All I see are websites and pictures of trains...
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Poll: What are your thoughts on travelling on Pendolinos?
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DarloRich
Veteran Member
They are alright. In all honesty I don't hate them (Although I fear I may have said I do in the past). I just prefer the 86/87/90 plus Mk3's. It was a more pleasant experience for me as I do find the 390's a bit claustropobic. The big kid in me likes the tilting so that isn't an issue. The vestibules can get a bit stinky by the toilets of which there aren't enough of (Apart from the smell). Some of the names they have been given are awful, Virgin Explorer sounds like something you can be charged with. Some of the Pendos when they get old enough will be trying to change their names by deed poll and wondering why their creators hated them.
Virgin Invader is surely the worst - You would get 15 years in prison for that!
Jungle Explorer?
Johnnie2Sheds
Member
- Joined
- 10 Jan 2011
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- 148
They do the job they were designed to do and AFAIK the public like them, well theyre always well loaded. I long distance commuted on them for nearly two years when they were new. Apart from a couple having to be rebooted in Euston and one sitting down at Stafford* and refusing to move, I was never late for work or getting home.
*Class 57 Lady Penelope RA Euston on the front of it eventually.
*Class 57 Lady Penelope RA Euston on the front of it eventually.
Agent_Squash
Established Member
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- 22 Jul 2016
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And what about the 'Meh' option: If I don't mind Pendolino's, but I hate travelling HSTs...
Use them a lot more these days than I used to. Good trains, good at what they do - first class is always a treat (especially with a nice advance!). I don't mind the tilt and don't really find the windows that bad either.
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Not enough toilets... a negative from mk3s
Seats not comfortable enough....a negative from mk3s
Leg room poor and not enough tables.....a negative from mk3s
Small windows, seats dont line up.....a negative from mk3s
claustrophobic feel.....a negative from mk3s
Seats not comfortable enough....a negative from mk3s
Leg room poor and not enough tables.....a negative from mk3s
Small windows, seats dont line up.....a negative from mk3s
claustrophobic feel.....a negative from mk3s
DarloRich
Veteran Member
heretic. Prepare the cleansing flames................
Well, they're a pretty damn good train to drive, and the view is excellent either way, especially the side one because it means I'm not working. 
The bogs are nowhere near as bad as they used to be either. I wouldn't say they've nailed it, but definitely not as bad as in the early days.
The bogs are nowhere near as bad as they used to be either. I wouldn't say they've nailed it, but definitely not as bad as in the early days.
E_Reeves
Established Member
I think they're great trains. Get you where you need to be fast. Quite comfortable and an easily accessible buffet. The only issue is the seat alignments with the windows, but you can easily see out of other windows or go by the door (providing it's not busy).
Mintona
Established Member
I travelled on an Alfa Pendular train from Lisbon to Porto this week, which is another type of Pendolino, and that made me feel incredibly sick too. Seriously can't get on with the tilting.
doa46231
Member
In considering Pendolinos, we should emphasize that these are the premier trains on Britain's premier line.
In some respects they should be the best we've got.
And it depends what you compare them with.
I fear most people using them have never been on a proper inter-city train as one would recognise it in Europe. Compared to ICE's in Germany, TGV's in France, Ave's in Spain and virtually any train in Switzerland, pendolinos are poor.
The average Brit is so pleased to have any train at all, and thinks he's in heaven if he gets a seat, however awful it is, that we are easily pleased.
I'd like, say, 100 Germans to ride pendolinos for a week up and down the WCML and see what their satisfaction rating would be!
Pendolinos are quick, though slow compared with proper IC trains in the rest of the world, but at least you dont have to spend much time on them.
I doubt if Sir richard has ever actually travelled on one, not just sitting for a photo shoot in 1st class: but if he hasn't I'd like to make him sit in a standard seat, with a slab of cream plastic on the side where the window should be, and a slab of cream plastic in front, and stay in it from London to Glasgow and then give his opinion of the comfort, ambience, ride and noise level, compared to say, one of his limousines!
Oh! and also make him pay the walk up fare.
Because I could hire a limousine to travel to some of Virgin's destinations cheaper than his walk on fare!
Joking apart, they are nothing like the standard of the best in the rest of Europe.
In some respects they should be the best we've got.
And it depends what you compare them with.
I fear most people using them have never been on a proper inter-city train as one would recognise it in Europe. Compared to ICE's in Germany, TGV's in France, Ave's in Spain and virtually any train in Switzerland, pendolinos are poor.
The average Brit is so pleased to have any train at all, and thinks he's in heaven if he gets a seat, however awful it is, that we are easily pleased.
I'd like, say, 100 Germans to ride pendolinos for a week up and down the WCML and see what their satisfaction rating would be!
Pendolinos are quick, though slow compared with proper IC trains in the rest of the world, but at least you dont have to spend much time on them.
I doubt if Sir richard has ever actually travelled on one, not just sitting for a photo shoot in 1st class: but if he hasn't I'd like to make him sit in a standard seat, with a slab of cream plastic on the side where the window should be, and a slab of cream plastic in front, and stay in it from London to Glasgow and then give his opinion of the comfort, ambience, ride and noise level, compared to say, one of his limousines!
Oh! and also make him pay the walk up fare.
Because I could hire a limousine to travel to some of Virgin's destinations cheaper than his walk on fare!
Joking apart, they are nothing like the standard of the best in the rest of Europe.
TT-ONR-NRN
Veteran Member
Oh no it isn't. I started the poll to get opinions on Pendolinos, and see what people thinks of them. I'm not interested in who has travelled and who hasn't!
Harpers Tate
Established Member
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Not enough exterior view; not enough luggage space.
Saying "the public like them, well they are always well loaded" is like assuming the public like job centres.
Bletchleyite
Veteran Member
The main problem with the luggage space is that people won't put their bags up despite the racks being quite reasonably proportioned, a useful shape and quite low down as well. An IATA trolley case will fit just fine.
So, the people thinking they're awful are in a pretty small minority. Maybe it's time for some to change the record on here and accept they're not a bad train by any means.
Ok I work for VT so have some bias but if they were so bad, then why do the satisfaction rates come back as well as they do?
Ok I work for VT so have some bias but if they were so bad, then why do the satisfaction rates come back as well as they do?
Can you filter the satisfaction rates so you can only see what American passengers say? Ha ha. They are alright but I find them a bit claustrophobic (Just repeating myself here). I did prefer the Mk3's though. I believe they are the longest inter city units on the UK network so can't moan at that.
ChilternTurbo
Member
- Joined
- 15 Jun 2016
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- 315
I travel on these regularly and i've actually grown to quite like them, despite being distinctly underwhelmed when they first entered service.
Like
They're fast; I can get to our offices in Liverpool and Manchester from London very quickly.
They look good; the exterior styling works very well with the Virgin livery. I'm so glad these never ended up getting the ghastly First 'barbie/dynamic squiggles' treatment…
I find the seats in both standard and first class perfectly comfortable - more so than the Mk.3 items with their intrusive armrests.
Hate
I find the joint male/female automated announcements irritating.
Too many seats in standard class line up with a thick plastic pillar.
Underwhelming First Class ambience; I know not everyone is keen on leather seats but I think it would really lift the interior.
The pervasive smell of the lavatories - not as bad as it used to be but Pendolinos still smell…
The fact that the whole fleet wasn't upgraded to 11 carriages.
Like
They're fast; I can get to our offices in Liverpool and Manchester from London very quickly.
They look good; the exterior styling works very well with the Virgin livery. I'm so glad these never ended up getting the ghastly First 'barbie/dynamic squiggles' treatment…
I find the seats in both standard and first class perfectly comfortable - more so than the Mk.3 items with their intrusive armrests.
Hate
I find the joint male/female automated announcements irritating.
Too many seats in standard class line up with a thick plastic pillar.
Underwhelming First Class ambience; I know not everyone is keen on leather seats but I think it would really lift the interior.
The pervasive smell of the lavatories - not as bad as it used to be but Pendolinos still smell…
The fact that the whole fleet wasn't upgraded to 11 carriages.
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43096
On Moderation
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- 23 Nov 2015
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If you think those of us who don't like them are going to change our opinion, you are out of luck. They are badly specified, badly designed and badly built piles of junk.
Because normals are stupid and have no idea what they could have had. Try an ICE and tell me Pendolino is better.
Bletchleyite
Veteran Member
ICEs don't fit the loading gauge and as they don't tilt would be restricted to 110mph. (ICE-T would be as small as a Pendolino)
Agent_Squash
Established Member
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- 22 Jul 2016
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- 1,245
How is a train that is reliable, has supported growth across the WCML and has a good reputation with the passengers as bad as being made out here? You’ll find from the poll above a majority like them. It seems the Pendos get a lot of hate despite being good at their specified role.
KevinTurvey
Member
- Joined
- 9 Oct 2016
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- 219
Main problem for me is I find them claustrophobic - Here is my Pendolino wish list for when they are refurbished:
- Spin round some of the airline style seats to make a few more window facing table bays and more behind seat luggage space. This may mean losing a couple of seats though.
- Take the luggage racks from in front of the window and put them in front of the plastic pillar instead, and put the displaced seats in front of the window!
- The seat shape is not too bad, but they are too hard and uncomfortable after more than an hour - slightly softer deeper cushions would be nice.
- They feel dark especially during the day - brighter lighting in the centre aisle, and lighter colours to the end panels.
- Whilst we are stuck with the small windows, I always thought the interior panelling with the integral blind was too thick - replace these with a slimmer design and maybe get up to an extra inch of shoulder space.
- Spin round some of the airline style seats to make a few more window facing table bays and more behind seat luggage space. This may mean losing a couple of seats though.
- Take the luggage racks from in front of the window and put them in front of the plastic pillar instead, and put the displaced seats in front of the window!
- The seat shape is not too bad, but they are too hard and uncomfortable after more than an hour - slightly softer deeper cushions would be nice.
- They feel dark especially during the day - brighter lighting in the centre aisle, and lighter colours to the end panels.
- Whilst we are stuck with the small windows, I always thought the interior panelling with the integral blind was too thick - replace these with a slimmer design and maybe get up to an extra inch of shoulder space.
43096
On Moderation
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You have completely missed the point.
Bletchleyite
Veteran Member
Er, how? What is the point of comparing a Pendolino with a train that would knock the platform off at the first station it got to, and that's if it didn't bring the wires down first?
43096
On Moderation
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Because we are talking about the interior fit rather than the loading gauge of the train.
The interior fit out of the ICE (even allowing for the more generous bodysize) is vastly superior - it just oozes high quality. Pendolino comes across as having a cheap and nasty interior.
Bletchleyite
Veteran Member
While the ICE is indeed classy, I wouldn't say Pendolinos feel cheap. The Turbostar, now that is a cheap and nasty interior.
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