WrexhamRob
Member
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002c3ks?partner=uk.co.bbc&origin=share-mobile bbc radio 4 pm at 41 minutes
Been in coach B the whole way, the engine was definitely on in the morning, at least as far as Birmingham, after that it hasn't been on. Not been as busy as I was expecting.221128 is leading, coach A first.
Coach B seems to be running with its engine off and the rear set doesn’t have any reservations. The engine in Coach I has a horrible vibration.
How did the refreshment stocks hold up?Been in coach B the whole way, the engine was definitely on in the morning, at least as far as Birmingham, after that it hasn't been on. Not been as busy as I was expecting.
I mean their legal name still is First Greater Western.Almost a decade late is quite impressive
Very well, and the toilets are still in use.How did the refreshment stocks hold up?
To bring some poetry in
“The gradients against her but she’s on time”
Well almost…
The PM report did include that!Now featuring on BBC radio 4 'PM' news programme (item at about 17.41 hours)
That’s a plus on both accounts. Looks slightly delayed now.Very well, and the toilets are still in use.
Yes, we left about an hour late after fitters came to assist.Those for the sleeper will have made the connection though .. apparently the fire alarm has gone off on it so it's sat there still!
It is a route which has operated for more than 100 years, but for the UK's longest direct train service linking Aberdeen and Penzance it is finally the end of the line.
The connection - first established back in 1921 - is 775 miles (1,247km) long.
However, the packed train from the north east of Scotland on Friday morning was the last to run the route, and arrived in Cornwall more than 13 hours later at 21:40. Operator CrossCountry said the decision to end the service was aimed at a "more efficient timetable".
One passenger, Aimee Smith, 40, had made the journey to Aberdeen specifically so as she could join the final trip south and be part of rail history. "All good things do come to an end," she told BBC Scotland News.
Aimee Smith did a good job with her radio 4 report.BBC website has a report here:
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Aberdeen to Penzance: End of the line for longest UK direct train route
Passengers enjoy the 775-mile journey from Aberdeen to Penzance one last time.www.bbc.co.uk
Thanks for posting the link.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002c3ks?partner=uk.co.bbc&origin=share-mobile bbc radio 4 pm at 41 minutes
FGW/GWR..schmizzle/schmozzle.Almost a decade late is quite impressive
And it is misleading. The implication from the piece is that this service has been running continuously for over 100 years. It hasn’t. There have been periods of time when it hasn’t been a timetabled service.BBC website has a report here:
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Aberdeen to Penzance: End of the line for longest UK direct train route
Passengers enjoy the 775-mile journey from Aberdeen to Penzance one last time.www.bbc.co.uk
In the 1970s Edinburgh-Plymouth was the longest on the NE/SW route.And it is misleading. The implication from the piece is that this service has been running continuously for over 100 years. It hasn’t. There have been periods of time when it hasn’t been a timetabled service.
1980's through to early 2000's it was Dundee to Penzance HST service (1V49). There was also Aberdeen to Plymouth HST and return. The Aberdeen to Penzance running now only started with Voyagers - can't recall if VT ran it or whether it was an Arriva invention.In the 1970s Edinburgh-Plymouth was the longest on the NE/SW route.
Dundee/Penzance started in 1983 as a marginal time extension of the Edinburgh/Penzance, but was cut in 1984 as part of the NE-SW service reappraisal and HST reductions and didn't resume until ~1991 when HSTs freed up from the ECML electrification allowed most of the original 1982 NE-SW HST service to be restored.1980's through to early 2000's it was Dundee to Penzance HST service (1V49).
Not in the 80s, there was the loco-hauled (Elgin/)Aberdeen & Glasgow to Penzance from 1984; the Cornishman HST from Edinburgh/Glasgow QS in 1988.There was also Aberdeen to Plymouth HST
2008 rewrite for the present service but an Aberdeen to Penzance via WCML existed for a brief period in the early 2000s under Virgin XC.The Aberdeen to Penzance running now only started with Voyagers - can't recall if VT ran it or whether it was an Arriva invention.
To be fair, it does say that in the article.And it is misleading. The implication from the piece is that this service has been running continuously for over 100 years. It hasn’t. There have been periods of time when it hasn’t been a timetabled service.
Unless I missed a bit, it just notes Covid - where most trains in the UK were up the wall. As discussed above there is a good period of 30+ years where there was no Aberdeen to Penzance, which is over 30% of the 100 year period touted at the top of the article. I suspect there maybe more before the 70's but I'm not old enough to know.To be fair, it does say that in the article.