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Greater Anglia Class 755s (Regional Trains)

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TheEdge

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I noticed a stop board for a 12 coach Class 755 at Audley End recently. Suggests multiple working was planned at some point. But 3 x 4-car units?

It's a known minor typo with the stop boards that should read 745. The responsible person has been widely ribbed! :lol:
 

Railperf

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It's a known minor typo with the stop boards that should read 745. The responsible person has been widely ribbed! :lol:
I was wondering whether that might have been the case lol. Mystery solved then! But what makes this strange is that don't recall 745's being planned to stop Audley End?
 

ashkeba

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I was wondering whether that might have been the case lol. Mystery solved then! But what makes this strange is that don't recall 745's being planned to stop Audley End?
Stansted Express units used to do some London-Cambridge services.
 

jopsuk

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Stansted Express units used to do some London-Cambridge services.
The previous Stansted Express fleets (The Class 317/7 and /8, then the Class 379) were in a common pool for West Anglia services. Indeed the Class 379 was procured with extra units (there never was a serious plan to run them as 12 car to the airport) such that three morning and three evening peak time services from and to Cambridge could be 3x379.

Running Class 745s to Cambridge in normal operation has never been in the plans, but the units are cleared at least as far as Ely with stop boards in position. Presumably this is to allow flexibility during times of disruption.
 

Railperf

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The previous Stansted Express fleets (The Class 317/7 and /8, then the Class 379) were in a common pool for West Anglia services. Indeed the Class 379 was procured with extra units (there never was a serious plan to run them as 12 car to the airport) such that three morning and three evening peak time services from and to Cambridge could be 3x379.

Running Class 745s to Cambridge in normal operation has never been in the plans, but the units are cleared at least as far as Ely with stop boards in position. Presumably this is to allow flexibility during times of disruption.
Do drivers sign 745's as far as ELy?
 

Railperf

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Stansted Express units used to do some London-Cambridge services.
In early 2019 the Stansted service was mainly 379s with the odd 317 pairing, while the Cambridge North service seemed to be a random mix of mainly 317's supplemented by 2 to 3 pairs of 379s. The introduction of 745s on Stansted seemed to cascade the 379s onto Cambridge with 317s concentrated on Stratford to Meridian Water and Bishops Stortford, and Liverpool Street to Hertford East.
As of yesterday, 6 of the 7 Cambridge diagrams are now 5-car 720's with a solitary 317 pair filling one diagram. Are there any operational limitations running a 745 to Cambridge North?
The 745s seem to be operationally confined to Stansted and the GEML.
 

Astro_Orbiter

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In early 2019 the Stansted service was mainly 379s with the odd 317 pairing, while the Cambridge North service seemed to be a random mix of mainly 317's supplemented by 2 to 3 pairs of 379s. The introduction of 745s on Stansted seemed to cascade the 379s onto Cambridge with 317s concentrated on Stratford to Meridian Water and Bishops Stortford, and Liverpool Street to Hertford East.
As of yesterday, 6 of the 7 Cambridge diagrams are now 5-car 720's with a solitary 317 pair filling one diagram. Are there any operational limitations running a 745 to Cambridge North?
The 745s seem to be operationally confined to Stansted and the GEML.
Don't think there's anything stopping 745's going to Cambridge, but there's really no point, and at least with a full Stansted Express timetable there wouldn't be the units to spare anyway. Even with the half timetable now I assume the GE gobble up the spare 745/1.
 

47421

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In early 2019 the Stansted service was mainly 379s with the odd 317 pairing, while the Cambridge North service seemed to be a random mix of mainly 317's supplemented by 2 to 3 pairs of 379s. The introduction of 745s on Stansted seemed to cascade the 379s onto Cambridge with 317s concentrated on Stratford to Meridian Water and Bishops Stortford, and Liverpool Street to Hertford East.
As of yesterday, 6 of the 7 Cambridge diagrams are now 5-car 720's with a solitary 317 pair filling one diagram. Are there any operational limitations running a 745 to Cambridge North?
The 745s seem to be operationally confined to Stansted and the GEML.

Don't think there's anything stopping 745's going to Cambridge, but there's really no point, and at least with a full Stansted Express timetable there wouldn't be the units to spare anyway. Even with the half timetable now I assume the GE gobble up the spare 745/1.
well Whittlesford and Audley End commuters would appreciate them, back in the day in the peak hour they had 3x12 car 379 + 2x8car 317, 52 carriages total. Currently GA are providing 1x5 car, 2TPH. Obviously massively reduced demand, but even so, until they start running 10car 720s on West Anglia, the peak service north of Stortford is very poor.
 

Mag_seven

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Just a reminder that this thread is for the discussion of GA Class 755 trains.

For discussion of GA Class 720s please use this thread:


thanks
 

Pete_uk

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I've seen photos and it's very lucky the driver breaker when he did or that would have been a serious incident
 

Abbo

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I've seen photos and it's very lucky the driver breaker when he did or that would have been a serious incident
Please excuse me piggy backing on this site but the 745 one seems to have vanished and I guess of readers watch both AGA FLIRT sites.

I hear a 745 went on a Norwich - Southend test run on 12th January. Does anyone know why and are there anyy interesting 'future intentions' ?
 

Railperf

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Please excuse me piggy backing on this site but the 745 one seems to have vanished and I guess of readers watch both AGA FLIRT sites.

I hear a 745 went on a Norwich - Southend test run on 12th January. Does anyone know why and are there anyy interesting 'future intentions' ?
There are all sorts of rumours about the Stansted airport 745/1 sets being used on GEML services. Clacton was a 'rumoured' destination, but the current diagrams see the xx.02 service from Liverpool do Ipswich return then Clacton return, then Colchester Town and back onto the Ipswich. It's questionable whether any of the GE destinations would require a 745 12-car train off-peak.
It would make sense to use 12-car 745's into London to/from Southend Ipswich and Clacton in the peaks. Could this be a test run to see if the trains will physically fit and to assess what's operationally needed to run them into Southend?
 

Shwam3

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Please excuse me piggy backing on this site but the 745 one seems to have vanished and I guess of readers watch both AGA FLIRT sites.

I hear a 745 went on a Norwich - Southend test run on 12th January. Does anyone know why and are there any interesting 'future intentions' ?
No intentions to run 745s or 755s to Southend in service.
These runs are for EMC compatibility testing and are required for the whole GA network hence previous FLIRT runs to Braintree/Southminster/Hertford East/King's Lynn.
 

Astro_Orbiter

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I heard recently any plans to move the 745/1 away from West Anglia have been paused ufn, can't remember what the reason was though, probably waiting for the replacement 720 subfleet I would have thought.
 

CDM

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ndeed the Class 379 was procured with extra units (there never was a serious plan to run them as 12 car to the airport) such that three morning and three evening peak time services from and to Cambridge could be 3x379.
Yep. This was all done under HLOS. Originally the plan was to put new stock on Stansted to LST because that was seen as being a cash cow. During negotiations with the Gov't, political pressure time from Cambridge MP's about all new trains going on the south end of the route (cascading 'old trains' to strengthen Cambridge services) and Cambridge customers not benefiting from any new trains, meant the plan was enlarged before it was signed off.

Link to when the HLOS scheme was announced in the commons:
 

jopsuk

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Yep. This was all done under HLOS. Originally the plan was to put new stock on Stansted to LST because that was seen as being a cash cow. During negotiations with the Gov't, political pressure time from Cambridge MP's about all new trains going on the south end of the route (cascading 'old trains' to strengthen Cambridge services) and Cambridge customers not benefiting from any new trains, meant the plan was enlarged before it was signed off.

Link to when the HLOS scheme was announced in the commons:
not sure it was so much the Cambridge MP as possibly the South Cambridgeshire & Saffron Walden MPs (Whittlesford & Saffron Walden benefitted from the 12 car trains)
 

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