West Midlands Rail livery unveiled

[416GSi]

Please forgive me for being pedantic...

Also please forgive me for being pedantic, my post was about the brands used in the West Midlands not the organisations behind them. London has used basically the same brand image, with significant evolution since before 1933, but the organisations behind the brands have changed several times...from the Underground Group, to London Passenger Transport Board, London Transport Executive, London Transport Board, London Transport Executive (same name but different organisations as previously) London Regional Transport and finally Transport for London.
My point is why can’t a similar approach be adopted in the West Midlands as well?

.... but Centro was in existence until it became TfWM....

Actually Centro was the main brand of the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive (WMPTE), not an organisation in its own right.

.... Network West Midlands was only the name given to the public branding of the transport network, not its own internal operations....

True but it was only another brand, like Centro owned by WMPTE.

....Network West Midlands was quite an innovative excersize in developing an integrated transport network in the county. I think those involved in implementing it deserve some sort of recognition....

As Network West Midlands was only ever a brand of WMPTE, it’s impossible to agree with that statement, but I do agree that the organisation behind the brand, WMPTE, did a good job until being abolished on the 16th June 2016. The successor organisation is Transport for the West Midlands. They have taken over the Network West Midlands, WMPTE and the Centro brands and at the moment are using the Network West Midlands brand....why do they need to change?

....But lets not get carried away over a new livery. ....

Because it’s not just a new livery being proposed, it is a comprehensive and costly rebrand. In my view the money would be better spent elsewhere.

 

[birchesgreen]

It's not pencil pushers, it's cardigan-wearing marketing agency people with Apple Macs who make these changes.

I've worked in marketing departments (albeit in a technical role), using "Transport for ..." probably implies purpose, focus and other imagined BS.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Just realised: the proposed livery is rather similar to, albeit more untidy than, that used by Metrobus isn't it?

https://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=....5davd45LocQ#hl=en&tbm=isch&q=surrey+metrobus

Link goes to Google Images search results for Metrobus.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Just realised: the proposed livery is rather similar to, albeit more untidy than, that used by Metrobus isn't it?

Er, no, nothing like it?

 

[adrock1976]

The livery shown in the image in the opening post does look rather ghastly and not really pleasing on the eye to me. Does anybody local remember the "Midline" branding and livery in the second half of the 1980s? I thought that was terrible, but this new one that is proposed goes even beyond that.

As somebody mentioned upthread, I can remember the Centro livery that was common on the Class 150s that ran on the Stourbridge Railway when I was residing in the West Midlands back then.

Regarding the services to and from London Euston, it could go back to basics and simply be branded "London & Birmingham Railway", so as to reflect the history of the line as it is the third oldest Intercity railway behind the Grand Junction and the Liverpool & Manchester. This branding could also tie in with the HS2 with that maybe being branded "New London & Birmingham HS Railway" perhaps?

 

[Class172]

The livery shown in the image in the opening post does look rather ghastly and not really pleasing on the eye to me. Does anybody local remember the "Midline" branding and livery in the second half of the 1980s? I thought that was terrible, but this new one that is proposed goes even beyond that.

For anyone who has never seen it before.

 

[nidave]

I really like it. I imagine I am rather lonely in this opinion.

Edit: quick poll on my facebook feed seems to suggest I am not as alone as I thought.

 

[DenmarkRail]

London has used basically the same brand image, with significant evolution since before 1933, but the organisations behind the brands have changed several times...from the Underground Group, to London Passenger Transport Board, London Transport Executive, London Transport Board, London Transport Executive (same name but different organisations as previously) London Regional Transport and finally Transport for London.
My point is why can’t a similar approach be adopted in the West Midlands as well?

If the West Midlands can make the trains operating privately in, and around Birmingham have a city specific livery, then why aren't the LM trains that operate in the suburbs in a city specific livery, if London has a specific brand image?

 

[Joe Paxton]

It's not pencil pushers, it's cardigan-wearing marketing agency people with Apple Macs who make these changes.

I think the original renaming of London Transport to Transport for London was really down to the central government civil servants who set up the basis for the new devolved government in London - the Transport for London name is used in the (enormous) Greater London Authority Act 1999, which established the organisation.

The new entity had (and has) a much wider purview than any of the previous iterations of London Transport ever had, not least the fact that the network of key roads in Greater London became part of its responsibility. I guess it was possible that having been established, TfL could have continued to use the "London Transport" name, at least for the public transport side of things, but that didn't happen. (When London Regional Transport was set up in 1984, to take over responsibility for the transport network from the GLC, it did initially have its own logo but they seem to have fairly quickly decided to continue presenting themselves as "London Transport", along with continuing to use the roundel.)

However, as for the subsequent use of the 'Transport for X' terminology, well that's a different matter...

 

[Andyh82]

I agree that London Midland has a really stylish livery, one of the strongest brands on the rail network.

We do seem to be going through a poor time for liveries and branding, they seem to be either ridiculously bland and plain white (or should I say dirty brown) or ridiculously awkward and busy (like the new TPE scheme)

Regarding PTEs rebranding, they should really think about this before going through with it, as it's a big job and they generally don't have the funds to go through with it. It's a brand that extends to every single bus stop and shelter in a wide area.

It's many years since SYPTE rebranded as 'Travel South Yorkshire' yet the old 'Transport Executive' yellow and blue logo still exists in many places

 

[JaJaWa]

It's many years since SYPTE rebranded as 'Travel South Yorkshire' yet the old 'Transport Executive' yellow and blue logo still exists in many places

Both brands are still intentionally used:

http://sypte.co.uk
http://www.travelsouthyorkshire.com

 

[Old Hill Bank]

It matters not to me what the outside of the train looks like. The question is will there be enough inside seats and space to meet demand, will it be clean, will it run on time and will I be able to buy a ticket to travel on it.....

 

[NorthernSpirit]

The new livery to me looks more of a rail going version of Lincolnshire's InterConnect!

 

[TwinTurbostar]

I saw someone brought up window surrounds, so I had a go at photoshopping an improved version with them included. I used a 319 since it was easier to edit the plain Thameslink livery, though I can't see any 319's being repainted into the WMR livery, so try to imagine it's something else.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Looks good with the window surround. In my view most liveries do - a light coloured livery with gaps between the windows tends to look stark and unfinished.