Class 333s

WestCoast · 28 Oct 2011

Anyone else like these Siemens/CAF units? I think they're underrated!

As seen in my current avatar, these are my favourite modern commuter EMUs. They somehow manage to have a comfortable 3-2 seating layout, they look very sleek (more modern than Electrostars IMHO) and are just generally pleasant to travel on.

Their only major fault in my view is the lack of corridor connection, although this would spoil their look I suppose!

I really wish Northern were getting more of these units, rather than second hand 319s! :cry:

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Railguy220 · 28 Oct 2011

I love the class 333's! There should definatly be more of them. I can't compare them to any other EMU as it's the only one i've been on. :roll: But they are excellent at what they do and they look superb! 8-)

Pity they are confined to the commuter lines of Leeds and not more widespread.

Oswyntail · 28 Oct 2011

Underrated? I have never heard or seen any criticism of them. As you say, they combine comfort with design. This is why other parts of the Northern empire have been casting greedy looks our way for some time.

150222 · 28 Oct 2011

I second your thoughts. Easily the best EMU in service today.

150001 · 28 Oct 2011

Same, love the look but never been on them or seen them in real life! Have to get one soon!

WestCoast · 28 Oct 2011

Oswyntail said:
Underrated? I have never heard or seen any criticism of them. As you say, they combine comfort with design. This is why other parts of the Northern empire have been casting greedy looks our way for some time.

No, you don't hear criticism, but then you don't seem to hear much about them, they are rarely mentioned as an example of good design. I suppose this is because the fleet isn't large in size and operates only on a few lines. So, most people on the forums or elsewhere don't travel on them at all.

I'm jealous, since old 319s won't be as good, but they still will be warmly welcomed to Lancashire!

brad465 · 28 Oct 2011

I've heard they have fancy interiors and good features on Heathrow Express, but to be honest I believe many are nor woth having for a 20 minute journey in my opinion.

T163R · 28 Oct 2011

I don't really like the design of the 332/333s. They look a bit dull...

JamesHorrell · 28 Oct 2011

Well As I Travel on them everyday to and from my school i like them as they are powerful and fast and also nice to be in.

WestCoast · 28 Oct 2011

brad465 said:
I've heard they have fancy interiors and good features on Heathrow Express, but to be honest I believe many are nor woth having for a 20 minute journey in my opinion.

HEX units are class 332s actually. The interiors are very fancy but they are designed for a very different purpose.
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T163R said:
I don't really like the design of the 332/333s. They look a bit dull...

Dull? You're entitled to your opinion of course, but I've never heard them called that before! If they are dull, then Desiros and Electrostars must be even duller...

They are probably the sleekest UK design IMHO of commuter EMU.

We don't have the likes of Stadtler FLIRTs or Bombardier TALENTs over here!

T163R · 28 Oct 2011

Stadler trains are beautiful

yorksrob · 28 Oct 2011

Yeah, I like them - and that's quite an admission, bearing in mind I was rather fond of the 308's which they replaced.

That said - my one criticism is that they need more than one loo - particularly as most of the stations they serve don't have one.

northernrail · 28 Oct 2011

Ive got 0 mileage on the 333's but this threads given me the thought that i should head up to Leeds and try them out, What routes are they Dedicated to?

ainsworth74 · 28 Oct 2011

northernrail said:
What routes are they Dedicated to?

Leeds to Ilkley/Skipton/Bradford Forster Square and the services between them.

sprite · 28 Oct 2011

Leeds to Bradford Forster Square
Leeds to Ilkey
Leeds to Skipton
(Leeds to Doncaster usually a 321)
Bradford Forster Square to Ilkley
Bradford Forster Square to Skipton

yorksrob · 28 Oct 2011

Leeds to Skipton and Leeds to Guiseley - or if you're not sure whether you'll like them and want a short hop, Leeds to Bradford Forster Square.

ainsworth74 · 28 Oct 2011

Well between us I think we've got it covered :lol:

yorksrob · 28 Oct 2011

I'd be rubbish on a gameshow quickfire round

whhistle · 30 Oct 2011

I too echo the comments that it's a shame there are not more of them.
I love the look (the cabs are blue, no boring grey), and the "bubble" front screen looks different to any other train. For this, it is attractive.

317666 · 30 Oct 2011

I must agree that 333s are the best modern EMUs. I prefer them to Electrostars or Desiros but they aren't as good as older EMUs such as 315s or 317s if you ask me.

western Champion · 30 Oct 2011

Bombardier TALENTs over here!

There's something missing from this photograph ???????

Just realized what it is, there's no scrap track, overgrown foliage and buddleia everywhere ! If the Austrians can keep a tidy railway why can't we ?

MK Tom · 30 Oct 2011

I feel the 333s' cab looks like its been swapped from something else, it really jars with the styling of the rest of the unit for me. Also they're comfy but no tables/armrests, which is a must for me.

Western Champion, good point about the Austrian railways! BTW, the link in your signature hasn't worked since February, do you have an account on any other photo sites???

WestCoast · 30 Oct 2011

MK Tom said:
Also they're comfy but no tables/armrests, which is a must for me.

I would point out that they are short-distance units though, most of the routes have a duration of less than an hour. I think those features are unnecessary and the tables would reduce the space for seating, which is needed on these busy routes. To put this in context, they are a gem within Northern's vast fleet of 142/144 Pacers and to an extent 150 Sprinters, where armrests/tables are unimaginable!

The 332 is the version for longer-distance (although they have that interior on HEX as it's a premium service).

Crossover · 30 Oct 2011

Echoing the above - brilliant units! Hadn't been on any until about 3 months ago but have since travelled on loads.
They really do look good, are comfortable and have air conditioning which was a huge surprise when I first went on one.
The weird thing was I was with a friend at Shipley crossing over from one 333 to catch another and they announcement of the next train being the xx:xx Northern service....which confused me...at which point I remembered that we WERE still in Northern territory. They really don't feel very Northerny...far too good!

I agree with the fact that they really don't need armrests and tables as it isn't what they are designed for and I bet no single diagram they work is over an hour (I suspect Skipton - Leeds is the longest, without looking it up)
Very nippy little things too.

As for corridor connections, they would be completely superflous to requirements as I don't think platforms are long enough for them to run in multiple in service and from the services I have travelled on (including one loaded with schoolkids from Guiseley/Baildon) the 4 cars seems fairly suited to the requirements.

There are a couple of negatives with them in my opinion though:

Some of the carriages look a little grimy and could do with a bit of a clean but the majority aren't too bad (have some been redone more recently?)
The fact each train has one loo on (something I'm sure All Line Rover and Mike395 will agree with me on) not only because of the fact most of the stations have no facilities, half the time the one seems to be out of order (on the WY Metro Challenge all three 333's we used had an out of order toilet )
Extension of the above - don't have the auto locking doors. Great idea in theory but I'm sure it is why the toilet on at least one of the above trains was out of service as some scroat had shut the door from the inside when leaving!

One final thing about the lines they work on - it can be summed up as the Airdale and Wharfedale lines

tbtc · 30 Oct 2011

For units with 3/2 seats, no "frills" (tables, plugs etc)... these are much loved units.

Maybe that says something about how poor other Northern units are (the only post-privatisation units with Northern, apart from the temporary 180s), it'd be interesting to see the reaction if more had been ordered

WestCoast · 30 Oct 2011

tbtc said:
Maybe that says something about how poor other Northern units are (the only post-privatisation units with Northern, apart from the temporary 180s), it'd be interesting to see the reaction if more had been ordered

Yes and no. They are 'no frills', but they do 'no frills' IMHO in the most comfortable way possible. I could quite easily compare them to 323s running to the south of Manchester and they aren't bad at all, but they aren't quite 333s.

Of course, there is also Yorkshire's 158s, which again, they aren't pristine, but they are rather pleasant and also work some shorter-distance routes in East Yorkshire.

Without wanting to start another bickering session about who has the worst stock, it seem clear to me that West Yorkshire has the best quality stock.

tbtc · 30 Oct 2011

WestCoast said:
Yes and no. They are 'no frills', but they do 'no frills' IMHO in the most comfortable way possible. I could quite easily compare them to 323s running to the south of Manchester and they aren't bad at all, but they aren't quite 333s.

Of course, there is also Yorkshire's 158s, which again, they aren't pristine, but they are rather pleasant and also work some shorter-distance routes in East Yorkshire.

Without wanting to start another bickering session about who has the worst stock, it seem clear to me that West Yorkshire has the best quality stock.

I was just meaning that they are fairly basic units, with 3/2 seats (with one toilet for four coaches), on paper, but they always seem to have a good reputation amongst enthusiasts (and the public, from what I can see).

Whereas other EMUs have First Class, 2/2 seats, tables, plug sockets, more toilets, hand-rests etc, but don't seem to be quite so appreciated.

I suppose that it probably helps that they replaced the 308s, and must have seemed like a huge leap forward (in the way that I think some of the dislike for Voyagers is because they eliminated long distance Class 47 haulage, which meant enthusiasts were never going to love them readily).

142094 · 30 Oct 2011

western Champion said:
Just realized what it is, there's no scrap track, overgrown foliage and buddleia everywhere ! If the Austrians can keep a tidy railway why can't we ?

Money.

bluenoxid · 30 Oct 2011

Spare parts sourcing seems to be a pig and the windscreens will be very expensive due to the curvature. Very advanced and whilst they are powerful, the amount of stop start work can cause them a number of issues. They could do with the opportunity to be shaken down a little bit.

There is also a few questions over the cost of these units and they are very expensive to lease according to some of the rumours I have heard.

The PA is blunt and can be quite annoying

Apart from that, very few comments against and they are a fleet that does its job well. I am happy with the rail service I get from my local railway station and look forward to the additional enhancements that I will get in December (more trains to Leeds and an earlier Carlisle/Glasgow arrival).

WestCoast · 30 Oct 2011

bluenoxid said:
The PA is blunt and can be quite annoying

It's to the point, very booming. "Welcome to the Leeds train. The next station is X". No safety notices, keep your luggage with you, CCTV, ticket checks, take care on the escalators e.t.c - which we don't need. Reminds me of the automated annoucements in mainland Europe.

However, it has a problem where it keeps announcing the next station is Leeds repeatedly after Shipley!

These are very minor niggles when you compare them to Pacers though, which has no PIS and one toilet with a dodgy lock!

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