Great Western Coffee Shop

Press release from Cross Country Trains (https://www.crosscountrytrains.co.uk/about-us/press/crosscountry-partners-national-railway-museum)


OK - I admit it - the headline had me thinking of catching a train headed from Bristol to Birmingham hauled by 82 (Boxhill) up the Lickey Hills, or from York to Edinburgh behind Stirling Single No. 1 . I suspect such motive power would bring out a train load or three of interested passengers (and major line side security and safety concerns!)

Drat I tought for a moment they where going to announce that the last Voyager would be retired to the NRM in 2025

I do get the impression that the Voyager is a Marmite train, love it or hate it.

The last Voyager by 2025; that is either very optimistic (an impressively fast electrification programme) or very pessimistic (mass closure of railways). However, with both Avanti West Coast and East Midlands Railway planning to retire 125mph Diesel Multiple Units in the next few years, the first Voyager could well be retired by 2025.

My latest thinking/opinion on this is that all 20 class 221s and 23 class 222s should be transferred to CrossCountry:

• The class 222s should be reformed into 10x 7-car and 13x 5-car units (leaving four pairs of redundant driving cars)
• First class provision should be reduced in the 7-car class 222 units, and possibly removed entirely on the 5-car 222s, to provide more standard class
• Semi-permanently couple each of the 4-car class 221s to a 5-car set creating four 'virtual' 9-car class 221s
• Put either 5-car 221s or the 5-car 222s* on the Cardiff-Nottingham services in place of the Turbostars
• Semi-permanently couple any class 220s left in service as 8-car trains

This eliminates the 4-car 222s and means a 7-car class 222 could have a similar capacity as an 8-car (2x4-car) class 220. XC wouldn't have to run anything less than a 5-car train (except perhaps on Birmingham-Leicester/Nottingham/Stansted services if those aren't given to a different operator). I forget whether I thought the 43 incoming units would be enough to completely retire the class 220 fleet, I did work it out once; I'm guessing it's that or replacing the Turbostars on the Cardiff-Nottingham route and not both.

* hence the suggestion of removing first class on those

Not for me. I dislike a lot of things about them, but there are good things too - if they had been nine carriages and electric I would argue they should have been ordered instead of Pendolinos. Since I discovered the nice carriage on the West Coast Voyagers I have aimed for that in preference to Pendolinos with their hopeless windows.

Whilst I'm indifferent to the Voyagers, I can't fault CrossCountry's onboard crew. I can't remember ever having a negative interaction with them. Be that when I'm travelling with esoteric ticket combinations, missing my stop, being stranded by another TOC... More than once I've been bumped up to 1st Class without asking. Had taxis arranged with the minimum of fuss when connections were missed. Had personal feedback when I've complemented a particular staff member.