Night Riviera - merged posts, ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[devon_metro]

Wouldn't suprise me if the state of the M5 earlier was anything to go by!

[Umberleigh]

Had a berth on the Fri 15/04 pad - pnz sleeper and all five sleeping coaches were full, with would-be passengers having to 'rough it' in the day cars.

Even former FGW^▸ (First Great Western) Chairman Charles Howeson had to settle for a seat in the Lounge Car for his journey down to Plymouth!

To his credit, he introduced himself to a family with young children, asked about their holiday plans etc and enthusiastically extolled the virtues of the Night Riviera service...

[woody]

Fears for London sleeper service as new rail franchise drawn up.Westcountry rail commuters may have to "re-fight old battles" to keep the night sleeper train to London when the Government draws up the new Great Western franchise, it is claimed.
http://www.thisisplymouth.co.uk/regionalnews/Fears-sleeper-service-new-rail-franchise-drawn/article-3582825-detail/article.html

[ChrisB]

Scare story, no substance! Pure guessing....

[JayMac]

Julian Crow said the service was losing ^1 million a year in 2007, but no mention how much it still loses. I'd be very surprised if it was showing a profit.

Let's not forget the 'value-for-money' the current Govt. are looking for. If the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) decide the continuing subsidy is too great then it is perfectly possible that interested parties in the West Country will have to 're-fight old battles'.

Then there's future investment to take into account. Those 57's are on their last legs....

[6 OF 2 redundant adjunct of unimatrix 01]

humm as long as first do get the new franchise i would say its a fair bet that it would be safe as they seem pretty committed to its current running and indeed growth, so as long as they keep the franchise and it remains viable i really wouldn't worry

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

First Great Western optimistic about future of sleeper

The train company which runs a sleeper train from Cornwall and Devon to London has said it is "optimistic" about the service's future.

First Great Western said passenger numbers had risen from 20,000 a year in 2007 to 30,000 a year now.

Six years ago the service was under threat after losing ^1m a year but it was saved after thousands of people signed a petition to keep it.

In recent years ^2m has been spent on it, including buying extra carriages.

Julian Crow, First Great Western regional manager, said: "I would be very optimistic about the sleeper. We agreed to run it within the franchise come what may. I feel that the sleeper has a secure part in the rail transport to and from Cornwall."

Malcolm Bell, from Visit Cornwall, said: "Maybe there's a demand to think about how you develop the sleeper's capacity. It's a low-carbon sustainable way to travel and it's an enjoyable way to travel. It does give everybody in Cornwall that link that they can go up to London overnight and be there in the morning for business."

The "Night Riviera" sleeper travels between Penzance and London six nights a week. It leaves Penzance at about 2130, arriving at London Paddington at about 0530 the following morning. It stops off at towns in Cornwall and Devon, including Plymouth and Exeter.

[bobm]

Am I right in thinking that the early flights from Newquay to London recently stopped?  I'm a fairly regular user of the sleeper because I have meetings in Penzance or St Ives. Almost every night the berths are well used as well as a lot of people in the seated accommodation.

I think we will see a lot of these stories in the coming months. The abolition of the remaining Pullman Restaurant services will be next.

[devon_metro]

Had 9 coaches on last Friday (down), wasn't even nice weather/bank holiday/whatever!

[anthony215]

Nearly most of the seats have been full whenever i have travelled on the sleeper frm Taunton to London Paddington

[Umberleigh]

Have been using the Sleeper on a weekly basis - occasionally twice a week - since the new year. I book a berth and travel from Pad down to Exeter (I live near St Davids).

The berths have frequently been full, with potential customers being turned away, despite extra sleeping cars being added. The day seats also always seem to be busy.

Last Wednesday there was a lady from FGW^▸ (First Great Western) in the Lounge Car providing some 'on the job' training for the crew. We got talking during a lull and I raised the issue of the ageing 57's. Her reply was that they are not as knackered as the HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train)...!? This opinion was also shared by one of the train crew.

However, my fear is that there will come a day when the coaching stock needs replacement and thus substantial investment, will any Train Operator want to pay for Mk 4 sleeping cars?

[JayMac]

Just floating an idea here....

Not sure the 57's are in as good nick as the Class 43 power cars. Would there be scope for 43s to take over from the 57s on the Night Riviera after IEP^▸ (Intercity Express Program / Project.) comes on stream?

A bit of re-gearing and electrical work to make them compatible with the loco hauled MKIII stock?

[inspector_blakey]

In theory the 57/6s are fairly new locomotives, although I don't know how far the re-engineering went in terms of equipment below the solebar (traction motors, drives etc), having been introduced in 2004.

I'd have thought that if a replacement was being seriously contemplated it would be simpler to use DB^» (Deutsche Bahn - German State Railway - about) 67s which I strongly suspect are currently not fully utilized, putting it mildly.

[JayMac]

I regard the 57s as something akin to Trigger's broom, but I guess the same could be said of the HST^▸ (High Speed Train) power cars!

[willc]

However, my fear is that there will come a day when the coaching stock needs replacement and thus substantial investment, will any Train Operator want to pay for Mk 4 sleeping cars?

I don't think there will be any need new coaches for many years. These coaches do one rather leisurely run per day, so wear and tear is limited. In contrast, the Mk3 HST^▸ (High Speed Train) trailers are hammered up and down for many hours each day but are in good enough nick to be likely to last past their 40th birthdays in many cases.