Summer Trip

Next Saturday I should be setting off on my longish summer journey. I'll be going to the Lake District in northern England for about a week with my work and then will hopefully take a few days on the Isle of Man as holiday. As well as some observations on these places I'll be reporting back on here about my journeys which will include the rail operators Scotrail, National Express East Coast, Transpennine Express, Virgin, Northern Rail and the Isle of Man Railways. I'll also be taking a ship in the form of the Isle of Man Steam Packet, so plenty of travel feedback for anyone considering using any of these services! My actual journey is for a conference in Keswick. Having never been before I have no idea what it will be like, where I'll be staying or what the work will be like. Nothing like going into the unknown....

Yesterday I found this interesting link to a survey conducted by the Transport Company Stagecoach. In case you are unfamilar with them they are a huge bus company in the UK who also operate some rail franchies and the Megabus (UK and USA) coach operation. Their research found a 10% change in travel habits in the last three years for health and environmental reasons, which is great news. Of those who had previously used the car, 36% had switched to the bus, 30% now walked and 5% change to travel by train. It is interesting that most chose the bus, this could be that buses provide a much higher range of journeys than rail - they really do go everywhere. Or it could be that rail is already very competitive on most commuter routes. Regardless of this, it does point to the public starting to change habbits.

Rail, bus and walking are good for the earth for more reasons that climite change. They save fuel, cause less congestion and noise and emit fewer nasty fumes which are bad for human health too. The other thing of course that we often forget is that they are good for our own health also. Walking is probably one of the best forms of activity there is. An hour in the gym at night is not going to make up for sitting on your bum in the car and office all day. And even if you take the train or bus instead of walking it is unlikely that you'll life outside, or work outside the station. The walk to and from the station or bus stop will do you a lot of good. Its amazing how many people tell me that I am so 'lucky' to be thin. The fact that I'm not glued to a car seat and go to the gym every day seems to have missed them....!

New Look Express Trains

It is probably about time I gave an update on the refurbishment of the class 158 Express trains which keep us happy here in the north of Scotland. Built between 1989 and 1992 and for anyone who can remember the old trains with opening windows (rather than air conditioning which doesn't work), space for luggage and comfortable seats they have been nearly twenty years of disappointment. So when I heard that a refurbishment program was underway I couldn't wait to try out the new product! The work is now nearly done and the units are back in service. So how do they rate.

Here are the pics:

This is the interior of standard class. The seats have are new and they have a different angle so that you can actually sit comfortably. The former versions seemed to have you falling off forwards! Another benefit is that there really is enough space for you to stretch out your legs (especially on the airline style seats).

Another nice new feature is the added luggage racks. There are some news ones in the centre of the coaches as shown here together with more at the ends of the coaches - perfect for these lines with lots of people going on holiday.

Nice view out the window too don't you think?!

Now for first class:

This is first class with some very classy seat material and decor. It's also got laptop plugs and table lights. My only disappointments though are that the seating is in 2-2 formation rather than 2-1 so you don't get all that much extra space, there is no door to keep the noise out of standard and really it is not up the first class or a long distance train. Disappointing compared with the Scotrail Turbostars. However first class now has it's own luggage rack which is a plus.

Throughout the train the toilets are much nicer (and easier to clean!) and the whole train has a fresh, bright and airy feel. It is a shame that laptop plugs were not included throughout the train but overall a good job has been completed. I think I'll be enjoying my Express train journeys now rather than trying to avoid them!

So if you're traveling to Aberdeen, Inverness or the far north have a look out for these trains and enjoy the trip!

Happy Birthday Dora!

Dora Briggs will be celebrating her 90th birthday on the 4th of July and she'll be celebrating by heading to work as usual at Amtrak's Emeryville station near San Francisco. Dora is famous for coming up with the idea of the 'station host'. It is a volunteer program to help passengers on their journeys. There is a nice piece about her in the San Francisco Chronical http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/06/27/CMQ410C2LK.DTL

Happy Birthday Dora!

Half Price Travel in Devan and Cornwall

This weekend (26 + 27th May) as part of Community Rail Week, branch lines in Devon and Cornwall are offering half price fares. Further information is available at www.firstgreatwestern.com. Tickets can be purchased from booking offices or on board trains.

Southend Air Show

The Southend Air Show is one of the largest free air shows in Europe. The famous Red Arrows will be there together with displays of aircraft, helicopters, flight simulators and wing walkers! The event takes place over the weekend of Sunday 27th and Monday 28th May 2007. There will be limited parking nearby so the best way to get there is by train. The C2C rail operator is arranging extra trains to Southend Central over the two days to get people there with ease. Also available will be Weekend Cheap Day Return tickets (also being made available for Monday) and Groupsave, so that 3 or 4 people can travel together for one low fare. The groupsave must be purchased by at least 1800 the day before.

Enjoy the show!

New Timetable

A new timetable will start for all rail routes in the UK on the 20th of May. The timetable will run until the 8th of December and includes extra services and changes for the summer months. You can access them from the main part of the Britain by Rail website. If you were planning any trips over the summer months, make sure it's the new timetable you are using for your planning!

You can expect some minor changes on most routes, however the main highlights are listed here:

Arriva Trains Wales opens a new route this Autumn! The new line will link Cardiff Central and Ebbw Vale Parkway. New stations along this route will be: Rogerstone, Risca & Pontymister, Cross Keys, Newbridge, Llanhilleth and Ebbe Vale Parkway. There is no opening date set yet, but when the trains do start running they will be hourly. No doubt people living in the area and visiting will be glad of this new rail line!

Also to open is a new railway station serving Llahharan, on the Cardiff to Maesteg line. I've no idea how these towns are promounced if you are trying to book a ticket by phone!

C2C Railway have a new service between London Liverpool Street, Stratford and Barking. They will also introduce more through services on some routes so you will have fewer changes of train.

First Great Western will end the separate section of the Night Riviera Sleeper for Plymouth. This means passengers will need to join or leave the train as normal upon it's arrival in Plymouth. Perviously a separate section was added at Plymouth so that you could get to bed earlier in the evening and wake later in the morning. While it clearly makes it easier for the railway not to carry on this practice, it does mean that passengers will have a later departure or earlier start depending on which way they are traveling.

There is better news at First Scotrail where a new route is due to open between Stirling and Alloa. No date has been set yet but this will open up more journey options in the Stirling area.

Great North Easter Railway have introduced more services between Leeds and London.

Also on the East Coast a new railway company is due to start up in the Autumn. The Grand Central Railway will start a new direct service between Sunderland, Hartlepool & Teeside to York and London. Aside from this being a timetable change, the proposals show this to be another rail operator that will be seeking high customer service and some comfortable trains. More on this in the Britain by Rail site to follow.

Finally on One Railway, there are extra trains to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) sites at Lakenheath and Buckenham on Sundays to cope with increased visitor numbers at weekends. A result of the promotion of that link at Britain by Rail? Probably not, but it's great to hear of the development. Enjoy your day out if you plan to visit either of those sites.

Also watch out if you plan to travel to several stations on the One network this Autumn as they are getting new names! Woodham Ferrers becomes South Woodham Ferrers Station, Walton-on-Naze becomes, Walton-on-the-Naze, Clacton becomes Clacton-on-Sea (a future candidate for the 'on-the-sea' treatment?), Frinton becomes Frinton-on-Sea and Whittlesford becomes Whittlesford Parkway.

All other train operators have only minor changes (but hey 5 minutes here or there can leave you standing on the platform - so do check) or no changes at all. Many also have some extra summer services.

Virgin Trains Motorbikes

I came across something totally new to me today - a motorbike that will take you to your destination from the railway station! Virgin Trains now have their own bikes on a service they are calling 'limobikes' from London's Euston station to any location in central London. It's being offered as a way to beat the traffic and they even provide the passenger with safety clothing for the journey. From the website it seems they are offering this service for ten pounds. Ok, I'll probably stick with my feet and the underground but for anyone who normally takes a taxi that will be a saving! Not only that but it seems like a lot of fun too!

You can find out about it at www.virgintrains.co.uk