2001-2002

Bon Voyage(r)

Page last updated 21/11/2008

INTRODUCTION:

2001 would see the end of the loco hauled trains. Virgin Voyagers were being delivered a rapid rate of knots and would soon take over from some very tired class 47's.

Voyagers started operating from the 22nd June 2001. Full Voyager service on the Brighton line started on the 26th November 2001.

Voyager 220022 was named "Brighton Voyager" at Brighton station on the 14th December 2001 by Councillor  Harry Steer, Mayor of Brighton.

The following article is from the Brighton Evening Argus 12th December 2001 and makes interesting reading.

A revolution in long-distance train services will open up the rest of the country to Sussex rail travellers. The ordeal of taking a crowded Tube across the capital to connect with trains heading to the North will be replaced by frequent 125mph straight-through services from Brighton. Under the transformation, more cross-country train services will be introduced, giving Sussex a two-hourly link to the North-West.

Virgin Trains plans to increase the number of trains it runs from Brighton to Manchester and Liverpool with a two-hourly weekday service to at least one of the two cities in 2003.

The rail company has been impressed with demand for its services from Brighton to Manchester via Reading, Oxford, Birmingham and Stafford. Two trains from Brighton leaving at 9.20am and 2.18pm make the journey each weekday, taking six hours. One of the trains, the Sussex Scot, continues on to Edinburgh in one of the longest continuous rail journeys in Britain today.

Virgin's Jim Rowe said: "There is a demand for more cross-country routes, especially between Brighton and North-West England. There is also a strong demand for services between Oxford, Gatwick and Brighton. It seems people do not want to spend time negotiating the Underground and prefer to stay on one train in comfortable surroundings. We believe the demand is there for more routes where travellers do not have to use the Underground. "

"In 2003 we hope to be able to offer a two-hourly link to either Manchester or Liverpool. We hope to be able to speed up the journeys on our new trains." Exact timetabling and the frequency of the additional service have yet to be announced. The new services will be operated by Voyager trains capable of 125 mph.

Note: 2003 saw the service cut, the end of 2008 sees it withdrawn completely.

The "historic" services remain largely unaltered apart from the Sunday service from Glasgow now ran via Manchester Piccadilly. Several new trains were introduced giving very early and late departures from Gatwick to Birmingham mainly via Guildford. In the reverse direction the late trains ran through to Brighton. As the Voyagers were based at the EWS depot at Three Bridges rather than Lovers Walk overnight there was a lot of ECS moves.

The Sussex Scot was formed of two Voyager units which meant double the traincrew.

Sundays saw a near hourly service operating between Redhill and Birmingham New Street via Guildford, but with just a 15 minute turnaround there was not much chance of recovering any late running.

TIMETABLE and ROUTE: