FGW units.

[WelshBluebird]

You'd be surprised. FGW offer cheap advance purchase tickets on the longer distance services ran by 150s such as Cardiff-Paignton, Cardiff-Plymouth and Penzance-Cardiff and you do get people using them. The Bristol-Brighton service is a long established regional route, and it is well used. The Brighton services are booked for Class 158s though.

Indeed.
My girlfriend lives in Devon, so I have got the direct service between Cardiff and Exeter quite a few times.
It usually works out a fair bit cheaper, and it means I don't have to bother changing at Bristol.

 

[PHILIPE]

It would appear that FGW had no 3 Car 158 available to work the 09 30 Cardiff to Portsmouth Saturday 15th. So did it run with 2 coaches only ? No. It ran with 4, a 158 (2 Car) and 150/2. Well done FGW
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Ive been hearing that First Great Western will be hiring a 3 car SWT 159 for the Cardiff Central to Paignton Service and that the SWT 158 that currently works on the Cheltenham Spa - Swindon shuttles will be a normal fgw unit

Not at the moment apparently.

 

[starrymarkb]

It's unlikely that SWT would hire a 159 out, they are used pretty intensively (28 out of 30 each day IIRC), there is more slack in the 158 fleet for hires (at least until the economy picks up)

 

[Lrd]

It's unlikely that SWT would hire a 159 out, they are used pretty intensively (28 out of 30 each day IIRC), there is more slack in the 158 fleet for hires (at least until the economy picks up)

At least two of those 159s sit at Basingstoke Barton Mills siding for the majority of the day.