two carriages overall so they're not complaining either.

 

[Crossover]

Does it really matter though? Just a few seats here and there. Virgin were obviously happy with the arrangement when 142 and 143 were made up to five car, and XC are up two carriages overall so they're not complaining either.

Not from that point of view specifically. Just in my mind it seems a bit odd to bodge up 5 sets when it would be possible to bodge up less/none, but that may just be my OCD

 

[sprinterguy]

Not from that point of view specifically. Just in my mind it seems a bit odd to bodge up 5 sets when it would be possible to bodge up less/none, but that may just be my OCD

It does seem daft that Virgin, Voyager Leasing and the DfT couldn't have recognised that Virgin desired an all 5-car fleet at the time that the 221 fleet was carved up between the West Coast and new Crosscountry franchise in 2007/8, which would have avoided all this subsequent jiggery-pokery and not resulted in the slightly absurd situation where two driving cars from a capacity stretched fleet will have sat unused for seven years by the time that they are brought back into service.

In terms of slightly unusual formations, the reformation of three 221 units for Crosscountry (221136/140 and 144) will also presumably result in one 4-car set that lacks the large Coach D luggage area, unless part of the reason for the removal of 60986 from 221136 this far ahead of 221144's re-entry to service is to allow the installation of such.