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I was invited on the press run for these and while I haven't been on any of the other 172 subtypes in operation with Chiltern and London Overground I found them to be a very quiet train (for a diesel - much quieter than even the aircon on a 450) which rides fantastically well at line speed (barely noticeable). My one minor bugbear was the vaguely noticeable jerking when the train was changing gear and also an occasional drilling-like sound which was only brief.

The press run followed a stopping service from Moor Street back to Stourbridge and I found the acceleration to be much improved to a 150. As for braking it was about the same as a normal Electrostar.

Dave W wrote:Makes no odds, as long as it's quieter than a 150 I don't care hahha.

Much quieter. had to suffer one on the way back to Worcester!

Thanks for the update. Nice to see you still knocking around... and to have you round this neck of the woods as well!

tubechallenger wrote:My one minor bugbear was the vaguely noticeable jerking when the train was changing gear and also an occasional drilling-like sound which was only brief.

Who says that modern trains don't have any character?

150s and 171s and LO 172s have character in my world!!

Excellent, I can't wait for the displaced 150s to turn up in the North West... nothing like a beat up old train from the 1980s to increase carriage numbers for cattle class.

Yes, I've got a chip on my shoulder: but I've seen several articles lately banging on about how proud the government is to announce an extra whatever many hundred carriages to the North: making it sound like an investment in new trains, when really what they're doing is throwing in a load of trains as old as the ones that need replacing. In fact, the 150s are probably worse in many cases - awful bloody trains.

audigex wrote:Excellent, I can't wait for the displaced 150s to turn up in the North West... nothing like a beat up old train from the 1980s to increase carriage numbers for cattle class.

Yes, I've got a chip on my shoulder: but I've seen several articles lately banging on about how proud the government is to announce an extra whatever many hundred carriages to the North: making it sound like an investment in new trains, when really what they're doing is throwing in a load of trains as old as the ones that need replacing. In fact, the 150s are probably worse in many cases - awful bloody trains.

They might go Yorkshire. They have the second highest amount of overcrowding in the Country over that side of the Pennines, so I heard anyway. They'll be more old stuff coming to Manchester from 1987 when Chat Moss (Original Liverpool - Manchester) and through Bolton to Preston are Electrified. Suppose It'll be easier because the have up to Trafford Park electrified on Chat Moss and up to Castlefield Junction for the line through Bolton electrified.

Northern are very happy to be getting 22 extra carriages, but wait a minute, that's actually only 11 2-car units, half of which we'd loaned out in the first place.

But then can Northern afford to run the extra coaches? I remember that GMPTE ended up paying for the running cost the extra ones that on the some of the suburban lines recently.

Currently sitting on one now. They reely do seem to have become rather common on the Snow Hill Lines. Our journey from Birmingham to Stratford was made on one, and then was surprised when one turned up for the return journey too! They're lovely to ride on, also I see what people say about the rather loud gear changes. It's been ages since I was last in Britain so I can't really compare to a 170 but these seem just a little bit louder, but smoother.

I should have been on one yesterday, but the ticket office guy at Rowley Regis was in the loo while I was waiting to buy a ticket and the ticket machine wasn't working..so I had to watch it come in and leave again...and I went home on a 150.

They were introduced on Monday officially, so that'll explain why you're seeing a lot more of them. They'll all be rolled out by the first week of October, supposedly (according to LM's twitter, who I converse with a lot).

I've just had one Stour-Moor Street. One of the best units I've ever travelled on. Airy, spacious, well lit, quiet, good automated PA, the lot. And bloody quick off the mark. At linespeed before passing the end of Old Hill platform on one of the steepest gradients in the country.

What a unit!

Still 150's coming along to pick me up on the odd evening I use the train.

I'm sure I'll get on one eventually.

I will miss the single sideways seat above the heater in the winter....

...and the screeching to wake me up before Stourbridge Junction.

...and the puddles that develop throughout the train on snowy days.

...and trains accelerating very hard on opposite platforms drowning out my Ipod just as it selects a tune I really like.

There's still the ice cream van to take me down to Town station though!

The PA certainly is good - I can agree with that. Finally some class to the Snow Hill lines. I wonder now how much the new units will influence people to take the trains, since the 150s really were crap. And I mean it - why pay to sit in one of those and come out smelling of diesel when you could just drive to work!

I would love to go to work on the train more. Problem is, I work in Rowley Regis. Some evenings, the traffic is so bad from Stourbridge Junction through to Wordsley..I may as well have fought my way through from Rowley. Tried the bus but that just gets stuck in the same traffic.

If I worked in Birmingham it would be no contest....train every time.

I may look at moving closer to a station at some point in the future so I can get the most out of a train. we shall see....

Haha! Yes! The screeching has stopped! Doesn't sound like someone's being killed now!

Theyre very much like Southern's 377's.

If theyre anything else like them the internal info board will be absolute crap.

Jacko wrote:Theyre very much like Southern's 377's.

If theyre anything else like them the internal info board will be absolute crap.

Aside from basic body shell very little is the same.

I guess thats good news for people who use LMT services...

Jacko wrote:I guess thats good news for people who use LMT services...

Yes we know you hate Southern. You say so in every other post without really adding anything else. But be grateful that you actually have lovely new electric trains with air conditioning, proper seating, and a PIS to begin with. The Southern 377s tbh are still nicer than the LM 172s IMO. Even the sets with 3+2 seating.