Great Western Coffee Shop

Southeastern has issued a notice to train manufacturers that it’s looking to buy a new fleet of trains, with between 350 and 570 carriages to go into service by late 2027.

Southeastern says that it’s looking to buy the new fleet of trains to replace a “significant quantity of Southeastern’s ageing fleet”, with the main aim of reducing its cost of maintaining the older fleet of trains.

...should we be on the look-out for GWR issuing a similar notice to replace the turbos?

   SIX TRANCHES TO DECARBONISE THE WESTERN - electricication

Tranche 0: Acton to Willesden; Bristol Temple Meads to Bristol Parkway (Filton bank); Chippenham East to Bristol Temple Meads; Didcot to Oxford (and potentially on to Hanborough)

Tranche 1: Newbury to Cogload; Bristol to Exeter; Westbury to Thingley, Bathampton and Warminster; Somerset quarries; Oxford to Banbury

Tranche 2: Bromsgrove to Westerleigh (including Worcester); Swindon to Standish Junction; Gloucester to Severn Tunnel Junction; Norton Junction to Hanborough; Severn Beach and Hallen Marsh lines; Westerleigh and Tytherington quarry

Tranche 3: Thames Valley passenger branch lines – Greenford, Windsor, Marlow and Henley-on-Thames; freight branches – Brentford and Colnbrook

Tranche 4: Exeter to Plymouth and Paignton; Barnstaple, Exmouth and Okehampton branches; West of England main line

Tranche 5: Plymouth to Penzance; Cornish passenger branches: Gunnislake, Looe, Newquay, Falmouth and St Ives; freight branches: Moorswater, Fowey and Parkandillack

  Thames Valley passenger, the strategy favours alternative traction rather than electrification, highlighting the forthcoming Greenford branch trial with a Vivarail battery Class 230, although a note of caution is applied in the strategy around tight turnaround times at some branch termini. It is understood Great Western Railway would like to have a single fleet of battery trains for these routes .

   Wales and Western Region has produced its own Regional Traction Decarbonisation Strategy, dated February 2022 and obtained by Modern Railways. The strategy identifies six ‘tranches’ of decarbonisation schemes, starting with the deferred elements of the Great Western Electrification Programme (GWEP) and in broad terms moving westwards, with main lines and routes with heavy freight use prioritised. This sequence was identified based on the decarbonisation benefits (removal of diesel miles, passenger impact, dependency on decarbonising other routes and diversionary route capability) and deployment efficiencies (rolling stock, signalling and availability of power supply).

HENDY TAIL

Tranche 0 covers the so-called ‘Hendy tail’ – the schemes removed from GWEP following the review of the Control Period 5 enhancements programme by Network Rail Chair Sir Peter Hendy.

The strategy notes that electrification from Chippenham to Bristol can utilise spare capacity in the feeder station at Thingley and could cut journey times by up to 2.5 minutes. On Filton bank (Bristol Parkway to Temple Meads), the potential for South Wales to Bristol EMUs is noted, as are the environmental benefits of decarbonisation in an urbanised area.

Wiring Didcot to Oxford would permit the restoration of stopping services between Oxford and London which were split at Didcot to allow the introduction of EMUs There would also be benefits for freight and in the electrification of the carriage sidings at Oxford for use by EMUs. A potential extension to Hanborough on the North Cotswold line is also mooted. Acton to Willesden, meanwhile, covers a ‘missing link’ for freight decarbonisation between the Great Western and West Coast main lines.

Due to the development work which was carried out on them before they were cancelled, these schemes are described as ‘mature’, with power supply in place and signalling immunised in readiness for electrification.

BERKS AND HANTS NEXT

Tranche 1 focuses primarily on the two main routes to Exeter, assuming electrification has reached Bristol Temple Meads in Tranche 0 and following on from the current extent of electrification on the Berks and Hants route as far as Newbury.

Benefits cited include the removal of diesel from London to Exeter services via either route and the ability to operate EMUs on Bedwyn to London services (the original intention was to use bi-mode Intercity Express Trains on these, but now most trains operate as a DMU shuttle from Bedwyn to Newbury with an EMU or IET connection from there).

But freight is also an important component of Tranche 1, which includes routes serving the Somerset quarries at Merehead and Whatley, with the strategy highlighting that long, heavy freight trains mix with passenger services, with a switch to electric haulage offering significant performance benefits.

This tranche includes two other sections: Bathampton and Thingley Junction to Westbury / Warminster, which the strategy says is required to deliver the full benefits of decarbonisation for both passenger and freight. Also included is the route north of Oxford to Aynho Junction, south of Banbury, a key enabler for CrossCountry and freight decarbonisation.

Given GWR’s large fleet of bimode IETs, the strategy highlights that electrification would enable decarbonisation without a change of fleet. However, it cautions that little prior development work has been undertaken on these schemes.

BRISTOL NORTH

Tranche 2 incorporates a range of schemes to cover the remaining lines traversed by Bristol suburban services, as well as the route north to Bromsgrove (the limit of electrification south from Birmingham), the North and South Cotswold lines and the route from Gloucester to Severn Tunnel Junction. Also included are connections to Westerleigh oil terminal and Tytherington quarry.

This tranche would enable the removal of diesel trains on London services from Worcester and Cheltenham. The importance of diversionary routes is stressed in the strategy, justifying the inclusion of Gloucester to Severn Tunnel Junction to decarbonise the main diversionary route from London to South Wales avoiding the Severn Tunnel. With Tranche 1 completed, Tranche 2 would also enable decarbonisation throughout of CrossCountry services from Exeter/Bristol to Manchester.

  Devon For the branches, it is suggested a homogenous fleet is desirable, so the characteristics of the longest branch (to Barnstaple) would dictate the strategy and the choice of a common traction and power supply. Given the age of the current fleet in Devon and Cornwall, which is likely to be life-expired before infrastructure is installed, it is suggested a replacement fleet should be adaptable, potentially requiring a modular concept where the power unit is replaced rather than the complete train. The strategy says there may be an opportunity to harness the potential of emerging technologies being developed in the area, such as the proposed hydrogen hub centred on Plymouth.

On the main line, the challenge of the coastal section between Starcross and Teignmouth is highlighted, with similar issues on the Exmouth branch. This, suggests the strategy, may favour a bi-modal solution. The strategy also notes that while the frequency of long-distance freight services to and from Cornwall is limited, the gradients of the Devon banks are constraining for these services.

   Cornwall  Again, the age of the regional fleet is highlighted as a driving factor for decarbonisation. The strategy weighs up the benefits of a homogenous fleet for all services in Cornwall against the possibility of having a specialised fleet of alternative traction rolling stock for the short and self-contained Cornish branch lines (Gunnislake, Looe, Falmouth and St Ives). The exception is the Newquay branch, which is considerably longer and plays host to through trains to destinations beyond Plymouth in the summer, so a strategy here would need to align with the approach taken to main line rolling stock.

On the main line, a bi-mode concept for local and inter-regional services is mooted, which the strategy says ‘may require sections of electrification’. The IET fleet could utilise overhead wires or be modified to replace diesel engines with alternative traction.

   

Perhaps............ when some new (Electric/Diesel/Steam/Hydrogen/Wind/Hamster powered) multiple units are procured more thought is given to the length of these trains. There seems to be a long history of ordering nice shiny new trains with nice streamlined ends - that are never long enough and are then seemingly impossible to lengthen ! Also ....why are there so many different ones ?

Just look at my local line - we seem to be going backwards here. We had 2 car 158s, lengthened to 3 cars, but you can at least couple these together and make a proper long train. Go to Salisbury and you will see trains of SWR 158/159 combinations from 2 to 10 cars long. What do we now have ? (well, meant to have had by now !) 165s and 166s joined together - sometimes ! This lunacy has spread to main lines, 5 car IETs joined together - did no one notice the stupidity of joining two 180s together all those years ago on the GWR main line ?

Is it beyond the wit of man to design rolling stock that can be joined/unjoined as required and still have a proper train ? When BR was formed they designed "Standard" class locomotives, using the good points of the previous private designs. I would suggest a standard class of Multiple Unit but I have visons of the end result using all the bad points of previous vehicles..............a Pacer/165/IET cross perhaps.......................squealing wheels, draughty, 5 abreast seating, no Aircon, hard seats, lighting that hurts your eyes and the catering trolley always in the other half of the train.   Actually, I think I went in one of those the other day......................

Having experienced them in East Anglia recently, GWR (or regional successor) could do a lot worse than order a fleet of Stadler FLIRT bi-mode multiple units.

Excellent trains.

Looking at journeycheck most days, short forms are daily, and across the region.
"More units needing repair".
Guess GWR can't order anything new as the TfT would block that, so the region has to make do with more and more clapped out units, and service reductions/bus replacements.

Having experienced them in East Anglia recently, GWR (or regional successor) could do a lot worse than order a fleet of Stadler FLIRT bi-mode multiple units.

Excellent trains.

Very quiet when operating in 25KV mode.  ;)

More seriously though, in diesel mode the power pack vehicle is louder than, for example, an IET or Turbo engine, but not by much.  And of course the rest of the train is extremely quiet unlike DMUs with underfloor engines.  You might need a larger power pack vehicle, and therefore a little more noise, if you were to provide five passenger vehicles as the current examples only go up to four passenger vehicles.

What I'm less sure about is whether Stadler's kit of bits of train can do a 5-car bi-mode. But I am sure they can find a way, even if they don't have one already.

Let’s hope so.  A tri-mode fleet with a mixture 4/5 car units plus power pack vehicle, and a bi-mode (diesel and battery) 3-car fleet for most of the branches would be ideal replacements IMHO.

If I were a betting man, I suspect the Class 769 project will bear fruit late next year that is already rotten and we will then bumble on for a further year or two with hopeless reliability on the North Downs (but more Turbos in the west at least!) before finally the DfT» /GBR▸ gives up with them.  It will cascade something temporary in from elsewhere and order a new fleet of units for GWR of one or two classes/types (hopefully FLIRTS) to replace the cascaded units, any remaining Castles, and DMUs▸ from the 150/158/165 and 166 fleet...but that will put us around the 2026/7 mark.

That would be the most satisfactory outcome to what I think will be a frustrating next few years.

Time for another hat tip to the 158/159 which for some reason now also fairly ancient, especially once aboard seem to hit a sweet spot and even externally don't make such a militant confrontational racket as the 166s.

The 158/159s ..................... SWRs examples can be very noisy inside due mainly to the aircon system.

The 158/159s may be quieter than 165/166s but I wouldn't say they were particularly quiet. SWRs examples can be very noisy inside due mainly to the aircon system. Externally, I can hear them accelerating from my flat, half a mile from the station.

BTW, II - if that's the most satisfactory outcome, what does a less satisfactory one look like - struggling on for years with 769s & Turbos?