Glasgow Subway new stock

[Dstock7080]

106+207+120 Inner until 0930 Govan

 

[MF gorm]

First trip on G3 today. Impressions - seats a lot harder than G1 or G2; quieter; middle coaches

First trip on G3 today. Impressions - seats a lot harder than G1 or G2; quieter; middle coaches

,(continued) shoogled a bit, more like G1.Also found them quieter

 

[Scotrail12]

Got on a G2 this evening on Inner Circle. Might well be my last time on them.

I'd almost forgot how comfy the seats on G2 were. Much nicer ride than these new ones. I don't know what they were thinking - I get that G2 couldn't last forever, but they've really messed up with the G3 design. I can't ride them without feeling motion sickness.

 

[jagardner1984]

Got on a G2 this evening on Inner Circle. Might well be my last time on them.

I'd almost forgot how comfy the seats on G2 were. Much nicer ride than these new ones. I don't know what they were thinking - I get that G2 couldn't last forever, but they've really messed up with the G3 design. I can't ride them without feeling motion sickness.

I am not sure how force is measured, and it is particularly noticeable at different points of the set and at certain locations (for example Buchanan to St Enoch on the outer was noticeably bad the other night) but I witnessed someone, a little worse for wear, seating in a section with the white panel behind his head rather than the significantly greater space in the window sections.

And his head was absolutely battering off the panel behind him. I suspect this was far from the only or main cause of his headache the following morning, but it did make me wonder how good it can be for such extreme forces to be applied to the stock (and indeed its users) dozens of times a day. It really looks and feels quite abnormal.

I wonder how immediately the final G2 sets will be stood down from operational state after withdrawal. For all the reasons in this thread and the various steps backwards the G3 stock represents, it seems really sad for the G2 to disappear without some mark of the milestone.

 

[jamiestuart314]

106+207+120 on outer circle today

 

[hexagon789]

Reputedly tomorrow will be the last day, with one Met Camm set doing a turn on each circle between about 1300-1500

 

[allancmcd]

Reputedly tomorrow will be the last day, with one Met Camm set doing a turn on each circle between about 1300-1500

Confirmed this morning Glasgow Subway on Twitter

After 44 years of service, today marks the final day our legacy fleet will be in operation. There will be a legacy train on each circle this afternoon between 1 - 4pm for their final run of passenger service.

 

[sheeldz]

The thing that really sticks out that you cannot really ignore is the ride quality. Almosst everyone I've spoken to who has ridden the new units has noted that, and that's them brand new, and not enthusiasts. Something will need to be done.

 

[Mothball]

106-207-120 On the Inner
119-203-103 On the outer have the honours.

 

[DanNCL]

Damned if they do and damned if they don’t. People moaned that the G2s didn’t shoogle enough, now people are moaning that the G3s shoogle too much!

On another note, shame there wasn’t a bigger send off for the G2s, although granted it’s better than what the G1s had.
Hopefully TFL and Nexus will give their outgoing fleets a bigger send off.

 

[ld0595]

Just off one of the old stock on the outer circle. First one I've taken in a while and didn't appreciate until now how much better the ride and how comfortable the seats are! The increased noise levels were very noticeable though.

It's a shame they aren't doing a better send off but given it's SPT, I'm not surprised.

Staff mentioned it should be out until 5:30 so it's got a few more rounds to go.

 

[Mothball]

At 1724 106/207/120 terminated and departed Govan for the final time heading for the depot.

Does anyone have the time the outer circle set ran in?

 

[Russel]

Shame to see the end of the old stock, I was hoping a couple would hold out until I visit Glasgow towards the end of July!

 

[Buzby]

Well, with the last G2 sets moving up the exit ramp today to an uncertain future hopefully service interuptions using G3 will be few and far between going forward!

 

[Leven Railuser]

This made the STV and BBC Scotland news tonight. Seemed a few enthusiasts out to see off the old girl.

 

[nlogax]

Via the stories about the end of the line for the old stock, I note 1992 saw additional new-build trailers being inserted into sets. Assuming they were completely identical to the existing stock in appearance? I guess they must have been, I never noticed whether I was on old or new(er) at the time!

 

[Buzby]

I note 1992 saw additional new-build trailers being inserted into sets

Do you mean to increase the length of the set to 3 vehicles? I hadn’t spotted this but it had a precedent that during football games, they added an extra trailer to the G1 stock (easily spotted because it had a solid door with a window, rather than the usual folding trellis).

Also the door was in the middle of the carriage as well as the end (which in some stations would still be in the tunnel). A shame I hadn’t noticed the G2 version!

 

[Rick1984]

I was trying to Google but couldn't find the information.
Were they all 2 car before 1992? I know some of them had a cab in the middle of formation

 

[Buzby]

Were they all 2 car before 1992? I know some of them had a cab in the middle of formation

I’m not aware of any formation that had a cab anywhere but at the front (G1) or at each end (G2/G3). The G1 had a full walk through to an additional trailer. If an additional trailer was added to G2, then there could not be any walk through because of the end cab. Clearly they could join 2 two car sets but the last carriage would always be in a tunnel. (I never use the Subway on football days!).

 

[Rick1984]

I could be misremembering

 

[newguy]

Got on a G2 this evening on Inner Circle. Might well be my last time on them.

I'd almost forgot how comfy the seats on G2 were. Much nicer ride than these new ones. I don't know what they were thinking - I get that G2 couldn't last forever, but they've really messed up with the G3 design. I can't ride them without feeling motion sickness.

So it’s not just me suffering from motion sickness. I never had any issues on the older stock but these ones are terrible for motion sickness

 

[bramling]

Via the stories about the end of the line for the old stock, I note 1992 saw additional new-build trailers being inserted into sets. Assuming they were completely identical to the existing stock in appearance? I guess they must have been, I never noticed whether I was on old or new(er) at the time!

The new trailers were similar, but certainly not identical. Indeed whereas the original cars bear a resemblance to London’s 1972 tube stock, the newer trailers bear some likeness to the 1995/96 stocks. Indeed quite sobering to realise these “new” cars are themselves over 30 years old.

 

[MF gorm]

Do you mean to increase the length of the set to 3 vehicles? I hadn’t spotted this but it had a precedent that during football games, they added an extra trailer to the G1 stock (easily spotted because it had a solid door with a window, rather than the usual folding trellis).

Also the door was in the middle of the carriage as well as the end (which in some stations would still be in the tunnel). A shame I hadn’t noticed the G2 version!

The G1 stock only had one experimental 3 car set. It came about when trailer car No32 was damaged when then hook on the crane broke and the frame fell on top of the car. It was rebuilt with a two door centre entrance. Two motor cars were modified for multiple use can't remember which ones. The exits at either end of the set weren't used. There was constant problems and it was withdrawn in the 1960s.
Car 32 was one of the last cars lifted out of the tunnels prior to the 1977 modernisation. It was used for station clearance and the centre doors made loading easter.

 

[Buzby]

Car 32 was one of the last cars lifted out of the tunnels prior to the 1977 modernisation. It was used for station clearance and the centre doors made loading easter.

I loved travelling on this as it felt so modern (at the time). I don’t think it was in regular service and really only served on Ibrox match days as the door operation (air?) was problematic. I have a picture of the damaged 32 as I was on a visit to the Sheds - it was fun standing in the pit and sticking your arm out to ‘hail’ a passing set!

 

[hexagon789]

I was trying to Google but couldn't find the information.
Were they all 2 car before 1992? I know some of them had a cab in the middle of formation

Ill check my copy of Circles Under the Clyde. Certainly when the system re-opened sets were all 2-car of power cars back to back; not sure if 3s started before or after the trailers arrived but certainly it has long been common for the usual 3-car sets of the last 25+ years to have a dead power car in the middle as purpose built trailer.

Via the stories about the end of the line for the old stock, I note 1992 saw additional new-build trailers being inserted into sets. Assuming they were completely identical to the existing stock in appearance? I guess they must have been, I never noticed whether I was on old or new(er) at the time!

Slightly higher capacity due to no cab.

 

[Sunil_P]

33 single-cab cars (101-133) were built at time of Subway refurbishment in 1980, services were either two- or three-cars.

Trailers (201-208) were built in 1992.

 

[Liverpool 507]

Got on a G2 this evening on Inner Circle. Might well be my last time on them.

I'd almost forgot how comfy the seats on G2 were. Much nicer ride than these new ones. I don't know what they were thinking - I get that G2 couldn't last forever, but they've really messed up with the G3 design. I can't ride them without feeling motion sickness.

So it’s not just me suffering from motion sickness. I never had any issues on the older stock but these ones are terrible for motion sickness

I agree, I visited on Tuesday and felt slightly nauseous with the train on some sections. Had to turn and face forward, sitting on my side. I do like the G3 stock, the air con and walk through design in particular. I'm used to the seating on the Merseyrail 777s so the seating didn't bother me. No doubt Tyne & Wear Metro commuters will also endure motion sickness.

 

[RacsoMoquette]

The new trailer cars were built in 1992 by Hunslet TPL, At that time before they closed the famous Leeds Jack Lane factory, they were also about to build the Class 323s and the failed Class 157 DMU for SPT. Did Hunslet build any other examples of rolling stock pre 1992 for non narrow gauge purpose? As Hunslets speciality was building narrow gauge battery locomotives.

Overall the new Stadler Built G3s seem to be extremely suited to operate the Subway, with their airy and bright walkthrough interior massively enhancing customer experience. Is the ride quality really so inferior to that of a G2? or does the nature of the walkthrough carriages just exacerbates the shoogle by the extreme movements of the concertinas when traveling at speed?

 

[Glaswegian]

I’m not aware of any formation that had a cab anywhere but at the front (G1) or at each end (G2/G3). The G1 had a full walk through to an additional trailer. If an additional trailer was added to G2, then there could not be any walk through because of the end cab. Clearly they could join 2 two car sets but the last carriage would always be in a tunnel. (I never use the Subway on football days!).

I believe that, by design, it was not possible to couple the cab ends of two motor cars together. This was to prevent the coupling of a live train to a dead train, which might have killed the live train.

 

[DanNCL]

Did Hunslet build any other examples of rolling stock pre 1992 for non narrow gauge purpose? As Hunslets speciality was building narrow gauge battery locomotives.

Hunslet built three standard gauge battery locomotives for the Tyne & Wear Metro in 1987. That’s the only example I can think of.

I believe that, by design, it was not possible to couple the cab ends of two motor cars together. This was to prevent the coupling of a live train to a dead train, which might have killed the live train.

Wouldn’t that prevent one set from rescuing another if that were the case?