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Long Distance Single Class 153 Working

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Turbo004

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I am intrigued about long distance Class 153 workings particularly on Main Lines. At one time there was a Central Trains service to Manchester Airport. I remember seeing on a number of occasions but forget where it originated from. Does anyone know?

Pre Covid I believe there was a Shrewsbury - Newport service via Llanelli. Am I right and was this often a 153?

Pre privatisation I recall catching a single Class 153 from York to Newcastle late at night. Does anyone if this was regularly booked for a single Class 153?
Finally currently the 21.56 Cardiff - Crewe service is booked for a single Class 153. This is due to demand being very low due to lockdown. Often though they attach other units to it to transfer units North. On at least one occasion last week it ran as a single Class 153. Does anyone else have recollections of single Class 153’s running long distances on Main Lines.
 
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LowLevel

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They were diagrammed on Skegness to Manchester Airport via Nottingham, Derby and Crewe under Central Trains.
 

PHILIPE

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I am intrigued about long distance Class 153 workings particularly on Main Lines. At one time there was a Central Trains service to Manchester Airport. I remember seeing on a number of occasions but forget where it originated from. Does anyone know?

Pre Covid I believe there was a Shrewsbury - Newport service via Llanelli. Am I right and was this often a 153?

Pre privatisation I recall catching a single Class 153 from York to Newcastle late at night. Does anyone if this was regularly booked for a single Class 153?
Finally currently the 21.56 Cardiff - Crewe service is booked for a single Class 153. This is due to demand being very low due to lockdown. Often though they attach other units to it to transfer units North. On at least one occasion last week it ran as a single Class 153. Does anyone else have recollections of single Class 153’s running long distances on Main Lines.


It is correct that a 153 worked from Shrewsbury to Newport via HOWL and was booked. Pre COVID there was a 1720 Crewe to Cardiff via HOWL and in about 2001/2 there was a Cheltenham to Shrewsbury via Cardiff, Swansea and HOWL which was in reality a set of shorter journeys lumped together. The 2155 Cardiff to Crewe has to convey a 150 to change over the Wrexham to Bidstons.
 

Turbo004

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That’s interesting about the Class 153 from Cheltenham to Shrewsbury via HOW.

I was informed by a reliable source that the 21.55 Cardiff - Crewe is now booked for a single 153. On the three nights I worked last week on one occasion it was a single 153. The Wrexham - Bidston is reduced to two hourly at the moment. Could it be that a 150 does not need to run every night on the 21.55 Cardiff - Crewe and just on certain nights.
 

PHILIPE

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That’s interesting about the Class 153 from Cheltenham to Shrewsbury via HOW.

I was informed by a reliable source that the 21.55 Cardiff - Crewe is now booked for a single 153. On the three nights I worked last week on one occasion it was a single 153. The Wrexham - Bidston is reduced to two hourly at the moment. Could it be that a 150 does not need to run every night on the 21.55 Cardiff - Crewe and just on certain nights.

What actually happens and what is diagrammed are not always be the same. There would have to be a 150 diagrammed to provide a robust plan to enable a change over but perhaps on the nights it has been a single 153 there was no need to change over. There are 2 coaches tonight.
 

sd0733

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What actually happens and what is diagrammed are not always be the same. There would have to be a 150 diagrammed to provide a robust plan to enable a change over but perhaps on the nights it has been a single 153 there was no need to change over. There are 2 coaches tonight.
There are certain nights at the moment where the 21:55 is booked a 153 with no attachment, it certainly is booked on a Monday to be 1 car and has been too.
Previously it was booked 2x150 when Bidston was hourly but even then anything and everything could run.
Its comes off Canton so in reality it doesnt matter whats diagramed any unit thats ready can be sent out on it by control if its needed in the North.
Last night it was booked 150+153 with the 153 detaching at Shrewsbury but it ran with just the 150 throughout. 1V99 the last Shrewsbury to Cardiff is also booked single 153s some nights, they are essentially the swap.overs so if nothing goes down nothing needs to come up.
 

Iskra

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Peterborough-Lincoln was quite a long journey and was/is operated by single 153's until recently.

I've also had a leaky one on Carlisle-Barrow which is a long duration journey even if the distance isn't all that far.

I also had a single one on a Lancaster-Leeds service that was full and standing by Gargrave.
 

dk1

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The first Nottingham-Ipswich of the day was always booked for a 153. Several have worked through to Norwich over the years from there too if the booked through working from Liverpool was restarted due to late running.
 

PHILIPE

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There are certain nights at the moment where the 21:55 is booked a 153 with no attachment, it certainly is booked on a Monday to be 1 car and has been too.
Previously it was booked 2x150 when Bidston was hourly but even then anything and everything could run.
Its comes off Canton so in reality it doesnt matter whats diagramed any unit thats ready can be sent out on it by control if its needed in the North.
Last night it was booked 150+153 with the 153 detaching at Shrewsbury but it ran with just the 150 throughout. 1V99 the last Shrewsbury to Cardiff is also booked single 153s some nights, they are essentially the swap.overs so if nothing goes down nothing needs to come up.


Thanks for the comprehensive info and explanation. Obviously booked differently according to the day of week
 
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LowLevel

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The 1154 Peterborough to Doncaster via Lincoln was also booked 153 until 2020 at over 90 miles.

2105 Spalding to Nottingham at about 80 miles as well.
 

Sprinter107

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Back in the 1996 / 1997 era, the 08.39 Hereford to Grimsby Town was a booked 153. It was very overcrowded by Great Malvern, I worked it numerous times. There was a notice at Worcester Foregate Street (09.22 off there) advising of limited accommodation, and advising Birmingham passengers that the following 09.34 would be less crowded. It was soon upgraded to a 156.

Around the same time maybe a year or 2 earlier, there was an 08.58 Birmingham New Street to Fishguard run by Regional Railways South Wales and West, and was booked a Canton 153. If I remember correctly, it only ran for one or two timetable periods. The couple of times I caught it from New Street it was very lightly loaded.
 

LowLevel

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Back in the 1996 / 1997 era, the 08.39 Hereford to Grimsby Town was a booked 153. It was very overcrowded by Great Malvern, I worked it numerous times. There was a notice at Worcester Foregate Street (09.22 off there) advising of limited accommodation, and advising Birmingham passengers that the following 09.34 would be less crowded. It was soon upgraded to a 156.

Around the same time maybe a year or 2 earlier, there was an 08.58 Birmingham New Street to Fishguard run by Regional Railways South Wales and West, and was booked a Canton 153. If I remember correctly, it only ran for one or two timetable periods. The couple of times I caught it from New Street it was very lightly loaded.

I remember seeing a Saturday morning Fishguard train at New St around then - I seem to remember it was at the other end of the platform to our Cambridge train, off to Ely to change for Norwich and Yarmouth like all decent West Midlanders before my mum discovered Majorca ( :lol: ) although on that occasion it was a 158.

It was the year New St had it's unfortunate fire, we got turfed off at Nuneaton on the way home and ended up on a West Coast loco hauled set diverted to Wolves via Stafford.
 

Wilts Wanderer

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It wasn’t diagrammed but the short lived Arriva Trains Northern service between Leeds and Glasgow Central via the S&C produced a 158+153 combo on one occasion, which I believe is the only occasion that a Leyland Super Sprinter has operated north of the border.
 

LowLevel

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It wasn’t diagrammed but the short lived Arriva Trains Northern service between Leeds and Glasgow Central via the S&C produced a 158+153 combo on one occasion, which I believe is the only occasion that a Leyland Super Sprinter has operated north of the border.

In their early days they used to work the Carlisle to Dumfries services.
 

Wilts Wanderer

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In their early days they used to work the Carlisle to Dumfries services.

Fascinating, another little snippet I never knew. I would have assumed such working were covered by the Corkerhill 156 fleet but I guess it made sense for something a bit more ‘local’ to cover it. Technically a Regional Railways sector unit on hire to Scotrail sector?
 

LowLevel

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Fascinating, another little snippet I never knew. I would have assumed such working were covered by the Corkerhill 156 fleet but I guess it made sense for something a bit more ‘local’ to cover it. Technically a Regional Railways sector unit on hire to Scotrail sector?

To this day I think the route is partially covered by "North West" or as it is these days "Northern - West" crews and units from Carlisle (until North West and North East were joined together with the advert of Northern, historically Newton Heath units though I suppose nowadays they're probably from Heaton).

I believe the booked traction is 156 but until a few years ago 142s would occasionally sub.
 

Sprinter107

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I remember seeing a Saturday morning Fishguard train at New St around then - I seem to remember it was at the other end of the platform to our Cambridge train, off to Ely to change for Norwich and Yarmouth like all decent West Midlanders before my mum discovered Majorca ( :lol: ) although on that occasion it was a 158.

It was the year New St had it's unfortunate fire, we got turfed off at Nuneaton on the way home and ended up on a West Coast loco hauled set diverted to Wolves via Stafford.
I think it was eventually diagrammed for a Canton 158 before it disappeared altogether.
 

Anvil1984

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To this day I think the route is partially covered by "North West" or as it is these days "Northern - West" crews and units from Carlisle (until North West and North East were joined together with the advert of Northern, historically Newton Heath units though I suppose nowadays they're probably from Heaton).

I believe the booked traction is 156 but until a few years ago 142s would occasionally sub.

Off topic but just to pick up on this but since privatisation Carlisle crews have been classed as East Side (RRNE/ Northern Spirit/ ATN and onwards), this is why Carlisle crews don’t sign Cumbria Coast which is RRNW / West side domain. The units would’ve been east side based (or Scottish based) as they are today...

Getting slightly back on topic Heaton did have a set of class 153s back in the day (until mid 90s) and it wasn’t unusual to see them solo on runs to Carlisle and Saltburn via Darlington which are an hour and a half each (and the nighttime to York already mentioned)
 

LowLevel

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Off topic but just to pick up on this but since privatisation Carlisle crews have been classed as East Side (RRNE/ Northern Spirit/ ATN and onwards), this is why Carlisle crews don’t sign Cumbria Coast which is RRNW / West side domain. The units would’ve been east side based (or Scottish based) as they are today...

Getting slightly back on topic Heaton did have a set of class 153s back in the day (until mid 90s) and it wasn’t unusual to see them solo on runs to Carlisle and Saltburn via Darlington which are an hour and a half each (and the nighttime to York already mentioned)

Ah OK - I was under the impression FNW had a Carlisle presence but I suppose this was actually Workington. Disregard most of what I said then, or at least transpose east for west :lol:
 

Watershed

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The units would’ve been east side based (or Scottish based) as they are today...
Although worth noting that all the Cumbrian Coast services are worked by Heaton based units, so a bit of crossover between the two silos there.
 

Dave91131

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Up until around 2005/6 (I think) single 153's were booked on Ipswich - Peterborough services on a daily basis.

Over 80 miles and around 1hr 45mins.

In the late 90's I also had one from Stamford to Peterborough vice 156/8 on a service from Birmingham. It was a Stansted Airport service but I can't remember if it went through or terminated at Cambridge.

Are / were they cleared to Stansted?
 

D6130

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A comparatively shorter journey, but still a longish main line job.....153s are frequently used on the Sheffield-York via Pontefract Baghill service - or at least were at the time of my early retirement in 2012. 47 miles and nearly one and a half hours each way.
 

Wilts Wanderer

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Wessex Trains also routinely diagrammed single 153 units to the Weymouth-Bristol ‘Heart of Wessex’ line, which was approx 2.5 hours each way. In summer the diagrams were usually strengthened with 150 units, up to 5 cars on the busiest Saturday trains. On weekdays the odd train went through to Filton Abbey Wood in the peaks. (This was before the Westbury line stopper was joined up to the Gloucester line stopper under FGW.)
 

Bonemaster

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In the central trains days there was an early morning Northampton - Grimsby Town that was often a single 153. Total distance of around 195 miles, and more than cosy for a Coventry to New Street commute.
 

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In the late 90s/early naughties there was a Newquay to Cardiff service which was booked as a 153
 

Bevan Price

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Before the Class 350s arrived, I once travelled partway on a Birmingham / Liverpool service worked by a pair of 153s. I am not sure if had come through from Stansted, or started from New Street in lieu of a cancelled service.
 

Mag_seven

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I'm sure the early morning Bristol Parkway to Penzance service must have produced a 153 from time to time.
 

PHILIPE

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In Wales and West days there was a Manchester Picc to Penzance worked by a 158 which combined at Newport with a portion from Milford Haven which was 153 worked. Due to a failure of the 158 one day, the 153 worked singly from Milford Haven to Penzance.
 

NoMorePacers

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I'm aware of a single 153 turning up on a Leeds-Carlisle working at least once.

Some 153s have turned up on Sheffield-Scarborough services, however as far as I can tell they've always been paired (with a classmate or another unit) so probably don't count.
 
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