Northern DMU's visiting the 'Big Smoke'

[Bodie]

Just a little query:

I've been trying to think whether any of these classes, not normally to be found anywhere near London, have ever been:

Pacer - 142/143/144
153
155
156
158
175
185

Some I think more likely then others. 156's are or have been geographically close to the capital.

I know 158's in the late 90's did work some routes for Virgin. I had one North of Preston, but i'm sure that didn't start at Euston.

Did any of the earlier units get there with BR? - sort of showing off their new trains.
Always been somewhat of a problem for London, these units only having two carriages.

When I was thinking about this, it occured to me that we could have some kind of modern swap. Like what happened way back when, so companies could try out other locos. GWR loco on the LNER etc

We Northerners will need something that runs on 25K, not too many DMU's running around London.
And you Southerner's can have a Pacer or two!

That would be a sight

Bodie

 

[ushawk]

I think a couple of SWT 158's make it into London, think i used to see one at Clapham Jct at about 7.30 in the weekdays attached to a 159.

I dont think any of the others have came near to London, could be wrong.

 

[12CSVT]

During the 1990s First North Western ran a Blackpool - Euston and a Rochdale - Euston service using class 150s.

Also in the 1990s Wales & West class 158s had booked workings to both Paddington and Waterloo, the latter were to connect with Eurostars

 

[YorkshireBear]

Seen pictures of 150001 at St pancras on its early tests runs from derby.

Are you sure FNW didnt use 158s not 150s. I struggle to see how you could path a 75mph regional DMU into euston..... down the WCML.

 

[12CSVT]

Its possible that 158s worked some of the FNW services, but I do seem to remember 150s working them. There were also countless restrictions imposed on FNW where these trains could call due to fare extraction clauses, so the Blackpools weren't allowed to call at most stations served by Virgin but did call at Leyland.

 

[ainsworth74]

I know 158's in the late 90's did work some routes for Virgin. I had one North of Preston, but i'm sure that didn't start at Euston.

They will have been working on VXC rather than VWC and worked Manchester/Liverpool to Glasgow/Edinburgh services.

Always been somewhat of a problem for London, these units only having two carriages.

144, 158, 175 and 185 all come as three car units as well as two car (or only three car in the case of 185s)

 

[Wath Yard]

Its possible that 158s worked some of the FNW services, but I do seem to remember 150s working them.

They were 158s. 158s on the Rochdale/Blackpool service and 322s on the Manchester Airports.

 

[m82d1]

Class 158s (and 159s) are a daily occurrence with SWT on London Waterloo - West of England services.

185s were delivered through the Channel Tunnel from Dollands Moor - Longsight via Wembley so all have traversed London on their delivery trips to FTPE.

I'm also certain that I have seen a photo of a class 153 operated by Anglia Railways stabled at Liverpool Street on Fotopic, I can't remember what the caption said but it may have been returning to Crown Point depot via London due to engineering work in Norfolk and either the driver didn't sign the road or there was one of the GEMLs famous, all night, every night, until the cows come home engineering possessions and it subsequently got dumped in Liverpool Street until the next morning.

not too many DMU's running around London.

More than you may think...

158 - SWT (Waterloo)
159 - SWT (Waterloo)
165 - Chiltern (Marylebone) + FGW (Paddington)
166 - FGW (Paddington)
168 - Chiltern (Marylebone)
171 - Southern (London Bridge)
172 - LOROL (GOBLIN) + Chiltern (Marylebone)
180 - Grand Central + Hull Trains (Kings X)
220 - Virgin WC (Euston)
222 - EMT (St Pancras)

 

[ainsworth74]

221 - Virgin WC (Euston)

Fixed it for you

 

[Lampshade]

They were 158s. 158s on the Rochdale/Blackpool service and 322s on the Manchester Airports.

A 309 made it down on at least one occasion.

 

[m82d1]

Where did my post go? It was deleted after I edited it.

Anyway...

Class 158s (and 159s) are a daily occurrence with SWT on London Waterloo - West of England services.

185s were delivered through the Channel Tunnel from Dollands Moor - Longsight via Wembley so all have traversed London on their delivery trips to FTPE.

I'm also certain that I have seen a photo of a class 153 operated by Anglia Railways stabled at Liverpool Street on Fotopic, I can't remember what the caption said but it may have been returning to Crown Point depot via London due to engineering work in Norfolk and either the driver didn't sign the road or there was one of the GEML's infamous, all night, every night, until the cows come home engineering possessions and it subsequently got dumped in Liverpool Street until the next morning.

not too many DMU's running around London.

More than you may think...

158 - SWT (Waterloo)
159 - SWT (Waterloo)
165 - Chiltern (Marylebone) + FGW (Paddington)
166 - FGW (Paddington)
171 - Southern (London Bridge)
172 - LOROL (GOBLIN) + Chiltern (Marylebone)
221 - Virgin WC (Euston)

 

[Eagle]

158s work Salisbury to Waterloo on some diagrams. I was recently on a 158+159+158 out of Waterloo at the end of the morning peak that had all of 11 passengers between 7 coaches.

 

[tempests1]

Class 156's make it as far as Ilford Depot for tyre turning etc. Network Rail's yellow class 150 will have visited London Frequently.

 

[driver9000]

The North Western diesel services to London were booked to be 158s with the Rochdale/Blackpool portions attaching at Warrington BQ. On at least one occasion the service was worked by a 156.

 

[87015]

The North Western diesel services to London were booked to be 158s with the Rochdale/Blackpool portions attaching at Warrington BQ. On at least one occasion the service was worked by a 156.

A 153 was tagged on vice the second 158 on at least on occasion as well. 150s mega common at Euston on Saturday night/Sunday mornings when the juice was off, as I've said before for one year the 2036 BHM-EUS was booked 8 car 150/1 with a 4 car following on the 2136!

Both 150 and 156s have reached Liverpool Street in passenger service also.

Might struggle with 155s unless the Cardiff ones had an outing in the early days?

 

[newtownmgr]

Back in 1989 whilst working a Worcester - Oxford -Swindon - Oxford - Worcester diagram there was a derailment just west of Didcot, so the Didcot - Swindon bit was cancelled and it was decided to use us and our set (a 155) to run to Reading & back but on arrival at Reading it was suggested that we continue to Padd such was the disruption. On arrival at Padd we ran ecs back to Reading then ran as a passenger all stations to Oxford then picked up our booked diagram about 1/2 hour late. We took ages to get to Padd as the passengers hadn't got a clue about push button doors and my Guard (old hand Worcester Man) spent every station running up & down platform showing them how to open doors(hence the decision to run us back empty).

I suspect other 155's made Padd on promotion/press runs when new but i think that that was the 1st passenger run into Padd. It was certainly my only
trip into London with a sprinter (been there plenty of times with DMU's & Loco's (Steam & Diesel)).

Worcester lost its London work in the early 90's with sectorisation fully implemented (FGW Train managers & Buffet Staff at Worcs currently work to London with HST's via Oxford & Swindon).

 

[142094]

BR sent some new units from IIRC York to somewhere on the Continent (Netherlands I think) to promote them and hopefully secure new orders. From what I remember there was a 150 (which is why it has signs in 4 langauges), and they went on a ferry I think via Dover. May be wrong on this as I think it was via Dover and not Hull.

 

[driver9000]

BR sent some new units from IIRC York to somewhere on the Continent (Netherlands I think) to promote them and hopefully secure new orders. From what I remember there was a 150 (which is why it has signs in 4 langauges), and they went on a ferry I think via Dover. May be wrong on this as I think it was via Dover and not Hull.

It was a 150/2,89001 and a 91 that were hauled to Hamburg in 1989. I'm sure a 90 went with them too.

156502 made it to Utrecht under its own power reaching the continent via the train ferry.

 

[jopsuk]

It was a 150/2,89001 and a 91 that were hauled to Hamburg in 1989. I'm sure a 90 went with them too.

156502 made it to Utrecht under its own power reaching the continent via the train ferry.

88. You're thinking of this

there's also a page on the 156 to Utrecht- presumably this traversed London via Kensington. Note that for that event BR sent one of it's most modern units, a 156. SNCF sent one of their most modern units- the TGV Atlantique...

 

[Eagle]

158 - SWT (Waterloo)
159 - SWT (Waterloo)
165 - Chiltern (Marylebone) + FGW (Paddington)
166 - FGW (Paddington)
171 - Southern (London Bridge)
172 - LOROL (GOBLIN) + Chiltern (Marylebone)
221 - Virgin WC (Euston)

You forgot 168s, 180s and 222s...

SWT used to have a few 170s going into Waterloo, but gave them to TPE in exchange for 158s. NXEA 170s regularly ran to Liverpool Street until 2010. 220s and 221s made it to Paddington in their first couple of years.

And a couple of months ago there was a FGW HST that died and was subbed with a 142+150.

 

[43021HST]

I'm pretty sure before the 170s, a class 156 used to run out of liverpool street on the Lowestoft services, then again I could be wrong.

 

[route:oxford]

Wasn't there a Regional Railways/Cross Country/Virgin 158 Service from Manchester to Brighton via Kensington Olympia*?


*Kensington Olympia is, of course, not in London - but probably as close to London as you can get without being in London.

 

[Eagle]

Wasn't there a Regional Railways/Cross Country/Virgin 158 Service from Manchester to Brighton via Kensington Olympia*?

*Kensington Olympia is, of course, not in London - but probably as close to London as you can get without being in London.

It was InterCity, not RR. More likely to have been LHCS pre-Voyagers (the route lasted till Dec 08) but ICXC did have some 158s to hand.

 

[O L Leigh]

Cl142s ran to Cricklewood Sheds on test runs up from Derby prior to entering service.

O L Leigh

 

[Keith Jarrett]

I am surprised everyone has forgotten the nocturnal visits made by Wales and West 158s to Waterloo on a service from (I think) Cardiff. Did this start pre privatisation, i.e. under Regional Railways, and when did it finish? And if it was after the Wales and West era, who ran it? Wales and Borders or Wessex? My memory seems to say that it did not last as long as Arriva Wales though. Any information gratefully recived.

 

[4SRKT]

Wasn't there a Regional Railways/Cross Country/Virgin 158 Service from Manchester to Brighton via Kensington Olympia*?


*Kensington Olympia is, of course, not in London - but probably as close to London as you can get without being in London.

Kenisington Olympia is very much in London.

 

[jopsuk]

Indeed- though for ticket routing purposes, it is "Not London", which I think is sort of what he's getting at- it's an attempt at humour.

 

[4SRKT]

Check.

 

[12CSVT]

I am surprised everyone has forgotten the nocturnal visits made by Wales and West 158s to Waterloo on a service from (I think) Cardiff. Did this start pre privatisation, i.e. under Regional Railways, and when did it finish? And if it was after the Wales and West era, who ran it? Wales and Borders or Wessex? My memory seems to say that it did not last as long as Arriva Wales though. Any information gratefully recived.

Mentioned in post #3. There were some daytime services as well. I remember an early morning Waterloo - Maesteg service.

 

[Bodie]

Great posts

So it seems only 143,144 and 175 have no recorded occurences in London.

142 and 185 also yet to work passenger train, though have been in the City either on delivery or testing.

Will we ever see a Pacer or 175 or 185 work in London?

Or vis versa will we see strictly London (South East England) DMU's work up North.

Another question is 'Are there any units/locos of any type still running in the UK that never get to London???

Only things I can think of of are EMU's of Central Scotland -

314
318
334
380

And also 323's - but I would take a guess that one has escaped Birmingham in its life time to reach London???