Does the UK have a "premier" main line?

[Rail Quest]

Whichever line has the most Premier Inns within one mile from the tracks.

 

[Nym]

Whichever line has the most Premier Inns within one mile from the tracks.

In total or per unit length…?

 

[Northerngirl]

The "Harry Potter steam train railway" line as most of the media seems obsessed with calling the West Highlands Line (did you know they filmed Harry Potter there)

 

[mq90]

Stick them in a double room from Euston to Fort William

 

[Peter0124]

The WCML is the main route by passenger flow, population centres and freight traffic. Essentially the workhorse and backbone of the country, and the most important line.

The ECML is more significant culturally and touristically, and probably better known internationally. LNER also beats Avanti as a train operating company, however former Virgin Trains WC beats both in my opinion.

 

[LocoGuy]

The journey between Newcastle and Edinburgh (I assume that’s ECML) is majestic

 

[AndrewE]

Even if that wasn't enough (it is), the scenery on the part that actually runs along the east coast is the match of any other UK main line.

"the part that actually runs along the east coast" being about 3 minutes out of a 4-hour journey...

And no other line in the UK has anything to rival running alongside the sheer granite base of a volcano with a world famous castle atop it.

which the arrival from the WCML via Carstairs does, but the ECML does not! Granted, the approach from the east does give quite good views of Arthur's Seat.

 

[GuyGibsonVC]

I'll go ECML with just a tad local bias.

Mallard, Flying Scotsman, Deltic, Class 91, bridges over the Tyne, Royal Border Bridge, Holy Island of Lindisfarne, Newcastle Central Grade One listed, George Stepheson, Robert Stephenson, capital to capital and York Railway Museum.

 

[AndrewE]

The journey between Newcastle and Edinburgh (I assume that’s ECML) is majestic

the 3 minutes or so beside the coast is, the rest definitely isn't! For majestic, travel Lancaster to Carstairs.

 

[ENC Rail]

Has to be the Settle & Carlisle for me! I'll admit, as I'm from Yorkshire I may be slightly bias but still...

 

[Buzby]

I was going to suggest Heathrow Express, then realised ‘premier’ wasn’t capitalised… I’d go for Glasgow to Mallaig and the reversal at Ft William as being a stand-out. Did you know Local Hero was filmed close to Morar?

 

[Paul AC]

There is only one Premier Line in the UK - it carries the majority of the freight and passenger traffic.- it's called the West Coast Main Line. No other UK railway line comes close in importance. Today has been yet another total disaster for it, which is why we need HS2 NOW, not in 10 or 20 or 30 years.

 

[DH1Commuter]

WCML all the way.

Stated as someone who uses the ECML most days, albeit this would be #2, and would have been #1 when coal was king.

 

[TRAX]

As a continental outsider, I'd say:
1. WCML, 2. ECML, 3. GWML, 4. MML, 5. BML

 

[Benjwri]

has York and Durham as mere stops. That makes it the UK's premier mainline on tourism and higher education grounds alone.

Ignoring Oxford and Cambridge and the horde of other tourism locations on other mainlines?

 

[speedy1]

Only by defining a "premier" mainline as "least crap"

 

[Uncle Buck]

As a continental outsider, I'd say:
1. WCML, 2. ECML, 3. GWML, 4. MML, 5. BML

I would reverse 4 and 5 at the very least. The BML surely handles an order of magnitude more passengers, serves more destinations, and if we’re adding “aura” as a factor, has more of a history (the Brighton Belle, early electrification, the route to the seaside.

I’d also put the Cross Country Route ahead of the Midland.

Maybe if the MML had intercity services all the way to Scotland via Carlisle.

 

[PP57601]

As a continental outsider, I'd say:
1. WCML, 2. ECML, 3. GWML, 4. MML, 5. BML

BML ????

 

[SoloSR334022]

BML ????

Brighton Main Line

 

[D6130]

The London & North Western Railway was always known as The Premier Line....therefore, in my humble opinion, it has to be London Euston to Carlisle.

 

[izvor]

You can make an argument for 4 lines.

East Coast Mainline - historically highest speeds, connects London to Edinburgh (Capital of 2nd largest nation) North East and Yorkshire.
West Coast Mainline - busiest line, connects London to Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, and Glasgow. Now equal speed to ECML.
Great Western Main Line - built to very high standard so has had long history of high speed running, connects London to Bristol and Cardiff (capital)
HS1 - only new-build high speed line, GB's international connection and the link to the continent (including 3 capitals)

Hs2 will likely take the title when it opens.

Agreed.

 

[Taplowgreen]

Perhaps "Premier" in this context should be "least unreliable". I think that's how regular customers rather than enthusiasts would see it......anyone know which it'd be by this definition?

 

[izvor]

Perhaps "Premier" in this context should be "least unreliable". I think that's how regular customers rather than enthusiasts would see it......anyone know which it'd be by this definition?

Stourbridge shuttle?

 

[Cricketer8for9]

Brighton Main Line

BML, as ever in this forum, isn’t the Engineers’ Line Reference for the line from London Victoria to Brighton. I tend to think the Bournemouth Main Line (BML) is better with flying junctions at regular intervals (if only they’d done Woking).

 

[Taplowgreen]

Stourbridge shuttle?

I was thinking Slough-Windsor, with the obvious royal connection giving extra prestige?

 

[martin butler]

If you look at this historically, then it has to be the ECML, The Greasley Pacific's, the named expresses, first in UK to use Streamlined locomotives, a close second would be the WCML, but they were always playing catch up,

Third would be the GW main line to Penzance also serving the Atlantic Ocean ports, like Plymouth,

The rest, whist all being important in their own right, clearly were not as high in public estimation as those mentioned.

 

[The Ham]

In answer to the question, due a lot of people it'll be their local line.

However, in the more important topic of the thread:

Also it was Gordon who was about to get a run into London in the book. He argued it was King's Cross, Duck argued it was Paddington, while an Other Railway engine argued it was Euston. In the end Gordon ended up at St. Pancras

Thanks, that's saved me having to check my memory, which I think also involved Gordon (and other engines?) being disappointed that the other stations being done away with and replaced by St Pancras.

 

[pitdiver]

I think it depends where you lived as a child determines what you think as the premier line. I lived across the road from the ECML at New Southgate. In my mind the ECML was the ONLY line no other was of any importance and Sir Nigel Gresley was God

 

[Adrian1980uk]

I'd argue the answer is no, the UK has a lot of very intensively used lines that have their own purpose but on most main lines you have mixture of commuter, intercity and freight. Growing up it used to be the ECML, especially during GNER era with the first class offering with people getting doors etc (not that I ever experienced that).

 

[ThisIsSurbiton]

London to Channel Tunnel has distressing tickets, no views, and much misery at a hideous shopping mall falsely trading as a railway station

Beautiful views crossing the Medway, and if crossing the channel the Ashford roller-coaster makes up a bit for the horrors of security and Brexit.

St Pancras-Paris/Brussels (HS1/Channel Tunnel/LGV Nord) counts as a pretty good premier line, if you are considering speed and "aura".

And it has to be at the top for reliability. All at a speed that means it doesn't overstay its welcome