What is happening with the Royal Mail 325s left at PRDC?

[Skimpot flyer]

One of the units that was formerly at the London end of Platform 1 at PRDC is no longer there.
I believe it was moved yesterday (4/8/2025) to Acton. RTT seems to confirm this

Realtime Trains | 0Z30 1434 Willesden Prdc to Acton T.C. | 04/08/2025

Real-time train running information for 0Z30 1434 departure from Willesden Prdc to Acton T.C. on 04/08/2025. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

 

[Tom]

A unit is highly unlikely to have moved with a light loco headcode.

 

[Skimpot flyer]

The 325 is not there

 

[FrodshamJnct]

One of the units that was formerly at the London end of Platform 1 at PRDC is no longer there.
I believe it was moved yesterday (4/8/2025) to Acton. RTT seems to confirm this

Realtime Trains | 0Z30 1434 Willesden Prdc to Acton T.C. | 04/08/2025

Real-time train running information for 0Z30 1434 departure from Willesden Prdc to Acton T.C. on 04/08/2025. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

That was 66174 on its own.

 

[sad1e]

One of the units that was formerly at the London end of Platform 1 at PRDC is no longer there.
I believe it was moved yesterday (4/8/2025) to Acton. RTT seems to confirm this

Realtime Trains | 0Z30 1434 Willesden Prdc to Acton T.C. | 04/08/2025

Real-time train running information for 0Z30 1434 departure from Willesden Prdc to Acton T.C. on 04/08/2025. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

Has it been moved outside near the 321s?

 

[Adrian Barr]

The loco was sent from Acton to do some kind of shunt move at the PRDC. It definitely returned light engine so it must have shunted that unit somewhere locally, as suggested above.

 

[Skimpot flyer]

Will try to see if it’s parked with the 321s when I go past there tomorrow

 

[800001]

One of the units that was formerly at the London end of Platform 1 at PRDC is no longer there.
I believe it was moved yesterday (4/8/2025) to Acton. RTT seems to confirm this

Realtime Trains | 0Z30 1434 Willesden Prdc to Acton T.C. | 04/08/2025

Real-time train running information for 0Z30 1434 departure from Willesden Prdc to Acton T.C. on 04/08/2025. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

Any move that starts with a 0 (zero) is a light engine locomotive.

If it was hauling a unit, for the unit moved on its own, that would operate as a class 3 or class 5.

 

[Skimpot flyer]

Didn’t see the ex-Royal Mail unit on a flypast today. But I did snap the open end of PRDC, showing confirmation that the London end of Platform 1 has been vacated

 

[ExRes]

Not at Willesden obviously, but there's a picture on The Rail Scene facebook page dated yesterday of 68346 intact, if not a little bruised, at EMR Kingsbury

 

[Deepgreen]

No OHLE in Willesden PRDC?! How did the 325s get in for all those years then?

It most definitely is wired.

Getting AC stock into un-wired yards is not beyond the realms of possibility! Loco-haulage - EMUs are hauled around the country by diesel locos very frequently on today's railway.

 

[Skimpot flyer]

Two drone shots of the 325s at PRDC, from 19th April (head-on perspective) and 3rd May 2025 (angled) on the Class 325 Facebook group

 

[GraphitProjekt]

very much looks wired up in that picture and in every map i've ever seen.

 

[800001]

very much looks wired up in that picture and in every map i've ever seen.

Because it is! How else did DB get them in and out of there each night without being shunted?
They moved under their own power.

 

[ExRes]

Because it is! How else did DB get them in and out of there each night without being shunted?
They moved under their own power.

Not to mention the times we used to put an 86 or 90 on the stops

 

[Jacob Porrett]

Two drone shots of the 325s at PRDC, from 19th April (head-on perspective) and 3rd May 2025 (angled) on the Class 325 Facebook group

Are they receiving new colours? Never seen the grey before.

 

[800001]

Are they receiving new colours? Never seen the grey before.

Grey was painted on it many weeks ago.

 

[sad1e]

Not at Willesden obviously, but there's a picture on The Rail Scene facebook page dated yesterday of 68346 intact, if not a little bruised, at EMR Kingsbury

EMR Kingsbury are the modern equivalent of the Barry scrapyard , they take ages to break up any rolling stock that arrives there , Newport sims has it done in less than a week.

Wouldn't be surprised to see 68346 last a good few more months intact there.

 

[JKF]

EMR Kingsbury are the modern equivalent of the Barry scrapyard , they take ages to break up any rolling stock that arrived there , Newport sims has it done in less than a week.

Wouldn't be surprised to see 68346 last a good few more months intact there.

I don’t think anything gets out alive though! It’s a pity we didn’t have an ‘Ark’ like Barry for a lot of the early diesel locos and units. And electric traction like the 325s never has much of a chance. I think at least a driving car should be in the NRM to complete the story of mail by rail.

 

[Skimpot flyer]

Grey was painted on it many weeks ago.

It’s mostly grey wraparound vinyls that I witnessed first-hand being meticulously applied, as per my post in the thread this one was split out of.

 

[Mollman]

Grey was painted on it many weeks ago.

I just thought it was the dirt

 

[sad1e]

I do hope the 325's in the PRDC survive Varamis's current financial situation , I would much rather see them out running mail trains then their grotty fleet of 321's.

 

[GraphitProjekt]

The rumours I heard about Varamis was not directly a financial problem but that they were found violating some kind of regulation so ORR shut them down presumably meaning they could no longer do business and so no longer pay rolling stock costs and so the trains had to be immediately sold to scrap (very literal liquidation of assets). This is all hearsay though,

 

[800001]

The rumours I heard about Varamis was not directly a financial problem but that they were found violating some kind of regulation so ORR shut them down presumably meaning they could no longer do business and so no longer pay rolling stock costs and so the trains had to be immediately sold to scrap (very literal liquidation of assets). This is all hearsay though,

A read of the latest RAIL magazine is a good idea.

Basically lack of volume of parcel traffic means they are not earning what they thought.

No violation of ORR rules, and no units have been immediately sold for scrap.

As you say, everything you heard was 'hearsay'.

 

[Skimpot flyer]

A read of the latest RAIL magazine is a good idea.

Basically lack of volume of parcel traffic means they are not earning what they thought.

No violation of ORR rules, and no units have been immediately sold for scrap.

As you say, everything you heard was 'hearsay'.

An article on railfreight.com dated 25/1/2025 talks about Amazon UK investing in electric trucks and using trains. It’s free to read if you register (one article per month), but the parts of interest to this discussion I’ve pasted below


Amazon is electrifying its rail and road deliveries. It has made a commitment to rail freight, but it has placed what it calls Britain’s biggest ever order for electric trucks. For the first time in the UK, Amazon says it intends to move deliveries to rail at scale. The retailer has not disclosed details of the rail deal. However, it will be taking a proportion of the load off the motorways, and moving over to rail for the long haul between Central Scotland and the English Midlands. Don’t expect a train to be double parked down your street anytime soon, though. Amazon says its inter-hub operations are moving under the wires on the West Coast Main Line between Scotland and the Midlands.

More rail routes planned

The modal shift to rail comes despite the impressive range of the Mercedes electric vehicles. The new trucks have a range of 310 miles (500 km) on full charge. The total order will be split between the UK, which will take around 140 units. Amazon’s European operations in Germany will receive about 60 units. The retailer made similar moves last year in continental Europe.

The emphasis on the new electric road vehicle fleet understates the transformational potential of switching to rail. “More than 20 million products sold on Amazon are expected to travel on the UK’s electric rail network this year,” said the retailer. “[They’ll be] avoiding traffic congestion and carbon emissions, with plans to expand across further rail routes before the end of the year.” Other online retailing behemoths are available.

Coincidence that they talk about running between Central Scotland and the Midlands ?

 

[sad1e]

Any updates on these ?

 

[Whi]

Nope, all remaining units still sitting in PRDC, still part way through the re-livery.

 

[Jacob Porrett]

Nope, all remaining units still sitting in PRDC, still part way through the re-livery.

Still Varamis the interested party?

 

[JKF]

If they were going to be used, it would be about now as mail volumes ramp up ahead of Christmas.

 

[sh24]

If they were going to be used, it would be about now as mail volumes ramp up ahead of Christmas.

They should already be in use as parcel volumes are highest now, post Black Friday. BF is bigger than Christmas