If they could run them at the same time then it would be possible to run 197's on the intermediate hourly services that do not attach or detach at Machynlleth for Pwllheli services.
Only if the 'intermediate hourly services' (roughly half past the even hours from Aberystwyth and Shrewsbury) start/terminate at Shrewsbury and the unit from Aberystwyth arriving in Shrewsbury is booked to head straight back to Aberystwyth again. Often what appears to be an Aberystwyth-Shrewsbury service (with no Pwllheli portion) in the timetable actually runs as Aberystwyth-Birmingham (coupling to a Holyhead-Birmingham at Shrewsbury).
Overall I think the 158's would still be better from a passenger point of view. For conductors, I could see it being 50/50 as to which units they prefer. some pro's: 197's get a crew door in the cab, can view CCTV live, Aircon in the rear cab!!, selective door opening (especially great for the 4 car service on the coast should it continue), station dwell times on busy coast services should be reduced. But then, the access ramp is in 2 parts and awkward, there is a lack of luggage racks, bike spaces will be a point of contention and worst of all, only 1 toilet per 2 car unit.
Drivers I think will majority prefer the 197's.
Agreed - as a passenger (I am
not railway staff) the 158s are better from my point of view so I'm dead against the 197s, but I can understand staff wanting them to replace 158s. Shame we couldn't have a new train that actually improves things for both passengers and staff.
Will they ever appear here on the Cambrian, and is the upgrade to a full hourly service dependent on them? I don't mind the 158s so I'm in no hurry for 197s themselves, but if we need 197s for the hourly service it'll be frustrating...
There has been an hourly service between Shrewsbury and Aberystwyth on Sundays for a few years now, and there are more TfW 158s (24 units) than there are ETCS-fitted 197s on-order (21 units) so introducing the hourly service should absolutely be possible whether or not the 158s are eventually replaced by 197s. There are however concerns that the TfW timetable review (budget cuts?) could see the plans for Cambrian hourly axed.
I don't believe for one second the 158s won't be able to work at the same time as the 197s. For one thing, the whole line was shut last year for several days for ERTMS to be upgraded to make it compatible with 197s. And for another, it's going to be very hard to train MCN and PWL drivers if they can't drive them on the Cambrian.
The last I heard, one of the DIs from another depot who is part of the 197 training team is meant to be learning the Cambrian so they can train Cambrian drivers. Can't see them doing that if they need to shut the line to normal traffic to do. I suspect something's been lost in communication somewhere.
Perhaps somebody heard that the ETCS had to be upgraded to be compatible with the 197s, but missed that it had already been done and thought that the upgrade would make the 158s unable to operate?
Thanks, that does make a bit more sense. 197s and 158s can rescue each other but it requires an adaptor and it's a 5mph to clear the line job so definitely not ideal!
To a point. The 2 minutes wait to set it up every time you change end/formation is a bit annoying. Hopefully the 197s will be better in that respect! Though it's also a very quick an easy step to isolate the system altogether if needs be (just not so easy to reinstate, hence why it's normally left on all the time).
The lack of ERTMS actually shows up as a fault on the TMS screen on every non ERTMS fitted unit!
I seem to vaguely recall reading/hearing that Network Rail (and/or the safety regulator) insist on ERTMS* being 'switched on' (ie.
not isolated) at all times if fitted and that this was the reason only 21 class 197s are expected to be delivered with ETCS rather than all 77 (because TfW don't want to have to deal with the 2 minute set up time on non-Cambrian routes).
* or should that be ETCS - isn't ETRMS just ETCS plus GSM(R) the latter having already replaced the NRN radio nationwide?
Relatively limited opportunities until they can go further west as there’s not much they could work given how few trains from the east terminate there.
Do the Swanline services terminate at Swansea or do they run through to Llanelli now?
I prefer the spongy early 2000s Alstom seating also used in the Pendolinos and the 458s and 334s albeit a bit cramped. It's mainly the cleanliness (or lack of) that irks me about them most, but Avanti's ones are newly refurbished and state of the art in my mind. I'd prefer an Avanti Voyager to a 196/195 anyday (not tried a 197 yet, but I'm abroad next week so no chance).
The Avanti Voyagers are now what I aim for if travelling on the WCML (and probably the north Wales coast given the near total disappearance of the class 175s, my decreased tollerance of hard seats following COVID lockdown and TfW's general lack of reservations), provided I can get a reservation in the coach which is (almost) all tables aligned with the windows.
