Greater Anglia Rolling Stock Updates

[Railperf]

Can you find the RTT for that one? I’ve never known a 360 to be that quick, even though they are capable.

To be fair - if a class 90 and loco hauled stock can pass Shenfield in 17.5 min..i would expect a 360 to be quicker still - maybe 17 min or slightly under subject to driver and conditions.

 

[Railperf]

Before the linespeed was raised to 90 for LHCS between Maryland & Shenfield around 10ys back it was classed as a good run if Witham was passed down road in 33mins. That was easily achievable with 170s but as you say things are normally thwarted by that darn Braintree service.

Don't let any GE drivers on the Braintree run hear you call them 'darned' or they might start slowing down from Hatfield Peverel on purpose! Lol.

 

[F Great Eastern]

Seen 17min 15sec before on a 360.

Ironically that train yesterday was late into Ipswich after getting held by movements at Ipswich and waiting for platform when it looked likely to be a few minutes early until it hit two red signals just before Ipswich!!

Could tell driver was disappointed not to do a perfect speedrun from his PA!

 

[dk1]

Don't let any GE drivers on the Braintree run hear you call them 'darned' or they might start slowing down from Hatfield Peverel on purpose! Lol.

You mean they don't already?

 

[306024]

Probably just as well they do as the signalling is approach controlled Meanwhile darned InterCity trains running late from Norwich ?....... The GE v Anglia rivalry has never been completely extinguished.

Meanwhile the 321 substitutions for InterCity sets on Saturdays really could do with being 12 cars if possible. An 8 car provides more seats than a hauled set, but the 3+2 seating, while necessary for Monday to Friday commuting, isn’t really suitable for the Saturday leisure market.

 

[stonojnr]

Oh they do & have often had an engine out/revert to idle but you can always limp home. Best if it's the centre car on 201-208 as they are not cross fed so all front/rear illumination is eventually lost.

been on several when its done that always on the Peterborough service, and limping home at 20mph is not much fun.

neither for that matter were the 170s on the GEML, unless theyve fixed the lumpy track between Colchester and Chelmsford, that section a 170 would bounce& bang& crash around so much even if you were sitting down you were being chucked about alot, standing was near impossible, and you wondered if you actually were running on the track anymore, none of the other trains did it to that extent.

 

[F Great Eastern]

been on several when its done that always on the Peterborough service, and limping home at 20mph is not much fun.

neither for that matter were the 170s on the GEML, unless theyve fixed the lumpy track between Colchester and Chelmsford, that section a 170 would bounce& bang& crash around so much even if you were sitting down you were being chucked about alot, standing was near impossible, and you wondered if you actually were running on the track anymore, none of the other trains did it to that extent.

The Renatus 321s are not great on that stretch, especially at the front.

 

[dk1]

been on several when its done that always on the Peterborough service, and limping home at 20mph is not much fun.

20mph? Was there no working emergency headlamp onboard? All 170s should carry one.

 

[Alfie1014]

Not a good afternoon today, 15:22 and 16:00 NOR to Liv St and returns both cancelled no stock and the 16:20 reported as full and standing with few if any working toilets!

 

[86246]

Not a good afternoon today, 15:22 and 16:00 NOR to Liv St and returns both cancelled no stock and the 16:20 reported as full and standing with few if any working toilets!

Saw it at Stowmarket. Standing in first class as well.

 

[F Great Eastern]

Saw it at Stowmarket. Standing in first class as well.

Can't be a shortage of trains on a Sunday, more like they couldn't get an EMU to cover for some reason, isn't exactly a shortage of them parked up today.

 

[dk1]

Can't be a shortage of trains on a Sunday, more like they couldn't get an EMU to cover for some reason, isn't exactly a shortage of them parked up today.

Two IC sets have faults this afternoon. It's not as easy to swap another onto the diagram anymore as due to Bounds Green servicing them & strict rotation to get them onto the correct 06:24up/18:10dn (SX) diagram, if they do extra trips they then run out of miles before the next exam resulting in further cancellations.

 

[Railperf]

Two IC sets have faults this afternoon. It's not as easy to swap another onto the diagram anymore as due to Bounds Green servicing them & strict rotation to get them onto the correct 06:24up/18:10dn (SX) diagram, if they do extra trips they then run out of miles before the next exam resulting in further cancellations.

Don't CP do any servicing?

 

[trebor79]

Seems to be getting worse on the GEML, as I feared a few weeks ago. A 170 is pretty bad, but 2 consecutive services cancelled due to no stock at all must be a new low.
Any news on the 745s?

 

[TheEdge]

Don't CP do any servicing?

CP doesn't (and hasn't for some time) got the space to do all the work needed for the FLIRT fleet alongside heavy maintaince of the legacy fleet, hence the long term use of facilities at Ilford, Bounds Green, Colchester and Clacton.

 

[dk1]

Don't CP do any servicing?

Yes but mainly stuff on DVTs, 90s & DMUs. The full set needs to go over the The pit for an exam & that's being done at Bounds Green. Capacity is severely limited whilst work is ongoing on the depot & the arriving new fleet.

Nothing yet of 745s entering traffic.

 

[samuelmorris]

Have to say that the 321s that are currently out are a very mixed bag. Was on 321410 this morning, one of those in the First colour scheme and have to say it's probably the best 321 I've been on for ages. Smooth, powerful, fast, good acceleration (for a 321) and spotless inside and everything was in tip top shape, even the displays, announcements and Wifi worked and honestly it looked like this train has been given a lot of TLC.

However, on the 20:38 from Liverpool street tonight, the GA liveried 321 I was on was a heap of junk, rattly, quite slow off the mark, saloon doors swinging backwards and forwards that wouldn't close properly, a window that kept flying open, poor ride and the worst thing was the jolting, where about 10 times there was a feeling of a break for half a second followed by a jolt forward. I know some 321s can be lively, but never seen such behaviour like today.

On the positive side of things the 360s seem to have been tidied up a bit, at least from the one I was on tonight and the driver on the 21:48 from Colchester tonight was an excellent communicator and very honest by saying he didn't know why we got held at two red signals just outside Ipswich but he's sorry for it and hope it hasn't ruined our evening - just the fact the communication lines were open and he was honest and very customer focused reflects well on GA - also helps that the Desiro manual PA is very clear and good quality unlike the MK3s and 321s!

There are lots of good informative drivers on the network, you especially notice that during hot summers when comments are made about the conditions aboard non-air-conditioned 321s...

410 is an ex-FCC 321 I believe? These were in much better shape when they arrived and they weren't around for much of the 'minimal maintenance' era in the early days at GA, only transferring once the 700s had cascaded 387s to the GN to replace them, so presumably they've been looked after, but the units that were rough around the edges then that weren't Renatus converted probably still are now, given their limited life expectancy. It could of course just be coincidence but I suspect not.

Greater anglia have way more comfortable trains than other tocs in my opinion

How times change - I'd rate Southern 377s (the original ones) and Southeastern 375s way above most of their stock, and indeed c2c's 357s as they are still correctly padded but more upright than 321 Ashbourne seats. The 379s are reasonable too. With most of the fleet not being air-conditioned though, the GA fleet has only really been that comfortable in winter. Once it gets above 20°C outside, most of the legacy fleet get a bit toasty.
Here's hoping the Kiel seating on the 720s is good enough for the job. Despite some legroom concerns, the FISA seating on the 755s seems to be reasonably well received so far.

 

[Alfie1014]

Not a good start to the week, Felixstowe branch given up the ghost at the start of the day, single 153s on both the Sudbury branch and the busiest Ips - Cambridge working, 09:00 NOR - Liv St 23 late at Shenfield and 09:00 Liv St - NOR terminated at Colchester with wheel flats.

 

[Shunter_69]

Sudbury is 153 only from now on I believe.

 

[F Great Eastern]

Not a good start to the week, Felixstowe branch given up the ghost at the start of the day, single 153s on both the Sudbury branch and the busiest Ips - Cambridge working, 09:00 NOR - Liv St 23 late at Shenfield and 09:00 Liv St - NOR terminated at Colchester with wheel flats.

I hope anyone braving it out on the Greater Anglia network tonight has a pleasant journey, not only are there 3 class 90 rakes being replaced by 321s, there are 17 cancellations and 60 short forms currently showing on journeycheck.

Rural lines are very grim, with 2 cars standing in for FLIRTS and 153s standing in for Turbostars on a good few services, that's going to be fun tonight.

The following are cancelled

14:58 Ipswich to Felixstowe due 15:24
15:07 Lowestoft to Ipswich due 16:36
15:28 Felixstowe to Ipswich due 15:54
16:58 Ipswich to Felixstowe due 17:24
17:17 Ipswich to Lowestoft due 18:43
17:28 Felixstowe to Ipswich due 17:54
17:58 Ipswich to Felixstowe due 18:24
18:28 Felixstowe to Ipswich due 18:54
18:58 Ipswich to Felixstowe due 19:24
19:07 Lowestoft to Ipswich due 20:37
19:28 Felixstowe to Ipswich due 19:54
19:58 Ipswich to Felixstowe due 20:24
20:28 Felixstowe to Ipswich due 20:54
20:58 Ipswich to Felixstowe due 21:24
21:17 Ipswich to Lowestoft due 22:43
21:28 Felixstowe to Ipswich due 21:54
22:48 Lowestoft to Norwich due 23:33

The following are ALL being short formed (deep breath)

13:30 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 15:27
14:00 Norwich to London Liverpool Street due 15:55
14:30 Southend Victoria to London Liverpool Street due 15:29
14:30 Norwich to London Liverpool Street due 16:17
14:30 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 16:27
14:45 Norwich to Sheringham due 15:42
14:47 Cambridge to Ipswich due 16:06
15:00 Norwich to London Liverpool Street due 16:57
15:00 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 16:50
15:20 Colchester to Colchester Town due 15:27
15:30 Norwich to London Liverpool Street due 17:19
15:30 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 17:24
15:35 Colchester Town to London Liverpool Street due 16:44
15:36 Norwich to Great Yarmouth due 16:10
15:45 Norwich to Sheringham due 16:46
15:46 Sheringham to Norwich due 16:44
15:48 London Liverpool Street to Braintree due 16:51
15:50 Norwich to Lowestoft due 16:35
16:00 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 17:53
16:00 Norwich to London Liverpool Street due 17:58
16:17 London Liverpool Street to Witham due 17:06
16:17 Great Yarmouth to Norwich due 16:50
16:20 Ipswich to Cambridge due 17:44
16:30 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 18:22
16:30 Norwich to London Liverpool Street due 18:19
16:48 Lowestoft to Norwich due 17:33
16:49 Sheringham to Norwich due 17:41
16:58 Norwich to Lowestoft due 17:43
17:00 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 18:42
17:00 Braintree to London Liverpool Street due 18:01
17:06 Norwich to Great Yarmouth due 17:41
17:08 London Liverpool Street to Clacton-On-Sea due 18:46
17:30 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 19:25
17:45 Norwich to Sheringham due 18:49
17:47 Cambridge to Ipswich due 19:03
17:47 Great Yarmouth to Norwich due 18:23
17:48 Lowestoft to Norwich due 18:33
17:50 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 19:50
17:50 Norwich to Lowestoft due 18:35
18:00 Norwich to London Liverpool Street due 19:55
18:10 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 20:09
18:12 London Liverpool Street to Ipswich due 19:38
18:17 London Liverpool Street to Southend Victoria due 19:21
18:19 London Liverpool Street to Walton-On-The-Naze due 20:12
18:30 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 20:27
18:40 Norwich to Great Yarmouth due 19:14
18:48 Lowestoft to Norwich due 19:33
18:52 Sheringham to Norwich due 19:46
18:55 Norwich to Sheringham due 19:53
19:02 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 20:53
19:13 Ipswich to Cambridge due 20:41
19:17 Great Yarmouth to Norwich due 19:50
19:55 Norwich to Sheringham due 20:56
19:56 Sheringham to Norwich due 20:55
20:30 London Liverpool Street to Norwich due 22:29
20:33 Walton-On-The-Naze to Clacton-On-Sea due 21:03
20:38 Norwich to Great Yarmouth due 21:13
20:47 Cambridge to Ipswich due 22:04
21:10 Sheringham to Norwich due 22:12
21:17 Great Yarmouth to Norwich due 21:52

 

[ashkeba]

hock: Would it be quicker to list Norwich services not short formed?

 

[Terry Tait]

What a mess, wasn't like that in the 70s.

 

[36270k]

What a mess, wasn't like that in the 70s.

In the 70's when there were 3 hour delays, we sat happily in the buffet car ( Mk1 RB or RMB ) drinking cans of McEwans.

 

[F Great Eastern]

What a mess, wasn't like that in the 70s.

Another 16 short forms have now appeared on journeycheck, must be well over 100 for the day now, not that they will be counted in the statistics.

Unfortunatley it seems like we may well be back to how it was earlier in the year where over 100 a day was a daily occurance.

 

[trebor79]

Well every single Norwich - London service is a short form every day. So that's about 60 or 70 straight off the bat.

 

[F Great Eastern]

Well every single Norwich - London service is a short form every day. So that's about 60 or 70 straight off the bat.

Reckons it's closer to 200 than 100 over the course of the day, considering I've seen over 80 and that only covers trains leaving 1.30pm to 9.17pm, so I reckon it's at least 150. .

 

[NoMorePacers]

That is utterly farcical. I wouldn't want to have to rely on Greater Anglia at the minute.

 

[F Great Eastern]

JourneyCheck doesn't have all the short forms on either, Sudbury line was on 153s for pretty much the day yet I've not seen any of those show up.

So as laughable as it sounds, those big figures seem to paint it out as not being as bad as it actually is.

 

[Railperf]

That is utterly farcical. I wouldn't want to have to rely on Greater Anglia at the minute.

That's unfair. I travelled on a few services yesterday - all running to time and booked formations. The 360's in particular are a great unit. It's a shame they didn't buy more of those and have at least a uniform fleet of trains running north of shenfield.
But then I remember they were originally earmarked for a 62 minute London to Ipswich fast service stopping only at Colchester IIRC or was it Chelmsford and Colchester? I see the original purple seat fabrics have been changed to a new grey/white. And the lighting now seems dim compared to the Class 700's I used to Brighton at the weekend. Will be interesting to see how much of a refresh they get when transferred to EMR. They sure could do with one now. The lack of plug sockets also gives away the fact these are 16 years old now!

 

[samuelmorris]

That's unfair. I travelled on a few services yesterday - all running to time and booked formations. The 360's in particular are a great unit. It's a shame they didn't buy more of those and have at least a uniform fleet of trains running north of shenfield.
But then I remember they were originally earmarked for a 62 minute London to Ipswich fast service stopping only at Colchester IIRC or was it Chelmsford and Colchester? I see the original purple seat fabrics have been changed to a new grey/white. And the lighting now seems dim compared to the Class 700's I used to Brighton at the weekend. Will be interesting to see how much of a refresh they get when transferred to EMR. They sure could do with one now. The lack of plug sockets also gives away the fact these are 16 years old now!

The seat covers were only changed after endless pleas from users as the fabric had worn completely away and they were practically bare cushions on some seats. They really were neglected at one point - GA turned it round once they got awarded the longer franchise as they were actually prepared to spend some money, but they're still a bit shabby. The lighting is probably mostly dim because it's full of grime. I'm expecting a full refresh when they go to EMR.