Skipton - London Kings Cross Trains

[87019Chris]

I heard a while ago these were changing over to Class 91 haulage. I know at the moment they are HST hauled but I was wondering when the change over is anticipated or is it even likely to happen as there 91 fleet is already streched too far by the eureka timetable?

Chris

 

[JamesHorrell]

I Don't Know But i've heard this to but i've seen this service 2 times and each time it has been Class 91 Hauled so i think it may of already happened.

 

[YorkshireRider]

Its currently booked HST southbound in the am and 91 in the pm northbound, it has now and again had a set swap at neville hill so has run as a 91 in the morning. Im not aware of this changing anytime soon as have you have said they dont have enough 91s in the fleet.

 

[HSTEd]

Its a pity that projected Class 91 followup order for the WCML never happened, they would be very handy now

 

[MCR247]

erm why?

 

[sprinterguy]

erm why?

Presumably for bolstering the East Coast fleet for a start (Assuming that Virgin would have ordered Pendolinos regardless). Ideally there's a need for about thirty five 225 sets on the East Coast rather than the thirty (with a spare loco) that we have.

 

[jopsuk]

I'm sure I've heard that BR's original request for the 225s involved more and longer sets. Didn't they have plans for a "class 93" and "mark 5" stock (similar, but improved, versions of the 225) for the West Coast?

 

[sprinterguy]

I'm sure I've heard that BR's original request for the 225s involved more and longer sets. Didn't they have plans for a "class 93" and "mark 5" stock (similar, but improved, versions of the 225) for the West Coast?

Indeed they did; the "Intercity 250" that was mooted in around 1992.

The development history of the Intercity 225s seems to be quite convoluted: They were originally proposed for the West Coast Main Line (As the final development of the APT programme), and the East Coast would have had a fleet of class 89s, hauling I think the existing mark 3 coaches. Then it was decided that the 225s would go to the East Coast, and the WCML got 90s and mark 3 DVTs instead, and of course the Intercity 250 proposals that came about later never came to anything.

The 225s were originally planned to be ten coach trainsets, but one carriage was cut from the specification (Which is why there is no 12490-512, or 11264-271) as BR decreed that there would be insufficient demand to justify ten coach trains. The original order was definitely meant to be a bit larger as well.

 

[jopsuk]

I know Kings Cross (possibly not platform 0) is long enough for an extra carriage, but would there be any stations where the length would have been problematic? Loading my bike at Peterborough into the DVT seemed pretty damn close to the ramp, but I wasn't paying much attention really.

As it is, I feel that with the Mallard refurbishment programme it is a real shame that they didn't (as far as possible) standardise the layout of the two EC fleets, to have the same 1st/Standard tratio, same number and numbers of bookable seats, tables in each carriage etc so that (for example) if sets are substituted the reservations would simply transfer easily- with any extra seats that appear say in coach B of a mark 4 set but not in the HST (because of the guard's office) being non-reservable.