• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!

LNER Azuma (Class 800/801)

Status
Not open for further replies.

Goldfish62

Established Member
Joined
14 Feb 2010
Messages
9,932
Nope, nothing like them.

I have never come across any other public transport seat of any kind that had the "supporting bar" issue that some of these have (albeit mainly those with the older cushion). It's not just a hard seat (I'd be fine with ironing boards), it's a flawed design.
These seats are used on regional and suburban trains elsewhere in Europe (they must be laughing at us for using them on long-distance trains). I wonder how they hold up there. The seat cushion specification though is, I understand, unique to the UK, so I wonder if that's part of the issue.
 
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R

RailUK Forums

Waverleystu

Member
Joined
12 Nov 2017
Messages
66
Am I right in thinking that there’s a new LNER 800 set entering service each week? I’m sure I read it somewhere but might be completely wrong!
 

800001

Established Member
Joined
24 Oct 2015
Messages
3,492
Am I right in thinking that there’s a new LNER 800 set entering service each week? I’m sure I read it somewhere but might be completely wrong!

Correct, another one will start this coking Monday so will be 4 sets in use, then another a week on Monday, and one the week after.
Then a pause, then another 1st August.
 

greyman42

Established Member
Joined
14 Aug 2017
Messages
4,894
This seems so avoidable, whether by having lights on/off or otherwise. I'd love to know whether anyone thought about red-green colourblind passengers when designing it.
Most people who are 'colour blind' have no problems distinguishing red from green in common day to day activities. It is usually when they take a ishihara test that they have difficulty distinguishing the colours apart.
 

RealTrains07

Established Member
Joined
28 Feb 2019
Messages
1,748
Why are the class 800s for LNER still called azumas? Thought that was a virgin thing? Doesn’t make sense really since they will end up being the only train type used on LNER. Made sense for virgin since they had the pendalino as well as once the azuma?

The 800/801 for LNER should just be called IET i think?
 

158856

New Member
Joined
12 Aug 2010
Messages
2
Why are the class 800s for LNER still called azumas? Thought that was a virgin thing? Doesn’t make sense really since they will end up being the only train type used on LNER. Made sense for virgin since they had the pendalino as well as once the azuma?

The 800/801 for LNER should just be called IET i think?
Because the name was suggested by three employees who now work for LNER, not by Virgin.
 

spinba11

Member
Joined
30 Sep 2012
Messages
182
Correct, another one will start this coking Monday so will be 4 sets in use, then another a week on Monday, and one the week after.
Then a pause, then another 1st August.
How many total sets are there in use in a day?
 
Last edited:

swt_passenger

Veteran Member
Joined
7 Apr 2010
Messages
31,264
Am I right in thinking that there’s a new LNER 800 set entering service each week? I’m sure I read it somewhere but might be completely wrong!
Yes, you may possibly have read the details by following links in either this thread (eg post #1514) or the more relevant thread in the timetables and allocations sub-forum:
https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/lner-azuma-class-800-801-diagrams.179677/
...where the introductory dates of various diagrams have been pointed out on quite a few occasions...
 
Last edited:

AlexNL

Established Member
Joined
19 Dec 2014
Messages
1,682
These seats are used on regional and suburban trains elsewhere in Europe (they must be laughing at us for using them on long-distance trains). I wonder how they hold up there. The seat cushion specification though is, I understand, unique to the UK, so I wonder if that's part of the issue.
Dutch railways (NS) use the same Fainsa Sophia seats on their newest fleet of short-distance commuter trains, the Sprinter Next Generation (CAF Civity). Dutch railways held a seat competition a few years ago, they had three distinct types of seats on display and asked the public which seat they preferred. Apparently the Sophia won.

Since their introduction, many Dutch commuters have been pretty vocal about severely disliking the seats. "Hard, uncomfortable, and forcing you to sit in a certain way".

I've sat on them myself and while the seat is okay for a 20 minute journey, I can't imagine the same seat being deemed suitable for a 4hr journey on a long distance train - no matter how much padding you put on it. The shape of the seat itself just doesn't feel right for it.
 

Voyager lad

Member
Joined
3 Apr 2018
Messages
127
Location
Glasgow
It's used in First Class on the ScotRail 385s too. The main thing is that there are different base and back cushions that massively affect comfort.
Whilst I haven’t yet been on an Azuma, I can’t imagine sitting in one of the seats for more than an hour since they’re the same as 385 first class. Personally I prefer the standard class seats on 385s as they’re far comfier
 

Mainliner

Member
Joined
1 Nov 2010
Messages
255
Location
North Tyneside
Seats

Oh dear me. These are catastrophically bad. Where to start? On sitting down, there seemed to be small “wings” on the edge of the seat back padding that annoyed me. I was unable to find any comfortable position to sit in and my bum had gone to sleep by Stevenage due to the lack of padding on the seats. By the time we got to Leeds my back and neck were aching. Add to that the poor design of the window side armrest where a cable run (I think) cover protrudes and makes use of the arm rest all but impossible. To be clear these seats are a total disgrace and are utterly unfit for purpose.
Score: 1/10 (the 1 is for having cut pile moquette covers)
Score: 3/10

Deary me!

Well, fortunately for me, I have the alternative option of using Cross Country + Grand Central for my weekly trips down the ECML to London, which I will certainly take up - I simply refuse to travel for hours on seats only suitable for short distance commuter use.

Sounds like all the forthcoming open access operator on the ECML needs to do to hoover up custom from LNER or its successor is to install better seats (unless it too will be subject to DaFT seat specifications).
 

samuelmorris

Established Member
Joined
18 Jul 2013
Messages
5,121
Location
Brentwood, Essex
Deary me!

Well, fortunately for me, I have the alternative option of using Cross Country + Grand Central for my weekly trips down the ECML to London, which I will certainly take up - I simply refuse to travel for hours on seats only suitable for short distance commuter use.

Sounds like all the forthcoming open access operator on the ECML needs to do to hoover up custom from LNER or its successor is to install better seats (unless it too will be subject to DaFT seat specifications).
Given it's still First and it's still almost certainly going to be 802s, I think the likelihood of the new Open Access operation having better seats is pretty slim I'm afraid.
 

InOban

Established Member
Joined
12 Mar 2017
Messages
4,208
Am I right that there's been an Azuma sitting at Heaton for a few weeks? If so, it looks as if it is returning to NA on Tuesday. An STP has appeared on RTT.
 

adc82140

Established Member
Joined
10 May 2008
Messages
2,928
As the post you quoted said, staff (who now work for LNER) came up with it, not Virgin's marketeers.

Which ever way you look at it, now it's LNER at least we were spared Beardy Branson dressed up as a Geisha on launch day.
 

G Broughton

Member
Joined
5 Mar 2019
Messages
34
A 5Q83 Acton Main Line to Doncaster IEP Depot booked via the Joint Line later - anyone have details of set numbers, please ?
In spite of the very heavy rain I still might pop into town (Spalding) to see it. Thanks in advance.
 

3973EXL

Established Member
Joined
2 Feb 2017
Messages
2,435
A 5Q83 Acton Main Line to Doncaster IEP Depot booked via the Joint Line later - anyone have details of set numbers, please ?
In spite of the very heavy rain I still might pop into town (Spalding) to see it. Thanks in advance.

It's a TP 802.
No numbers on it, possibly 802204.
 

RealTrains07

Established Member
Joined
28 Feb 2019
Messages
1,748
As the post you quoted said, staff (who now work for LNER) came up with it, not Virgin's marketeers.
So it was virgin employees who now work for lner who came up with it?

But why keep the name though, doesnt make sense of you ask me
 

theblackwatch

Established Member
Joined
15 Feb 2006
Messages
10,714
So it was virgin employees who now work for lner who came up with it?

But why keep the name though, doesnt make sense of you ask me

Why drop it? Nobody dropped the HST name when firms took over from BR did they? Or the Voyager name when Virgin lost the CrossCountry franchise.
 

Antman

Established Member
Joined
3 May 2013
Messages
6,842
Most people who are 'colour blind' have no problems distinguishing red from green in common day to day activities. It is usually when they take a ishihara test that they have difficulty distinguishing the colours apart.
Yes, and if you have a load of small lights in a metal cigar tube of varying colours, that's just the problem....

I can't see what colour my TV light is, in isolation. I thought napkins over Easter were sludge brown - turns out they were bright red on a green tablecloth..... Ishihara test is the only test I have ever failed. And lord, did I fail it..... absolutely no chance whatsoever, even with a pencil and join the dots..... just impossible. I have also had to ask a referee if we could change shirts (we were in green, opposition were in red....), extremely difficult to work out who is who when everyone is moving about....
 

RealTrains07

Established Member
Joined
28 Feb 2019
Messages
1,748
Why drop it? Nobody dropped the HST name when firms took over from BR did they? Or the Voyager name when Virgin lost the CrossCountry franchise.
Nobody calls cross country trains voyagers anymore though? HST (like IET) was a generalised term for that type of train not designed as a unique name specifically for a LNER 800/801 they should be called IETs since that is what 800s are not azuma
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Top