Greater Anglia Bombardier Aventras (Class 720): Technical discussion and introduction

[The_Train]

720131 (was with 130)

Thanks

 

[Wivenswold]

I travelled home on 720 135 on the 1N40 LST - CLT tonight.

Rattling like it's been in service for years.

​

 

[NSEWonderer]

I travelled home on 720 135 on the 1N40 LST - CLT tonight.

Rattling like it's been in service for years.

​

Tbh seems to be some workmanship issues because several other 720s run fine but then you'll have some rattling. Same thing happens with the 345s of which nowadays are also plagued with wheel flats

 

[Wivenswold]

I think it's a Derby thing, the Electrostars are similarly plagued with the "Bombardier Rattle"

 

[The_Train]

I travelled home on 720 135 on the 1N40 LST - CLT tonight.

Rattling like it's been in service for years.

​

That's when we start to fall in love with units, when they make unfathomable rattling noises

 

[Wivenswold]

Very true. The banging noise the class 321's doors made when another train passed stopped me from sleeping through my station many a time. They were just as bad when the units were brand new too.

 

[dk1]

Very true. The banging noise the class 321's doors made when another train passed stopped me from sleeping through my station many a time. They were just as bad when the units were brand new too.

On the very rare occasions I travelled in 321s I couldn’t sit near the power doors for that very reason. Did my head in more than passengers not shutting the darn vestibule door.

 

[samuelmorris]

I travelled home on 720 135 on the 1N40 LST - CLT tonight.

Rattling like it's been in service for years.

​

You didn't just happen to be in the carriage where they didn't screw all the fittings in? Almost every Aventra unit seems to have at least one vehicle where you can hear a loose screw rolling around behind the light fittings...

 

[Wivenswold]

I was next to the small toilet and it sounded like the fitter had forgotten his or her screwdriver.

 

[Gulf1159]

720137 was operating todays test trials on the southend line. Seen billericay working 5G38

 

[Covshire1]

There was a 5Q22 1531 Wembley Inter City Depot to Ilford E.M.U.D. move today. Assume that it was 720128 as I believe it was only unit at Alstom but happy to be corrected.

 

[meld3]

Can anyone confirm that the only 720/5's I have not ridden on are the ones stored up north pending repair/rebuild etc ?

502
503
504
505
509
510
516
519
534

Any timescales to getting these in service?

Cheers all.

 

[samuelmorris]

I'm confident 516 has operated before, I have it logged for a journey back in July.

 

[meld3]

I'm confident 516 has operated before, I have it logged for a journey back in July.

Cheers mate - guess I missed that one.

 

[The_Train]

I'm confident 516 has operated before, I have it logged for a journey back in July.

Cheers mate - guess I missed that one.

My records suggest differently. I have it commencing mainline testing in July 2020 and then it next re-surfaced when it was sighted at Litchurch Lane at the end of August this year?

 

[meld3]

My records suggest differently. I have it commencing mainline testing in July 2020 and then it next re-surfaced when it was sighted at Litchurch Lane at the end of August this year?

I would tend to agree with you given how many trips I've made from Brum to catch all the others, I would be extremely unlucky to have never seen it working.

 

[60159]

I would tend to agree with you given how many trips I've made from Brum to catch all the others, I would be extremely unlucky to have never seen it working.

At Derby Litchurch Lane on Sat 21/10/23 (thru’ fence at primary school on London Rd).
There were 2 unfinished units next to it and a complete unit after that. Was that 138. Couldn’t see a number but looked new.

 

[Busman]

Very true. The banging noise the class 321's doors made when another train passed stopped me from sleeping through my station many a time. They were just as bad when the units were brand new too.

Ahhh, the memories of those banging doors hurtling down the mainline from Shenfield.

 

[Gulf1159]

I'm confident 516 has operated before, I have it logged for a journey back in July.

720516 was at Ilford early 2022 and it was a test unit that was doing load tests as it was filled with sand bags (from February 2022 till June 2022) it then retuned back to Derby Litchurch lane in July 2022.

It didn’t enter passenger service in that time as it was fitted with test equipment

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 7 Nov 2023 ==

720137+720579 were operating 5G37 noted at wickford today Tuesday 7 November. Both units had the unit not in service banners over the doors

 

[MDB1images]

Just catching up,
Have any GA Class 720's been delivered in Late October/thus far in November?

 

[Peter Mugridge]

720 128 has returned to traffic and is currently the London end unit of the 11.33 Liverpool Street to Southend Victoria with 720 558 at the country end.

Please excuse the poor quality photo. Mobile phone grab shot.

 

[CAF397]

720516 (or part of it) is currently on Longsight depot, Manchester.

 

[Casper Pesky]

Appeared to be a 720 on 1P35 this morning

 

[Peter Mugridge]

I have had positive confirmation through an e-mail discussion this morning that 720 137 has not yet entered service.

Total of 113 available for use as of this morning 21st November.

The confusion over that one and 720 128 is because part of the fault free running includes station testing with the PIS operating with full destination and intermediate call details – and the two were in multiple for this part of the testing. It didn’t also help that 720 128 at least was twice wrongly noted on the internal GA systems as having entered service and some people repeated that.

...so now we know for sure.

 

[Peter Sarf]

I have had positive confirmation through an e-mail discussion this morning that 720 137 has not yet entered service.

Total of 113 available for use as of this morning 21st November.

The confusion over that one and 720 128 is because part of the fault free running includes station testing with the PIS operating with full destination and intermediate call details – and the two were in multiple for this part of the testing. It didn’t also help that 720 128 at least was twice wrongly noted on the internal GA systems as having entered service and some people repeated that.

...so now we know for sure.

Your saying 113 GA class 720s in service.

So I assume that is out of 133 (to my knowledge ?) so only twenty left to go ?.

I wonder how long for the rest to arrive ?.

How many are already in/near London just awaiting acceptance ?.

I wonder how urgent the last twenty are given it has been said that GA would end up with about twenty surplus post Covid.

I am thinking about how slowly the last of the 710s are taking to get into service - not yet quite there and very slow progress. As though on a back burner ?.

 

[JonathanH]

twenty left to go

Twenty was the number Greater Anglia noted as being surplus to requirements.
https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...-and-introduction.158396/page-85#post-6351572

 

[samuelmorris]

Twenty was the number Greater Anglia noted as being surplus to requirements.
https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...-and-introduction.158396/page-85#post-6351572

"Surplus" while 5-car units still operate in the peak and leave people behind at platforms?
The quoted post doesn't really make much sense to me either, you could run 4tph off-peak to Southend using 5-cars, but at present the peak is only 4tph as well, it used to be 6.

 

[alm37]

Your saying 113 GA class 720s in service.

So I assume that is out of 133 (to my knowledge ?) so only twenty left to go ?.

I wonder how long for the rest to arrive ?.

How many are already in/near London just awaiting acceptance ?.

I wonder how urgent the last twenty are given it has been said that GA would end up with about twenty surplus post Covid.

I am thinking about how slowly the last of the 710s are taking to get into service - not yet quite there and very slow progress. As though on a back burner ?.

Of the 20 not yet in service, I believe only 137 has been delivered and is in test prior to service. The rate of delivery has noticeably slowed. I think the other 19 are all at Derby or Worksop: 101/102/104/138-144/502-505/509/510/516(possibly at LO)/519/534. Some of these in particular of the 5xx series have been in storage for more than 3 years and you would think there is a fair bit of work to do on those to get them ready to deliver - whether to GA or another operator. I would imagine 138-144 will appear first. Alstom appear to want to complete their orders by end March 2024 so presumably there is some tension between their wishes and those of GA. I think there is indeed a parallel between the last 710s and the last 720s - just on a bigger scale with the number of 720s to go (and possibly unwanted).

 

[800001]

720516 (or part of it) is currently on Longsight depot, Manchester.

Heard reports it’s was roaded there , anyone any idea?

 

[Geeves]

The rest of it is following in the week and more will be coming up in addition to 516. Still not sure on what work is being carried out but presumably it's issues from the factory that are fixed on the ones already in service?