Class 373 Eurostar withdrawals

[rf_ioliver]

You're not meant to reveal the location....

That's what you're be lead to think....no one expects the Spanish Inquisition....sorry, total confusion of humour memes...

 

[Bromley boy]

Apologies if this has already been posted.

Not to condone possibly illegal "urban exploration" (I have no idea whether the making of this video would have been illegal on the continent, where I believe it was filmed), but the below may be of interest to 373 afficienados.

 

[Crossforth]

Apologies if this has already been posted.

Not to condone possibly illegal "urban exploration" (I have no idea whether the making of this video would have been illegal on the continent, where I believe it was filmed), but the below may be of interest to 373 afficienados.

Great video but see post #888

 

[Bromley boy]

Great video but see post #888

Indeed - great minds and all that.

I'm relieved in a way wasn't 100% sure I should post it - it is an excellent, if eerie, video.

 

[Crossforth]

Indeed - great minds and all that.

I'm relieved in a way wasn't 100% sure I should post it - it is an excellent, if eerie, video.

It is a cracking video and I wish I could go see it but I don’t think the Mrs would aprove of a trip to France just to see a train :P

 

[Class319&373]

9th Move this Friday...
Not even a full month since the last move, they are definitely getting more frequent now.

http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/R00968/2018/02/16/advanced

 

[malc-c]

Thanks again for the heads up. I have to be up early on Saturday, but it would be a shame to miss it.

 

[Class319&373]

No problem, I'll hopefully catch it at St Pancras as I always do

 

[43096]

9th Move this Friday...
Not even a full month since the last move, they are definitely getting more frequent now.

http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/R00968/2018/02/16/advanced

373011/012 reported elsewhere as the doomed sets.

 

[Breadman]

9th Move this Friday...
Not even a full month since the last move, they are definitely getting more frequent now.

http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/R00968/2018/02/16/advanced

Noooooo
Not another!!!

 

[rdlover777]

I dont get why E* wont sell some sets instead of all but 8 be scrapped, then again i heard that why they won't sell them is due to fears that a rival company may use them

 

[SHD]

I dont get why E* wont sell some sets instead of all but 8 be scrapped, then again i heard that why they won't sell them is due to fears that a rival company may use them

Again this canard!
Would you care to mention who this "rival company" might be?

 

[Peter Sarf]

I dont get why E* wont sell some sets instead of all but 8 be scrapped, then again i heard that why they won't sell them is due to fears that a rival company may use them

They are KNACKERED and out of date - its all in this thread !.

 

[BestWestern]

Are those abandoned sets the only ones, or are they dotted about all across France?! Any particular reason they've been dumped, seemingly for quite some time, rather than cut up?

 

[duesselmartin]

maybe used for spare parts? Or was there hope that traffic might pick up and they might become useful?

 

[Class319&373]

373011/012 reported elsewhere as the doomed sets.

It appears tonight's scrap move is indeed 3011/3012

 

[malc-c]

Running a few minutes late, we have 66716 throttling up through Welwyn North with 3011 and 3012 in tow

 

[daikilo]

They are KNACKERED and out of date - its all in this thread !.

They are not out of date but the claimed maintenance costs to keep them in service are high. It would have been great if an opertor could have been found who would negotiate a sustainment plan but it didn't happen and I doubt it ever will.

 

[tgrb]

Are all the sets being cut up over here or is there a program in France too? Just thinking that one in the video isn't going to be going through the tunnel anytime soon (I wouldn't have thought!)

 

[duesselmartin]

They are KNACKERED and out of date - its all in this thread !.

There are certain tgv sets older than this. Also the north of London sets did not run that much.
Technological similarity to tgv must be high too, yet neither SNCF or UK operators seem to be interested.

 

[ChilternTurbo]

We've certainly seen a lot of these units heading to Kingsbury for scrapping. Is it still possible to travel on an un-refurbished 373? They seem quite scarce at St. Pancras now and I understand that 374s are being tested on services that serve Ashford.

 

[33Hz]

yet neither SNCF or UK operators seem to be interested.

France is about to be forced to open up its main lines to competition. It's all about SNCF stopping these sets being available to potential open access operators.

 

[SHD]

France is about to be forced to open up its main lines to competition. It's all about SNCF stopping these sets being available to potential open access operators.

This reasoning is completely fallacious. Eurostar class 373 sets would be of extremely little use for a potential open access operator in France.
- their refurbishment and maintenance costs would be completely uneconomical - no sane open access operator or leasing company would spend CAPEX & OPEX this significant on 25-year old rolling stock
- their length and capacity would make their use pertinent only on a handful of routes

 

[33Hz]

their refurbishment and maintenance costs would be completely uneconomical - no sane open access operator or leasing company would spend CAPEX & OPEX this significant on 25-year old rolling stock

their length and capacity would make their use pertinent only on a handful of routes

So take out some middle trailers. Besides, they might have gone for the popular routes and undercut SNCF on price.

 

[SHD]

I am sorry, but throwing a picture of a remotored and refurbished HST does not prove your point regarding Class 373s. When I wrote “no sane access operator would spend CAPEX and OPEX on 25-year old rolling stock” there was an obvious ellipsis of “high-speed, tailored-made for the Channel Tunnel, highly complex” which I am sorry you missed.

Regarding shortening the consists - which trailers would you remove ? - and please specify the consequences regarding the train’s internal systems.

Or let’s play the game for real: I am a merchant banker (a nicer one than John Cleese, don’t worry). You are the young, uppity, and enthusiastic CEO of an open access operator on the French market.

You get to buy the Class 373 train sets for £1 apiece.
Please provide me with details on your business plan:
- your refurbishment costs / CAPEX
- your running maintenance costs
- your operational costs including staff. You can use a ballpark figure of 20 kWh/train.km for electricity consumption. Track and station access charges are publicly available on the Internet.
- which services you plan to operate and at what prices.

 

[AlexNL]

I understand that 374s are being tested on services that serve Ashford.

As far as I know the 374 have entered service on the trains which stop at Ashford, as KVB is now installed and platforms 3 and 4 have been adjusted to international gauge.

 

[urpert]

We've certainly seen a lot of these units heading to Kingsbury for scrapping. Is it still possible to travel on an un-refurbished 373? They seem quite scarce at St. Pancras now and I understand that 374s are being tested on services that serve Ashford.

It’s pretty much pot luck - anecdotally I’ve had more of them on Brussels services but there’s no way of knowing the train type until you’ve booked and can view the seating plan.

(Though interestingly I’ve only had one refurb 373 in the past year vs 3 unrefurbished ones).

Are the Marseille services guaranteed 373?

 

[ChilternTurbo]

I was thinking of a trip to Brussels in the not too distant future and will try for a service that stops at Ashford International. I tried out the 374 to Paris last week which impressed me from a passenger perspective but personally I think it lacks the sleek good looks of the 373.

 

[AlexNL]

374's are close to calling at Ashford International, the necessary safety equipment (KVB) has been installed over Christmas and the international platforms have been adjusted to international gauge. Test runs are currently being undertaken, it's expected that e320 passenger trains will call at Ashford from April.

 

[Urobach]

We've certainly seen a lot of these units heading to Kingsbury for scrapping. Is it still possible to travel on an un-refurbished 373? They seem quite scarce at St. Pancras now and I understand that 374s are being tested on services that serve Ashford.

Came back from Paris a couple of weeks ago on 3007/8 instead of the booked e320. Repainted but not internally refurbed