TreacleMiller
Member
Stilton? It isn't THAT bad.
The worth riding part of track on an 8XX is Huntingdon, approaching it from the North. Especially on 801 they bounce side to side to the point I now drop my speed through that bit.
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Horrendous Hull Trains East Coast ride
- Thread starter ricoblade
- Start date
Stilton? It isn't THAT bad.
The worth riding part of track on an 8XX is Huntingdon, approaching it from the North. Especially on 801 they bounce side to side to the point I now drop my speed through that bit.
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Wilts Wanderer
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Thats definitely true, didn’t certain Mk1 vehicles receive Gresley bogies (possibly restaurant cars) in the decade before Commonwealth bogies came along?
Travelmonkey
Member
The 350/2 units are a bit naff be glad to see them gone,
As for the ECML I found its rougher on the 180s more bouncy than the 802s Hull Trains use.
Sad Sprinter
Established Member
Yes I went on an IET late last year out of Paddington and began to genuinely fear for my life at West Drayton. Even the carriage vestibule doors couldn’t stay closed from the violent shaking.
Sun Chariot
Established Member
A quick "Off Topic"
-Yes, a few RUs received Gresleys instead of BR2s. Running numbers are on RMWeb's "Bachmann RU" thread. I've also seen them listed elsewhere.
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Sun Chariot
Established Member
I've flown on dilapidated Aeroflot aircraft in a better condition than that....
uglymonkey
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On the GWR , I feel sorry for anyone disabled or who has a bad back - the lurches, sudden, sharp are awful. Still the DfT don't mind. I bet none of the department has ever ridden on one !
I've flown on dilapidated Aeroflot aircraft in a better condition than that....
I know the 800s aren’t universally popular, but the hyperbole on this forum beggars belief at times.
Sad Sprinter
Established Member
I know the 800s aren’t universally popular, but the hyperbole on this forum beggars belief at times.
Ah, but you weren't on that train...
All I can say is, if the GWML makes you fear for your life, you should avoid the MML like the plague!
uglymonkey
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My comments were accurate not exaggerating !
Sun Chariot
Established Member
Although one of the Aeroflot's overhead luggage pods fell to the cabin floor, at least its doors stayed closed.I know the 800s aren’t universally popular, but the hyperbole on this forum beggars belief at times.
Although one of the Aeroflot's overhead luggage pods fell to the cabin floor, at least its doors stayed closed.
I bet that experience was a lot more interesting than travelling on an IET, to be fair!
Sun Chariot
Established Member
It certainly involved needing more vodka....
One journey last year on an IET through Hayes was the only time in 40+ years of very regular train travel I have genuinely been concerned that the train had derailed, it was that severe. It seems to vary significantly between units and also which carriage you are in, but hyperbole? NoI know the 800s aren’t universally popular, but the hyperbole on this forum beggars belief at times.
Sad Sprinter
Established Member
Yes same with me, I thought we were going to come off the rails the carriage was so unstable. I asked the train manager what on earth was going on and in a slightly shaky voice assured me this was normal...
cactustwirly
Established Member
I've done Paddington to Reading many many times in an IET.
I don't see what the issue is, the ride is not as good as a HST but it's pretty good. Much better than a Voyager or Meridian and certainly a completely different ballgame to the 345s which are by far the worst riding trains I have been on
I don't see what the issue is, the ride is not as good as a HST but it's pretty good. Much better than a Voyager or Meridian and certainly a completely different ballgame to the 345s which are by far the worst riding trains I have been on
Not just me then!
I returned last night on the 18:48 Hull Trains ex King' Cross and didn't notice any rough riding at all. Maybe this was due to it being a 10 (2x5) car set or maybe it's just the southbound?
I'm back to London on LNER Monday morning so will see if i notice on their service.
The Bury line definitely wasn’t maintained properly…
As per other posters on this thread - it is extremely variable - and from my own experience I disagree that "fearing for your life" is hyperbolic to describe what IETs occasionally seem to do.
I've traveled this line probably a thousand times over a few decades - plus the length most other UK mainlines albeit much less frequently, travelling on business. The only time I've momentarily feared for my life on a train was on an IET between Reading and Paddington.
It was always fairly bouncy and lurchy on HSTs to be fair. Also, in general on IETs it varies from surprisingly smooth to broadly rather harsh and jittery with a tendency to hunt and occasional (presumed) bottoming out of the suspension.
However, from time to time and seemingly at random, things can go to a different level. A few years ago, I was on an IET on this stretch which started prolonged violent lateral and vertical shaking plus alarmingly loud banging from bogies/underfloor equipment to a point where I'd already located the emergency handle. I was hovering around the trigger point for pulling it despite a very British fear of public humiliation for overreacting. What happened at Eschede came to mind. Other passengers were popping up from their seats wide-eyed and ashen faced and a few moved to other carriages.
More recently, most journeys have been relatively smooth. Also, I've increasingly tended to sit in the front carriage of the train for other reasons, with the driver not far away. My logic is if the person with the brakes literally to hand is conscious and not bricking it, it's probably fine.
takethegame
Member
I used to travel regularly in the front coach from PBO to KGX and definitely came much closer to wearing my complimentary coffee on a HST than on a 225. Alas since COVID first struck, I WFH full-time so never got a chance to try it on a 80x
Wilts Wanderer
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What is the laughter for? I have also experienced that level of concern while travelling at 125mph on Class 80x on the GWML, due to the unnerving motion of the carriage. On more than one occasion I’ve moved carriages, and on one particular occasion I felt compelled to leave the service at Reading and wait 30 minutes for another train home. Whilst at an entirely rational level you know ‘it’s probably ok, just a bad set’, you don’t really know, do you! Some of us remember the accidents of the late 90s / early 00s and it’s not unreasonable to wonder if you’re about to personally experience the next such event.
The front coach on an HST was legendary for the rough ride, you get the bounce of the leading power car transmitted through the coupler. Going into London there was definitely two grades of First Class with the two FOs at the front of the train having notably different levels of ride quality!
Deepgreen
Established Member
This extensive talk of extreme rough riding these days is a concern. One wonders how far from a derailment such rough riding really is - if a not-too-remote chance meeting of circumstances happened, I can see it being a real possibility. Hunting/rhythmical swaying only needs to get to a certain intensity and then a crossing or slightly sub-standard section of track is traversed for it go sideways (literally). It really is pretty poor that in the modern age, rough riding is still a concern on major routes (not to mention the discomfort of passengers!). I cannot help thinking that lightweight bogies may come back to bite us.
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43096
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So legendary, that I've never heard anyone mention it, ever, until now. And that is after both travelling many tens of thousands of miles in the leading vehicle of an HST and it has never come up in any conversation I have had with people who have travelled on them far more than I have. No trailer vehicle in an HST can be said to have anything like a rough ride unless it was completely knackered - indeed the Mark 3/BT10 remains the epitome of ride quality (which is frankly embarrassing to what has come since given the design is over 50 years old!).
Strathclyder
Established Member
They look the part, but the ride quality leaves much to be desired, as I found out when I travelled on one between Glasgow Central & Manchester Piccadilly en-route to visit a close friend in the East Midlands for a couple days in November 2022. I should've expected as much given they're CAF, but by oath, trying to use the loo (I think between Penrith & Oxenholme) was a barrel of chuckles. The ride did improve somewhat south of Preston and on to Bolton and Manchester, but still not brilliant.
Multiple factors to consider here and of course there's a lot of variance - could have been a particularly bad set I ended up with headed south for all I know; don't remember the 397 I had headed north being quite as bad - but the EMR 158s I had in both directions on the Manchester <-> Alfreton leg and the SR 320 on the Glasgow - Clydebank leg on the way home all rode better overall and handled any rough track they encountered a lot better.
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