Thursday, January 12, 2017

Left to rot on a siding in Iran - where Northern Rail's hated Pacer trains belong

Pacer train, rotting in Iran, but still used in Northern England
You can raise a laugh when you tell people that the trains used by Northern Rail, our train operating company, are so bad they were rejected by Iran and Vietnam. 

But it’s not funny. It is actually an outrage.

These buses on rails, the diesel Pacer trains we are expected to commute into Manchester on, at least along the unelectrified lines (Tameside, Hope Valley, Sheffield, Liverpool, Lancashire, Bolton), are over 30 years old.

This morning, like every morning, I travelled on one into Manchester and it was dangerously overcrowded and clammy. And late. Words were exchanged between rail staff and passengers about standing room. The trains leak when it rains, they are cold in winter and too hot in summer as the heating is still on, even when it was 30 degrees outside. I pointed this out to the driver once we had arrived and he corrected me. It wasn’t on, it’s just that the train’s heat generates such power it appears to heat the system inside the carriage.

Another driver has told me that the trains don’t have fuel gauges, so it’s impossible to do anything but guess when they are low on diesel. They aren’t even really trains, they are buses, built onto a chassis, but they were only ever a temporary measure. Disgracefully, they are still in service more than a decade after they should have been scrapped.

Some units were donated to the Islamic Republic of Iran, presumably safely within the sanctions imposed on that regime, but have since been withdrawn from service (pic, above).

 Here’s what the Office of the Rail Regulator says about the Pacer trains, in the 2012 annual report: “Rolling stock failures, such as the loss of a final drive, or bearing failures, could result in multi-fatality incidents. We flagged these concerns in the annual report for 2010-11 in relation to Pacer trains. We still have concerns about the planned continued use of these trains because their age means they can be more susceptible to failures and they often require more maintenance and monitoring.”

In short, these trains could kill you. And even the regulator is worried. But do you know what the main priority of Northern Rail appears to be at the moment? Intimidating passengers with heavy handed ticket inspection procedures, which they admit are complex and arbitrary.

I have an annual season pass, which some days I can have it checked six times by guards or by bouncers from G4S. Other days, not at all. I notice that on some days passengers can buy a ticket on the train (not today, too crowded), other days you can be issued with a failure to purchase notice when attempting to buy a ticket at Piccadilly station.

As an experience, Manchester Piccadilly station at peak times is getting better, but is still barely managed chaos. Communication is erratic, trains are overcrowded and platform changes always handled badly, though these are less frequent than they used to be. However, some annoying habits continue, one in particular is to leave passengers shivering on the platform while the driver revs up the diesel engine, opening the doors at the last possible moment. A lung full of diesel fumes doesn't warm you up, strangely.

Should you need help getting on a train, or if the platform is crowded and it is not clear which train is which, you generally get a shrug of the shoulders from one of the men on the station in a Northern Rail or Trans Pennine uniform. They aren’t paid to help, or care, just to bust fare dodgers.

What this company has done, under its new owners Arriva, and under the previous regime, is get our backs up. They are regarded as a joke by the commuters and travellers I know. The only solace people have is in a pathetic guerilla war on Twitter by referring their failings alongside a hashtag #northernfail.

New trains could be delivered to Arriva by the end of next year. And I understand they are being built by a company called CAF in Spain. In fact, it was a condition of the award of the franchise that they need to be in service by 2020. But welcome as that commitment is to new trains - and they look great - this has effectively prolonged the use of Pacers until then, rather than exploring the option of refurbished cast-offs from other networks in the south. Or Iran.

6 comments:

Mark Perry said...

Great piece Michael and totally agree. On the Mid-Cheshire line we are now stuck with the Pacer until 2021 after it was revealed late in 2016 that the cancellation of the line electrification in the south west means that the trains destined for Mid-Cheshire will now not be released. Surprisingly it breaks one of the main promises of the new franchise and delays introducing half hourly services.

The Independent Brigg Line Rail Group said...

Were looking for stock to form a weekly Brigg Line service, this is ideal lol

blogger on icedaniel.se said...

Very intresting reading about the trains.

Anonymous said...

the driver is probably revving the engine to get enough air pressure up to open the doors...

Anonymous said...

I do wish that people research their facts right before writing such blogs.
The entire fleet of Class 142s had complete new Voith KE-485 final drives fitted in 2014 to replace the original SCG RF420i (which spares were difficult to source for).
http://www.voith.com/corp-en/press__press-releases-99_57224.html
Voith also supplied new wheelsets and cardan shafts. Therefore the units are NOT dangerous.

The photo above is of a Class 141 narrow bodied Pacer which were short lived and only 20 were built for use in West and South Yorkshire. With the exception of preserved 141113, the 141s retained the unreliable Leyland TL11 engines and SCG R500 gearboxes. All the later Classes of Pacers were upgraded in the early to mid 1990s with new Cummins LT10R engines and Voith T211r hydraulic transmission, making them very reliable.

The reference above to drivers revving up the engine is to do with building up air pressure for the doors and would apply to any DMU with power doors if stood for sometime.

Unknown said...

I hate the ones that still have the old bus seats with minimal back support and no headrests... My worst experience was actually sitting down to have the bottom of the seat collapse. I also avoid sitting on the seats closest to the window because those damn heaters always make my lege feel like it's on fire. I know they actually have a good safety rating but... What do you expect at 75mph? I'm sure all the screeches it makes are from the thing shouting "Please kill me, I shouldn't have lived this long" haha