Longest Single Journey Services

[Malton Seadog]

Bit of a vague title, but with the exception of the XC routes from Scotland to Penzance (and possibly some long ones on the WCML too), what is the longest single journey you can do on a train in this country? I'd be interested to hear in local stopping services too.

The best I can find at the moment, without admittedly looking far, is Manchester Piccadilly to Milford Haven which is 6 hours with around 20 stops!

 

[yorkie]

If you exclude CrossCountry, then the longest are the Highland Sleepers from Euston, which split at Edinburgh to Fort William/Inverness/Aberdeen, and the Highland Chieftain 12:00 from King's Cross to Inverness.

If you are basing it on journey time, rather than distance, then Euston to Fort William is the 'winner' as it takes over 12 hours. The sleeper is limited to 80mph, and much of the speed limit on the West Highland Line is in the region of 40mph.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Sunday night's sleeper service from London Euston to Fort William, at just under 14 hours, is one of the longest single journeys you can do on a train in this country, as far as I am aware. Does that count?

 

[AeroSpace]

On Summer Saturdays, the 1455 Pembroke Dock --> Paddington takes 6hr 48min and has 24 intermediate stops.

 

[Drsatan]

The 08:23 from Southampton Central to Great Malvern takes four hours and 10 minutes, and calls at 22 stations

 

[leewoods60019]

Longest single journey is from huddersfield - edinbrugh on deltic
excludign railtours it would be huddersfield-manchester-carlisle at roughly 3hours each way

 

[yorkie]

If you include railtours, wasn't there a Penzance to Wick/Thurso tour once? Or did I just read that someone was considering the possibility...

Then there was a record-breaking run on Eurostar to somewhere in the South of France a few years ago.

 

[paul1609]

The longest scheduled service from London is the saturdays only Eurostar service to Avigion at just over 700 miles thats about 200 miles further than Fort William.

 

[wibble]

This service was withdrawn in December 2009 and called at 34 stations over route 304 miles:

Saturdays: London Waterloo - Penzance 6hrs 45min
Sundays: Penzance - London Waterloo 7hrs 8min

 

[yorkie]

I guess there are 3 potential criteria:
* Number of station calls
* Duration
* Distance

And you could potentially limit it to:
* Any regular, scheduled services
* Any scheduled passenger service, including diversions for engineering works.
* Any service at all, including Railtours

With vastly different results depending on which are chosen.

 

[robert2000]

Holyhead to Cardiff, about 5 hours

 

[northwichcat]

For a long stopper Northern's Sunday only Southport-Chester via Stockport is 28 stops in 2 hr 39 to 2 hr 48 covering 80 miles and sometimes on a Pacer - although 3 are only on request.

 

[GNERman]

If you include railtours, wasn't there a Penzance to Wick/Thurso tour once? Or did I just read that someone was considering the possibility...

I believe Cotswold Rail wanted to do that with no stops, apart from mandatary ones like driver operated crossings etc but nothing was heard of it again...

 

[networkrail1]

EMT LIV (liverpool lime street -NRW(norwich) the whole route takes 5 hours 30 mins with a maximum of 18 stops.

 

[route:oxford]

If you exclude CrossCountry, then the longest are the Highland Sleepers from Euston, which split at Edinburgh to Fort William/Inverness/Aberdeen, and the Highland Chieftain 12:00 from King's Cross to Inverness

In the near future, mightn't the HC go just a little bit further?

With works being undertaken between Newcastle & Edinburgh, some services are routing via Newcastle - not sure if the HC is one of them though.

 

[MCR247]

Yes leaves at 1030 arrives at 2006 but doesn't call at Carlisle :?

 

[sonic2009]

Saturdays Newquay - Manchester Piccadilly
0700 Manchester Piccadilly - Newquay 1437 7hr 37mins
1524 Newquay - Manchester Piccadilly 2239 7hr 15mins

Monday to Fridays

0940 Penzance - Manchester Piccadilly 1659 7hr 19mins
1739 Penzance - London Paddington 2338 5hr 59mins

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Not still in existance, but the old Glasgow-Eastbourne/Dover via the WCML must have been fairly far

 

[scotsman]

summer Sundays: Newquay - Dundee
Mon-Fri: Aberdeen - Penzance (yeah, I know you said ignoring SW-Scot XCs) is the longest journey in the UK at around 790 miles
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

In the near future, mightn't the HC go just a little bit further?

With works being undertaken between Newcastle & Edinburgh, some services are routing via Newcastle - not sure if the HC is one of them though.

HC is always routed via Newcastle

 

[MCR247]

I think he meant Carlisle

 

[DaveNewcastle]

. . . the longest are . . . and the Highland Chieftain 12:00 from King's Cross to Inverness.

Which takes 8hrs and 8minutes, every Mon -Sat and 8hrs 14mins on Sundays. (Its a few minutes quicker on the southbound journey).

 

[dk1]

Not still in existance, but the old Glasgow-Eastbourne/Dover via the WCML must have been fairly far

HELL YES!! Goodness me though they where so unreliable too. You just never knew when it would arrive. Great interest to us railway types but if you used these services for a local trip they where a nightmare. I always think of the Glasgow/Edinburgh-Harwich Parkeston Quay 'The European' (or Europain as it was nicknamed) the staff pre-booked rooms at the Station Hotel Ipswich for those almost guaranteed to miss the boat.

 

[cuccir]

Along similar lines of long timetabled trips, but not precisely in the longest journey categories, Carlisle to Lancaster/Preston must have the biggest discrepancies between direct journey times? Carlisle to Lancaster down the WCML is ~50 mins, and to Preston can be as little as 1hr. Via Whitehaven/Barrow, the time to Lancaster is 3hr50 mins and 4h15 to Preston! I'm sure the odd hurried or panicking passenger must have hopped onto the longer service at some point and received quite a shock (and probably told to hop off and get the next train back to Carlisle!).

 

[route:oxford]

I think he meant Carlisle

I did indeed, thanks.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Along similar lines of long timetabled trips, but not precisely in the longest journey categories, Carlisle to Lancaster/Preston must have the biggest discrepancies between direct journey times? Carlisle to Lancaster down the WCML is ~50 mins, and to Preston can be as little as 1hr. Via Whitehaven/Barrow, the time to Lancaster is 3hr50 mins and 4h15 to Preston! I'm sure the odd hurried or panicking passenger must have hopped onto the longer service at some point and received quite a shock (and probably told to hop off and get the next train back to Carlisle!).

Yeah, at preston its advertised as a Carlisle train, ahead of the WCML services, surely they should advertise it as a Whitehaven train at PRE and a Barrow train at CAR

 

[Sapphire Blue]

Yeah, at preston its advertised as a Carlisle train, ahead of the WCML services, surely they should advertise it as a Whitehaven train at PRE and a Barrow train at CAR

Precedent for this is the Huddersfield to Leeds service via Halifax and Bradford.
Northern announce the train as for Bramley. (and, I think for Brighouse on the return)
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Which takes 8hrs and 8minutes, every Mon -Sat and 8hrs 14mins on Sundays. (Its a few minutes quicker on the southbound journey).

That's because its downhill

 

[Techniquest]

That's because its downhill

Not all the way it isn't. Are you forgetting the monsterous climb up Slochd in both southbound and northbound directions?

 

[scotsman]

Not all the way it isn't. Are you forgetting the monsterous climb up Slochd in both southbound and northbound directions?

FYI Inverness is near enough at sea-level. Drumochter Summit is higher.

 

[Techniquest]

Fair enough, I couldn't remember what that one was called

 

[flymo]

As I mentioned to another member by PM recently, in 2003 there used to be a Penzance - Milford Haven service (It was Wessex Trains and I think it was a 158 ) taking 9 hours and 5 minutes (0654 from Penzance - 1559 at Milford Haven) and 46 stops.

The return was 8 hours 32 minutes.

Not running any more though but it is one of those 'should have done that' things. Well perhaps