They will apparently, despite all the will they/won't they, DfT intransigence etc etc - but it seems XC will finally get additional trainsets of some description.
Well let's hope if its 222s they re seat them like a 220 or 221 . The seating on 222s is abysmal, wouldn't fancy a 4 hour journey on one of those!
Given the interest in the 222s by Transport Scotland and the additional work required, I'd expect 222s to be the more expensive option but what one expects and the reality often don't match up.
news.arriva.co.uk
I suspect the current handful of services will not increase in the near future.
Interesting that the article states the following:More details and information here:
Arriva Group awarded new national rail contract for CrossCountry
New contract starts from October 15 for a core term of four years. Timetable enhancements are expected and enhanced connectivity, including a new daily direct service between Cardiff and Edinburgh. The new contract will see CrossCountry undertake a full fleet refurbishment.
Pre 2020 weren’t there a couple of short workings in the very early morning, where they made a short Cambridge to Stansted run before entering the normal pattern? Or did they never begin operating at all?
I doubt very much that the current Cardiff to Nottingham service would be extended to Edinburgh. As I and others have said elsewhere it would seem more likely that one of the existing early morning Bristol to Edinburgh trains would start back at Cardiff. (Reverse in the evenng)
I'd assume the Cambridge-Stansted Airport comment probably means the extension of services that currently terminate at Cambridge to stanstead airport.
There were some units that came of the Cambridge depot, and then ran in service to Stansted airport, and then took up the normal pattern to Birmingham from there in the morning. I'd assume similarly, the last (last few?) services to Stansted would presumably have run in service from Stansted to Cambridge, as that is where the depot is, though possibly they just ended at Cambridge coming from Birmingham.
That does happen - first and last few stansted trains are to/from Cambridge. I think the main difference to precovid is the extension to Stansted is roughly every 2 hours rather than hourly.
Not at all sure, now I’ve checked on RTT. I suppose it could just be filling in the existing gaps to give an hourly service all day.
There are already services in the morning such as the 5:15 am arrival at Stansted Airport from Cambridge and 5:27am departure, with arrival at 5:50am from Cambridge with 06:12 departure. These services this morning having been run by 170637 & 170102 doing the services from Cambridge and then returning.
Some of the current services though from Bristol Temple Meads start from either Penzance or Plymouth to Edingburgh, so are we saying that there would be removal of some services in the South West? Unless you mean that the class XC 170 Turbostar service from Bristol Temple Meads to Cardiff, which happens once a day departing BTM at 05:20 and then this service travels to Edingburgh from Cardiff?
That sounds most likely tbh, and would be a nice improvement though clearly nothing major
No. I mean there is currently a 07.35 Bristol to Edinburgh train. This could start back from Cardiff at around 06.30.
If the Cardiff-Edinburgh service is once or twice as day in each direction as suggested, that would presumably mean extending som of the services that started from Bristol TM, rather than the ones that came from the Southwest proper
But there would be no reason for the train to travel down to Bristol Temple Meads from Cardiff, to then go north, which means that at Bristol Temple Meads, it will see less XC services, due to the services moving to start at Cardiff Central.
There would be a reason to go to Bristol to serve Bristol. If I remember correctly this was indeed the case until a few years ago.
It was, there was an 0520 Bristol TM to Cardiff which returned as an 0700 Cardiff to Manchester via Bristol TM. Specifically there to provide capacity between Newport and Bristol in the morning peak. (Which shouldn’t really have been XC’s problem to solve, in my opinion.)
Let's hope this time it's a decent refurbishment.
Seems its already being discussed in the other thread here:
I have a feeling this will be one of the services to go in the long run, except maybe a daily service each way. It would free up several sets to make doubles and with the current cost-cutting it seems plausible. The Manchester to Bristol route again is another example of a potential one for the chop, again leaving just a sole daily service each way. This could include a firm end of trains to Newquay/Bath Spa among others, and also likely seeing extensions to Paignton go as well. Not to forget potentially all extensions beyond Edinburgh going as well.
As I understood it, that's not returning bar the present handful of workings to add capacity at peak times.