HST v IC125

[ess]

I’ve always known these trains as InterCity 125 and only in recent years as High Speed Trains. Were they always known as HST also or when did they change?

 

[Mag_seven]

I’ve always known these trains as InterCity 125 and only in recent years as High Speed Trains. Were they always known as HST also or when did they change?

The term "HST" was the term used more by people inside BR and enthusiasts, whereas "InterCity 125" was the marketing name used more by the general public (and the marketing men of course)

 

[bnm]

And with the rise of online forums discussing said trains it is easier to type 'HST' than either 'IC125' or 'Intercity 125'.

 

[Highlandspring]

The prototype was designated HSDT (standing for High Speed Diesel Train) which became HST when the production sets appeared in 1976. As stated above the ‘Intercity 125’ name was purely a marketing device and was not used within the industry, where they’ve always been HSTs.

 

[gimmea50anyday]

Intercity 125 marketed emphasis on the speed, signifying the train speed was 125mph Hence why the cl91/MK4 were intercity 225 (225kmh or 140mph) and an attempt was made to designate the 87/90/Mk3 sets as intercity 175 (110mph) but that never took off.

 

[Royston Vasey]

And with the rise of online forums discussing said trains it is easier to type 'HST' than either 'IC125' or 'Intercity 125'.

Anything but the wrong in every way “HST125” proliferated mainly by children on YouTube

 

[JohnMcL7]

When I was a child I always knew them as Intercity 125's but that name felt less relevant once they were no longer branded as Intercity.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

When I was a child I always knew them as Intercity 125's but that name felt less relevant once they were no longer branded as Intercity.

People saying "Intercity 125" rather than HST or just 125 became the way of detecting normals or newbies in the insular pre-internet world of young enthusiasts!

 

[JohnMcL7]

People saying "Intercity 125" rather than HST or just 125 became the way of detecting normals or newbies in the insular pre-internet world of young enthusiasts!

I really don't like the HST name though, I always loved the Intercity name and branding and still hate seeing the 43's and 91's in their mostly garish franchise branding. I was wasting time and popped past a little railway place and they had a class 47 model in the Intercity swallow branding which although I don't buy these things normally just couldn't resist.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

I really don't like the HST name though, I always loved the Intercity name and branding and still hate seeing the 43's and 91's in their mostly garish franchise branding. I was wasting time and popped past a little railway place and they had a class 47 model in the Intercity swallow branding which although I don't buy these things normally just couldn't resist.

Swallow livery was a design classic, up there with Kenneth Grange's HST power car itself. Even allowing for the fact that style does move on, I can only think of a few post-1995 liveries (GNER, Scotrail Saltire and Valley Lines) that even come close.

 

[davart]

I agree completely with the privatised liveries being utterly repulsive.

In fact, I think it would be nice to have standard liveries throughout the UK rail system as before, but simply having different colours for each company, along with a small company logo with the name in a standardized typeface.

It would give a sense of coherence across the network and simplifying repaints when stock is moved from one operator to another.

 

[Hadders]

I agree completely with the privatised liveries being utterly repulsive.

All of them? As you'd expect there's a mixture of the good, bad and ugly.

 

[AM9]

Intercity 125 marketed emphasis on the speed, signifying the train speed was 125mph Hence why the cl91/MK4 were intercity 225 (225kmh or 140mph) and an attempt was made to designate the 87/90/Mk3 sets as intercity 175 (110mph) but that never took off.

Ironically, the 110mph services were the ones that actually did what it said on the can whereas the IC225s never offered 140mph. Similarly, the HSTs on the MML spend so little time at their implied speed and even the GWML services to the south-west only do a 125mph dash to Reading, - still firmly in London outer-suburban territory. If the trains themselves are being referred to, then HST is the correct term as the 125 bit is so often irrelevant.

 

[Doomotron]

All of them? As you'd expect there's a mixture of the good, bad and ugly.

I quite like the Renatus Class 321 livery and the Southeastern dark blue liveries on the 395s and 375s. The Southern, Great Western, SWR and Stagecoach liveries are good as well.

Oh, let's not forget Dynamic Lines and Urban Lights. They were brilliant.

 

[swaldman]

The "HST" label is now popular, outside of enthusiasts, because politicians love to be able to brag about how Scotland is getting "High speed trains".

 

[HSTEd]

Was there not a proposal to rebrand the WCML Electric Services as IC 175 or similar?

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Was there not a proposal to rebrand the WCML Electric Services as IC 175 or similar?

You may be thinking of the cancelled IC250 project. Funny how the IC225 and IC250 were the only examples of BR embracing the metric system!

I quite like the Renatus Class 321 livery and the Southeastern dark blue liveries on the 395s and 375s. The Southern, Great Western, SWR and Stagecoach liveries are good as well.

Oh, let's not forget Dynamic Lines and Urban Lights. They were brilliant.

Livery preferences are subjective, but Dynamic Lines was a horrible livery. "Oh, we've got the finest intercity train in British history? Let's paint it like our buses!"

 

[43096]

You may be thinking of the cancelled IC250 project. Funny how the IC225 and IC250 were the only examples of BR embracing the metric system!

Read post #5 above.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Read post #5 above.

Oops! I'm blaming the heat...

 

[gg1]

People saying "Intercity 125" rather than HST or just 125 became the way of detecting normals or newbies in the insular pre-internet world of young enthusiasts!

I always knew them as simply 125s when I was a child/teen in the 80s. At that time BR used to identify services diagrammed for them by a small '125' logo at the top of the relevant column in timetables, I'm pretty sure it was just 125, not IC125.

 

[Ian Murray]

I noticed last week that the DfT is calling HS2 trains 'VHST' Very....

 

[jyte]

I've always called them both pretty interchangeably (probably doesn't help this thread) and I'm young enough I was born after BR stopped operating passenger services in England...I'm a privatisation baby!

 

[Shaw S Hunter]

My serious enthusiasm for railways started before they entered service so initially I really didn't like them as they saw off the Westerns and Deltics and relegated Peaks and 50s to more mundane duties. As such I quite liked it when Rail Enthusiast editor, Peter Kelly, described them as sounding like "turbo-charged bacon slicers"! How times change and I very much miss the Valenta scream. As to the name "125" was easiest to use when you were uncertain of someone else's degree of interest. The marketing of "Inter-City 125" was highly visible and well-known amongst the general public.

Not sure why some decry the privatisation liveries, the whole current rail scene would be incredibly boring without all the different TOC liveries though clearly some work better than others. Remembering how things were in the BR Blue era I much prefer the modern day kaleidoscope. On HSTs most TOC schemes seem(ed) fine to me though FGW's swoosh liveries were a bit naff especially the mostly white version. In fact my least favourite livery on a HST would have to be IC Swallow along with those horrible reflective nameplates.

 

[D2007wsm]

Livery preferences are subjective, but Dynamic Lines was a horrible livery. "Oh, we've got the finest intercity train in British history? Let's paint it like our buses!"

The Dynamic Lines livery was nothing like the livery carried on buses either Barbie or now Urban. The only road vehicles to carry anything resembling Dynamic Lines were a few Truonian coaches.

 

[gimmea50anyday]

relegated 50's to more mundane duties??? I wouldn't call the mule mundane. XD

Granted the SWML is secondary compared to the GW but they were given a hard paper round when they were put on mule workings, and they along with the 47s did a lot of GWML and XC workings alongside and even deputising for HSTs until the introduction of the networker turbo fleets in 1989. The what could have been is however fascinating in itself as initially the 50s were going ECML to work alongside the deltics however the HST disposed of that idea, then the dedication of 50s to XC work was mooted but the 47/8 program was introduced instead, as well as introduction of the - you guessed it - the HST, purely down to the unreliability of the 50's most important component, the generator.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

The Dynamic Lines livery was nothing like the livery carried on buses either Barbie or now Urban. The only road vehicles to carry anything resembling Dynamic Lines were a few Truonian coaches.

It was clearly related though. The same pink/purple accents but with a different base.

 

[gg1]

in fact my least favourite livery on a HST would have to be IC Swallow

In some quarters that almost qualifies as blasphemy. Next you'll be telling us you love Voyagers and 442s should all have been scrapped years ago

 

[D2007wsm]

It was clearly related though. The same pink/purple accents but with a different base.

Same colours, but the bus livery was more akin to the first FGW livery which replaced fag packet green and gold and worn by Scotrail trains.

 

[43055]

I have always known them to be HST's or 43's. Being part of the younger generation I do prefer the later liverys including EMT, GWR and VTEC and Scot Rail. I do like the swallow livery and blue and gray that GWR have brought back to life.