Hi , I work for Virgin Trains here in the U.K and i drive the class 390 tilting train from Manchester to London most days, yes part of me does miss the old class 87 engines but i do not miss sitting in the sauna of a cab in the summer! Thank the lord for air conditioning eh! If anyone has any questions i will try and answer them and if your looking for the best ever ( trust me) dvd’s of U.K scenery and steam ( loud ) check out
www.mainlinesteam.net.
I dont work for them, i just appreciate quality.
All the best from the U.K
hey brother… welcome to the forum… but i must warn you…we are a big diffuncian family…lol
i too am a throttle jockey…i mean engineer…lol
csx engineer
UK train driver -------- hello and welcome.
Rode Eurostar from Garre du Nord to Waterloo in August 2003. Why did it get so dark in the middle of the trip? And it was only noon![:o)][}:)][censored]
I think its the tinted windows that they apply about half way
Must have been a lousy job because the tinting came off after a while.[}:)]
Uk Engineer: 2 Questions- #1 Tilting train? Does that mean it’s a fast passenger train? #2 Does your engine have a face on the front?[(-D]
i give in im off to work,
Welcome to the forum, next trip to the UK I’ll be sure to take your run.
Dale
Howdy from the sticks!
It is a wild place here on trains.com so make sure you have a good grip on the brake cuz you’ll need it…
Adrianspeeder
Can’t they install air cons and tinted windows on the Class 87’s ? Many US engines like SD40 and GP units have no AC and operate on hot muggy days on slow trains.
Do thay still use any Class 87’s anywhere in England?
Uk Signalman here. pass that signal at dnager; proceed with caution, be prepared to stop short of any obstructions and obey all further signals. Just to advise you THAT SIGNAL IS FITTED WITH TPWS. Now; repeat that back please…ehehehehehehehehe.
I used to write to a UK engineman when I was on the South Shore here in the US years ago. His name is Chris Dodd. I think he went on to become an official. Anyone know his whereabouts?
Mitch
Hi there
I have ridden the rails all over the UK. Virgin Trains is my favorite UK passenger railroad. I have seen a lot of HST 125 trainsets but last August, got to ride a Voyager (or perhaps Super Voyager, not sure what the difference is) briefly from Preston to Wigan. They were terrific, even if I do prefer the wider carriages over here. I hope one day Amtrak can have similar trainsets across America.
Yes i agree the voyager trains are good, with a cummins engine under each coach they soon pick up speed. As for the class 87’s they are all in storage.Would of been good to fit them with air conditioning.Last evening i got diverted due to a points or switch failure which put a 20 minute delay on my train,but with good acceleration on the train and a fairly clear run we arrived in manchester 5 minutes down. Anyone thank me. Nah. Just a throttle jockey you see.
Just doing your job as well as you possibly could.
true,thankyou
How does Virgin Trains rate amongst its employees like you? Top flight? Midtable? Relegation-bound?
On my side of virgin trains ( west coast ) virgin hold 51% and stagecoach group hold 49%.Long may it continue.Every other year or so Sir Richard Branson holds a party at his estate for the staff, the pay is great and last year i had a holiday to Antigua with Virgin Atlantic using my 20% discount, yes a great company to work for.