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Virgin Trains

D

DavidGrain

master brummie
So Virgin Trains have lost the West Coast franchise in favour of First Group. Interesting that First have surrenderd the Western franchise three years early. It was not for nothing that they were known as Worst Great Western.

I have not been a fan of Richard Branson but we do have to applaud the record of Virgin over the past 15 years. 13 million passengers in 1997 to 30 million today. 99% increase in the number of trains run perday and they were the first train company to sell tickets online
 
Whoever operates them, the trains are usually leased from another company (e.g. Porterbrook) and the running 'slots' in the network are bought from the track owners, Network Rail. So that's three companies whose shareholders want profits from the business of running trains, so the fares are astronomically high compared to the British Railways days. Privatisation? Just a way for the rich to get richer.
 
I only hope they don't get wise to split ticketing, saves me an absolute fortune currently...
 
Hi

Yep its all financed via Leasing so from the 9th Dec it will belong to First Group. Im still waiting on their proposals on running this monster. 15 years ago Virgin picked up from the Government a dead beat System. Old Station Old stock
and have made a fantastic System.
It seems strange with First group running the whole of Scot Rail and the old GWR throughout the South West and Wales
that they will in effect running the GWR and the LMS in old speak.
The huge sums they will have to Hand over for the Franchise plus the huge infra Structure costs the mind Boggles.
With the Goverment running the old ER and First Group one could say we are back to Square one.
The passengers will have no choice

Mike Jenks
 
Fortunately we in Birmingham do have a choice if we want to go to London. I regularly now use London Midland if I do not have to be in London until late morning. I used to use Chiltern Railways until they increased their fares to pay for the faster trains. I have even a few times used the late lamented Wrexham and Shropshire.

First say they are going to have 11 new trains but surely these are the new Pendolinos which are in stock waiting for the new franchise a few of which the Government reluctantly released for Virgin to use.

Picking up Mike's point, I don't think people realise how much the Government in the form of DfT (known as Daft) micro-manage the railways much more than they did in BR days saying which train sets an operator can use on which routes. For exanple the Government took away the diesel unit which shuttled backwards and forwards between Wolverhampton and Walsall because they said an operator down south needed it, thus closing that service.
 
Hi

Yep good points. In a debacle with a reporter who was listing all Branson's failures
she pointed out the lack of Speed od 140 MPH.
He had to point out that the Goverment due to Track Safety stop his Trains.
Thats why we need the HS2 our tracks are worn out have been re-laid many times
but other than 120 MPH thats its.
Its going to be an interesting time

Mike Jenks
 
It's not been the same since the LNWR stopped operating the route.
 
Whenever I go to London, it's always with Chiltern from Solihull for £25 return (to Marylebone).

Saw a Virgin Pendolino pulling out of New Street this morning. Thinking that we will see them in Virgin red from now until December.
Can't imagine then being in First Group purple and pink! (has anyone photoshopped any Pendolino photos?)
 
Have to say I am not impressed with Virgin, the Pendolinos make me travel sick!! Also their customer service should be called customer disservice, in comparison with the excellent rapid response one at London Midland. It took Virgin 25 weeks to refund part of my fare when I was delayed at Euston due to overhead damage to the lines, their station staff were either nowhere to be seen or only said "no trains available tonight" - no other info, no refreshments offered!!! Again London Midland came to the rescue, their staff were able to give me details of which train I could get - it was a Virgin one too - and organised refreshment vouchers for us.The next week, my London Midland train was delayed, applied for the refund and got it in 20 days, usable on all trains/companies unlike Virgin, only on their trains at off peak times, not on advance bookings!!
So for me, good luck to First.
Sue
 
Hi

These should get you to Glasgow. Notice a Virgin at the end.
Old Steam Rail Picky.

Mike Jenks
 

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Virgin's Supoer Voyagers do the Birmingham Scotland Runs mainly. Remember back when the line was electrified BR talked about the Electric Scots. Virgin ran diesel trains all that way on electified lines.

Why you should not believe every thing you read in the newspapers: Yesterday the Birmingham Mail said that the pendolinos would not run from Birmingham to London after December. First Group will automatically take over the leases of these trains as has been pointed out previously on this thread. Imagine the fun if Virgin actually owned their trains and in a fit of pique took them all away on the day their franchise expired.
 
Hi

Im not sure what we had 15 years ago. It took ages to complete Full Elecrification and Completion
full of The WCML. Non of these items are the responsibilty of Virgin they are Infrastructural work
now done by Net Work Rail.
Virgin have left the scene and is setting up a huge Lo Cost Air Infrastructure to compete with Rail.
It seems War has been declared on the HS2 and the the new Owners of the WCML.
I guess the Pendolinos will gradually be replaced by the new ones that First are running.
Clearly the Ownership issues as you say are a Franchise issue with Virgin and First Rail.

Mike Jenks
 
Keep the track in Government hands then bring back the four operating companies LMS, GWR, LNER and Southern. Its been a mess since nationalisation!!

Mike.
 
Surely if you bring back the LMS, GWR, LNER and Southern, isn't that pre nationalisation but post 1923 grouping?
 
Yes! 1923 - 1947 Those constituent companies knew how to run their railway. Any government who has dabbled into nationalisation has always come unstuck. Well that is my view.
 
Well Virgin have delayed First signing the contract with the Government. And Sir Richard Branson will give evidence to the Transport Select Committee on Monday.

Passing through New Street today, I got a couple of new pics of Virgin trains.

A Super Voyager for London Euston


A Pendolino coming from Euston
 
I had to go to Glasgow a few years ago, and went on line "Virgin" were £265 return Cambridge-Glasgow, I went by east ern Rail via Edinburgh, £90 return. says it all really.
paul
 
I prefer to use Chiltern to get to London Marylebone from Solihull.

Although technically, London Midland is cheaper from New Street to Euston (but takes longer to get to the capital).

This is around £21 return (for London Midland)



(Chiltern is £27.50 return now)
 
I use London Midland to Euston from Tamworth, can go as cheap as £6 each way off peak if I shop early but £44 anytime on London Midland, with hourly trains compared to £81 Virgin anytime but only 5 trains!!
Sue
 
I get our Chiltern tickets on the Chiltern website (the Super Saver Off Peak ones). Ticket prices have been going up in the last few years. Around 3 years ago you could go from Solihull for £19 SSOP return. And last year (until the end of August this year) it was £25. The new increase is up by 10%.

I saw one of your trains when I last went to Tamworth (this one was going to Crewe)
 
Thanks Ell, know these London Midland trains very well, the Crewe train to visit Kate in Chester then in Liverpool and to Sal in London on the same train in the opposite direction!
Sue
 
I see Solihull station has been mentioned a few times on this thread, I can't place a railway station in Solihull, should it be Birmingham International?
 
Hi Sylvia

Solihull Rail Station is just on the outer edge of the town centre between Streetsbrook Rd & Blossomfield Rd.
 

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It's on the Chiltern Mainline to London Marylebone. Takes around 1 hr 40 mins to get there. Sometimes skips stations further down the route.

I've not taken too many pics at Solihull, but heres a couple of the station building (waiting room)







Birmingham International is for Virgin and London Midland services (while Solihull is for Chiltern and local London Midland services).
 
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