• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!

Examples of UK rail services run for the benefit of tourists (such as Dales Rail)?

Status
Not open for further replies.

Bletchleyite

Veteran Member
Joined
20 Oct 2014
Messages
97,520
Location
"Marston Vale mafia"
Occurred to me while reading the thread on DalesRail fares - this is a very unusual example of a (very long running) service that is in practice a tourist day-tripping charter, but is actually a franchise commitment for the TOC.

Are there any other examples of this sort of service? Only one I can think of is Okehampton, obviously soon to be a regular service, plus the winter version of DalesRail, the Lancashire Rambler, which only goes to Hellifield and carries a lot of fresh air?

I specifically mean infrequent tourist-aimed services that are run as a franchise commitment by a franchised TOC, not charters, nor "useless" Parliamentaries - specifically trains intended for that sort of use-case.

(DalesRail sort of is a Parly because it's the only passenger service between Clitheroe and Hellifield, but that isn't the primary reason why it exists, if you see what I mean - and if it was it'd just be one randomly-timed Clitheroe-Manchester extended back to/from Hellifield, no doubt)
 
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R

RailUK Forums

Iskra

Established Member
Joined
11 Jun 2014
Messages
7,785
Location
West Riding
The EMR York service? And previously Skegness HST’s? A few summer services may qualify.

I suppose you could say the EMR Leeds-London services too. They facilitate a cheap day out from Leeds if you’re not fussy about journey time.
 
Last edited:

Carlisle

Established Member
Joined
26 Aug 2012
Messages
4,121
The London - Newquay summer services are perhaps slightly similar
 

Tazi Hupefi

Member
Joined
1 Apr 2018
Messages
823
Location
Nottinghamshire
The EMR York service? And previously Skegness HST’s? A few summer services may qualify.

I suppose you could say the EMR Leeds-London services too. They facilitate a cheap day out from Leeds if you’re not fussy about journey time.

I got it to Scarborough once! Hardly anyone on it! Think it was a weekend too!
 

Ianno87

Veteran Member
Joined
3 May 2015
Messages
15,215
For many years (until 2008) North West Regional Railways / First North Western ran a daily summer Oldham/Rochdale - Atherton - Blackpool return trip.
 

cuccir

Established Member
Joined
18 Nov 2009
Messages
3,659
Do CrossCountry still do their summer services to Torbay - calling at Dawlish, Newton Abbott, Torquay and Paignton I think?
 

reb0118

Established Member
Fares Advisor
Joined
28 Jan 2010
Messages
3,194
Location
Bo'ness, West Lothian
Pre Covid ScotRail ran the summer Sundays day trip from Edinburgh to Oban service.

(Actually has that run since the E&G electrification? )
 

HST43257

Established Member
Joined
10 Apr 2020
Messages
1,393
Location
York
The EMR York service?
I’d say Scarborough more, since that’s summer only

Pre Covid ScotRail ran the summer Sundays day trip from Edinburgh to Oban service.

(Actually has that run since the E&G electrification? )
Pretty sure the path was in last year. Not sure if it ran due to covid but pretty sure it ran the year before
 

Iskra

Established Member
Joined
11 Jun 2014
Messages
7,785
Location
West Riding
I’d say Scarborough more, since that’s summer only


Pretty sure the path was in last year. Not sure if it ran due to covid but pretty sure it ran the year before
The Scarborough service has ended now, which is why I just said York :)
 

D6975

Established Member
Joined
26 Nov 2009
Messages
2,864
Location
Bristol
Do CrossCountry still do their summer services to Torbay - calling at Dawlish, Newton Abbott, Torquay and Paignton I think?
XC run daily to Torbay. All year round.

ps It was intended to stop these in order to facilitate the Devon metro improvement, but who knows what will happen now?
 

David Goddard

Established Member
Joined
8 Aug 2011
Messages
1,502
Location
Reading
XC run daily to Torbay. All year round.
Indeed they do, mainly with Manchester trains, but there have been a couple of extras on Summer Saturdays for the North East route
Taking the Summer 2020 timetable, these alterations applied from 23 May to 12 September
0611 Leeds to Plymouth diverted to Paignton
0600 Glasgow Central to Plymouth diverted to Paignton
1227 Plymouth to Glasgow Central commenced from Paignton at 1240
1627 Plymouth to Leeds commenced from Paignton at 1640


I would then add to this discussion that Greater Anglia and its predecessors have long operated additional services between Norwich and Great Yarmouth on Summer Saturdays- last year's timetable saw eight extra trains.
Also, new last year (whether they operated or not is another thing) was four additional services (two mid morning and two early afternoon) on Mondays and Fridays only, again to cater for holiday traffic.
 

Llandudno

Established Member
Joined
25 Dec 2014
Messages
2,178
Dunrobin Castle station only opens in the summer when the Castle is open?
 

CaptainHaddock

Established Member
Joined
10 Feb 2011
Messages
2,206
The strangely-named "Staycation Express" charter service that runs between Skipton and Carlisle from July to September.
 
Joined
11 Jan 2015
Messages
677
Given the lack of commuting many services seem to be about tourists as opposed to those travelling for work.
 

route101

Established Member
Joined
16 May 2010
Messages
10,594
I’d say Scarborough more, since that’s summer only


Pretty sure the path was in last year. Not sure if it ran due to covid but pretty sure it ran the year before
IIRC it only ran a few times in 2020. The E and G line was blocked in August which stopped the service.
 

Y Ddraig Coch

Established Member
Joined
1 Nov 2013
Messages
1,288
The Conwy valley line? it is of very little use because of timings to locals but is often full of tours complete with tour guide or locals of pensionable age who can use their bus pass on the Conwy valley for free and have a jolly up to Betws or Blaenau.
 

InOban

Established Member
Joined
12 Mar 2017
Messages
4,208
That's a dangerous idea! Someone will point out that the WHL between Crianlarich and FW/Mallaig is almost entirely used by visitors...
 

Dai Corner

Established Member
Joined
20 Jul 2015
Messages
6,316
Trains ran Cardiff Central - Builth Road via the Swansea District line for the Royal Welsh Show in the last week of July up until 2019. The Show was cancelled last year (and I think will be this year too) due to the pandemic.

I've no idea whether these were a franchise commitment or whether they'll run in future.
 

Bletchleyite

Veteran Member
Joined
20 Oct 2014
Messages
97,520
Location
"Marston Vale mafia"
The Conwy valley line? it is of very little use because of timings to locals but is often full of tours complete with tour guide or locals of pensionable age who can use their bus pass on the Conwy valley for free and have a jolly up to Betws or Blaenau.

There aren't any commuter timed services, but it is used by locals for shopping etc.

It seems the TfW plan is to run an hourly combined electric bus and train service over the route in future, which might well bring rather more usage.
 

Llandudno

Established Member
Joined
25 Dec 2014
Messages
2,178
There aren't any commuter timed services, but it is used by locals for shopping etc.

It seems the TfW plan is to run an hourly combined electric bus and train service over the route in future, which might well bring rather more usage.
Some locals use it to go for a walk and/or visit the pub....!
 

ChiefPlanner

Established Member
Joined
6 Sep 2011
Messages
7,768
Location
Herts
Trains ran Cardiff Central - Builth Road via the Swansea District line for the Royal Welsh Show in the last week of July up until 2019. The Show was cancelled last year (and I think will be this year too) due to the pandemic.

I've no idea whether these were a franchise commitment or whether they'll run in future.

They were funded pre Arriva as part of the Rail Passenger Partnership fund , as were the extra HoW Sunday services - they were both rolled into the new (ATW) franchise as committed obligations.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Top