ScotRail 158's - poor condition

[Scotrail12]

These 158s are the worst in the ScotRail fleet IMO.

Poor quality PA & screens, tired looking, dark, dirty carpets, narrow, cramped seats, low tables. I can't think of many redeeming features about them.

Some of the features are obviously just not to my taste but in general, they just seem to be in poor condition. If it's a DMU, give me a 156 any day.

Anyone else agree?

 

[Bletchleyite]

Which ones? The Inverness (Grammer IC3000 seated) sets are lovely. The other ones are a bit rubbish but have had a nice refurb.

 

[Scotrail12]

Which ones? The Inverness (Grammer IC3000 seated) sets are lovely. The other ones are a bit rubbish but have had a nice refurb.

Never been up to Inverness so the ones in the central belt (especially the ones on the Maryhill route).

 

[fgwrich]

Never been up to Inverness so the ones in the central belt (especially the ones on the Maryhill route).

These are what’s known as the Inverness 158s (158701 - 725) :

Class 158 - Abellio ScotRail

The newer standard of interior on a ScotRail 158 Sprinter. Seen on Friday 17th May 2019.

flic.kr

While these are the Corkerhill / Haymarket 158s (726-741) and likely the units you travel in:

Class 158 Interior

Interior of Scotrail class 158 DMU 158739. 17th July 2019.

flic.kr

I have to agree with what’s been said about them though, while the refurbishment made them look a little smarter, the seating layout was moved around making them more cramped, the luggage rack and above barely seems to have been touched and they just feel a little well, cheaper, compared to the others. Whether or not it had anything to do with the fact they were refurbished in Springburn I don’t know.

 

[hexagon789]

Which ones? The Inverness (Grammer IC3000 seated) sets are lovely. The other ones are a bit rubbish but have had a nice refurb.

I'll bet £5 it's the Haymarket ones, having travelled regularly on them for a two-year period I can honestly say I'd prefer a 156 over them.

 

[InOban]

But given that there's another thread highlighting major corrosion issues on the 156s......

 

[py_megapixel]

But given that there's another thread highlighting major corrosion issues on the 156s......

Not something that a passenger notices from the inside though.

 

[Scotrail12]

These are what’s known as the Inverness 158s (158701 - 725) :

Class 158 - Abellio ScotRail

The newer standard of interior on a ScotRail 158 Sprinter. Seen on Friday 17th May 2019.

flic.kr

While these are the Corkerhill / Haymarket 158s (726-741) and likely the units you travel in:

Class 158 Interior

Interior of Scotrail class 158 DMU 158739. 17th July 2019.

flic.kr

I have to agree with what’s been said about them though, while the refurbishment made them look a little smarter, the seating layout was moved around making them more cramped, the luggage rack and above barely seems to have been touched and they just feel a little well, cheaper, compared to the others. Whether or not it had anything to do with the fact they were refurbished in Springburn I don’t know.

Those Inverness ones look a bit fresher. Better interior. The 158 I was on today actually looked worse than the Haymarket one in that picture. I've used 158's on Maryhill & Fife Circle. Both are presumably Haymarket units but the ones on Maryhill are very dark inside whereas the ones on Fife Circle are a bit brighter inside.

I think I'd take a 314 (obviously now defunct) over one of these 158s.

 

[Iskra]

It's difficult to take such trifling complaints seriously when you live in Northern land.

I've never seen a Scotrail unit anywhere near a state of disrepair.

I'm sorry you don't like the slightly outdated interior colour scheme. Where Scotrail units are tired, they are at least clean.

 

[hexagon789]

Where Scotrail units are tired, they are at least clean.

Internally or externally, because I can assure you they are not always the former

 

[DB]

While these are the Corkerhill / Haymarket 158s (726-741) and likely the units you travel in:

Have they all got Richmond seats? Don't think any other operators of 158s still has them now (believe GWR replaced the ones they had with the original design at the latest refurb; Northern didn't have any even before the latest seat replacement). Due to the thickness of the seats, they tend to have very little legroom (Richmond seats are also found in the 144s and some 153s).

 

[MatthewRead]

I went on a Scotrail 158 2 years ago it was an Inverness unit and it wasn't too bad cleaner than the seats on trains down here.

 

[Paul_10]

It's difficult to take such trifling complaints seriously when you live in Northern land.

I've never seen a Scotrail unit anywhere near a state of disrepair.

I'm sorry you don't like the slightly outdated interior colour scheme. Where Scotrail units are tired, they are at least clean.

The Northern 158s look fine too me since they been refurbished, given the lack of hopper vent windows, a good refurbishment can make an 158 look like a new/modern train to a bog standard passenger.

What I will say about those Scotrail photos is that it does look like a Richmond seat with that amount of fabric looks a bit tatty whilst it suits the thinner seat backs better. I'm surprised all the seats were not replaced in every Scotrail 158 with the unpopular thinner seats like it was done in the 156s.

 

[47271]

I haven't been on a really bad Scotrail 158 since the refurbs finished a few years ago. Yes, the legroom's a bit rubbish and the seats are a bit upright but to unfavourably compare the experience with being sat on an ironing board with the all round racket and vibration of a 156 is a bit unfair.

For those of us who remember from four or five years ago the old Haymarket examples with the collapsed seat bases still in the National Express covers, now they really were bad Scotrail 158s...

 

[Scotrail12]

I haven't been on a really bad Scotrail 158 since the refurbs finished a few years ago. Yes, the legroom's a bit rubbish and the seats are a bit upright but to unfavourably compare the experience with being sat on an ironing board with the all round racket and vibration of a 156 is a bit unfair.

156's are quite a nice ride any time I've taken them. Bit on the loud side but they look good on the inside post refurb.

Never had an issue with the ironing boards on the 156's or 385's.

 

[DB]

The Northern 158s look fine too me since they been refurbished, given the lack of hopper vent windows, a good refurbishment can make an 158 look like a new/modern train to a bog standard passenger.

Give it time! None of the northern franchises have had a good record of keeping trains in decent condition after a refurbishment. OK, so things could have changed, but I'll believe it when I see it.

That said, they have discovered the concept of properly cleaning trains this year...

 

[NoMorePacers]

Give it time! None of the northern franchises have had a good record of keeping trains in decent condition after a refurbishment. OK, so things could have changed, but I'll believe it when I see it.

That said, they have discovered the concept of properly cleaning trains this year...

I imagine they finally stepped their act up thanks to a mere global pandemic turning up. If they keep it up post-pandemic then good for them but I wouldn't hold my breath.

 

[AMD]

That said, they have discovered the concept of properly cleaning trains this year...

There has been a recruitment drive and the cleaning teams are now considerably bigger, it was part a bigger plan from the team that took over in March so Covid wasn't a driver for this activity.

 

[route101]

I think all the old tatty seat 158s have gone from Scotrail. One thing about the 158s is the tables are thin, its actually easier to get out a bay of two airline seats. The 156s now seem to have thin and low tables like the 158s.

And what is the reason of the 158s at Corkerhill?

 

[PHILIPE]

I think all the old tatty seat 158s have gone from Scotrail. One thing about the 158s is the tables are thin, its actually easier to get out a bay of two airline seats. The 156s now seem to have thin and low tables like the 158s.

And what is the reason of the 158s at Corkerhill?

To allow Haymarket to maintain the "short" HSTs

 

[Carntyne]

Everyone complains about seats not lining up with the windows, so they change it. Now everyone complaints they are cramped. They can't win.

 

[Darandio]

There has been a recruitment drive and the cleaning teams are now considerably bigger, it was part a bigger plan from the team that took over in March so Covid wasn't a driver for this activity.

Yet we've had these 'bigger plans' before around here. Forgive me for being sceptical but history suggests we'll be back to travelling around in someone else filth 18 months from now.

 

[Parallel]

This was the state of a Northern 158 I used a little while ago. I understand it wasn’t a refurbished one but at some point they’d removed the table and not replaced it, then also replaced 2 seats with Chapman seats with a different livery! And the unit was filthy.

I’ve only ever used ScotRail’s Inverness 158s (not any of their others) and have always found them good. Slightly preferred the refurbished ATW ones and the SWT ones though.

 

[DB]

This was the state of a Northern 158 I used a little while ago. I understand it wasn’t a refurbished one but at some point they’d removed the table and not replace it, then also replaced 2 seats and replaced them with Chapman seats with a different livery! And the unit was filthy.

Which unit was that? Don't recall seeing any with a mixture of seat types like that so probably not like that for long.

Was certainly normal for them to be filthy, and with the grey ceiling panels and dim lighting they always seemed really dingy - better since the refurbishment, although the new carpet seems designed to show all the dirt.

The 150s and Pacers usually seemed even more filthy, but perhaps that was just that with lino flooring the ingrained dirt around all the seat mountings was more obvious than with carpet!

 

[PHILIPE]

There is an Inverness one, I believe, that work down to Edinburgh and spends a couple of days min the Central belt before working back up

 

[RailWonderer]

Some Northern 158s have ironing boards and some have the original seats, but with the same seat covers. Off topic but does anyone know how many have been re-seated? The original 158 seats are the best.

 

[DB]

Some Northern 158s have ironing boards and some have the original seats, but with the same seat covers. Off topic but does anyone know how many have been re-seated? The original 158 seats are the best.

Only the 3-car ones (8 units) are retaining the original seats. All 2-car ones are getting new seats (and nearly all done now).

The original seats are awful if you are tall as they are quick thick seats so very little legroom (although not quite as bad as Richmonds)

 

[NoMorePacers]

Which unit was that? Don't recall seeing any with a mixture of seat types like that so probably not like that for long.

Was certainly normal for them to be filthy, and with the grey ceiling panels and dim lighting they always seemed really dingy - better since the refurbishment, although the new carpet seems designed to show all the dirt.

The 150s and Pacers usually seemed even more filthy, but perhaps that was just that with lino flooring the ingrained dirt around all the seat mountings was more obvious than with carpet!

That particular unit was 158855. It's gone off for refurbishment now.

 

[Royston Vasey]

These are what’s known as the Inverness 158s (158701 - 725) :

Class 158 - Abellio ScotRail

The newer standard of interior on a ScotRail 158 Sprinter. Seen on Friday 17th May 2019.

flic.kr

While these are the Corkerhill / Haymarket 158s (726-741) and likely the units you travel in:

Class 158 Interior

Interior of Scotrail class 158 DMU 158739. 17th July 2019.

flic.kr

I have to agree with what’s been said about them though, while the refurbishment made them look a little smarter, the seating layout was moved around making them more cramped, the luggage rack and above barely seems to have been touched and they just feel a little well, cheaper, compared to the others. Whether or not it had anything to do with the fact they were refurbished in Springburn I don’t know.

They both look great to me! Recently refreshed or refurbished both of those. I like both Grammar and Richmond seating (disclaimer: I am not a tall man!)

 

[py_megapixel]

Which of the two variants is the one found on the Waverley route from Edinburgh to Tweedbank? I'd assume the Richmond variant?