Class 810 for East Midlands Railway Construction/Introduction Updates

[Bald Rick]

More importantly, panning down before getting to Wigston on the northbound (Is it Up or Down to Derby in traditional Midland vernacular? )

Up to London

 

[Aspen90]

Do they presumably pan up beyond Wigston when heading towards Kettering ? Are there balises for that, or are the drivers trusted ?
More importantly, panning down before getting to Wigston on the northbound (Is it Up or Down to Derby in traditional Midland vernacular? )

The pan up / down signs are surprisingly far away, they’re just north of Kibworth before Great Glen old station. No balises, driver to start engine to warm up before power change and then manually raise or lower pan depending on direction (up to London down to Derby).

 

[MCR247]

I wonder how long it’ll be until we’re debating whether the cost of lost pantographs and delay minutes will be worth the initial cost saving

 

[800001]

I wonder how long it’ll be until we’re debating whether the cost of lost pantographs and delay minutes will be worth the initial cost saving

I wonder how much actually is saved? Especially when the tech and software is there and works day in day in out ok ECML and GWR.
Seems a very strange decision.

 

[Trainbike46]

I wonder how much actually is saved? Especially when the tech and software is there and works day in day in out ok ECML and GWR.
Seems a very strange decision.

AIUI, APCO wasn't originally planned because the expectation was the line would be electrified in full, with the limit of electrification changing frequently as work progressed further north, so it was omitted simply because it was considered impractical to keep changing.

Of course, then the government went and cancelled it, unfortunately

 

[AndrewJM70]

It's a very loose figure as it could have up to 30 days removed from that.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 19 Sep 2025 ==

or a year added on!

 

[PG]

I wonder how long it’ll be until we’re debating whether the cost of lost pantographs and delay minutes will be worth the initial cost saving

The devil in me wonders, not being well aquainted with the structures (literally) surrounding the MML in the Wigston area, is there sufficient time when travelling at line speed for the pantograph over-height auto drop to activate before an 810 hits anything?

 

[eastwestdivide]

The devil in me wonders, not being well aquainted with the structures (literally) surrounding the MML in the Wigston area, is there sufficient time when travelling at line speed for the pantograph over-height auto drop to activate before an 810 hits anything?

It’s a very short distance to where the B582 Blaby Road goes over the line. Maybe a few hundred metres looking at google maps, whose aerial photos already show the overheads

 

[DaveyJones]

I wonder how long it’ll be until we’re debating whether the cost of lost pantographs and delay minutes will be worth the initial cost saving

I don't think Avanti has lost any between Crewe-Chester or around Wolverhampton? - perhaps give the Drivers more credit!

 

[MCR247]

I don't think Avanti has lost any between Crewe-Chester or around Wolverhampton? - perhaps give the Drivers more credit!

Do Avanti change over on the move at these places?

And my point is about giving drivers the best tools to do their job effectively, nothing to do with the quality of drivers.

 

[Aspen90]

I heard Avanti have issues with their 805/807 trains when they couple up not talking to each other - is this common across the family?

 

[Roger B]

Set 222005 leaves today.

(delete)

 

[800001]

I heard Avanti have issues with their 805/807 trains when they couple up not talking to each other - is this common across the family?

An 807 shouldn't be coupling up to anything else, except under 'emergency' situations ie for rescuing.

805s yes have issues coupling up, the same as LNER and GWR do when they couple there 5 car sets to form a 10.
Usually it's a TMS (computer issue), occasionally it is the fact the couplers do not properly join, so it's a case of uncouple and have another go.

 

[Aspen90]

An 807 shouldn't be coupling up to anything else, except under 'emergency' situations ie for rescuing.

805s yes have issues coupling up, the same as LNER and GWR do when they couple there 5 car sets to form a 10.
Usually it's a TMS (computer issue), occasionally it is the fact the couplers do not properly join, so it's a case of uncouple and have another go.

Sorry, yes 805’s. I had no idea it was so common, these sound like they’re going to be fun…

 

[800001]

Sorry, yes 805’s. I had no idea it was so common, these sound like they’re going to be fun…

If they are on an ever so slight curve that throws up issues. As the couplings love to be perfectly straight for them to connect.

 

[KevinBrum12]

They will want as many 810's in service by the December 2025 timetable train as they can, to try and get a new timetable/new train bounce even if they can only run a few diagrams.

 

[Nottingham59]

If they are on an ever so slight curve that throws up issues. As the couplings love to be perfectly straight for them to connect.

Is that going to be an issue for 810s? St Pancras platforms are dead straight. Do we know where will EMR need to split and join sets?

EDIT
The Central sections of relevant platform at Nottingham, Leicester and Derby look to be straight too. Not sure about Etches Park.

 

[Aspen90]

Is that going to be an issue for 810s? St Pancras platforms are dead straight. Do we know where will EMR need to split and join sets?

EDIT
The Central sections of relevant platform at Nottingham, Leicester and Derby look to be straight too. Not sure about Etches Park.

They couple up at Kettering P1 which is quite curved. Maybe they will stop that - who knows.

 

[AndrewJM70]

Is that going to be an issue for 810s? St Pancras platforms are dead straight. Do we know where will EMR need to split and join sets?

EDIT
The Central sections of relevant platform at Nottingham, Leicester and Derby look to be straight too. Not sure about Etches Park.

Etches Park is straight lines as far as I know.

 

[800001]

Is that going to be an issue for 810s? St Pancras platforms are dead straight. Do we know where will EMR need to split and join sets?

EDIT
The Central sections of relevant platform at Nottingham, Leicester and Derby look to be straight too. Not sure about Etches Park.

I was only saying that this is one of many issues which cause coupling problems.

 

[AndrewJM70]

Presumably drivers can switch power well before the signs that tell them to?

 

[Charlie978]

Is that going to be an issue for 810s? St Pancras platforms are dead straight. Do we know where will EMR need to split and join sets?

EDIT
The Central sections of relevant platform at Nottingham, Leicester and Derby look to be straight too. Not sure about Etches Park

8 at Sheffield is definitely curved at the midpoint, 1 and 2 are also curved but straighter (not sure if it would be a problem on them). 5 shouldn’t pose any problems for the few that would need to couple at Sheffield.

 

[liamf656]

8 at Sheffield is definitely curved at the midpoint, 1 and 2 are also curved but straighter (not sure if it would be a problem on them). 5 shouldn’t pose any problems for the few that would need to couple at Sheffield.

That's great considering platform 5 can't take 10 car trains, especially for splitting and joining!! Something to do with the length of the train and the position of the signal I believe but don't quote me on that

 

[bunnahabhain]

That's great considering platform 5 can't take 10 car trains, especially for splitting and joining!! Something to do with the length of the train and the position of the signal I believe but don't quote me on that

5 isn't permitted with an 810 10 car set due to signal sighting and the distance between the signals. In theory if you were arriving in from the South and departing North it would be OK, but that doesn't happen anymore.

 

[170UTD]

Is there a thread for keeping track of the 222s going off lease? I saw it reported that 222005 was stood down the other night but I can't find exactly when or what it's last service for was. Never mind, I've found it

 

[tfw756rider]

I'll link it here anyway, in case anyone else needs it:

Class 222 withdrawal from EMR and future use (non-speculative)

Now that the first Meridian is going off lease I thought I'd make this thread to keep track of the whereabouts of each unit as they're phased out throughout 2026. I will keep the list updated Update 20/09/25 - 222005 is out of service after tonight and I believe LUMO will receive it on the 30th...

www.railforums.co.uk

 

[Snow1964]

BBC article, 810s next few weeks, but no seat reservations during transition

The first trains of a new fleet connecting Leicester, Derby, Nottingham and Sheffield with London are set to come into service after their introduction was initially delayed.
East Midlands Railway (EMR) received the first two trains from the Class 810 Aurora fleet in August, which allowed drivers and crew to begin training.
The fleet was originally expected in 2022 but faced teething problems during testing, with EMR then hoping to run the new trains from May 2025.
Some trains from the new Class 810 Aurora fleet are now set to be put into use on services in the coming weeks and will complete a phased roll out through 2026.
A "small number" of EMR services will run with fewer carriages during the transition and some services will not have seat reservations, EMR said.
A spokesperson added "key services" will be prioritised during the transition phase to minimise disruption.

Delayed East Midlands Railway train fleet set to start running

The introduction of the fleet was first planned for 2022 but has been hit with a number of delays.

www.bbc.com

 

[The_Train]

BBC article, 810s next few weeks, but no seat reservations during transition

Delayed East Midlands Railway train fleet set to start running

The introduction of the fleet was first planned for 2022 but has been hit with a number of delays.

www.bbc.com

"In the coming weeks" is a bit optimistic

 

[tfw756rider]

In the coming weeks or 2026?

 

[Trainman40083]

In the coming weeks or 2026?

Maybe they are hedging their bets in case they enter service on, say, 31st December 2025.