The Scottish Government has announced that ScotRail‘s InterCity HSTs are to be replaced.
The 2+4/5 sets have been in operation since arriving from Great Western Railway and operate under the Inter7city brand.
A commercial tender will be launched in the coming weeks.
Timescales for the new trains will also be announced soon with regards to withdrawal / introduction.
This is good news for our customers and an important step for ScotRail as we work towards delivering a safe, green and reliable railway.
ScotRail Spokesperson
Responses
Maybe ScotRail could inherit the Class 222 Meridians from East Midlands Railway and also to inherit the Class 350/2 from London Northwestern Railway to replace the Class 318 and Class 320. Or Hitachi to manufacture more Class 385s to replace the Class 318 and Class 320 and to keep the Class 334 and Class 380 EMUs.
I agree with your options for ScotRail.
For Inter7city services: Class 222 ‘Meridian’ – from East Midlands Railway
Note: To replace the Class 43 ‘HST’.
For Commuter services: Class 350/2 ‘Desiro’ from London Northwestern Railway + Class 321 ‘Renatus’ from Greater Anglia
Notes: To replace the full fleet of the Class 318 and some of the Class 320.
And keep the Class 334 ‘Coradia Juniper’, Class 380 ‘Desiro’ and Class 385 ‘AT200’.
When the HST’s came to Scotland, they were reduced from 10 to 5 carriages. Once asked railwayman in Dundee what happened to remaining 5? His reply: ‘Your guess is as good as mine.’ Scrapped presumably, straight waste. Agree w all comments below on quality of HST experience
My Inter7city Proposal: Class 222 ‘Meridian’ – from East Midlands Railway
Notes:
1. Availability – The trains will become available soon when they get replaced by the Class 810 ‘Aurora’ trains.
2. Passenger Comfort – They would offer a comfortable and relaxing passenger environment, which some of the modern trains don’t have.
3. Passenger Capacity – With there being 23 x 5 car units and 4 x 7 car units, it would mean ScotRail would be able to run longer trains (up to 10 cars) and carry more passengers than the HSTs.
4. Reliability – According to Eversholt Rail website. The Class 222 achieves consistent high reliability figures and unrivalled performance and is a class leading inter-city train fleet.
I frequently travelled on the FGW HSTs between Penzance and Exeter then the 800s appeared with their brick hard seats. Honestly I have sat on comfier park benches. If an Azuma had de-railed at Carmont would the unions be calling for them to be withdrawn ? Most of the trains were re-engined with more efficient MTU ones so why not keep them for a while longer. I just hope someone like the Blue Pullman buy up some engines and carriages and operate some open access routes in Scotland. HST RIP
As Grand Central/Union are tendering for new trains it does look like Scotrail will get second hand 222 / 180 / or MKV. Personally I would prefer 800 hybrids as Hitachi already has a strong working partnership with Scotrail and the 800’s are of the same family as the 385 which would make maintaining them easier. The 222 fleet should go to Cross Country, the MKV to Chiltern, and the 180’s to Great Western as a fleet expansion.
NO.
It’s very BAD news for customers.
The HSTs comprised a locomotive at one end and a locomotive or DVT at the other end; hence no noisy/smelly under-carriage engines. Passengers will no longer be able to enjoy the unrestricted views which the HSTs permit, and to ride on the best, quietest, most comfortable long-distance trains ever to grace the railways of Great Britain.
Didn’t know these trains existed.as an ex railwayman, I don’t trust ScotRail anymore! Expensive tickets for a totally unacceptable and unreliable service! Never thought Id say that as an ex railwayman!
I guess, as nice as the Ic7’s are, they are now very long in the tooth.
I would hope for some class 800’s (although with decent seats and catering) for mid/long distance and the wonderful stadler flirts to replace the crusty old sprinters; which should also be in museums/scrapped/heritage rail by now…
It’s inevitable the IC7s are being replaced, which is a shame because they are conformable and have a smooth ride. I’m intrigued to see what replaces them and whether they’ll live up to the high standards set by the HST operations up here.
My concern is that one factor is safety concerns. Nothing could have survived Carmont, no matter what the durability of that rolling stock was. The fact it was a HST set involved was unfortunate but that is the law of odds. But if safety was a concern, why wasn’t it sorted out like they said it was when they were being refurbished? Why wasn’t these concerns pointed out before when they were doing 125mph down the GWML? And the unions saying they’re not safe: look at the damage done to that 800 at Leeds when it went into the back of 43300! Lots of unanswered questions I think, especially about the powercars being modified to higher safety standards at Loughborough.
However, what shall replace them? 222s perhaps? God help us of its 180s! 68s and mk5s? Don’t think so, bit would prefer 68s with a DVT or two locks top and tailing. Otherwise new stock, again god help us!
It’s funny reading these comments which are mostly ‘losing the HSTs will be a bad thing’.
Over on social media, ScotRail take a lot of criticism for taking them on in the first place (by folks who seen it as a cheap move)
They can’t win.
Jeez man, Ouch. That is a harsh.
Given the abysmal general level of comfort of modern long distance trains, scarcely better than “cram em in” suburban rolling stock, passengers are not likely to see an improvement!
I suppose this is inevitable but I’m not sure it will be “good news for our customers”.
The HSTs are smooth and quiet running in the carriages because the engines are at each end, rather than underneath the floor. They have generous sized and comfortable seats and plenty of width across the train, because the sides of the carriages are not inclined inwards.
The same cannot be said for a lot of the modern trains, with washboard, narrow seats and restricted carriage width, because of the sides being inclined towards the roof. You’re also sitting on top of the engines, so the carriages are noisy and subject to vibration.
Sad times. Inevitable I guess with interest rates falling and new trains getting cheaper again. Difficult to replace the most comfortable trains in the UK – nothing new has come close thus far!
It’s the end of an era.
“This is good news for our customers”.
Yeah, right. Not if it means Voyagers!
It will be 800’s probably
Only if:
1. More comfortable Seats
2. Better Catering.
I was wondering where the class 220/221 would end up. Obvious now. Poor Scotland!
The HST sets Grand Central used on the Sunderland to Kings Cross service were wonderful, the noisy rattly, irritating things that have replaced them are a step backwards, not forward. I have not used the service since the HST fleet was replaced.
They can’t go on forever. The concern is over what they will be replaced with, clearly. But what nonsense to say you are working ‘towards’ a safe, green and reliable railway. So they don’t have that now? If not, why not?
Much advice to the Scots is to take as many trips on the HSTs as you can. As a Devonian, I miss the many times I travelled on board the HSTs between Plymouth and Paddington. They were roomy with comfortable and they had a buffet car (dining car on paydays) . There was a sense of speed and power (it was even possible to hear the sounds of the power cars as the trains tackled the Devon banks). Their replacements, the Hitachi 800 series, are no doubt sleek and efficient but not nearly as comfortable and the carriages are so insulated from the outside environment that the sensation of travel is peculiarly isolating. Also, the buffet car has been replaced by a trolley service that can be a bit hit and miss. These days, I buy my tea and pasty before I board and listen to an audio book on my noise cancelling headphones!
Get these HST’s top and tailing container trains to give us fast freight, then they won’t hold the passenger trains up.
Impossible for them to top n tail container trains. Most have found new rolls in the UK and abroad
You could use them as a double headed locomotive
The locomotives of the HSTs have already been used in many RÔLES.
On what grounds do you state that the suggested alternative use is ‘impossible’?
They have given in to union pressure. No train would have survived Calmont. The HST is more comfortable than any train on Network Rail
Please, no! These are the most comfortable trains running in Britain, all modern rolling stock seems to be equipped with concrete seats designed for someone with an unnatural spine.
Agreed.
Are we going to get yet more diesels or are they finally going to bite the bullet and electrify the lines from Haymarket to Aberdeen via Dundee and from Dunblane to Dundee via Perth?
They’ll order Bi-modes, so that you get new trains now, which are electrification compatible, and can take advantage at the electrification is extended. They won’t order a diesel fleet only to have to replace them in 10 years.
That wouldn’t be for Scotrail to decide, Network rail own the infrastructure.
Wake up. Electrification to Dunblane was stage 1. Stage 2 is underway . Edinburgh to Fife. They wont need to electrify the whole line. The new trains will be battery operated.
I think battery operation of trains on the Highland main line is a bit optimistic. I doubt that there are batteries that would have sufficient capacity to power a train from Edinburgh to Inverness without a protracted stop to recharge somewhere along the route, which would add significantly to journey times.
Whatever the green zeolots and railway company PR departments claim, I think our railways that aren’t overhead electrified will be reliant on diesel power for the forseable future.
No