IETs into passenger service from 16 Oct 2017 and subsequent performance issues

[whole diary]

[IndustryInsider]

19092019

Number of 9's instead of 10's out today which would seem to suggest there should be a number of 5's or 10's instead of 9's but no, 5's instead of 10's, yes, which seems to suggest maintenance spares 9's are pressed into service to cover more 5's in the defects queue than anticipated.

About a dozen 5 car IETs^▸ (Intercity Express Train) instead of 9 car or 10 car now showing. Seems to be the new normal.

There now appears to be two 5 vice 9/10 car diagrams today, and three 9 vice 10 - the latter of which is obviously of minimal concern.

See my post #1999 on previous page.  Also bear in mind one unit has still to be accepted into traffic, and I know of another (9-car IIRC^▸ (if I recall/remember/read correctly)) that has been out for a very long time whilst problems are addressed.

[IndustryInsider]

As reported on other forums there are many modifications and upgrades currently being installed on the IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train) fleet of 800 and 802s, with a view to getting most of them sorted by December.  The main ones being alterations to the engine mapping of the 800s to bring them in line with the 802s in terms of performance on diesel, and reinstatement of the dynamic brakes which have been isolated since the end of last year due to sorting out a small lag that was evident when blending from the dynamic brake to the disc brakes at low speeds.  Also, there are very few 'dirty' ones left now, so the heavy cleaning program must be drawing to a close.

I wonder if Hitachi start paying full compensation for failure to provide the contracted number of units from December, as there appears to be much more focus on resolving issues of late?

Also, this week saw a start on a plan to vastly reduce the number of units in reverse formation, by making special arrangements to log them during the day and, where possible, turn them at the end of the day, known as 'Project U-turn'!  The aim is to reduce the 20 something reported last week, down to zero by the end of the month, and it looks like they will have made reductions well into double figures by the end of the week.  Obviously this will then need to keep happening in the future when engineering work or unforeseen problems lead to trains ending up in the wrong formation at the end of the day.  This will become easier when sets at North Pole can be turned by being sent to Greenford and work on validation and infrastructure is ongoing so that can happen soon.

[broadgage]

"Project U turn" to get all or nearly all trains the right way round sounds welcome, but after two years of randomness, I and probably others have forgotten which way round is correct. What is it ?

First class at the London end as with HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) ? or something else.

And in which portion of a 5+5 train is the Pullman intended to be ?

[IndustryInsider]

"Project U turn" to get all or nearly all trains the right way round sounds welcome, but after two years of randomness, I and probably others have forgotten which way round is correct. What is it ?

First class at the London end as with HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) ? or something else.

And in which portion of a 5+5 train is the Pullman intended to be ?

Not sure about Pullman's, but formations from London (First Class in bold) should be:

A-B-C-D-E (for 5-cars)

A-B-C-D-G-H-J-K-L (for 9-cars)

A-B-C-D-E/G-H-J-K-L (for 10-cars)

So, First Class should always be located at the London end of the train, or London end of each portion in the case of a 10-car.  Some 9-cars still have Coach D as Coach F and that is usually the cause of the reservation files not loading properly on 9-car trains - efforts to get that all sorted are delayed but should be resolved by December.

"Project U turn"

I should probably take the opportunity to clarify that 'Project U Turn' means Project Unit Turn, and not any decision to change the catering arrangements!

[bobm]

Pullman should always be in the first class section nearest to the London end.

[broadgage]

"Project U turn"

I should probably take the opportunity to clarify that 'Project U Turn' means Project Unit Turn, and not any decision to change the catering arrangements!

I know, unfortunately.

[Sixty3Closure]

Just had my first long(ish) journey in 1st Class. Twyford to Carmarthen.

Just to be contrary I found the seats fine. Not as nice as the LNER^» (London North Eastern Railway - about) 1st class but ok for the 3 1/2 trip to Carmarthen. My only complaint would be there was no way to adjust or remove the padded headrests saying 1st class which I found pushed my head forward slightly and gave me a headache.

Downside was that there were no seat reservations and it was quite crowded for the start of the journey.

Food was from a complimentary mini trolley. Cups of tea, cake and sandwiches which was all I needed for my journey. A slightly longer journey and I would probably have hoped for something more but i felt well looked after till Swansea. After Swansea it felt everyone was winding down for the few passengers still on the train.

No ticket checks which surprised me as I helped myself to all my free snacks.

[1st fan]

Just had my first long(ish) journey in 1st Class. Twyford to Carmarthen.

Just to be contrary I found the seats fine. Not as nice as the LNER^» (London North Eastern Railway - about) 1st class but ok for the 3 1/2 trip to Carmarthen. My only complaint would be there was no way to adjust or remove the padded headrests saying 1st class which I found pushed my head forward slightly and gave me a headache.

Downside was that there were no seat reservations and it was quite crowded for the start of the journey.

Food was from a complimentary mini trolley. Cups of tea, cake and sandwiches which was all I needed for my journey. A slightly longer journey and I would probably have hoped for something more but i felt well looked after till Swansea. After Swansea it felt everyone was winding down for the few passengers still on the train.

No ticket checks which surprised me as I helped myself to all my free snacks.

Did you ever do 1st on the HST^▸ (High Speed Train) before it left GWRland to be able to compare the two?

[Sixty3Closure]

Just had my first long(ish) journey in 1st Class. Twyford to Carmarthen.

Just to be contrary I found the seats fine. Not as nice as the LNER^» (London North Eastern Railway - about) 1st class but ok for the 3 1/2 trip to Carmarthen. My only complaint would be there was no way to adjust or remove the padded headrests saying 1st class which I found pushed my head forward slightly and gave me a headache.

Downside was that there were no seat reservations and it was quite crowded for the start of the journey.

Food was from a complimentary mini trolley. Cups of tea, cake and sandwiches which was all I needed for my journey. A slightly longer journey and I would probably have hoped for something more but i felt well looked after till Swansea. After Swansea it felt everyone was winding down for the few passengers still on the train.

No ticket checks which surprised me as I helped myself to all my free snacks.

Did you ever do 1st on the HST^▸ (High Speed Train) before it left GWRland to be able to compare the two?

No. Only first class I've travelled is on the East Coast in its various guises. I only booked first class to Carmarthen as it can be very crowded and earlier trips saw it reduced to 5 coaches quite often. It doesn't compare to 1st on the HST to Stirling and I am wondering about the new trains on a longer journey.

Maybe I'm in the category of 'doesn't know better' but I was happy with my journey apart from the seat reservations.

[JayMac]

A 5 car IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train), running as an unadvertised express, ran non-stop from Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington (via Bristol Parkway) last evening in 72 minutes. Quotes online suggest this is the fastest 'up' run since 1976. Presumably the IET switched traction on the fly around Stoke Gifford Jcn/Bristol Parkway.

https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/V34300/2019/09/24/advanced

The fastest 'down' was the August 1984 5 car HST^▸ (High Speed Train) led by 43002 'Top of the Pops' (for a special live edition of said show), which completed the run in under 63 minutes.

[Thatcham Crossing]

As a counter to BNM's post I was on the 1K14 yesterday between Paddington and Thatcham, a 5-car which appeared to be on diesel throughout. Fastest we got to was 110 between PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) and RDG^‡(resolve) and when I alighted at Thatcham I'm fairly sure it was only running on 2 (out of 3) GU's. It didn't get above about 85 on the B&H^▸ (Berks and Hants - railway line from Reading to Taunton via Westbury) either (100 is quite usual between Theale and Thatcham on other recent trips)

Still arrived in Thatcham RT but I guess only because these services are still running to a Turbo timetable.

[eightonedee]

Reading the last two posts sparked a thought. IETs^▸ (Intercity Express Train) are the modern equivalent of a Brush type 4 and mark 1 coaching stock of the 1970s. They cover everything from outer suburban stopping trains that go fast to London for the last 20-40 miles to the long distance Inter City expresses. As with their predecessors there are compromises and shortcomings (mark 1 compartment stock had a whole litany of comfort shortcomings such as lumpy bench seats, fry or freeze heating and poor ventilation) but they cover the bases, and give flexibility in covering a wide range of services. It is though a problem that they do not seem to be able readily to swap out individual defective coaches to add to that flexibility

May be the answer in due course might be to upgrade part of the fleet for the "top link" express services?

[IndustryInsider]

Project U-Turn has reduced the number of sets n reverse formation down to five, only three of which are in traffic today.  On target for zero at the end of the month.

[SandTEngineer]

Project U-Turn has reduced the number of sets n reverse formation down to five, only three of which are in traffic today.  On target for zero at the end of the month.

Yes, noted a lot of turning now taking place on Laira triangle at Plymouth.

[Timmer]

Oh dear LNER^» (London North Eastern Railway - about) have caught 5vice10 now they've bought their five car sets into service:

From Twitter: https://twitter.com/LNER/status/1179685594340966400

#LNERUpdate Facilities on the 10.06 #KingsCross to #Newark Will be formed of 5 coaches instead of 10. There are no reservations on this service. Staff onboard the train and at the Station will be happy to assist you in finding an alternative unreserved seat.