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Class 701 'Aventra' trains for South Western Railway

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Goldfish62

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Nicholas Lewis said:
How on earth can this be an outstanding issue with the trains so late?
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They've had years to sort station lighting! How come do GTR and Southeastern manage with DOO?!

Just adds to the impression that the whole fleet introduction is being very poorly managed by SWR and has been from the start.
 
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OneTrackMinded

OneTrackMinded

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I know most people say Aventra motors are quite boring and linear, but I'm sure you can't deny they are extremely satisfying and smooth to listen to from the inside at least. Adds to the modern feel in my personal opinion
 
Andy1673

Andy1673

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Andy1673 said:
Likely next Monday we`ll see the first full day 701 diagram (2U09-2U16-2U19-2U26-2U29-2U36-2U39-2U46-2U49-2U56-2U59-2U66) Waterloo to Windsor
And another pair of 458s will be replaced by the pair of 450s
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Ooops. No. RTT shows now next week tuesday to friday 5Y89 and 5C39 to/out WImbledon. All the same as last weeks. after 2U36 -> 5Y89 to WImbledon and 2x450 proceed as 2U39 and so on
 
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Elorith

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Goldfish62 said:
They've had years to sort station lighting! How come do GTR and Southeastern manage with DOO?!

Just adds to the impression that the whole fleet introduction is being very poorly managed by SWR and has been from the start.
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Standards for DOO dispatch do and have changed over the years.
 
H

hwl

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Goldfish62 said:
SWR doesn't exist in isolation in the industry. Surely it has access to the appropriate expertise.
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That expertise of the to understand how tricky and painful it can be for upper management typically only comes from existing DOO fleet changes or platform lengthening at DOO stations - which isn't a big first group area of expertise previously.
 
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OneTrackMinded

OneTrackMinded

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I think the lighting and general ambience on the 701 is something that they've managed to do really well, and should be praised, especially in comparrison to other new fleets we've seen recently

It doesn't feel clinical and blinding like on many modern trains such as the Desiro Cities, nor does it cast shadows. It brings a more airy, natural feel, while still managing to be bright, yet at the same time not feel jarring. A lot of this is down to the positioning of the lighting fittings, being placed on two sides of the roof, rather than a large centre module, meaning it has the chance to spread more naturally.
These also feature diffusers, which for comparison 700/707/717 don't.

Additionally, the choice of wall colour, being grey, rather than white goes a long way to make the ambience more pleasant and less harsh. This is, interestingly, the only Aventra in the fleet to feature this other than the 345, with the 710, 730 and 720 all featuring white walls.
 
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W

weeklycommuter

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Waterlemon said:
Will be a small bit of good news coming in the next fortnight. Things should start to speed up after that.
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The fortnight has now passed. Any good news? I would welcome news that any of the SWR metro services are to be operated with class 701 Arterio trains.
 
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G

Goldfish62

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Yesterday afternoon I saw 043 at Putney in service on its part-diagram. It all looked so normal and routine, which makes the ongoing interminable delay all the more frustrating and baffling.
 
SEtrains

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3973EXL

3973EXL

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SEtrains said:
there will be another 701 coming down south tomorrow to Wimbledon depot instead of the usual Eastleigh depot.

Realtime Trains | 5Q26 0854 Derby Litchurch Lane to Wimbledon Park Depot Sdgs | 30/05/2024

Real-time train running information for 5Q26 0854 departure from Derby Litchurch Lane to Wimbledon Park Depot Sdgs on 30/05/2024. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.
www.realtimetrains.co.uk www.realtimetrains.co.uk
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Caped

Loco returning to Leicester - 0Z26
 
M

MasterPhillips

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DMckduck97 said:
Gonna need a lot of more dispatchers at Vauxhall and clapham then because they can barely staff the main and southern platforms at Clapham as it is, nevermind permanent dispatchers on all platforms.
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Are the Windsor side platforms at Clapham Junction or any platforms at Vauxhall even equipped with CD/RA equipment?
 
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DMckduck97

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MasterPhillips said:
Are the Windsor side platforms at Clapham Junction or any platforms at Vauxhall even equipped with CD/RA equipment?
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I'm pretty sure they still have them in the gantry, whether or not they have the necessary platform equipment is another thing.

Resorting to CD/RA would be embarrassing with "new" trains.

Oh look at these trains we bought that were designed for DOO and can't be dispatched from specific stations whilst also requiring a second member of staff on board to work the train when it inevitably goes wrong, rains too much or is too sunny/dark...
 
M

MasterPhillips

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DMckduck97 said:
Resorting to CD/RA would be embarrassing with "new" trains.

Oh look at these trains we bought that were designed for DOO and can't be dispatched from specific stations whilst also requiring a second member of staff on board to work the train when it inevitably goes wrong, rains too much or is too sunny/dark...
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Similar situation has happened with the GWR IET’s. Have to be dispatched by a guard or dispatcher due to issues with the DOO cameras I believe.
 
B

bahnause

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MasterPhillips said:
Similar situation has happened with the GWR IET’s. Have to be dispatched by a guard or dispatcher due to issues with the DOO cameras I believe.
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There are trains out there with excellent cameras, where the network cannot process the amount of data and therefore the images are only transmitted with greatly reduced quality and frame rate...
 
DelW

DelW

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DMckduck97 said:
Resorting to CD/RA would be embarrassing with "new" trains.

Oh look at these trains we bought that were designed for DOO and can't be dispatched from specific stations whilst also requiring a second member of staff on board to work the train when it inevitably goes wrong, rains too much or is too sunny/dark...
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But hardly more embarrassing than a large fleet of trains that after four years, are only being used to operate four services a day ... I don't think SWR management are much concerned about embarrassment.
 
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Busman

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Just been on one of these, have to say out of all of the Aventras, this is by far the best one out there.

Those that say that they are dull and boring should jump on a Class 700 some day.
 
158760

158760

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701044 has just left Vauxhall P1 after being parked up with one door open and what looked like a marketing team boarding.

Any ideas what this is for?
 
G

Goldfish62

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Busman said:
Just been on one of these, have to say out of all of the Aventras, this is by far the best one out there.

Those that say that they are dull and boring should jump on a Class 700 some day.
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Completely agree.

Personally the 455s are hard to beat for dullness. Always have been. In fact I'm not a fan of any of the Mk 3-derived MUs.
 
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