Andy Bowes-Roden = =

#SaveOurRailway #Dawlish PETITION NOW LIVE! We’ve created a petition calling on the Government to reinstate Phase 5 cliff works of the South West Rail Resilience Programme. Please click here - chng.it/MnChtg2zfG - sign the petition and start sharing it widely!

@RichParkerLab At c£96m per mile, Richard, I hope you've insisted it's absolutely gold plated. More than twice as expensive as Edinburgh per mile, and that in itself was a massive outlier in cost compared with EU light rail systems.

Better days are ahead for Dudley Town Centre. The new Metro line and transport interchange will be a fantastic gateway to the town centre, offering a modern, affordable and reliable way to visit. And I want to make sure those businesses are ready to make the most of it. expressandstar.com/news/local-hub…

@DavidHorne @railway200 Finally! A reason to actually go to Newquay!

Do you live in Bristol, Newquay, Stockport, Skegness, Bury, Blackpool....? Check when the Inspiration @railway200 exhibition train is coming to your town 👇

@CatHobbs It's really not, Cat. Why would you buy 20-year-old trains with 15 years of asset life left that then go for scrap? If money were available (which it isn't) you might be able to make a case for buying new trains, but not mid-life ones.

Huge missed opportunity that these new trains will not be owned by ScotRail They are being leased by Beacon Rail which is owned by JP Morgan Asset Management Rolling stock is the most profitable bit of the railway Scotland should own its own trains! bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

@Charing_Steve @AlastairDalton E-Voyager died years ago, and now the trains are 20-odd years old, you're not going to make a case for that sort of investment in them.

@AndyRoden1 @AlastairDalton Whatever happened to the research into converting 22xs into electro diesel bi mode by replacing the engine/ gen set on one car with pan / transformer/ rectifier. I know Bombardier was looking at it prior to Alstom takeover. Then went quiet.

Revealed: The new old trains that will replace ScotRail's even older inter-city train fleet scotsman.com/news/transport…

Special guest appearance from @Modern_Railways here in @sebnoble’s excellent report. Worth a watch.

How can we improve resilience in our railway network in #Cornwall and #Devon after this winter’s storms? My report from #bbcpolsw last weekend: youtu.be/YpZOrYlvHjk?si…

@ShaneGermany2 @ScotRail Why order new bi/tri modes now that won’t be in traffic likely for c5 years when the electrification programme may render much of their capability irrelevant? That would look like an expensive mistake.

@ShaneGermany2 @ScotRail In a word, no. The I7Cs need replacement as they are expensive to operate and increasingly hard to maintain. The 222s are becoming available and they’ll do the job. TS’ approach to the IC operation is the right one in my view. Replace 222s when more OLE is up.

The Class 222s are good trains with plenty of life left in them. They're having a major refurb for use with @ScotRail. No, they're not new - but the HSTs are excruciatingly expensive to run, and with major electrification planned, why order new multi-mode trains...

@jonormoi What reliability and performance issues on the 22x platform? What ill maintained traction equipment? What corrosion issues? We’ve not picked up anything significant on the 22x fleet across the MR team of experts. I think you may be protesting a touch too much here.

@AndyRoden1 Don't be fooled by any interior refurb. It will superficially be better, but all the other inherent reliability and performance issues will remain. Corrosion, an out of date train management system, worn out ill maintained traction equipment allied to poor use of interior space

@noah_nonsense Could you clarify please? What, exactly, do you mean by that? Clearly if you can’t get somewhere by rail you aren’t going to use it.

@AndyRoden1 But if you take the train you'll never arrive.

Fuel prices rising at the pumps - at what price do people self-restrict how much they drive and look at other options? I reckon the £2/l mark may be that point. About £9 a gallon would get me c60 miles in the car, so anything beyond Truro looks better by rail financially...

@BurtonCfb79ten @ScotRail Sorry? The voyagers run fine in Scotland. The ‘222s’ are voyagers. I’m not entirely sure what the objection is here?

@AndyRoden1 @ScotRail But if fully engined they are axle-heavy. So will they be speed restricted or lower powered?

@concaveasitwere It’s that good/quick/cheap equation again, isn’t it? And sadly, rail isn’t quick from west Cornwall to the west mids and NW. It isn’t cheap, and if you’re taking loads of stuff on hollibobs, not great either.

@concaveasitwere Sadly, you’re absolutely right.

A top performer in terms of growth in customer numbers: This month we have attracted 99.9% of customer journeys vs 2019 (MMA 100.1%), leading the sector in terms of recovery, post-pandemic. Another great endorsement, all whilst we continue our work to improve customer confidence.

@DCBMEP Absolutely.

Thank God (and Michael Portillo!) that this wonderful Settle & Carlisle route was not closed.

@GazTheJourno Well, in fairness, 20-something years ago, we did. Wonderful times heading to the Seven Stars in Falmouth with the IRJ team on a Friday lunchtime if we weren't on press!

Contact of a certain vintage: "Ringing me at this time of day? I thought journalists all knocked off at midday and went down the pub!"

@THESTRANDEDCOM1 @ScotRail No worries. The '222s' make total sense to deploy on the I7C routes. The XC Voyagers already used in Scotland are rocketships (I was on the launch when they set a new ABD-EDB record), and the '222s' are every bit as rapid.

@AndyRoden1 @ScotRail Thanks. Appreciate the quick response

@THESTRANDEDCOM1 @ScotRail Much will depend on how quickly they're released by Class 810s entering traffic with East Midlands Railway, and that is something SR has absolutely no control over.

@THESTRANDEDCOM1 @ScotRail HSTs were complicated more than somewhat to fitting power doors to what were essentially hand-built coaches. The '222s' have all of that stuff so it's a straightforward interior refurb. Judging by the '220/221' upgrade under way that shouldn't be a major concern.

@John_The_Fitter @lateturn Agree. But in front line service, the HST has had its day. 50 years is a hell of a good innings at the coalface for any express passenger loco/train.

@AndyRoden1 @lateturn There is still a “niche” market in the charter business for the HST. WCRC/ LSL will be using HST’s for some time into the future, in this country. The 125 Group will still be using them as well for charters so the HST will still be seen on the mainline.

Ooh, blocked by someone for calling it as it is on the '222s'. Some people are so touchy when presented with facts, aren't they?