Royal train: is there a full list of journeys made?

[LOM]

What is the title of thd book please?

 

[Peter Sarf]

Seems like it. It is a bit vague but it appears some senior staff travel by other means on single trips. On few longer, multi day/night trips these staff travel with the Royal so they are close at all times and require their own offices/accommodation.

It looks like the last time they were used extensively was on the Jubilee tours of various parts of the UK when the queen was onboard for 3-4 days at a time.

There is a pic of the interior of 2918 in that book also.

Darn i should have tried harder to see it in that period !. Was in 2012 iirc.

 

[dubscottie]

What is the title of thd book please?

The Royal Train, The Inside Story.
By Brian Hoey,
ISBN 978 1 84425 556 6
I got my copy for €2.50 in a book shop in Dublin!

 

[LOM]

Thank you. One to add to my book shelf.

 

[dubscottie]

Thank you. One to add to my book shelf.

It's a good read.

 

[Helvellyn]

The Royal Train, The Inside Story by Brian Hoey, ISBN 978 1 84425 556 6.

I've dug out out my copy and as well as the mentioned interior picture of 2918 (showing an office being used by the Principal Private Secretary during a Diamond Jubilee tour) there is also an interior picture of 2919 showing a small dining table laid out for six. The accompanying caption says the coach was mothballed in 1998.

The presence of the small dining room does make me think this could have been a coach intended fo use by other members of the Royal Family, possibly HM The Queen Mother.

At my best guess when the fleet was modernised in the mid-1980s to replace the remaining Mark 1 vehicles the rough replacements were:

• 2914/2915 Royal Household sleeping cars (built using bodyshells intended for SLEs 10734 and 10735) replacing 2908 (ex SLF 2013) and 2909 (ex SLSTP 2500).
• 2916 Royal Dining Car (ex TRUK 40512) replacing 2902.
• 2917 Royal Household Dining Car (ex TRUK 40514) replacing 2907 (ex RF 325).
• 2918 Royal Saloon (ex TRUK 40515) replacing 2901 Royal Saloon (Private Secretary and Household).
• 2919 Royal Saloon (ex TRUK 40518) replacing 2900 Royal Saloon (Royal Family or Household).

 

[Peter Sarf]

I've dug out out my copy and as well as the mentioned interior picture of 2918 (showing an office being used by the Principal Private Secretary during a Diamond Jubilee tour) there is also an interior picture of 2919 showing a small dining table laid out for six. The accompanying caption says the coach was mothballed in 1998.

The presence of the small dining room does make me think this could have been a coach intended fo use by other members of the Royal Family, possibly HM The Queen Mother.

At my best guess when the fleet was modernised in the mid-1980s to replace the remaining Mark 1 vehicles the rough replacements were:

• 2914/2915 Royal Household sleeping cars (built using bodyshells intended for SLEs 10734 and 10735) replacing 2908 (ex SLF 2013) and 2909 (ex SLSTP 2500).
• 2916 Royal Dining Car (ex TRUK 40512) replacing 2902.
• 2917 Royal Household Dining Car (ex TRUK 40514) replacing 2907 (ex RF 325).
• 2918 Royal Saloon (ex TRUK 40515) replacing 2901 Royal Saloon (Private Secretary and Household).
• 2919 Royal Saloon (ex TRUK 40518) replacing 2900 Royal Saloon (Royal Family or Household).

That is useful to know. So the best chance I have got is that 2919 could be viewed as a spare for 2918. Not that 2918 is going to clock up much wear and tear.

Failing that the Royal households (come back Harry) increase their use of the royal train(s) thus reducing their carbon footprint but not by using public service trains full of Covid-19 carrying subjects.

 

[Helvellyn]

That is useful to know. So the best chance I have got is that 2919 could be viewed as a spare for 2918. Not that 2918 is going to clock up much wear and tear.

Failing that the Royal households (come back Harry) increase their use of the royal train(s) thus reducing their carbon footprint but not by using public service trains full of Covid-19 carrying subjects.

Unlikely though. I suspect 2904 (HRH The Duke of Edinburgh's Saloon) is effectively now mothballed following his retirement form public duties.

HM The Queen's Saloon (2903) sees less use as well these days and I don't expect a Platinum Jubilee tour in 2022 will see 2002 or 2012 style increased use given HM will be 96 then.

That leaves TRH The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall as the other main users, with 2916, 2922 and 2923 the main vehicles used there.

The fact that even with TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge stepping up to do more royal duties they are still not permitted to use the Royal Train suggests to me that it will be gradually phased out. Even though 2918 and 2919 could possibly be refurbished for their use out of the Sovereign Grant, possibly with the addition of a Sleeping Car for their use.

I think between a privatised railway with much higher usage (train path wise) than twenty years ago patching a Royal Train is so much more difficult. Plus we do have an annoying habit in this country of knowing (or wanting to know) the cost of everything with public figures and ignoring the value.

Tony Blair came to regret his semi knee jerk decision to press ahead with decommissioning the Royal Yacht Britannia after John Major tried to bounce Labour into replacing it before the 1997 election (not helped by Gordon Brown not wanting to pay). Which continues through to today with every time a politician or member of the Royal Family doesn't use public transport they get hammered in the press with someone looking up the cost of an Advance Rail fare or how much it would have been on easyJet. I am all for a slimmed down Monarchy but lets treat the core with the dignity of the role. Same with senior politicians. Respect the office. (Rant over lol).