Ten years of the voyager

[387star]

Hi as it appears we have recently passed the ten year mark (not sure on exact date) I thought it would be fun to look down memory lane and remember our first journeys/impressions of these now ubiquitous trains.

My first journey was from Havant to Guildford. The train was bound for Birmingham New Street via Solihull and I travelled as far as Guildford.

This was a very symbolic train ride for me because it marked a new era in rail travel. The voyagers were the first new train I was to be aquainted with. I remember the strong smell of the new carpets and fittings and being very excited by the audio system!

I may be 21 but I have always felt these were the trains I grew up with and I associate them with the transition from childhood to adulthood

 

[YorkshireBear]

my first trip on one was a journey from sheffield to deby on my first ever away game (swfc vs derby in facup) so means alot to me. Needless to say it was packed that day, but to be fair it wasnt there fault. Rode a MML HST home on footex special great day.

 

[LE Greys]

I remember chasing after them early on, because they were shiny and new. That wore off when I realised they would replace Cross Country HSTs rather than supplementing them. Then followed a desperate dash to film the last of the 47s. Still, I liked the fact that they all had names based on one theme, had buffets, had a vaguely clerestory look inside and went very fast. Now, they've lost the best features - the names and the buffet. Virgin are doing OK with them, but XC have turned them into just another regional DMU, and themselves into just another regional operator.

Overall, nice try, but we could have done a lot better.

First trip was Oxford-Birmingham, and I went for no reason other than to try them out.

 

[sprinterguy]

The first Voyager I saw was 220004, on test at Newcastle in Febrary 2001, IIRC, before they had entered passenger service. I was quite intirgued by this new train which looked completely different from the usual order at Newcastle: It certainly looked like it heralded the start of a "Red Revolution", but at the time I failed to realise the connotations of these four carriage trains replacing the existing stock. There was a lot of exciting hype coming from the Virgin press office at the time that acted as an excellent smokescreen for the more negatie aspects of Voyager introudction. In the early days it wasn't so bad, as during the period of Voyager introduction (pre-Operation Princess) they were often doubled up as eight or nine carriage trains and were working alongside the loco hauled and, for a longer period of time, the HSTs.

Plenty of early promise helped along by an impressive publicity campaign, that failed to deliver everything it could have done.

 

[TheBigD]

Below the solebar they are wonderful trains. It's the interiors that are truly appalling in my opinion.

I know they had the benefit of learning from Virgin's mistakes but the interior of the Meridians is far better, and show's what could be done.

 

[GNERman]

First was Newcastle to Leeds on Virgin XC's second day of using the new Voyager, they seemed nice, bright, modern, but they are certainly under-equipped for today, may future operators replace or lengthen these train for the benefit of the passenger...

 

[cj_1985]

my first trip would have been in mid/late 2002 iirc...
travelling from (again iirc) taunton to derby ... although i cant remember if it actually was derby i got it to... (my memory isnt that good at the mo)

i liked the exterior... the interior was fine.. but at the time there were apparently issues with reserved seats.. meaning that my reserved seat had been reserved by/for someone else who got on before me... meant i had to stand for a while but i enjoyed my trip...

travelled on them from glasgow to manchester, and glasgow to birmingham...
while i admit that the interiors are worlds apart from the mk.2 and mk.3 stock they replace... but honestly in my opinion i find them quite comfortable... plus my ar*e doesnt hurt after being sat in a voyager seat for a few hours unlike when i had traveled on mk.3 stock...

only issue i have/had with them is that the seat back tables -while being spacious- are not exactly idea size for a normal size laptop when they are opened. maybe not so much of an issue if using a mini laptop/netbook or a tablet pc...

but i can honestly say and freely admit that i would travel on a voyager before travelling on a mk.2 again...


sadly though they are not as long as they should be... but then as has been covered many times in the past 10 years, Virgin had wanted to order more carraiges... but were not allowed to order them by the SRA/DfT... Ideally the Voyagers should have been between 7-9 carraiges

i should also remind everyone that the head man at Virgin Trains when the Voyagers were ordered was Richard Bowker who went on to head the SRA, before moving to Nat Ex and F*cking things up there...

 

[d5509]

First trips were between Reading, Oxford, Birmingham, they were new, bright and shockingly different - very good marketing! Otherwise the impression I remember was they were cosily crampt inside. By comparison the AddledAunties that sometimes appeared on Bristol Paddington were pretty orthodox.

 

[Yew]

I havent traveled on a voyager, However a meridian is based on the similar design. From that I got quite a buisnessy feel, With first being more like buisness class, than first on an airline. The ride was harder than a Mk3, however it was one jolt and you where done, rather than a few bounces (not pacery bounces, but i think the meridian would be better for writing/drinking a martini on) The interior didnt seem crapmed, However It felt more airliney, with high backed seats providing much more pricavy than the armchairs in an EMT Hst. Unfortunately there was a rattle on the overhead luggage rack, but personally I dotn mind DMU's too much as long as they fix rattles quickly. The seats where harder than a Mk3, however they where not uncomfortable. The windows where a bit small, however they still offered a good view, but might make the carriage a bit dull in daytime compared to a light and airy Mk3.

Overall not bad at all. However I dont know what it would be like for the cheapskate cross country operated units.

 

[WestCoast]

They looked like the future: bright, clean and modern. I remember thinking how innovative the "shop" and audio system was. Having been used to Virgin's HSTs, which were great but the Mk3 interior didn't look all that modern on the inside!

If only they were 7 coaches long!

One thing that they still have going for them (and haters don't mention!) is the HUGE windows. I really enjoyed doing the Settle - Carlisle line on one - very relaxing on my exclusive table. Voyagers can be good to travel on - but only if it's quiet and that's very rarely the case!

Although 10 years on, Arriva have done them no favours: no shop, light maintenance and interior upkeep. I echo sentiments above - a regional DMU. Thankfully, I am not an AXC regular.

Virgin have improved their Super Voyagers with good upkeep and a very nice table seated coach D - only if it's standard class on Birmingham - Scotland though!

Although I'm indifferent to the voyagers (they just need to be longer! and more Meridian-esque) - in many ways, I miss Virgin CrossCountry more.

 

[WillPS]

I havent traveled on a voyager, However a meridian is based on the similar design. From that I got quite a buisnessy feel, With first being more like buisness class, than first on an airline. The ride was harder than a Mk3, however it was one jolt and you where done, rather than a few bounces (not pacery bounces, but i think the meridian would be better for writing/drinking a martini on) The interior didnt seem crapmed, However It felt more airliney, with high backed seats providing much more pricavy than the armchairs in an EMT Hst. Unfortunately there was a rattle on the overhead luggage rack, but personally I dotn mind DMU's too much as long as they fix rattles quickly. The seats where harder than a Mk3, however they where not uncomfortable. The windows where a bit small, however they still offered a good view, but might make the carriage a bit dull in daytime compared to a light and airy Mk3.

Overall not bad at all. However I dont know what it would be like for the cheapskate cross country operated units.

Meridian interiors are infinitely superior to Voyager ones. Completely different bodyshell aside.

 

[Helvellyn]

I remember the 220s came first, operating in pairs in place of HSTs initially. They were new, modern and good. But even then I had my worries about the impact of Operation Princess.

Chris Green admits that he came to Virgin too late to influence the design to an extent. I think in place of the shop we'd have had a mini buffet/cafe bar. There's be no disabled loos in the centre coaches. And luggage rack provision would have been better. Virgin might even have tried to order all units as 5-coaches! Certainly all the 221 units should have been ordered as such anyway.

 

[cj_1985]

I remember the 220s came first, operating in pairs in place of HSTs initially. They were new, modern and good. But even then I had my worries about the impact of Operation Princess.

Chris Green admits that he came to Virgin too late to influence the design to an extent. I think in place of the shop we'd have had a mini buffet/cafe bar. There's be no disabled loos in the centre coaches. And luggage rack provision would have been better. Virgin might even have tried to order all units as 5-coaches! Certainly all the 221 units should have been ordered as such anyway.

yeah... that never made sense to me... why there were (iirc) 4x 4 carraige super voyagers when all the rest were 5 carraiges...

 

[Lampshade]

yeah... that never made sense to me... why there were (iirc) 4x 4 carraige super voyagers when all the rest were 5 carraiges...

The 4 carriage units were intended for Holyhead (West Coast) services, possibly operated in pairs, the others were for XC services.

 

[cj_1985]

The 4 carriage units were intended for Holyhead (West Coast) services, possibly operated in pairs, the others were for XC services.

fair enough... but still seems to be a stupid decision...
if they had just ordered a uniform 5 carraige class 221 fleet then we wouldnt now have 2x spare driving carraiges of a multi million £££ super voyager sat at a Depot unable to be used so that other units could be increased to 5 carraiges...

 

[mumrar]

Although 10 years on, Arriva have done them no favours: no shop, light maintenance and interior upkeep.

Under Arriva they have improved dramatically in terms of reliability, which is as a direct result of maintenance, so I don't know what you're basing that statement on. The 221 and 220 fleet have both won a silver or gold spanner and recently the MPC figure for the 220 fleet at XC was over 49000miles.

 

[Johnny Lewis]

The first Voyager in regular service did a single trip, Mondays to Fridays, from Birmingham New Street to Reading (in that direction only), calling at Solihull, Leamington Spa, Banbury and Oxford. Virgin offered a special fare of something like £15 Standard or £25 First, so I treated myself to a ride in First Class. At the time, the complimentary breakfast served at-seat (not that I think it was anything brilliant, just tea/orange juice and cereal) was something of a novelty - so too was the at-seat entertainment system and free headphones.

The train left New Street at, I think, 09.15, which, at that time, was only 12 minutes after the pattern xx03 departure from there to Reading, so was consequently almost empty, so it gave the impression of being a very bright, modern and spacious train...... :roll:

I was rather surprised, a few months later, to read an article in Modern Railways extolling the virtues of onboard entertainment systems and to see an accompanying photo of myself on board said Voyager, wearing the headphones!

It is interesting to see that within these 10 years, the at-seat entertainment systems on both Voyagers (I assume, as I never travel on them now) and Pendolinos have been rendered obsolete by the advances in technology of iPods and the like.

 

[cj_1985]

Under Arriva they have improved dramatically in terms of reliability, which is as a direct result of maintenance, so I don't know what you're basing that statement on. The 221 and 220 fleet have both won a silver or gold spanner and recently the MPC figure for the 220 fleet at XC was over 49000miles.

in the case of the 221s... thats partly to do with the isolation/removal of the tilting equipment... so less things to go wrong... plus iirc AXC dont/wont let the voyagers run along the sa front at dawlish so less risk of damage or faults due to water, but to hell with the customers that pay to travel on AXC

 

[ainsworth74]

plus iirc AXC dont/wont let the voyagers run along the sa front at dawlish so less risk of damage or faults due to water

Then how do they get to/from Penzance every day?

 

[Zoe]

Then how do they get to/from Penzance every day?

I believe the above post was referring to not running Voyagers between Exeter and Newton Abbot in poor weather conditions.

 

[ainsworth74]

I believe the above post was referring to not running Voyagers between Exeter and Newton Abbot in poor weather conditions.

Fair enough, but it's still wrong. Virgin XC did discover a problem with the Voyagers in that they did not like getting covered in sea water (something to do with the big heat sinks on the roof I think), however it was addressed in a software patch shortly afterwards. The only time Voyagers will be banned from the Dawlish area is when the sea wall is closed to all traffic.

 

[Lampshade]

The Dawlish sea wall issue was sorted long ago, it was due to the high waves flooding the resistor banks with salt water and shutting them down.

 

[tbtc]

The first Voyager in regular service did a single trip, Mondays to Fridays, from Birmingham New Street to Reading (in that direction only), calling at Solihull, Leamington Spa, Banbury and Oxford. Virgin offered a special fare of something like £15 Standard or £25 First, so I treated myself to a ride in First Class. At the time, the complimentary breakfast served at-seat (not that I think it was anything brilliant, just tea/orange juice and cereal) was something of a novelty - so too was the at-seat entertainment system and free headphones.

The train left New Street at, I think, 09.15, which, at that time, was only 12 minutes after the pattern xx03 departure from there to Reading, so was consequently almost empty, so it gave the impression of being a very bright, modern and spacious train...... :roll:

I was rather surprised, a few months later, to read an article in Modern Railways extolling the virtues of onboard entertainment systems and to see an accompanying photo of myself on board said Voyager, wearing the headphones!

It is interesting to see that within these 10 years, the at-seat entertainment systems on both Voyagers (I assume, as I never travel on them now) and Pendolinos have been rendered obsolete by the advances in technology of iPods and the like.

Thats a good point about ipods etc!

I was very impressed on my first Voyager trip. It was from Birmingham New Street to Manchester Piccadilly in 2001, I had enough leg room to cross my legs, I thought it was the future.

In hindsight, being on a doubled-up service (which this was) didn't make me appreciate the problems there would be once the HSTs were withdrawn. So, whilst I'd love to tell you that I had perfect foresight back then, I honestly thought these were good trains - the best "post privatisation" units I think I said at the time.

 

[Masboroughlad]

in the case of the 221s... thats partly to do with the isolation/removal of the tilting equipment... so less things to go wrong... plus iirc AXC dont/wont let the voyagers run along the sa front at dawlish so less risk of damage or faults due to water, but to hell with the customers that pay to travel on AXC

They may be reliable but they are dirty, smelly and quite often hot inside. Its about time Arriva sorted them out for passenger comfort too!

 

[Techniquest]

Good grief, it's 10 years since the first Voyagers came into service? Doesn't time fly by...

My first logged journey in RailMiles was 5th August 2004, although I don't have the specific number of the 220, I do very handily remember it being a 220. I know I had a Voyager journey, in First Class, from Taunton to Bristol Parkway before that by about a week or so, although memory fails to tell me what if any Voyager action I had before then. I know I had one before 5th August 2004 because of the First Class journey and for the fact I'd not have the August one otherwise, as I left my suitcase on the FC journey and had to go to Leeds to recover it! I seem to recall it being a 220 on the Taunton to Bristol Parkway journey, not sure though.

So, without knowing exactly what I had before, the August 2004 one is officially my first logged journey on a Voyager. I had it from Leeds to Derby, I think it was the 1510 from Leeds and was very busy. Not much else that I remember about it to be honest.

Seems crazy to think I loved Voyagers, although thankfully that was now well over 2 years ago.

 

[OuterDistant]

Stoke-on-Trent to Birmingham International - 2002, I think? I was amazed that they had sockets and electronic reservation displays, but thought it was ridiculous that they were only 4 coaches long - this was a 2 x 220 service and to get a seat, I had to leap out at Stafford and change to the front unit.

 

[90019]

The windows where a bit small, however they still offered a good view, but might make the carriage a bit dull in daytime compared to a light and airy Mk3.

Meridians and Voyagers have bigger windows than Mk3s.

 

[sprinterguy]

Meridians and Voyagers have bigger windows than Mk3s.

They’re certainly taller, but are they longer? The window pillars seem to be considerably wider than those in a mark three are. The tinted treatment of the windows on a Voyager or Meridian ensures that the passenger saloon also appears to be duller than that of a mark 3, which doesn’t help to suggest an airy, spacious interior.

 

[90019]

They’re certainly taller, but are they longer? The window pillars seem to be considerably wider than those in a mark three are.

I wondered that myself, but looking at them, the width doesn't appear to be much different, and the difference in pillar size doens't seem to be too much.

 

[Blindtraveler]

first trip was bhm to edb in 2002. loved the new smell, plugs and entertainment but was otherwise unimpressed. Arivas may be reliable but they are badly in need of some TLC internally, something noticeable anyway but esp if you travel with vt and xc within 2 hours of eachother. Vt have, as well as the coach D thing and other improvements ensured theres still some padding left on the seats where as xc seam to have let there seating get to a point where its uncomfortable despite both companies doing minor internal refresh work at round the same time.