Chairmans Blog

Many of you will have heard that with the announcement of the electrification between Liverpool and Manchester with services to be running from 2013, the order for 202 extra diesel carriages for Northern Rail was quietly cancelled.

The justification for this from Lord Adonis, Secretary of State for Transport, was that we should not be ordering extra diesel trains to last 25 or more years, when the future is obviously electrification.

The logic behind this is clear. However, what is to be done in Northern England in the meantime with all the overcrowding, especially in the Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle areas? Nothing in a hurry, it seems.

We can have a guess though ….

We know the Liverpool-Manchester electrification will see the Liverpool-Manchester services operated by redundant class 319 Thameslink units, which are being displaced in the London area by new class 377s. The 319s will by then be around 25 years old, but are good units. They’re 4-car electric versions of our class 150 diesel Sprinters. This will free up around 10 or so diesel units, which we imagine will immediately be snapped up to cope to prevent passengers being left behind on stations because they can’t physically get on trains in the Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle areas. But realistically that’s more than 4 years away.

We know the new class 378 units for London Overground are replacing class 313/1 units, similar to the class 507, 508 units used on Merseyrail, though equipped for AC and DC operation. These are all going to be used elsewhere in the London & South East area, with the trains they replace also being redeployed there.

London Midland are getting new class 172 diesel units for use in the Birmingham area (basically class 170s with corridor connections). This will free up 20+ year old class 150 Sprinters. We hear these are likely to go to First Great Western and Arriva Trains Wales to relieve overcrowding in the Bristol/Bath area, and in Cardiff and the Valleys, with those not used there coming to Northern. This should free up the 7 remaining class 142 Pacers First Great Western obtained from Northern a few years ago, so these can be returned to Northern, allowing the 3 high speed 5-coach class 180s Northern have to be taken off the local services from Blackpool North/Preston to Manchester Victoria/Hazel Grove so their 125 mph capability can be used elsewhere – a number of operators are after these. They’re very comfortable, but a pain on local services due to their renowned unreliability.

Meanwhile, in Scotland class 380 electrics are on order for the Glasgow-Edinburgh electrification. These will start running around 2012. This should free up diesel units in Scotland, though not necessarily the same number, as many trains around Glasgow and Edinburgh are very crowded and also as the Scottish Executive has an intention to provide all passengers with a seat. This is something we can but dream about in Northern England, where just being able to physically get on trains at places like Atherton, Bolton, Mills Hill, Mossley, Hazel Grove, Saltaire and Chester-le-Street would be a good start! Scotland is then likely to cascade the 8 class 158s that the Department for Transport took off Northern before they’d even got hold of them a few years ago, plus some of their poorer trains, class 156s (just about our best trains!).

The class 323 electrics in the Birmingham area also likely to come to Northern. The thinking seems to be these would go to the Leeds area to be used on the Aire Valley services so 6-car trains can operate to relieve the crush conditions in the peaks, and also on the Leeds-Doncaster locals. Their 3 4-car class 321s could then go to the South East where all the other 321s are, and their 16 class 334 4-car Siemens electrics might come to the Manchester area. We don’t have a lot of electric lines to operate them on though.

Also, we hear East Midlands are suffering serious overcrowding, especially on the services between Liverpool and Nottingham, as well as on the Nottingham to Worksop line. We understand they are looking to do some form of swap with Northern, trading some 158s for 156s. Coupling 158s and their single car 153s together is a recipe for unreliability due to electrical issues, but East Midlands are currently having to do this for train strengthening. 153s and 156s get on much better.

All of this, however correct it is, tells us that for those reliant on diesel-operated services in Northern England, (us lot!), the 23-year old draughty, cold, bumpy, uncomfortable Pacers with a design life of 15 years based on 1970s bus bodies on a freight wagon style chassis, are going to be with us for much longer than originally forecast.

We know Northern have an aspiration to remove Pacers from our line. This year has seen far less of them. Thanks for this. 156s would be best for us. No Pacers at all will be excellent!

The above is my summary of how I see things. Your comments, as always, are welcome ….