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Trivia - Longest Scheduled Working Without Catering?

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Deepgreen

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A friend recently travelled on the 1041 Great Malvern to Brighton (arr. 1613) working and asked me if it might be the UK's longest journey without on-board catering. Over to the hive brain...
 
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FenMan

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13:00 Cardiff Central to Penzance arrive 18:40 a few minutes longer

I've no idea if refreshments are on offer (I suspect not) but the M-F 0554 from Milford Haven arrives in Manchester Piccadilly at 1213.

6h19m.

Strike that: The early morning return journey is 6h22m.
 
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Jamesrob637

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Something across the Siberian plains

The OP didn't specify the UK! :D
 

tomwills98

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I've no idea if refreshments are on offer (I suspect not) but the M-F 0554 from Milford Haven arrives in Manchester Piccadilly at 1213.

6h19m.

Strike that: The early morning return journey is 6h22m.
There's a trolley booked for that service, but where it boards or if it turns up is a different matter.
 

Right Away

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A friend recently travelled on the 1041 Great Malvern to Brighton (arr. 1613) working and asked me if it might be the UK's longest journey without on-board catering. Over to the hive brain...
On a weekday there is *scheduled to be* a trolley service between Bristol Temple Meads and Fareham. The crew member and trolley travel from Newport to Bristol on a preceding service and travel from Fareham to Portsmouth Harbour on a following service. I am not sure whether one is provided on a Saturday though.
 

Ianno87

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Can't recall whether the 0624 Bristol Temple Meads-Stansted Airport (1141) gains a trolley at any point in its journey? If not, possibly the longest one based on distance (rather than time)?
 

sd0733

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The 1720 Crewe to Cardiff via Heart of Wales arrives at 2337 so a journey of 6hrs 17 and that's not booked any catering AFAIK.
 

WesternLancer

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Something across the Siberian plains

The OP didn't specify the UK! :D
such a trip would probably have much better catering than anything in the UK!

Does it need to be edible? As otherwise a few inter city TOCs (XC esp) might qualify :lol:
 

DanNCL

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Whitby to Carlisle (and vice versa) on a Sunday has to be a contender. Journey time of nearly 5 hours, no catering, and until last month quite often a bench seat pacer too! o_O
 

John C

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There's a trolley booked for that service, but where it boards or if it turns up is a different matter.

The trolley service on the Marches route from my observation joins at Newport and alights at Shrewsbury and vice versa. Not sure if a trolley service is in place on the West Wales section of the route.
 

Enthusiast

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Not a proper answer to the question but last summer my nephew and his wife booked to take the 8:20am Cross Country Aberdeen to Penzance service (just to say they had completed the longest single journey in the UK). The problems started at Aberdeen because they found out the service was starting from Edinburgh which they reached on an LNER service by the skin of their teeth. No refreshments on the train. Promises of some to come later down the line were repeatedly broken. More than ten hours with no victuals was a bit of a haul. But it didn't matter. At Leeds (or thereabouts) it was announced that the train would be terminating at Taunton so, with the purpose of their journey already slaughtered, they got off at Derby and made their way home.
 

221129

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Not a proper answer to the question but last summer my nephew and his wife booked to take the 8:20am Cross Country Aberdeen to Penzance service (just to say they had completed the longest single journey in the UK). The problems started at Aberdeen because they found out the service was starting from Edinburgh which they reached on an LNER service by the skin of their teeth. No refreshments on the train. Promises of some to come later down the line were repeatedly broken. More than ten hours with no victuals was a bit of a haul. But it didn't matter. At Leeds (or thereabouts) it was announced that the train would be terminating at Taunton so, with the purpose of their journey already slaughtered, they got off at Derby and made their way home.
I dont believe that between Edinburgh and Derby there was no catering on that service.
 

Mark Carter

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The trolley service on the Marches route from my observation joins at Newport and alights at Shrewsbury and vice versa. Not sure if a trolley service is in place on the West Wales section of the route.
There is a catering depot at Carmarthen, but there is usually no catering westbound from there
 

Howardh

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Journeys which have partial service along the route don't count!

NB not sure which part of the forum this should be in, if it's wrong I'm sure it will find it's way home!!
 

Fincra5

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Victoria to Southampton (via Barnham) on SN is up there i'm sure. 2hr27 Journey.
 

D365

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What’s the longest possible Thameslink service?
 

Mitchell Hurd

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I can beat the longest reported on here - twice I caught the approximate 9am from Didcot Parkway to Liskeard (30/09/18 and 02/06/19) and twice there was no catering. On the 02/06/19 the train manager announced it after the train left Swindon - until then there was no notice or information at Didcot. Luckily I had breakfast before then and food and drink with me.

The 16:31 from Liskeard to Reading on the 30/09/18 (8-car HST) had no catering.

It was probably during 2018 / early 2019 when on JourneyCheck there was a XC Glasgow Central to Plymouth service saying 'Catering is not available throughout'.

Catering is much more reliable on weekdays on GWR services - Saturday 1st February a few weeks back to and from Oxford and Great Malvern there was catering in both Standard and First Class.
 

dk1

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Can't recall whether the 0624 Bristol Temple Meads-Stansted Airport (1141) gains a trolley at any point in its journey? If not, possibly the longest one based on distance (rather than time)?
Nuneaton to Stansted I think.
 
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