Avanti West Coast rebrand

[VT70]

Fine with the rebranding but why can you not change your seats when making a booking like the old VT site.

 

[Hazlehead]

Fine with the rebranding but why can you not change your seats when making a booking like the old VT site.

Because that was a commercial deal between Virgin & Trainline that couldn't be transferred across. Also First Group use a different web supplier who don't have that function. It is being looked at to try & reinstate but will take time and of course quite a bit of money to do. Let's not forget it took Virgin almost 20 years before it introduced this. It's fairly a recent thing

 

[yorkie]

This thread is about the re-branding; if we have exhausted all the discussion about that, we can lock the thread, but I'll leave it open if people can please stay on topic

For any questions relating to the journey experience please post in the Trip Planning section (there is an existing thread here: https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/avanti-on-board-services-and-ambience.196409 )

For discussion regarding the seat selector (or lack of!) please use: https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/why-has-avanti-west-coast-got-rid-of-the-seat-selector.196410/

 

[Hadders]

The coffee machine in the onboard shop on the Pendolino I’m currently travelling on still says Virgin Trains on the screen.

 

[Energy]

The coffee machine in the onboard shop on the Pendolino I’m currently travelling on still says Virgin Trains on the screen.

Where abouts is this screen, if it is the POS then it could take a while to update as the isn't as much encouragement to update it as customers don't see it.

 

[Hadders]

It’s on the screen of the machine itself and customers can see it as it face some the counter.

 

[vlad]

My train out of Manchester today was announced by the train manager as the Virgin train to London - it took a bit of time for her to correct herself. I can't help feeling the staff psyche will be the last thing to be rebranded.

 

[duesselmartin]

Just been in an Avanti in the new colours. Everything was Avanti except for the Virgin toilets.

 

[LancasterRed]

Preston still not done as of 20/12/2019. Wigan North Western all done and looking good!

 

[185143]

I popped into a pendo at Piccadilly to use the facilities and the TM announced it as a "Avanti West Coast Virgin Trains" service!

 

[RealTrains07]

For the re branding that has already occurred at stations for things like displays and information stands.

Did they all just have vinyl put on them on launch day like some running boards at stations or is it paint??

how would you rebrand the ticket machines? I guess you just take components apart and put them back together

 

[Merle Haggard]

Avanti headrests covers have appeared on the Voyagers:





Curiously, they are quite different from the ones in Pendos.; the latter are white with a blue segment. The colour in my photo is distorted by the purple lights, but they're a sand colour

 

[NewSt]

Avanti headrests covers have appeared on the Voyagers:


View attachment 71903


Curiously, they are quite different from the ones in Pendos.; the latter are white with a blue segment. The colour in my photo is distorted by the purple lights, but they're a sand colour

Yes, like the Virgin ones on the voyagers after the first class refurb.

 

[Trainfan2019]

As of yesterday, there was still no sign of any Avanti branding/station signs at Crewe. Everything still looks like Virgin but without their name on. Also yesterday I still saw Avanti trains showing the VT lettering journey code e.g VT450 on the exterior electronic journey displays.

 

[Agent_Squash]

I don’t think the VT code will disappear for a long time yet. GNERs is still used for the East Coast operator!

 

[JaJaWa]

I don’t think the VT code will disappear for a long time yet. GNERs is still used for the East Coast operator!

I do find it a bit odd on the side of the train. Wouldn’t be surprised if they switched to just the number eg 450 instead of VT450.

 

[RealTrains07]

Update on refurbished/rebrand of the voyagers:

looks like contrary to what we heard before, they have got a refurb programme after all

(if this has been mentioned before, apologies, do tell me)

https://www.globalrailwayreview.com/news/94523/avanti-west-coast-maintained-bombardier/

Bombardier Transportation has signed a Train Services Agreement (TSA) contract with FirstGroup and Trenitalia for the maintenance of the new joint venture, the Avanti West Coast franchise, which began operation on 8 December 2019.

Under the new contract, which will run from 12 December 2019 to 11 December 2020, Bombardier will be required to maintain a fleet of 20 Bombardier Class 221 diesel-electric multiple unit (DEMU) trains.

Improvements will include each of the five-car trainsets receiving a comprehensive interior refresh and the fitting of an upgraded Wi-Fi system at Bombardier’s Ilford depot.

 

[Energy]

Update on refurbished/rebrand of the voyagers:

looks like contrary to what we heard before, they have got a refurb programme after all

(if this has been mentioned before, apologies, do tell me)

https://www.globalrailwayreview.com/news/94523/avanti-west-coast-maintained-bombardier/





so i guess the leather first class seats are only the beginning??

This was expected, the voyagers would be kept for a few more years so their would be a contract for maintenance and bombardier makes the most sense, the voyagers were already announced to have a light refurbishment

 

[Bletchleyite]

Now seen one of the branded Pendolinos in the metal (as it were), it works really nicely and is probably one of my favourite modern liveries now.

But for one thing - the A-with-triangle "device" still looks rubbish. It would definitely be better with just the triangle in that location minus the A.

 

[RealTrains07]

This was expected, the voyagers would be kept for a few more years so their would be a contract for maintenance and bombardier makes the most sense, the voyagers were already announced to have a light refurbishment

Well from what i heard on the thread before, clearly not alot of people thought that the voyagers would have a refurbishment considering they are not staying.

In terms of refurbishment this wasn’t expected i don’t think. Then again I cant why another company other than bombardier would get the contract for maintaining the trains let alone refurbishing them at all

 

[LeylandLen]

As of yesterday, there was still no sign of any Avanti branding/station signs at Crewe. Everything still looks like Virgin but without their name on. Also yesterday I still saw Avanti trains showing the VT lettering journey code e.g VT450 on the exterior electronic journey displays.

A lot of NR Tangomen working on tracks at Crewe Xmas day, so maybe the branding will be changed to Avanti as no passengers...

 

[Trainfan2019]

A lot of NR Tangomen working on tracks at Crewe Xmas day, so maybe the branding will be changed to Avanti as no passengers...

Ah thanks. I'm hoping for a transformed Crewe station when I'm next there.

 

[dk1]

Well it's been over two weeks & that livery & name is not growing on me. In fact it's doing the complete opposite. Comes close to horror & disappointment of that by National Express with the 'one' launch of 2004.

Modern Railways have picked up on the idiotic A on the outside against the logo which to occasional travellers could be conceived as the coach letter thus causing an own goal of unnecessary confusion.

 

[Merle Haggard]

I initially thought I picked up an inference that Avanti were trying to distance themselves from Voyagers but the new vestibule maps now distinguish Pendo. and Voyager operation by routes.
Perception of 'branding' is of course personal but the small details of darker place mats etc in first do give me an impression of dignity in contrast to the brashness of Virgin, but maybe that's because after 20 years the latter had become a little jaded. The repeated 'Beam' announcements (which often raised an audible grown in the carriage) have gone. Ahhhhh that's better.

 

[Merle Haggard]

On an extremely trivial matter I know; but 'Uglies'.
The observant might have noticed that the packaging has changed from blue to orange-red.
The old packaging showed Lily O'Briens as County Kildare but the new ones show Bedfordshire.
An example of a change to British sourced food, perhaps?

 

[RealTrains07]

I initially thought I picked up an inference that Avanti were trying to distance themselves from Voyagers but the new vestibule maps now distinguish Pendo. and Voyager operation by routes.
Perception of 'branding' is of course personal but the small details of darker place mats etc in first do give me an impression of dignity in contrast to the brashness of Virgin, but maybe that's because after 20 years the latter had become a little jaded. The repeated 'Beam' announcements (which often raised an audible grown in the carriage) have gone. Ahhhhh that's better.

Virgin already had distinguished what was pendo and voyager routes with their route maps.

you know all avanti have actually done is re colour the virgin route map right?

 

[Merle Haggard]

Virgin already had distinguished what was pendo and voyager routes with their route maps.

you know all avanti have actually done is re colour the virgin route map right?

I didn't realise that, sorry! Just shows how hard it is to remember what it used to be like, I thought it was new. Always interested how they show Northampton - a Voyager in the early morning and a set d/o Pendo late at night.

As regards the new colours for the routes; Avanti seem to have gone for more 'sober' colours and (apart from C and E route colours being rather similar) this has caused problems in the timetable booklet. For example, look at route A where, in the case of the morning xx43 services from Euston, white or black times are used to cope with the difficulty of having two shades of dark orange. Seems like using red is banned, for some reason... Or green.

 

[6Gman]

On an extremely trivial matter I know; but 'Uglies'.
The observant might have noticed that the packaging has changed from blue to orange-red.
The old packaging showed Lily O'Briens as County Kildare but the new ones show Bedfordshire.
An example of a change to British sourced food, perhaps?

I recognise all the words but can't actually make any sense of them ...

What are "uglies" ?
What's changed from blue to orange-red ?
Who is Lily O'Briens ?

 

[6Gman]

One significant issue is platform staff uniforms. Changed from Virgin red to a dark blue (?). Makes them difficult to identify on platforms.

So they've taken to wearing hi-viz ... but given how many others wear hi-viz ...

 

[Rhinojerry]

I recognise all the words but can't actually make any sense of them ...

What are "uglies" ?
What's changed from blue to orange-red ?
Who is Lily O'Briens ?

I think Uglies are the nice chocolates they give on board in First.