Trivia: current obscure/unusual regular timetabled services

[pokemonsuper9]

Empty stock, rather than for passengers, but Northern has 2 return paths between Wigan North Western & Warrington Bank Quay via Earlestown. I assume these are for test runs after "exam" or "repairs". Sometimes, as today, it goes no further than Earlestown (331.021 acoording to RTT), but Class 331s are rare visitors to Warrington BQ.

I think they're for route knowledge retention
They only run sometimes

 

[321362]

1Z35 0820 Wrexham General to Carlisle on New Year's Day 2026. Diverted via the S&C due to the Penrith blockade, reversing at Crewe while joining to another 805. Bizarre.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

2W98 Faversham to London Charing Cross

Realtime Trains | 2W21 0722 Faversham to London Charing Cross | 10/09/2025

Real-time train running information for 2W21 0722 departure from Faversham to London Charing Cross on 10/09/2025. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

Kent not really my area. What makes this service so unusual?

 

[izvor]

Kent not really my area. What makes this service so unusual?

From FAV it heads away from London via Ramsgate then on via Ashford to Charing Cross.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

From FAV it heads away from London via Ramsgate then on via Ashford to Charing Cross.

Don't the 0705 and 1515 from Faversham also do just that?

 

[izvor]

Don't the 0705 and 1515 from Faversham also do just that?

Quite possibly, I was just addressing your question.

Even with these, there aren't many timetabled cross-Thanet services, which is a pity as the bus network is much reduced now. Up till a few years ago the HS services ran as a loop London STP to London via Dover, Ramsgate, Faversham etc which gave a lot of potential journey opportunities. Shame it was axed.

 

[Dfatcontroller]

From the December TT change Scotrail has an evening Glasgow QS - Dundee and Dundee - Glasgow QS via Dunfermline and the Winchburgh chord.

 

[dk1]

From the December TT change Scotrail has an evening Glasgow QS - Dundee and Dundee - Glasgow QS via Dunfermline and the Winchburgh chord.

Is that the 19:15 departure?

 

[Dfatcontroller]

Is that the 19:15 departure?

19:10 Glasgow QS - Dundee
19:15 Dundee - Glasgow QS

 

[Bill57p9]

2T48 0516 Mon-Fri / 2T50 0518 Sat Lincoln Central to Nottingham calls at both Newark Northgate and Castle, reversing twice.

 

[dk1]

19:10 Glasgow QS - Dundee
19:15 Dundee - Glasgow QS

Cheers. Both are easily doable.

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

Cheers. Both are easily doable.

Technically you can do both on the same day, as the northbound service arrives Inverkeithing at 2020 and the southbound departs at 2024. Would be a brave itinerary though with only a 4-min interchange. Shame they don’t both call at North Queensferry.

 

[dk1]

Technically you can do both on the same day, as the northbound service arrives Inverkeithing at 2020 and the southbound departs at 2024. Would be a brave itinerary though with only a 4-min interchange. Shame they don’t both call at North Queensferry.

Yes I looked at that. Rather tight. I’d probably be staying in Edinburgh so would only need to do the curve one way as I’m not that hard on myself. I may well have done it in the 80s and 90s when I didn’t pay too much attention.

 

[geoffk]

The weekday 2F05 Bristol Temple Meads to Exmouth and 2U34 Exmouth to Cardiff Central strike me as interesting because they're the only long-distance services to/from Exmouth. Other than 2B86 (2F06 Sunday) from Barnstaple, they are the only trains to/from the Exmouth branch that go beyond Exeter St Davids. I wonder how many through passengers there are...

On Mondays to Fridays, Barnstaple has through trains to Axminster at 16.31, Exmouth at 18.38 and Paignton at 19.42.

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

Stonehouse, Stroud and Kemble retain their once-weekly direct service to Bath and Bristol via Chippenham on Saturdays, thanks to 1K00 0846 Cheltenham-Bristol TM.

(Edit: already mentioned on page 2, apologies)

 

[Concorde9289]

There was a service from Portsmouth & Southsea to Brockenhurst today. I'm fairly sure there hasn't ever been a regular service between the two stations. (for context today there was engineering work, Waterloo to Weymouths terminating at Brockenhurst)

Realtime Trains | 2E96 0746 Portsmouth & Southsea to Brockenhurst | 13/09/2025

Real-time train running information for 2E96 0746 departure from Portsmouth & Southsea to Brockenhurst on 13/09/2025. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

 

[norbitonflyer]

19:10 Glasgow QS - Dundee
19:15 Dundee - Glasgow QS

*Tears up latest version of planned itinerary to cover all lines in Scotland reopened since 1980*
(Neither train is compatible with doing the evening service over the Holytown - Wishaw link, as you can't get back from Wishaw to Glasgow until 1912, giving minus two minutes to get from Central to Queen Street

There are ten lines I want to do:
Cowlairs south curve (1993)
Rutherglen to Whifflet (1993)
Holytown - Wishaw (2003, irregular from 2014)
Maryhill- Anniesland (2005)
Larkhall branch (2005)
Alloa branch (2008)
Airdrie to Bathgate (2010 - except Airdrie to Dalmarnock 1989)
Tweedbank line (2015)
Leven branch (2024) and Thornton Junction north curve (2025)
Winchburgh curve (to reopen 2025)

Back to the drawing board

 

[Dfatcontroller]

*Tears up latest version of planned itinerary to cover all lines in Scotland reopened since 1980*
(Neither train is compatible with doing the evening service over the Holytown - Wishaw link, as you can't get back from Wishaw to Glasgow until 1912, giving minus two minutes to get from Central to Queen Street

There are ten lines I want to do:
Cowlairs south curve (1993)
Rutherglen to Whifflet (1993)
Holytown - Wishaw (2003, irregular from 2014)
Maryhill- Anniesland (2005)
Larkhall branch (2005)
Alloa branch (2008)
Airdrie to Bathgate (2010 - except Airdrie to Dalmarnock 1989)
Tweedbank line (2015)
Leven branch (2024) and Thornton Junction north curve (2025)
Winchburgh curve (to reopen 2025)

Back to the drawing board

I presume you mean Drumgelloch?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 14 Sep 2025 ==

*Tears up latest version of planned itinerary to cover all lines in Scotland reopened since 1980*
(Neither train is compatible with doing the evening service over the Holytown - Wishaw link, as you can't get back from Wishaw to Glasgow until 1912, giving minus two minutes to get from Central to Queen Street

There are ten lines I want to do:
Cowlairs south curve (1993)
Rutherglen to Whifflet (1993)
Holytown - Wishaw (2003, irregular from 2014)
Maryhill- Anniesland (2005)
Larkhall branch (2005)
Alloa branch (2008)
Airdrie to Bathgate (2010 - except Airdrie to Dalmarnock 1989)
Tweedbank line (2015)
Leven branch (2024) and Thornton Junction north curve (2025)
Winchburgh curve (to reopen 2025)

Back to the drawing board

Could you do the Holytown - Wishaw in the opposite direction in the morning?

 

[GoneSouth]

There was the Bristol to Stansted Airport train, but looks like it has stopped now.

I think this returns in December.

 

[dk1]

I think this returns in December.

Yes, 06:25 Temple Meads to Stansted arrive 11:40.

 

[norbitonflyer]

I presume you mean Drumgelloch?

I do

Could you do the Holytown - Wishaw in the opposite direction in the morning?

Could, but means getting to Wishaw by 0732, or Glasgow Central for 0745 and going all the way to Lockerbie on the Transpennine.

Paper excercise anyway - I'll probably never do it.

 

[gerryuk]

Sheffield to Carlisle, one service a week every Sunday, departing Sheffield around 10.15. No return service though, and this Northern service has been running a few years now.

 

[A S Leib]

No return service though

15:19 Carlisle to Nottingham.

 

[NSE]

Yes, 06:25 Temple Meads to Stansted arrive 11:40.

Very helpful, thank you. I intend to complete this oddity. Don’t think it covers any new track for me but I like the notion of being able to do it all in one go.

 

[Sun Chariot]

Yes, 06:25 Temple Meads to Stansted arrive 11:40.

How I wish I could ride that quirky one. What was used for it last time? 156? 158?

 

[duffield]

How I wish I could ride that quirky one. What was used for it last time? 156? 158?

Cross Country to Stansted? That would be a 170.

 

[Sun Chariot]

Cross Country to Stansted? That would be a 170.

Ah thanks; my active travelling and photting day,s wound down in the mid-1990s

 

[JRT]

Sheffield to Carlisle, one service a week every Sunday, departing Sheffield around 10.15. No return service though, and this Northern service has been running a few years now.

I'm sure it's been mentioned before, passes thro' Shipley at 11:29, and on its return via Shipley at 17:50 continues to Nottingham

 

[dk1]

Very helpful, thank you. I intend to complete this oddity. Don’t think it covers any new track for me but I like the notion of being able to do it all in one go.

Yes only operates via the normal routes either side of New Street but ticks off an odd service.

 

[ChrisC]

Northern train at 0613 from Retford to Nottingham via Sheffield.
I wonder if it causes any confusion at Worksop as it departs just 10 minutes before the more direct EMR train.