I very much doubt 16 coaches could fit all the way to Fort William. You would have to split off 8 coaches in Glasgow or Edinburgh. Probably same for Inverness and then Inverness currently fills 8 coaches already so no room for extra Aberdeen passengers. It would, as others have said, make for unattractively early arrival times in the Central belt (including Glasgow and Edinburgh) or very late arrival times in the far North.
I did think about that... once I posted the message. Would merging the lowlander into one of the highlander and splitting both trains in 2 be any easier than splitting one train into 3?
Where is the split going to be done? The Highlander leaves London at 2115 and the Lowlander at 2350. The Highlander arrives in Edinburgh at 0400 and Inverness at 0840. Either way, the timings of one don't work for the other.
The other methods of getting between Glasgow/Edinburgh and London (other than seated coaches) don't run at the the same time though. While it is a niche activity, it does avoid using the daytime to travel.
Exactly this - if you want full working days before and after the travel, the CS is ideal.
In which case the businesses involved should be paying. Why should the Scottish taxpayer subsidise the convenience? By all means run the Lowlander, but unsubsidised.
It ensures taxpayers, many in higher or additional brackets, live and pay tax in Scotland. I am fairly sure Glasgow and Edinburgh have quite a vibrant tourist market as well!
'Day' trains or flights cover this from the central belt. It may mean being out of bed early, but the lowlander keeps you out of bed until late the night before.
Do you honestly believe that any significant number of folk would decide not to live and work in Scotland if the Lowlander vanished? The vast vast bulk of tourists to Glasgow and Edinburgh do not arrive by the Lowlander. What is a disincentive to moving north of the border are the higher taxes. Higher rate kicks in much earlier and is a higher percentage. Council Tax is also steep, even allowing for the inclusive water bill.
The "central belt" is fairly large, can you put the details to a specific scenario? Let's say a business meeting in Central London at 0900 on a Monday, departing from Helensburgh (either that morning or after 2000 plus hotel) - all by public transport and with shower and changing facilities at the London end before arrival at end destination (place of work).
Yes I do. The quality of life, the cleaner air, the different legal system etc are all motivators to live in Scotland.
What about people who don't have a bed in the Central Belt and don't want to waste their day travelling?
Yes, I do agree with that, its not a great night's sleep.
Perhaps Caledonian Sleeper management should have a chat with Snälltåget, operators of the Berlin to Sweden sleeper? I travelled in a couchette (couchette, not berth) on that around Easter and it was incredibly comfortable, possibly one of the best nights' sleep I've ever had.
It's definitely possible to get away with 3 hours (or less) of sleep (and, based on recent experience, I'm less likely to fall asleep in a lecture than if I've had a normal 7-8 hours' sleep!), but it does catch up with you eventually. A 16 hour day of rail travel after 3 hours' sleep does get a bit tiring towards the end...
Schnapps?
No (I don't drink). Just a proper mattress and proper duvet (which is fun to assemble inside a couchette cabin...)Schnapps?
Why does it take 6hr45 to get to Edinburgh in passenger stock rated for 100mph?
Unfortunately I think the problem is more with the track than the CS.
Never used Nightjet, but I have used one the SNCF's few remaining sleeper trains. The combined rake leaving Paris each night is certainly more than four coaches, which splits to a few different destinations along the journey. I booked seats both ways, but on my southbound journey the seated coach was swapped out for an additional couchette car (without bedding unfortunately). The setup on those services does seem more like a mobile hostel than a mobile hotel, with the seated coach being much like a road coach both from a cost and clientèle point of view. I can't recall exactly what my fare was, but I think it was around the £40 mark each way which is pretty good compared to what a day-fare plus a night in a hostel would be.
Because the loco is only rated for 87mph, it's booked over the Slow Lines, and it stops quite a few times, usually for longer than typical passenger services.
The sleeper seats are a step down and roughly twice the price of the overnight Megabus service to Glasgow, Stirling Perth and by a connecting bus or train West Highland Stations especially the Oban line in my opinion.
Again, it will differ for different people. You are only squashed up against someone the whole time on a road coach if one or both of you are carrying excess weight. There is no generalisation.
