Cross Country

[Roy]

The first HST set with power doors and retention toilets entered public service today.  It operated 1V50 (0606 Edinburgh to Plymouth) with 43304 and 43357 and is now heading back to Leeds on the 1525 from Plymouth.  If there are no mishaps, it should work 1V44 (0600 Leeds to Plymouth) and 1S51 (1225 Plymouth to Glasgow Central) tomorrow.

[Roy]

Already problems with one coach from the power door set as 1S51 (1225 Plymouth to Glasgow Central) was operating as 2+6 today, due to "coach C having been removed because of technical issues".

[JoNi]

Caught it down to Exeter one day last week nice train, doors worked. Shared carriage with mother and three children who misbehaved all the way to Taunton. The following journey on a Pacer was much more pleasant!

[mikestone]

Still running one short and all doors in F locked up on Monday heading for Edinburgh. I couldn't find it on journey check yesterday and assumed it was being repaired, but its out this morning on a Leeeds starter, so perhaps they were embarrrased to admit to it.

[Trident 4194]

I've seen a hst unit leaving Birmingham about 13:00. No idea where it goes or whether it is booked?

[Roy]

I would guess that it was the 13:17 to Taunton (06:32 from Dundee).  Some HST duties have been changed while trains are terminated at Taunton because of works taking place in Whiteball Tunnel. 

[mikestone]

One set is doing Leeds-Taunton-Birmingham-round the houses-Birmingham-Taunton-Leeds. Its all in RTT. One day last week it ended up going to Manchester!
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The power door set failed at Derby last Friday on the other turn.

[Trident 4194]

I would guess that it was the 13:17 to Taunton (06:32 from Dundee).  Some HST duties have been changed while trains are terminated at Taunton because of works taking place in Whiteball Tunnel.

Noted another HST set approach university station about 12:55, then there was the 13:17 also I saw. What would the 12:55 one be?

[Roy]

Noted another HST set approach university station about 12:55, then there was the 13:17 also I saw. What would the 12:55 one be?

The 08:12 service from New Street is always an HST, normally to Plymouth.  With the blockade, it will terminate at Taunton at about 10:15, returning on the 10:50 service to Aberdeen, which departs New Street at 13:03.

[mikestone]

The one at 13.17 was 5T86 13.05 New St-New St to work the 14.20 to Taunton, which earlier passed Uni at 12.48 on the 10.51 from Taunton.

[Roy]

A petition calling for DfT to take action to address serious overcrowding and reliability issues on CrossCountry services has been launched.  It asks for HSTs that have come off-lease from GWR and LNER and that have been stored at Long Marston, to be refurbished and allocated to CrossCountry services to Devon and Cornwall.  This would not only deal with overcrowding on other parts of the CrossCountry network by using Voyagers cascaded from South West services but would also stop the ridiculous cancellation of Voyager services west of Exeter every time there is a very high tide at Dawlish because Voyagers don't like salt water.  If anybody is interested, the link is http://chng.it/vPnB4DyVFg

[Tony]

The 0912 Birmingham to Plymouth is formed of a GNER HST today

[mikestone]

They have two on hire - details on journey check.
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Another odd working however is the York-Southampton double Voyager.

[Rob H]

The 0912 Birmingham to Plymouth is formed of a GNER HST today

43257+EC52+43251 was the set on the 09:12 and the second LNER set was on the delayed 11:12 which was formed of 43290+EC64+43367

[Trident 4194]

Is the 16:30 Birmingham to Edinburgh operated by a HST or a voyager?