Because Pacers can't defend themselves!

[37401]

Preserve the pacers!

http://www.weardale-railway.org.uk/images/141_7-04.jpg

one is too many IMO lol

 

[Lampshade]

Maybe they can preserve the front carriage from a 142, a centre carriage from a 144 and the rear carriage from a 143

 

[Ivo]

Maybe they can preserve the front carriage from a 142, a centre carriage from a 144 and the rear carriage from a 143

You what?!

How about just preserve one Pacer, ideally a 143 or 144, and renovate it. Then bring a refurbished Leyland National along, and place it next to the Pacer. I guarantee that the National would be more popular and fondly remembered. As for the Pacer, well...

"What did I do with that paint..."

 

[Vulcan]

Not sure i'd like to travel all the way from Morecambe to Leeds in a Leyland National, or Carlisle to Newcastle.

 

[Lampshade]

On the GMPTE challenge today, 142040 rolled in to Bolton to take me to Victoria and it was actually pretty good for a Pacer with nice refurbished seats. I was then unfortunate to cop 3 ex-Merseyrail ones for the rest of the afternoon which completely erased any positive opinion I had of 142s

 

[K777DAO]

I found, that when pacers did regular trips on my local route (cumbrian coastline) they were very bouncy... until i travelled on a sprinter and realised it was much more likely the track condition which was causing most of the problems!

Still, they aren't great though!

 

[poshbakerloo]

Something else that I have seen several times is the doors breaking. about 6 times now on the sheffield-lincoln route the doors have had t be pulled open. And also when I got to Worksop the breaks of stuck on so we couldn't move for ages haha. silly 144!

 

[4SRKT]

Once again I declare, Pacer threads will not die!!

 

[142094]

BBC picked up on the new trains on the Weardale Railway:

Linky

However they must have some duff info:

Five modern diesel trains a day will run in each direction using a new link to the rail network at Bishop Auckland

Guessing they're referring to the 141, but not sure how they can possibly think this is modern?:roll:

 

[Wyvern]

Because they dont think. They simply transcribe what's in the press release.

 

[yorksrob]

If they're anything like me they probably think of anything built after about 1975 as modern.

 

[FlyingScot]

http://www.weardale-railway.org.uk/images/141_7-04.jpg

one is too many IMO lol

Not that pacer. The ones that work for northern. Cos of the heavy rail trams, their days are numbered.:cry:

 

[Vulcan]

I was expecting some Pacer action to or from Morecambe today, but it was a 150 on the way there, and ultimate luxury on the way back in the form of 3x 153s (although one was out of use for some reason.) Oh well, I'm sure I'll catch up with a pacer soon.

 

[Voyager 2093]

And you as well!



That's bad news. Is the bubble still running between Princes Risborough and Aylesbury, or am I hopelessly out of date?

Yes the Bubble Cars (Class 121s) still do run between Princess Risborough and Aylesbury.

 

[Drsatan]

Somewhere I read that Northern were gonna get rid of em sometime AFTER 2015

No-one knows though. The DfT's order for 1300 carriages, which would have included replacements for the pacers, was scrapped when electrification for the GWML was announced along with plans to electrify the Chat Moss line and others.

So...I've no idea what's gonna replace them. By 2015 the pacer fleet will be over 30 years old and past its sell-by date.

The only good news is that FGW's going to hand back its remaining 7 142s to Northern in June, and in return IMO FGW will recieve displaced 150s from LM and LOROL. The 143 fleet used on Severn Beach services will be retained.

Looks like you'll have to put up with pacers for a bit longer mate

 

[ukrob]

Something else that I have seen several times is the doors breaking. about 6 times now on the sheffield-lincoln route the doors have had t be pulled open. And also when I got to Worksop the breaks of stuck on so we couldn't move for ages haha. silly 144!

Well your not likely to see Class 507s doors breaking on that route are you?'

Keep it in context or you don't have an argument.

 

[ralphwedgewood]

I came back from Carlisle to Leeds a few years ago on a Pacer - it was fine. The traincrew even cleaned the windows at Carlisle on the 'pretty' side. The only thing to really catch them (the Pacers) out is rough jointed track, and thank goodness there is less of that around now.

 

[142094]

I can report back that I did the 06.56 Middlesbrough - Carlisle on a 142 on Friday - 3 hours and around 100 miles, and I'm still alive. However it took a few minutes to get the legs working again at Carlisle.

 

[Ivo]

I can report back that I did the 06.56 Middlesbrough - Carlisle on a 142 on Friday - 3 hours and around 100 miles, and I'm still alive. However it took a few minutes to get the legs working again at Carlisle.

At that speed I should think that you would be. But was the 142 still alive?

...Ah, crud. I just realised. I'm going to be on a Pacer before the month is up, whether I like it or not [less I get lucky!]

 

[yorksrob]

Just been from Normanton to Leeds to Sheffield then back To Normanton without a Pacer to be seen, including a stint in 1st class in SWtrains' 158. Very nice - although I did have to spend a couple of hours in the pub to avoid one

 

[Vulcan]

I had an odd dream the other night that the Top Gear presenters were doing up a pacer in the half arsed way they do any engineering challenge!

 

[Ivo]

I had an odd dream the other night that the Top Gear presenters were doing up a pacer in the half arsed way they do any engineering challenge!

Anyone got Jezza's number? They can come down here and get to work on one of the Bristol 143s any day

...Well, unless it becomes a rail version of Geoff. Because then it would be even less comfortable than said Pacer already is.

 

[142094]

At that speed I should think that you would be. But was the 142 still alive?

Certainly was, and it did the return trip back to Newcastle. Silly me ran to get the London train thinking it would stop at Darlington so I could change for Middlesbrough. It was a HST set, and when it was leaving Newcastle I had a think about where it may have come from (Inverness, Dundee, Aberdeen). I then realised that if it was the Highland Chieftain, it only stops at York.

Unfortunately it was the Highland Chieftain, so I got a longer trip than I bargained for. Oh well.

 

[4SRKT]

Certainly was, and it did the return trip back to Newcastle. Silly me ran to get the London train thinking it would stop at Darlington so I could change for Middlesbrough. It was a HST set, and when it was leaving Newcastle I had a think about where it may have come from (Inverness, Dundee, Aberdeen). I then realised that if it was the Highland Chieftain, it only stops at York.

Unfortunately it was the Highland Chieftain, so I got a longer trip than I bargained for. Oh well.

Still, you got a go on the avoiding lines at Darlington, always a nice bit of variety. And an HST (even an MTU one) beats a 91 in my book. Also, it doesn't so much 'beat' a Voyager or a 185 as pulverise it into the dust and scatter the remains to the four winds.

 

[142094]

The night before I looked up on ECs website to see what HSTs would be coming into Newcastle at the time I arrived from Carlisle. I always try to get a picture of something going over the King Edward Bridge by looking out the door window (still haven't managed to get a decent picture yet - always seems to be nothing there or it is raining). I wrote the times down, and luckily I got the HST from Inverness, but then remembered that it didn't stop where I wanted to. Still, got a "free" ride to York and more miles on a HST.

I did manage to get a good picture from the High Level Bridge on a HST once when it was going north. They turned the train round at Newcastle as 1st class was at the wrong end:

 

[142094]

More 142 spotting today on the Bishop Auckland - Saltburn services. Lots of happy people getting on at Middlesbrough, standing all the way.

Anyone know if there are still 142s in Arriva livery?

 

[37372]

142093 and you (142094 ) are the only Arriva liveried ones left now!

 

[Lampshade]

The returning ones from FGW will still be in NWT gold star livery

 

[142094]

So 094 is around somewhere! Will have seek it out.

 

[driver9000]

So 094 is around somewhere! Will have seek it out.

094 is currently on tour in the North West will no doubt work its way back east before long