Which Route(s) has the Worst Trains?

[Envoy]

Which route(s) has the worst trains - where no new stock has been ordered. We shall exclude short branch lines.

 

[Iskra]

Anything featuring Northern 150’s.

 

[DarloRich]

my route doesn't have any trains. Not sure if that is a good or bad thing tbh. ( they may restart on 14th Feb - then break down)

 

[Envoy]

I would suggest that the Portsmouth > Southampton > Salisbury > Bath > Bristol > Newport > Cardiff route has the worst trains (165/6’s). Having all these important places linked up by old commuter trains from the Thames valley is not good enough for what is for many, a long journey. Having 5 coach trains has helped ease overcrowding but having 5 across seating in most of coaches is terrible. Furthermore, the 2 sections of trains have no connecting walk through.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Has to be anything where 230s or 769s are in use, because the reliability is woeful.

Any train is better than no train.

 

[The DJ]

I would suggest that the Portsmouth > Southampton > Salisbury > Bath > Bristol > Newport > Cardiff route has the worst trains (165/6’s). Having all these important places linked up by old commuter trains from the Thames valley is not good enough for what is for many, a long journey. Having 5 coach trains has helped ease overcrowding but having 5 across seating in most of coaches is terrible. Furthermore, the 2 sections of trains have no connecting walk through.

A 10-car LNER Azuma service is made up of two 5-car units with no walk through between the two units.
In addition, the "inadequate" 165's replaced the slightly older 158's which leaves one to wonder exactly what type of rolling stock you believe suitable for this route

 

[Anonymous10]

heart of wales line with class 153s for the foreseeable future either in pairs or single yet to be seen

 

[387star]

Portsmouth to Cardiff
Used to have mostly lovely if short 158s now has the shabbiest most unsuitable trains in the country. The route has always been neglected for as long as I can remember. I know there are now 5 cars but the seating layout and suburban style is woeful. Also too often a two car 165 turns up on a Friday afternoon...

 

[ExRes]

I would suggest that the Portsmouth > Southampton > Salisbury > Bath > Bristol > Newport > Cardiff route has the worst trains (165/6’s). Having all these important places linked up by old commuter trains from the Thames valley is not good enough for what is for many, a long journey. Having 5 coach trains has helped ease overcrowding but having 5 across seating in most of coaches is terrible. Furthermore, the 2 sections of trains have no connecting walk through.

Which makes it different than, for example, a Cross Country service operated by pairs of 170s?

 

[Towers]

Any of the sadly now numerous intercity routes that have been spoiled by a certain breed of utterly woeful 'intercity' train in recent years...

 

[Envoy]

Which makes it different than, for example, a Cross Country service operated by pairs of 170s?

I agree, a pair of 170’s working a Cross Country route such as Cardiff to Nottingham is also inadequate but at least they don’t have 5 across seating & are better than the 165/6’s that GWR have been lumbered with. South Wales has no proper Inter City trains apart form those going to London. Ideally, Swansea, Cardiff & Newport should have proper Inter City trains going to Newcastle via Gloucester & Birmingham.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 28 Jan 2022 ==

heart of wales line with class 153s for the foreseeable future either in pairs or single yet to be seen

I agree: absolutely dreadful that 153’s are going to continue on the HoW. Ideally, I guess it would be best if TfW had sufficient 197’s to cover the HoW or, failing that, could hang onto some 2 car 175’s for the route with services extended as stoppers to Crewe. How can this line be sold to tourists with such dreadful rolling stock?

 

[Towers]

I agree: absolutely dreadful that 153’s are going to continue on the HoW. Ideally, I guess it would be best if TfW had sufficient 197’s to cover the HoW or, failing that, could hang onto some 2 car 175’s for the route with services extended as stoppers to Crewe. How can this line be sold to tourists with such dreadful rolling stock?

I'm not up to date on TfW, but I thought they were shedding their 158s sometime soon? Are they not more appropriate than 153s for the route?

 

[Envoy]

Portsmouth to Cardiff
Used to have mostly lovely if short 158s now has the shabbiest most unsuitable trains in the country. The route has always been neglected for as long as I can remember. I know there are now 5 cars but the seating layout and suburban style is woeful. Also too often a two car 165 turns up on a Friday afternoon...

Glad you agree with me. It seems to me that the Department for Transport just don’t get it that important routes exist that don’t go to London - for surely, it is they who dictate who gets what stock - be it new or ‘hand me downs’? Although the 158’s are nicer trains, more often than not, the air conditioning does not work. Not sure who is going to get the TfW 158’s when they get rid of them in a couple of years but at least they could form joined up 5 car trains on the Portsmouth to Cardiff route. Ideally, this route should have new bi-mode trains such as Stadler Flirts perhaps?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 28 Jan 2022 ==

I'm not up to date on TfW, but I thought they were shedding their 158s sometime soon? Are they not more appropriate than 153s for the route?

Nope. Apparently the doors hit some of the platforms on the Heart of Wales line but the 175’s are OK regarding this.

 

[The exile]

A 10-car LNER Azuma service is made up of two 5-car units with no walk through between the two units.
In addition, the "inadequate" 165's replaced the slightly older 158's which leaves one to wonder exactly what type of rolling stock you believe suitable for this route

A 10-car LNER Azuma service is made up of two 5-car units with no walk through between the two units.
In addition, the "inadequate" 165's replaced the slightly older 158's which leaves one to wonder exactly what type of rolling stock you believe suitable for this route

Age and adequacy are entirely different matters!

 

[BoroAndy]

Any 142s still on mainline?

 

[Bletchleyite]

Any 142s still on mainline?

No, but personally I find 150s worse. With /1s you have no seat correctly aligned to a window (same as PEP EMUs), with /2s you have no legroom.

 

[QSK19]

London-Corby with the 360s and their much discussed issues (probably not the absolute worst, though, but must be up there). I think that they’ll turn out to be a half-decent train once they’ve been fully refurbished; but, as has happened to the East Midlands franchise before, it’s once again a case of receiving old stock that’s been run into the ground with the previous TOC whilst they get their shiny new trains.

 

[fwsmVor]

A 10-car LNER Azuma service is made up of two 5-car units with no walk through between the two units.
In addition, the "inadequate" 165's replaced the slightly older 158's which leaves one to wonder exactly what type of rolling stock you believe suitable for this route

158s occasionally substitute for 166/165s on my local route (the Severn Beach line) and they're more comfortable, quieter (for a DMU), and much cleaner. It's definitely more pleasant even for the 15-minute journeys I've used them for, so the improvement over an unrefurbished 166 on e.g. Bristol to Exeter must be even better.

 

[YorksLad12]

Leeds-Castleford-Knottingley was always Pacers and usually only 2 vehicles. They were replaced with the 150s (no legroom and dodgy window alignment), but now might have the odd 158 I'm guessing, looking out of my window across to P17. Has a 195 regularly or ever visited Knottingley, in revenue-earning service?

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Huddersfield to Casvegas is pretty poor-
In a couple of years it's gone from a bus dressed as a train, to a peak-hours only bus.

 

[Tractor37]

Leeds-Castleford-Knottingley was always Pacers and usually only 2 vehicles. They were replaced with the 150s (no legroom and dodgy window alignment), but now might have the odd 158 I'm guessing, looking out of my window across to P17. Has a 195 regularly or ever visited Knottingley, in revenue-earning service?

The majority of The Knottingley trains are now 158’s and yes 195’s have been used to Knottingley - they had a weekday turn in revenue earning service in 2020

 

[dosxuk]

156's running Liverpool - Norwich

 

[Class800]

Which route(s) has the worst trains - where no new stock has been ordered. We shall exclude short branch lines.

You've excluded the answer!