UK - 'Pendolino is worst train' - passengers

[John Ashworth]

Pendolino is worst train say intercity passengers

Rail News: Issue 362 15 May 2009

Virgin’s Pendolinos have received the worst rating of any long distance train in a Passenger Focus survey aimed at influencing the interior design of the new Intercity Express trains. However, another modern train, the Meridian fared best.

The survey canvassed passengers’ opinions of nine types of long distance trains currently in use, and their views were sought on 11 specific features of interior design. Luggage space, which received an approval rating of just 26%, was identified...

and it seems you have to register and log in if you want to read more, which I didn't...

[Derek Walker]

I travelled on the pendolino from Manchester to London last year and I was really impressed, it was comfy, really speedy and considering the stuff I had been on before in ZA a really nice change. However, having said that I cant comment on what else was available. I suppose it is all relative to what your previous experience was and how iffy you are.

[John Ashworth]

Derek, Pendolinos have been criticised ever since they first came out. The main comparison is with the IC125 High Speed Trains and the IC225 East Coast stock. I seem to remember Richard Branson (who is better known as the owner of airlines) saying that rail passengers (sorry, customers) were like airline passengers - they don't want to look out of the window but just want at-seat entertainment (audio and video) and laptop access. Hence the windows are very small compared to other coaching stock, and many seats are placed where there is no window at all. It seems he was wrong about that one! Voyagers have larger windows, I believe. Other complaints include lack of serious luggage space and the cramped high-density seating. But you're right, they're fast and smooth and give a comfortable ride.

[Derek Walker]

John, I added in an interior pic in my Manchester/Picadilly thread of the pic I took of the interior. My big gripe was the stupid table light that kept on reflecting back into the lens of my camera! I guess I was fortunate in having a window seat, heaps of baggage space and a favourable impression, but then I had the coach to myself. Oh, the laptop charger didnt work where I was sitting either. Hang on a moment, the more I think of it the more I can complain about! Maybe as a 1 off trip its a great experience, but if it was crowded I suspect it would not be fun. Any pics of a voyager train available? Chiltern railways also operated on the route I was on and I would have liked to have seen their train too.

[Dylan Knott]

I suppose when you go from Metrorail to a Pendolino its one hell of a change. From a service point of view I could not fault them, but yes it could do with some audio-visual entertainment.

I travelled on several different trains in the UK, but found the Paddington - Newton Abbott service the best. Accelerating out of Paddington was the shock as have never been on a metro exceeding 100km/h

[John Ashworth]

Ah, all is made clear! Derek, in the pictures you posted here you have photographed First Class, which certainly has more room, and has seats clustered around tables, just like the old Second Class coaches used to have. But in Standard Class (or Economy Class? Can't remember what it's called in the latest rebranding) the seats are far more cramped and most of them are "airline" style, ie seats all facing in the same direction with a small fold-down table on the back of the seat in front of you. I think that's where the bulk of the complaints come from.

I'll try and find a couple of Voyager pictures online for you when I get onto a faster internet connection, maybe tomorrow or Monday.

[John Ashworth]

There is quite a good external shot of a Voyager where you can see that its windows are larger than those of a Pendolino here.

Some interior shots here, here and here also show the larger windows. The second shows the airline style seating which is not universally popular and is a departure from the old-style coaches in which all seats were set around tables as in the first picture. The third shows clearly how seats don't always line up with windows.

[John Ashworth]

Interesting contrast between the First Class in FGW HST Mk 3 stock in 2004 here (now that's what a real coach should look like!) and the airline style seating in a refurbished "high density" Standard Class Mk 3 in 2007 here.

Here is the seating plan for the refurbished Mallard Mk 4 stock, showing that in Standard Class there is a mix of airline style seating and the traditional bays of seats around a table.