Trains in awkward places

[VTPreston_Tez]

Where have you seen trains in the wrong places?
My best are London Midland's 153 in Leeds and the area, and a 390 parked in Euxton Balshaw Lane station earlier this month (anyone remember that story, I do alright)

 

[MidnightFlyer]

There was an LM 153 with Northern for quite a while last autumn, I've known it go to Clitheroe too. A 390 in Euxton Balshaw Lane isn't too unusual - you only have to be put on the slows at Balshaw Lane Jn northbound, or Preston South Jn / Farringdon Jn southbound. Stopped is quite unusual though, I don't know the story behind it, but I highly doubt it was calling.

 

[BestWestern]

LM 153's also appear with FGW in Cornwall! The hired-in SWT 158 could be found on a daily basis running Gloucester - Swindon until quite recently, before switching back to the Brighton run. And of course 150/1 sets ex-London Midland and previously London Overground (Silverlink liveried) have been running with FGW for a good while now, reaching Devon & Cornwall, Bristol and Cardiff, Weymouth and Portsmouth!

 

[Minilad]

FGW HST at Newcastle.
EMT HST Power car at Plymouth.

 

[Eagle]

NXEA have been using one of the three First Scotrail-liveried 90s this week.

 

[sprinterguy]

There was a class 90 that ended up stabled as far off the wires as Llandudno Junction in Virgin loco hauled days after being taken off one of the Holyhead trains for whatever reason and then having to wait for a drag back to Crewe. I'm not sure whether a 90 has ever made it as far as Holyhead before as part of a West Coast consist, it probably has happened. They've also made it as far as Thornaby for tyre turning, too.

Class 33s in Inverness has got to be a pretty strange one. Although 33s wandering around the Scottish Highlands became a bit more of a common occurence a couple of years ago when West Coast were using a couple of them on the Royal Scotsman. It's just not the natural order of things :-?

 

[First class]

Class 507 at Doncaster...

You used to get the dreaded Merseyrail-branded Pacers as far North as Morpeth and Kilmarnock!

 

[sprinterguy]

You used to get the dreaded Merseyrail-branded Pacers as far North as Morpeth

When? I never saw or heard of a Merseyrail branded Pacer in the north east in all eighteen years of living there. Though the former Merseyrail units have made sporadic trips to the north east since the all-encompassing Northern franchise came into being.

I have seen a 144 (and a 3-car one at that!) in Sunderland though. I'm sure that that's been a complete one off.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

NXEA have been using one of the three First Scotrail-liveried 90s this week.

90024 it would seem, speaking of which, when it was the sole class 90 in GNER livery, it was usually found anywhere except on the ECML working the services it was re-liveried for!

 

[TheJRB]

Virgin liveried 57 at Ashford heading to Dollands Moor. Although it had the Virgin logo removed and had already moved to Network Rail, so it actually wasn't that out of place at all...

 

[Southern]

A Class 319/2 (still wearing the colourful Connex "Creche" Livery) with a another unit in Ex-Connex Yellow heading into Charing Cross with a Tattenham Corner service on Derby Day, about 9/10 years ago.

 

[Crossover]

A 465 near Wolverton top and tailed by locos confused me somewhat!

Also seen two 390 coaches (one a driving car) on two consecutive days travelling the streets of Milton Keynes on a low loader. They both had tarpaulin over but enough visible to realise what it was. Still no idea which coaches they were but I rather suspect they were of 390033 heading to Crewe or such.

Not unusual at all but seeing the FTPE 185's in GLC seemed a bit weird

Also, the LM stuff we've had up in the North recently and especially the 'two-tone' 150 which I saw at Sheffield before Christmas

 

[First class]

Merseyrail 142 at Carlisle
Merseyrail 142 at Dumfries (Would have continued to Newcastle via Hexham)
Merseyrail 142 at York

 

[sprinterguy]

Merseyrail 142 at Carlisle
Merseyrail 142 at Dumfries

Yeah they used to turn up at Carlisle reasonably regularly through working services up the Cumbrian Coast, and I would presume that they also passed through, and through Dumfries, on their way to Kilmarnock to have work done to them as did the North West Trains liveried 142s, although I only ever saw the former NWT 142s heading to Kilmarnock.

Seeing one at York has taken me a bit by surprise, but it appears to be in Northern days so that makes fairly good sense. I thought that by the time former Merseytravel 142s had started to make appearances in the North East they had already been repainted into Northern livery.

 

[LE Greys]

I remember seeing my first 373 at Stevenage (in full Eurostar colours) and thinking I'd gone mad.

One definitely reached Edinburgh on test, and another was pushed very slowly into Heathrow Central for some reason I can never remember.

 

[Welshman]

There was a class 90 that ended up stabled as far off the wires as Llandudno Junction in Virgin loco hauled days after being taken off one of the Holyhead trains for whatever reason and then having to wait for a drag back to Crewe. I'm not sure whether a 90 has ever made it as far as Holyhead before as part of a West Coast consist, it probably has happened. They've also made it as far as Thornaby for tyre turning, too.

Ah, yes.

I seem to remember it was down to a mistake at Crewe. Wasn't it that the diesel [47 or 57, I can't remember] was attached for the journey along the NW Coast, but the 90 was not detached when it should have been?
[I can't remember if the 90 was at the rear propelling to Crewe, or at the front originally and thus inside the diesel leaving Crewe].

Either way, 90s do not have clearance on the NW Coast line due to restrictions on the tubular bridge at Conwy. Fortunately the mistake was realised before the train reached Conwy, and it was terminated at Llandudno Junction. The 90 was left in the sidings there and the train started its return journey from the Junction, rather than Holyhead.

 

[class156]

Merseyrail 142 at Carlisle
Merseyrail 142 at Dumfries (Would have continued to Newcastle via Hexham)
Merseyrail 142 at York

They've even been through Irvine via Glasgow! http://www.flickr.com/photos/rmktid/2403952860/ (not my photo)

 

[43167]

Ive had GNER HST's to Newquay in 2004 when VXC hired a set on 12 saturdays in the summer.

Then the following year, the GNER set went Paignton, while it was possible to get MML liveried sets on the Manchester-Newquay. GNER set was also booked via Westbury on its balancing working from Bristol to Paignton.

 

[ushawk]

Ive seen a photo of a SWT liveried 170/171 going through Lewes ECS. Theres also the ex-Silverlink/LOROL liveried 313s that were ECS for staff training runs across the Coastways prior to being introduced.

A Southern 377 ran from London Bridge to Brighton via Orpington, Tonbridge and Hastings last year because of the tunnel problem at Balcombe.

 

[ValleyLines142]

LM 153 at Cardiff. And a 158 on a Penarth service.

 

[87015]

Ah, yes.

I seem to remember it was down to a mistake at Crewe. Wasn't it that the diesel [47 or 57, I can't remember] was attached for the journey along the NW Coast, but the 90 was not detached when it should have been?
[I can't remember if the 90 was at the rear propelling to Crewe, or at the front originally and thus inside the diesel leaving Crewe].

Either way, 90s do not have clearance on the NW Coast line due to restrictions on the tubular bridge at Conwy. Fortunately the mistake was realised before the train reached Conwy, and it was terminated at Llandudno Junction. The 90 was left in the sidings there and the train started its return journey from the Junction, rather than Holyhead.

I thought it did run through to Holyhead after they had dumped the skoda? Either way 90039 as you say spent a few hours at Llandudno Jn in disgrace after being detached, shame they didn't just leave it there! A fine farce that led to 87013 working Crewe - Euston and return just a few weeks after the "last" VWC 87 fiasco to Manchester with 010.

I'll add a vote for the cromptons allocated to Aberdeen in EWS days and the standard 'stupid workings' shout of EDs to Birmingham (or en-route and boilied over!)
The few 303s reallocated to Longsight got as far south as Rugby, Clacton units reallocated to the same place also were off-territory.

 

[IanXC]

Bingo at Bridlington has to be mine!

Northern borrowed 158888 for a time in 2011. Very nice having declassified first class during my commute to Bridlington. Some peace from the screaming kids going to the seaside!

 

[GNERman]

Class 86 at Skipton...

 

[TGV]

TGV Iris 320 at Ashford...

 

[lewisf]

TGV Iris 320 at Ashford...

In that case I call the ICE3 at St Pancras :P

 

[TGV]

In that case I call the ICE3 at St Pancras :P

Well played sir.

 

[Penmorfa]

How about the two Class 325 EMUs that went to Fort William

http://forargyll.com/2010/03/west-highland-line-to-see-rio-tinto-alcan-freight-move-to-rail/

or the Class 20's to Kosovo?

 

[Hydro]

TGV Iris 320 at Ashford...

I hope that runs again. I'm going to try and wangle a trip out on it.

 

[Schnellzug]

trains in awkward places? Down the back of the sofa is one i always find annoying.

:-?

 

[davelew99]

What about the new london overground units at Crewe in recent testing? It made me do a double take thats for sure!

 

[TGV]

I hope that runs again. I'm going to try and wangle a trip out on it.

I'll see you there...