Travelled by rail today

[Junctionmad]

Since I hate DMUs I haven't really travelled on IE since 2005 , travelled up from Gorey today. Wow, who'd bother travelling by train these days unless u where forced to. 2 hour journey , most at slow speeds. 22k is just passable runied by engine noise and awful awful seats.

 

Return journey by clapped out 29k , no loos , no facilities nothing. And this is 15 mins longer journey

 

Awful awful system.

 

Well my next journey will on average be in 2020 so maybe IE will be gone by then

 

Give me a craven , its nice wide bench seat , nice stream heating , and a proper loco at the front any day

 

Bah humbug

[Garfield]

While I love Cravens as an enthusiast, my abiding memory as someone who travelled in them frequently in their later years are that they were drafty, poorly-heated, and poorly-lit because more often than not the lighting would be on the blink.

 

While IÉ's railcar fleet doesn't really float my boat, the 29ks perform their intended role very well (moving large volumes of commuters reliably), and I enjoy travelling by 22k and find them comfortable - way ahead of many rail journeys I've experienced on the continent. Engine noise in the passenger compartment is something you'll experience on most DMUs, not just Irish railcars...

[Warbonnet]

Quite like the seats on the ICRs, nice and comfy and line up with the windows. Engine noise isn't too bad considering it's a DMU. Streets ahead of a voyager for instance. The line to Wexford is a joke speed wise mind you.

[jhb171achill]

The Kerry road is likewise not a great one for high speeds!

 

I can't stand the 29's.....

[Junctionmad]

Personally for comfort. I preferred the park royals. After that the cravens then the mk2 and 3 stock

 

I mean mk2 and mk3 over CWR where virtually silent. Funny in rail travel we seem to go backwards in comfort , seats are too narrow, badly padded, seat pitch is tighter, and even the tables are smaller.

 

Same thing recently in Italy , ICE trains has similar packed seating , switched to stopping trains instead, got a compartment coach , three armchairs across the compartment , bliss

 

I've taken to the bed from the shock of modern day IE.

 

Average speed to gorey 30 mph. , peak speed 65 , for 4 mins , typical speed 45.

 

Youse can keep your DMUs. Thanks they'll never grace any layout of mine

Edited May 1, 2015 by Junctionmad

[Garfield]

I've taken to the bed from the shock of modern day IE.

 

I'd hate to see what you'd be like if you were waiting at a bus stop today.

 

[Junctionmad]

I'd hate to see what you'd be like if you were waiting at a bus stop today.

 

 

Anyways. I'm returning to my pickup truck.

[Broithe]

Quite like the seats on the ICRs, nice and comfy and line up with the windows. Engine noise isn't too bad considering it's a DMU. Streets ahead of a voyager for instance.

 

Over here, on the "Mainland", with Voyagers and Pendelinos, you can book seats with an A or W code - A for Aisle and they like you to believe that the W will be for Window, but it's as likely to mean Wall, and the only window you can see out of is the one diagonally opposite you on the other side of the carriage.

 

And the smell...!

[Noel]

Over here, on the "Mainland" . . .

 

What part of greater Germany do you live in?

[Jawfin]

God, the side-vent things on the DDs are disgusting - from a passenger perspective, I'd probably rather have a 22 despite the lack of atmposhere

[Broithe]

What part of greater Germany do you live in?

 

In the part where Germans own half the water, railways, power stations, postal services and the Bentley factory....

 

.. but the natives still think it's the Mainland..

[Noel]

Personally for comfort. I preferred the park royals. After that the cravens then the mk2 and 3 stock

 

I mean mk2 and mk3 over CWR where virtually silent. Funny in rail travel we seem to go backwards in comfort , seats are too narrow, badly padded, seat pitch is tighter, and even the tables are smaller.

 

Same thing recently in Italy , ICE trains has similar packed seating , switched to stopping trains instead, got a compartment coach , three armchairs across the compartment , bliss

 

I've taken to the bed from the shock of modern day IE.

 

Average speed to gorey 30 mph. , peak speed 65 , for 4 mins , typical speed 45.

 

Yes it sounds bad alright and that's a potential commuter belt, but not at such jurassic speeds. Those railcars are designed for short quick journeys, hence the discomfort of the seats. I spent over 3hrs on a 22k coming back from Kerry last autumn and the seats were truly awful for a long trip. Just for the seats alone I would never do a long trip again on a 22k and that was on CWR!!!

 

Youse can keep your DMUs. Thanks they'll never grace any layout of mine

 

Ditto - Only trains allowed on our layout, and trains have loco engines, not sterile ugly plastic buses on rails

[Glenderg]

Anyways. I'm returning to my pickup truck.

 

Ha ha! To retrieve the bible and the shotgun by the sounds of it

[Junctionmad]

Yes it sounds bad alright and that's a potential commuter belt, but not at such jurassic speeds. Those railcars are designed for short quick journeys, hence the discomfort of the seats. I spent over 3hrs on a 22k coming back from Kerry last autumn and the seats were truly awful for a long trip. Just for the seats alone I would never do a long trip again on a 22k and that was on CWR!!!

 

 

Ditto - Only trains allowed on our layout, and trains have loco engines, not sterile ugly plastic buses on rails

 

 

The Wexford line is all CWR too. But has very severe speed restrictions in places. It's a pity about the 22k seating. I'd forgive it's a bus on rails of at least the seats were decent. I mean this is meant to be intercity quality stuff, yet the seats are padded like waiting room seats, with near vertical backs etc. all designed for sardine style pack em in standards

 

I was looking at some old photos , if according to IE more people then ever are using rail , and we regularly had 8-9 coaches on trains from Dublin, how the hell do they transport more people in 3 car or 6 car OCR sets. Something doesn't add up

 

It's funny when people think a " benefit ' is the seats line up with the with the windows, a feature of proper coaching stock for decades

 

The return journey was on a 29 k commuter. I can see why the 2013 strategic rail review wanted them removed from the rosslare service , god they are truely awful, reminiscent of the last days of the old pre dart Dublin suburban service ( at least they were PR)

 

I remember as a lad of 14 getting onto my first mk2 train in Waterford. Wow. The loudest thing was the aircom pump cutting in

Edited May 1, 2015 by Junctionmad

[Noel]

Sadly proper intercity rail travel no longer exists in Ireland except for Cork and Belfast routes and the Cork service is a mere shadow of itself 20 years ago. With all the new motorways one wonders how long empty intercity passenger services can survive on the ageing track network.

[burnthebox]

Long Live the Motorcar, Comfort, Heating, Window's, & at your leisure, or faster if you like, to hell with Miles or KM,

[Liverbird81]

My my surely anything that's more modern than the good old NIR thumpers now that's a loud Dmu although 80class like cravens quiet comfortable but the 450's were to loud and not comfortable and freezing in the winter

[jhb171achill]

The noisiest railcars I ever travelled in were the MEDs. I had a run once in Donegal railcars 12 and 18 - one in Finntown and the other in the short lived NWIRS site at the old Derry terminus of the CDR. Those old Gardner engined beasts were noisy!

 

AEC cars let know they were in the area as well, especially when accelerating.

 

Modern ones - hmmm.

[jhb171achill]

Let's hope the DD sets are a lot better when back in traffic. And that all the 29's are scrapped very soon, and none preserved!

 

Confession time: as a diehard railway enthusiast for almost fifty years (yes, it was lorries when I was little...), any time I have to go north, the preference is - (1) car, (2) bus, and (3) train. Travel in the Rosslare direction: (1) car. That's it.

 

Now - what way does one of the (huge majority) NON enthusiast community think?

[Liverbird81]

My preference to go down south is train but my wife always makes me drive thanks to the new motorway when I was a kid that drive just wasn't the quick option and train was always quickist

[Sulzer201]

Interesting views on DMU's which now seem to be here to stay - I actually like the 2900s, to me they look like a nice train, albeit they are set up for outer-suburban work and have regularly appeared on longer distance trains in the past. I was on one recently with the kids and they loved it. There was some hard acceleration away from stations and lots of engine growl. I traveled on the cravens for years and loved them but compared to the 22k comfort and facilities you can understand how the general public would probably choose the latter. On another point - when the existing rolling stock is life expired on the Dublin-Belfast route does anyone think that electrification will be seriously considered?

[hurricanemk1c]

Electrification is mooted at 125mph, along with the electrification of all of Northern Ireland. 2050 and 2040 respectively were mentioned last year.

 

As for ICRs - I think they are comfortable enough (except for Premier Class - can't get comfy in them at all). Having travelled about 13,000 miles in them since they were introduced (11720 since September), they run well, aren't overly noisy and light and airy. The problem of overcrowding on morning and evening services actually has nothing to do with the rolling stock as is - it's about the procurement of them. The basic rolling shell is fine - it's how many of them the accountants wanted.

 

They could have been a lot, lot worse - just look at the UK Voyagers!

[Mayner]

Electrification is mooted at 125mph, along with the electrification of all of Northern Ireland. 2050 and 2040 respectively were mentioned last year.

 

As for ICRs - I think they are comfortable enough (except for Premier Class - can't get comfy in them at all). Having travelled about 13,000 miles in them since they were introduced (11720 since September), they run well, aren't overly noisy and light and airy. The problem of overcrowding on morning and evening services actually has nothing to do with the rolling stock as is - it's about the procurement of them. The basic rolling shell is fine - it's how many of them the accountants wanted.

 

They could have been a lot, lot worse - just look at the UK Voyagers!

 

Could end up in a situation with drastically reduced rail services even before the current stock of railcars wear out.

 

A recent IRS Journal

 

Department of Transport report indicates that the Government is planning to take a hard look at rail transport funding, with completed roading projects providing a far favourable rate of return in cost benefit analysis compared with rail.

 

heavy rail accounting for a disproportionate level of state transport network costs

 

· What is the future envisaged role of rail transport in Ireland?

 

· What extent of the rail network is it appropriate to retain?

 

The Department of Transport view appears to be that heavy rail is providing poor value for money compared with roading in terms of state transport network costs. 20% of state costs to support 1% of freight tonne/km and less than 5% of passenger/km.

Edited May 3, 2015 by Mayner