British Rail Class 180
| British Rail Class 180 "Adelante" | |
|---|---|
 Class 180, no. 180114 at Cheltenham Spa on 31 March 2004 | |
| Specifications | |
| Braking system(s) | Air/Hydrodynamic |
| Coupling system | Scharfenberg |
The Class 180 "Adelante" is a type of British diesel multiple unit built by Alstom between 2000 and 2001 at Washwood Heath in Birmingham. The units are express trains originally built for First North Western but then the contract was passed over to First Great Western (FGW) to supplement their High Speed Train fleet. However, due to reliability and operating problems the decision was made to withdraw most of the fleet from service. The majority of the units have already been returned to the Leasing Company with the remainder of the fleet to follow in due course. Four operators are currently looking for Class 180 units, which are unwanted by First Great Western, indicating the desperate shortage of high-speed InterCity rolling stock on Britain's railways.[citation needed]
They are part of the Coradia 1000 family along with the Class 175.
Details
Engine
All coaches are equipped with a Cummins QSK19 diesel engine which develops 560kW (750hp) at 2,100rpm.
Unusually for such a fast train, they feature a hydraulic transmission,[1] however each unit has a Cummins QSK19 powerplant identical to that found in the similar but much more successful Voyager family.
Formation
There are 14 Class 180 trains, numbered 180101-180114. They provide 42 seats in first class and 226 in standard plus 16 "tip-up" seats and storage for 6 bicycles. There are five cars per unit, with individual cars numbered:
| 59901-914 | Coach A | Driving Motor | Standard |
| 56901-914 | Coach B | Intermediate Motor | Standard |
| 55901-914 | Coach C | Intermediate Motor | Standard |
| 54901-914 | Coach D | Intermediate Motor | First |
| 50901-914 | Coach E | Driving Motor | Standard |
Current operations
First Great Western
The Adelante fleet was originally deployed on a wide variety of First Great Western services. These included:
- London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads via Bath Spa
- London Paddington to Oxford via Didcot Parkway (Both local and high-speed services)
- London Paddington to Exeter via Pewsey
- London Paddington to Cardiff Central via Bristol Parkway
- London Paddington to Gloucester and Cheltenham Spa (via the Golden Valley Line), extended to Worcester and Hereford at weekends.
The Adelante fleet suffer from a number of reliability problems, particularly problems with the doors closing and locking quickly. This resulted in the replacement of Adelantes on most of the above services, using High Speed Trains displaced from Midland Mainline. The Adelantes then operated express commuter services from London Paddington to Oxford, Worcester, Hereford (via the Cotswold Line) Exeter, Gloucester, Westbury and Frome. Some displaced Class 166 were sent to Chiltern, whilst others were used to strengthen Thames Valley services.
The reliability problems experienced by First Great Western led the operator to acquire some more HST sets to replace the 180s. They refurbished the HSTs (along with the rest of their fleet) to operate the express commuter services. which the Adelante was ironically intended to replace them on. As a consequence, First Great Western returned most of the Class 180 fleet to their owners Angel Trains in early 2008, once enough refurbished InterCity 125 sets became available to replace them.[2] Although FGW had planned to return the entire fleet for storage, it made a decision to retain three Class 180 units until it had received a cascaded HST from National Express East Coast. These units were to be operated in multiple, with a 2x5 car train plus one 5-car unit as a spare. They are utilised for services between London Paddington, Oxford, and Great Malvern.
First Hull Trains
First Hull Trains currently have a fleet of four Class 180 units for reliability improvement, staff training and refurbishment to replace a damaged Class 222 Pioneer. This will allow the company to restore its full fleet while also providing a spare set should any of its units be damaged.[3] The Class 180 units currently operate in parallel with the Class 222s. First Hull Trains has now confirmed that from September 2008 the four Class 180 units will enter full time serivce from London to Hull. Class 180 units will undergo an internal refit, installing laptop sockets, new coffee machines, moving the first class compartment to the rear coach instead of the fourth coach, will be repainted into the current First livery, replacing the previous First livery they currently sport.
The East Coast Main Line Route Utilisation Strategy (RUS) indicated that First Hull Trains would seek to replace all of their 222s with 180s by the end of the year.[4] This was contradicted in First Hull Trains' recent track access applications, which include both Class 180 and 222 in the application. Class 180s are indicated on the proposed new routes to Harrogate (see First Harrogate Trains) and Grimsby, while the Class 222s will continue on the main route to Hull, supported by Class 180 units.[5]
First Hull Trains have now said that they will use only Class 180 'Adelante' units, and their Class 222 'Pioneer' units will go to East Midlands Trains, for their their new services to Corby.[6]
Northern Rail
Northern Rail added three Class 180 units to their fleet in December 2008 to operate services from Hazel Grove and Manchester Victoria to Preston and Blackpool North.[7]
Future operations
National Express East Coast
National Express East Coast (NXEC), in its application for access rights on the East Coast Main Line (ECML) in March 2008, requested additional services to a number of destinations. In its application, NXEC specified that, in addition to its existing InterCity 125 and InterCity 225 sets, it would require as many as nine Class 180s.[8][9]
Grand Union/Grand Central
The new open-access operator Grand Union, part of the same group as Grand Central, has made a number of track access applications for destinations via the ECML, indicating their intention to use 125mph (200 km/h) capable stock, which will either be HST, Class 180s, or newly built trains.[10] Grand Central's track access agreement provides for a potential fourth daily service between London and Sunderland operated as a pair of coupled Class 180s as a ten car train, which Grand Central have announced plans to do.
Platinum Trains
Platinum Trains would use 180s on an Aberdeen to Kings Cross service, provided their track access application is approved.[11]
Fleet details
 | This section needs additional citations for verification. (November 2008) |
| Operator | Number | Year built | Cars per Set | Unit numbers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Great Western | 3 | 2000 | 5 | 180102, 180104, 180105 |
| First Hull Trains | 4[12] | 180110 - 180111, 180113 - 180114 | ||
| Northern Rail | 3[7][13] | 180103,[13] 180106,[13] 180107[14] |
References
- ^ Class 180 Technical Data
- ^ "Rail firm goes back to 30-years to boost reliability". 2008.
- ^ "We're letting our new trains take the strain". Hull Daily Mail. 2007-11-21. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "East Coast Mainline RUS" (PDF). Network Rail. 2008-02-29. Retrieved 2008-02-29.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Hull Trains - Track Access Rights on the East Coast Main Line, Office of the Rail Regulator, 19/03/08
- ^ Modern Railways Issue 772 (November 2008)
- ^ a b "Northern launches new North West timetables and new customer information point at Manchester Victoria". Northern Rail.
- ^ "National Express East Coast proposes plans to Office of Rail Regulation for service expansion to Yorkshire and the East Coast" (PDF). Railway Herald (125): 4. 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-28.
{{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help); Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ National Express East Coast- Track Access Rights on the East Coast Main Line, Office of Rail Regulation, 28-03-2008
- ^ Grand Union - Track Access Rights on the East Coast Main Line, Office of Rail Regulation, 28-03-2008
- ^ http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/s17-platinum-appform.pdf
- ^ Hull Trains secures first tranche of Adelantes - Modern Railways, 15/08/08
- ^ a b c "Second Class 180 'Adelante' set moves north" (PDF), Railway Herald, no. 152, p. 5, October 20, 2008
- ^ "Northern takes three 180s for Blackpool services" - Today's Railways Issue 84, p64
External links
- Adelante information from First Great Western
- Train Testing site - Testing the first class 180 on BR's Old Dalby test track and on the GWML