DanNCL
Established Member
Welcome to my new thread, Dan on the Rails! Here I will post reviews of different travel options across the UK (and eventually further afield!), as well as comparisons between different offerings on the same route, giving my recommendation on which service to use, and Airport rail link guides which rather than being reviews will simply be a guide as to the Airport-City rail link(s) on offer for that airport. I hope you all enjoy reading my reviews!
I will aim to post a new report every week, though this of course is subject to having the time free.
Upcoming reviews:
Newcastle - Wakefield: CrossCountry HST - Standard class
York - Newcastle: CrossCountry Voyager - First class
Journey TBC: LNER Azuma - Standard class
Journey TBC: Lumo - Standard class
Carlisle - Lancaster: Transpennine Express Nova 2 - Standard class
Manchester - Chesterfield: EMR Regional - Standard class
Upcoming comparison reports:
Newcastle - Middlesbrough: Train vs coach
Newcastle - Sunderland: Train vs Metro vs Bus
Upcoming Airport-City rail link guides:
Newcastle Airport - Newcastle City Centre
Let's start with my first report shall we!
This week's post will review LNER and Lumo between Newcastle and Morpeth. Other rail options are also available between Newcastle and Morpeth, as well as express buses, which I'll review in the future! Let's start with the LNER trip:
Journey: 16:42 Newcastle - Morpeth
Date of travel: 25/10/2021
Class of travel: Standard
Duration: 13 minutes
Vehicle: Hitachi Class 801 "Azuma" - 801212
Ticket: Off Peak Day Return - £4.15 with railcard discount
Introduction to the service
LNER are the "flagship" operator of long distance services on the East Coast Main Line. This company is owned by the Department for Transport's as an "Operator of Last Resort". Their fleet consists of 65 Class 800 and Class 801 "Azuma" trains, , as well as 7 older Intercity 225 sets (Class 91+Mark 4 coaches) which are now exclusively used on the Yorkshire routes - a detailed review of the offer onboard these trains is coming soon.
First impressions - 2/5
I already knew what to expect given that I've travelled on many of these trains before, but nonetheless I had my usual underwhelming feeling when I boarded the train. The colour scheme is wlecoming, but other than that the first impression wasn't a great one. The seats looked very uncomfortable, and you're greeted by unduly harsh lighting, both giving the interior a very cheap feel.
The seat - 1/5
The seating onboard these trains is of the "Fainsa Sophia" type. These seats, which are marketed by Fainsa as regional seats, are poor to say the least. Badly shaped, bolt upright, almost as firm as a concrete slab, and armrests far too low down to be of any use.
Legroom - 4/5
Decent for standard class. Plenty of room to strech your legs
Power outlets - 2/5
Two plug sockets of the standard UK design are provided underneath each pair of seats. The position of these sockets is such that they're incredibly awkward to use. The only redeeming feature of the power outlets were that there were two for each pair of seats.
Ride quality - 2/5
Whilst not unbearable, the ride quality of these trains is poor. There is a significant amount of side to side and up and down motion, more than should be expected on a modern high speed train.
Catering availability - 5/5
Both a buffet counter and an app ordering service to have refreshments delivered to your seat are available, and information about how to order catering to be delivered to your seat is readily available on the back of the seat infront.
Catering quality - did not use
Because of the short duration of the journey I did not use the available catering facilities, therefore it would not be fair for me to judge the quality of the catering on offer.
Tray table - 4/5
A decent size sturdy tray table is provided for all airline style seats, which includes an extendable section for laptops.
Wifi - did not use
Free wifi was available, though I did not use it.
Staff friendliness - 4/5
I had little interaction with the staff on this service but those I encountered were polite and professional.
Value for money - 4/5
Given the short journey I can't really complain about the poor comfort levels, especially considering the low price paid for this journey. I would be ranking this lower if the trip had been more expensive and/or over a longer distance.
Overall rating - 28/45 (62%)
Not terrible, but there's a lot of room for improvement. This service has a lot of potential which unfortunately much of it is unfulfilled. I wish I could rank LNER higher for this journey, but given my experience I can't.
Journey: 17:26 Morpeth - Newcastle
Date of travel: 25/10/2021
Class of travel: Standard
Duration: 14 minutes
Vehicle: Hitachi Class 803 - 803001
Ticket: Off Peak Day Return - £4.15 with railcard discount
Introduction to the service
Lumo is the UK's latest open access operator. Owned by First Group, Lumo launched operations on 25th October 2021, Lumo operates a small fleet of Hitachi Class 803 EMUs on a single route between London Kings Cross and Edinburgh, with intermediate stops at Stevenage, Newcastle and Morpeth.
First impressions - 4/5
My first impression when I boarded the train was a good one. The train was well loaded, though not overcrowded - it was great to see so many people trying out this new service. The ambience onboard the train was a relaxed one, the lighting bright but not too cold and with some purple mood lighting above the luggage racks too.
The seat - 4/5
For a standard class seat I was very impressed. The seat was relatively firm but not so firm as to be uncomfortable, and excellently shaped. The winged headrests were a nice touch, very soft, and not low enough to be a hinderance. The armrests were at a good height and were padded.
Legroom - 5/5
The best I've seen in standard class in the UK. Legroom was exceptionally good,
Power outlets - 4/5
A single UK style plug socket is available underneath the pair of seats infront of you, along with two USB sockets, providing three power outlets per pair of seats in total. The positioning of these sockets was brilliant.
Ride quality - 3/5
Though better than the other members of the Hitachi AT300 family, ride quality was still not that great. The slightly improved ride quality vs the other members of the AT300 may be down to the lack of a diesel engine adding extra weight.
Catering availability - 5/5
Both a trolley service and an app ordering service to have refreshments delivered to your seat are available, and information about how to order catering to be delivered to your seat was provided in the form of staff announcements
Catering quality - did not use
Because of the short duration of the journey I did not use the available catering facilities, therefore it would not be fair for me to judge the quality of the catering on offer.
Tray table - 4/5
A large tray table, possibly the largest I've seen in standard class, is provided for all airline style seats and is sturdy. The table extends outwards for laptops, however this was a bit stiff. Above the tray table is an LED light, which has two brightness settings and is easilly controlled by a button, this was a nice touch I thought!
Wifi - did not use
Free wifi was available, though I did not use it.
Staff friendliness - 4/5
I had little interaction with the staff on this service but those I encountered were polite and professional.
Value for money - 5/5
This was an excellent value for money option. The comfort levels were good, as were the staff. The only thing that lets the service down is the frequency but given that they're a startup company this can be excused.
Overall rating - 38/45 (84%)
Lumo in my opinion was very good (or as they would say "beyond expectations"). I hope to review Lumo on a longer journey in the not too distant future!
--
Please feel free to leave feedback on this review. I am looking for ways to improve my reviews going forwards, as I know both of these reviews are relatively brief.
Thanks for taking the time to read this post!
I will aim to post a new report every week, though this of course is subject to having the time free.
Upcoming reviews:
Newcastle - Wakefield: CrossCountry HST - Standard class
York - Newcastle: CrossCountry Voyager - First class
Journey TBC: LNER Azuma - Standard class
Journey TBC: Lumo - Standard class
Carlisle - Lancaster: Transpennine Express Nova 2 - Standard class
Manchester - Chesterfield: EMR Regional - Standard class
Upcoming comparison reports:
Newcastle - Middlesbrough: Train vs coach
Newcastle - Sunderland: Train vs Metro vs Bus
Upcoming Airport-City rail link guides:
Newcastle Airport - Newcastle City Centre
Let's start with my first report shall we!
East Coast Short Hop - LNER vs Lumo
This week's post will review LNER and Lumo between Newcastle and Morpeth. Other rail options are also available between Newcastle and Morpeth, as well as express buses, which I'll review in the future! Let's start with the LNER trip:
LNER:
Journey: 16:42 Newcastle - Morpeth
Date of travel: 25/10/2021
Class of travel: Standard
Duration: 13 minutes
Vehicle: Hitachi Class 801 "Azuma" - 801212
Ticket: Off Peak Day Return - £4.15 with railcard discount
Introduction to the service
LNER are the "flagship" operator of long distance services on the East Coast Main Line. This company is owned by the Department for Transport's as an "Operator of Last Resort". Their fleet consists of 65 Class 800 and Class 801 "Azuma" trains, , as well as 7 older Intercity 225 sets (Class 91+Mark 4 coaches) which are now exclusively used on the Yorkshire routes - a detailed review of the offer onboard these trains is coming soon.
First impressions - 2/5
I already knew what to expect given that I've travelled on many of these trains before, but nonetheless I had my usual underwhelming feeling when I boarded the train. The colour scheme is wlecoming, but other than that the first impression wasn't a great one. The seats looked very uncomfortable, and you're greeted by unduly harsh lighting, both giving the interior a very cheap feel.
The seat - 1/5
The seating onboard these trains is of the "Fainsa Sophia" type. These seats, which are marketed by Fainsa as regional seats, are poor to say the least. Badly shaped, bolt upright, almost as firm as a concrete slab, and armrests far too low down to be of any use.
Legroom - 4/5
Decent for standard class. Plenty of room to strech your legs
Power outlets - 2/5
Two plug sockets of the standard UK design are provided underneath each pair of seats. The position of these sockets is such that they're incredibly awkward to use. The only redeeming feature of the power outlets were that there were two for each pair of seats.
Ride quality - 2/5
Whilst not unbearable, the ride quality of these trains is poor. There is a significant amount of side to side and up and down motion, more than should be expected on a modern high speed train.
Catering availability - 5/5
Both a buffet counter and an app ordering service to have refreshments delivered to your seat are available, and information about how to order catering to be delivered to your seat is readily available on the back of the seat infront.
Catering quality - did not use
Because of the short duration of the journey I did not use the available catering facilities, therefore it would not be fair for me to judge the quality of the catering on offer.
Tray table - 4/5
A decent size sturdy tray table is provided for all airline style seats, which includes an extendable section for laptops.
Wifi - did not use
Free wifi was available, though I did not use it.
Staff friendliness - 4/5
I had little interaction with the staff on this service but those I encountered were polite and professional.
Value for money - 4/5
Given the short journey I can't really complain about the poor comfort levels, especially considering the low price paid for this journey. I would be ranking this lower if the trip had been more expensive and/or over a longer distance.
Overall rating - 28/45 (62%)
Not terrible, but there's a lot of room for improvement. This service has a lot of potential which unfortunately much of it is unfulfilled. I wish I could rank LNER higher for this journey, but given my experience I can't.
Lumo:
Journey: 17:26 Morpeth - Newcastle
Date of travel: 25/10/2021
Class of travel: Standard
Duration: 14 minutes
Vehicle: Hitachi Class 803 - 803001
Ticket: Off Peak Day Return - £4.15 with railcard discount
Introduction to the service
Lumo is the UK's latest open access operator. Owned by First Group, Lumo launched operations on 25th October 2021, Lumo operates a small fleet of Hitachi Class 803 EMUs on a single route between London Kings Cross and Edinburgh, with intermediate stops at Stevenage, Newcastle and Morpeth.
First impressions - 4/5
My first impression when I boarded the train was a good one. The train was well loaded, though not overcrowded - it was great to see so many people trying out this new service. The ambience onboard the train was a relaxed one, the lighting bright but not too cold and with some purple mood lighting above the luggage racks too.
The seat - 4/5
For a standard class seat I was very impressed. The seat was relatively firm but not so firm as to be uncomfortable, and excellently shaped. The winged headrests were a nice touch, very soft, and not low enough to be a hinderance. The armrests were at a good height and were padded.
Legroom - 5/5
The best I've seen in standard class in the UK. Legroom was exceptionally good,
Power outlets - 4/5
A single UK style plug socket is available underneath the pair of seats infront of you, along with two USB sockets, providing three power outlets per pair of seats in total. The positioning of these sockets was brilliant.
Ride quality - 3/5
Though better than the other members of the Hitachi AT300 family, ride quality was still not that great. The slightly improved ride quality vs the other members of the AT300 may be down to the lack of a diesel engine adding extra weight.
Catering availability - 5/5
Both a trolley service and an app ordering service to have refreshments delivered to your seat are available, and information about how to order catering to be delivered to your seat was provided in the form of staff announcements
Catering quality - did not use
Because of the short duration of the journey I did not use the available catering facilities, therefore it would not be fair for me to judge the quality of the catering on offer.
Tray table - 4/5
A large tray table, possibly the largest I've seen in standard class, is provided for all airline style seats and is sturdy. The table extends outwards for laptops, however this was a bit stiff. Above the tray table is an LED light, which has two brightness settings and is easilly controlled by a button, this was a nice touch I thought!
Wifi - did not use
Free wifi was available, though I did not use it.
Staff friendliness - 4/5
I had little interaction with the staff on this service but those I encountered were polite and professional.
Value for money - 5/5
This was an excellent value for money option. The comfort levels were good, as were the staff. The only thing that lets the service down is the frequency but given that they're a startup company this can be excused.
Overall rating - 38/45 (84%)
Lumo in my opinion was very good (or as they would say "beyond expectations"). I hope to review Lumo on a longer journey in the not too distant future!
My recommendation:
If given the choice, I would choose Lumo. That said, LNER isn't a terrible option, and I would be happy to use them again for this journey.--
Please feel free to leave feedback on this review. I am looking for ways to improve my reviews going forwards, as I know both of these reviews are relatively brief.
Thanks for taking the time to read this post!
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