I’ll review this last post as “Things I Learned” from the trip as well as sort out the remaining "odds & sods" of the photos.
First- Understanding the UK’s “Privatization” of rail services is challenging – While privatized in the mid-1990’s and with plenty of private and publicly traded corporate operators now providing various passenger/freight services throughout the UK, a lot of the available “franchises” have now reverted back to being quasi-government run/held subsidiaries (not that different from Amtrak) of the relevant regional or national government agency as an “operator of last resort.” Likewise, the number of “players” here can be as intimidating to parse as the fine print in their contracts. Sorting out the franchise operator, their owner or investor group(s), operating staff provider, motive power owner or lease holder, maintenance provider etc. can be daunting, albeit the variety makes for some very interesting train spotting. With all that in mind let’s review some of the franchise-based services mostly at Edinburgh’s Waverly Station.
This is a BR Class 390 “Pendolino” operated by the now premier Avanti West Coast consortium (70% UK First Group, 30% Italy Trenitalia) and as another successor to the Virgin Trains franchise. Manufactured by Alstom/Fiat Ferroviaria in 2001-4, these aircraft-like fixed EMU sets are 8 or 11 cars long; electrically powered, with tilt enabled suspensions, capable of 140mph, though here limited to 125mph on the former LMS West Coast Mainline down to London (Euston) which our above example will do in a scorching 5 hours and 15 minutes. Sorry for the lighting here, it was high noon, and the contrast killed Avanti’s attractive dark blue and white livery colors for my camera phone.
This is a BR Class 220 Voyager operated by CrossCountry, another former Virgin Trains franchise now managed by Arriva, a transport services subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn under the CrossCountry brand. Manufactured by Bombardier in 2001-2 for Virgin Trains, these diesel-electric 220’s operate in four and five car sets, have a top speed of 125mph and employ a distinctive inside bearing lightweight truck that allows them to safely operate over lighter rail branch line routes (Guildford, Newquay, Paigeton, Nottingham) that otherwise would be limited to more conventional DMU stock.
I was able to walk up the hill from Waverly past Scotland’s Parliament building and shoot this southbound Voyager leaving the southeast throat of the station. CrossCountry’s services radiate from Birmingham north to Aberdeen and Glasgow, east to Cambridge, Stansted, south to Reading and Bournemouth, southwest to Cardiff and Penzance, and northwest to Manchester, yet interestingly do not service London. As an aside CrossCountry operates the purportedly longest passenger schedule in the UK, running from Aberdeen Scotland south to Edinburgh then down the East Coast Mainline to York, over and through Birmingham then southwest through Devon and Cornwall to Penzance, clocking in at around 13 hours total. I’ve been told this service dates back to WWII when it facilitated the quick transit of Royal Navy and merchant crewman between the North Atlantic runs and the North Sea convoys to Murmansk.
Above, arriving from London (King’s Cross) is a BR Class 803 “AT300” operated by First Group UK entity Lumo under Britain’s “open access” franchise provision and marketed on the internet as “Cheap Electric Train Tickets from London to Edinburgh” implying it’s a lower-cost alternative to the LNER’s Azuma service. With only standard class seating and minimum food services it’s basically a passenger rail version of a discount airline. Manufactured by Hitachi in 2020, the AT300 is a straight electric (EMU) variation of the LNER’s Azuma bi-modal (BMU) Class 800 operating on the same electrified InterCity East Coast Main route between Edinburgh and London. The solid dip-blue livery was certainly eye-catching.
Which brings me back to our BR Class 800 “Azuma” operated by “LNER” which again is wholly owned by the Department for Transportation and managed through their subsidiary holding company as an operator of last resort, replacing original franchise operator Virgin Trains in 2018 after they withdrew due to financial “difficulties.”
The Azuma Class 800’s are bi-modal multiple units (BMU) sets, operating as either conventional straight electric or as self-propelled diesel-electrics. Specifically, here on the Highland Main Line operating north of the Central Belt under diesel power to Inverness and south of Stirling under electric power through to London(Euston) over the East Coast Mainline. One wonders what effect eliminating low-cost direct competitors like Lumo south of Edinburgh would have for attracting a new private operator for the East Coast Mainline.
Second- UK “Freight” franchise operations are also fascinating. In our 10 days in Scotland I only saw one “goods” train, the above grab shot out of our DMU on the West Highland line in the station passing track at Garelochhead. a southbound train of 18 empty bauxite cars from Ft. William awaiting our passage. It’s GB RailFreight #66740 named “Sarah” in full livery.
I had more than one resident of the Ft. William area tell me this alumina unit train to the local Alcan smelter from Blythe had been discontinued in 2021. But apparently not so and if you search You-Tube you can view other similar franchise freight operations throughout Scotland and the UK. Mostly overpowered short single lading unit trains, often running at full track speed hauling aggregate or imported grain, containerized consumer goods, automobiles, chemical traffic, bio-fuel and even nuclear material(!) The mixed freight as we still know it in the US is largely extinct in the UK, and viewing any kind of freight train there is an infrequent enough occurrence (frequently nocturnal) as to be especially prized by railfan/trainspotters. As you’d expect, the camera toting British rail fans reliably turn out lots of excellent rail footage of all kinds of traffic of which I’m just now scratching the surface of.
Here’s my (better) view again of the BR RailFreight Class 66 in Caledonian Sleeper service, one of over 400 of these EMD’s now largely operating in the UK thanks to E.W.S. and its successor DB Schenker, a vestige of the original 1990’s privatisation where the EWS consortium led by Ed Burkhardt’s Wisconsin Central bought into 92% of the UK’s freight business. Loved by management for their high-availability and performance but not by their crews due to their cab environment; ride, noise, air quality etc., nick-named “Sheds,” constructed in London, Ontario and later Muncie, Indiana, essentially a 3200 hp SD box cab with a 12 cyl. 710 and steerable trucks squeezed into an elongated, reduced-height car body to meet the smaller UK loading gauge, nevertheless quite impressive firsthand with that “brute-power vibe” one associates with other large EMD’s.
Lastly- For me the UK is essentially a theme park for railfans. Their heritage excursions and railways are often dead-nuts recreations of the legacy service; as in “proper” locomotives and rolling stock, in “proper” liveries that delight the eye of most anyone, fan or “civilian.” Likewise, the size and scope of the preservation efforts are astounding. Their tourist (heritage) operations are diverse, often well funded and patronized. Scotland alone has some eight heritage railway operations or groups.
Likewise, there's a lot for patrons of public rail travel to appreciate here too; most of our trips were on time with only an occasional late arrival, the equipment was clean and comfortable, stations well maintained and safe etc. Yet the vulnerabilities of having contract franchise operators has frequently injected periods of unfortunate labor, financial, and supplier-based uncertainty or chaos into passengers daily commutes, business travel and vacation plans. The former nationalized system had this issue too albeit less frequently though often system-wide and of course now many of the core passenger and commuter franchises have returned to being de facto wards of the state anyway due to the lack of a private interest with a viable franchise contract proposal. As I write this, I’m reminded that upon finishing my last post I saw Caledonian Sleeper had withdrawn their public timetable from their website in anticipation of a system-wide labor strike by their operating staff over grievances with personal scheduling, many of the locals in Scotland told me they're tired of the lack of consistency between the various operators though some also felt the government owned operators were just as unreliable as the private ones, it indeed sounded "challenging."
Thanks to all for your kind comments and likes. Cheers!
Pete
