Crosscountry operate some of the most long distant and useful routes BUT they have hopelessly inadequate trains. The Super Voyager trains just don't have the capacity required and results in frequent overcrowding. Even if you have a seat reservation you are likely to find someone in your seat especially on busy routes.
@@Listenerandlearner870 That was the plan in 2007, however, they didn't select Virgin for the bid who were planning to lengthen all 58 Voyager trains to 6 carriages (they are atm 4 or 5), but went with Arriva instead who increased capacity by adding 5 HST sets with 7 carriages each. The Virgin plan also called for making the trains able to use the overhead electric lines by installing a transformer in one of the extra carriages, this would allow the trains to use OHLE when it was available, but retain the exceptional acceleration for a diesel train when those are not.
Not long been viewing your videos, and though I prefer your French ones, this was still a fine trip report. However, I thought you'd like to know that the reason people complain about UK trains so much is because you often pay a lot of money for tickets and get an overcrowded service that often runs late, sometimes on trains that are about thirty or forty years old. The CrossCountry Voyager fleet here have been around since 2000, but they replaced trains that were longer and regarded as more comfortable. In the north though, the Class 142/3/4 Pacer trains are pretty much bus bodies on railway wheels (not even a proper bogie, just two wheels on each end) that are loud, bumpy, uncomfortable, and only now being withdrawn. I'd say you picked a very good service, and in fact when everything runs normal it's actually quite good. Very rarely have my London journeys on a Class 390 Pendolino had any issues at all. Even so, those trains have smaller windows and smaller luggage racks compared to the ones they replaced.
@@SimplyRailway Oh you'd be surprised how cheap it can be. It's not unknown, for example, for a First Class return ticket to be cheaper than Standard. The fare structure confuses many passengers. But often times you can get pretty cheap tickets. Don't worry too much about not being used to British trains anyway, some locals aren't even good with them :P
I think the problem with punctuality and reliability is that from a visitors point of view, or even an irregular user, unless you are unlucky then things generally seem ok. On the other hand regular users will see problems much more often. As an example, if 1 in 10 trains on a route is cancelled, if you use that service once then there is a 9 out of 10 chance the train will run and probably be on time. On the other hand if you use it daily, pretty much once a week you will get a cancellation. Works the other way too, but if the one time you use the service it's cancelled you'll probably put it down to bad luck since you can't compare. Personal example is Germany. The first time I visited Germany, the first night I experienced a cancellation due to a breakdown. Put is down to "even they have problems occasionally I suppose" and didn't think anything more. Now having gone back to Germany many times since I've experienced a lot more delays and cancellations and realised that actually they aren't that reliable. The other side too is that if you're a regular commuter, a 10min delay is going to be more of an issue if it happens regularly than if you're a tourist. Even for important connections (like heading to the airport etc) people tend to leave more time.
Good video, thank you. A couple of issues with some things you said however. The narrow width of the class 220 is only partially down to the British Gauge, it was also because they were built as tilting trains and therefore extra narrow. XC however disabled this function. Reading station was upgraded to its current look only a few years ago and it probably one of the most modern stations around. The class 220 is not Bi-modal and that means you were 100% diesel for the entire journey regardless of the overhead electrification. And finally, Oxford to Birmingham is not a long journey at all. XC offer the longest journey in the UK from Penzance to Aberdeen which is circa 13.5 hours in a class 220/221!
Used to live in Reading and it's developed fast! The station hasn't changed much and there wasn't any overhead wires when i was there. Intercity 125 and Network Southeast at the time before GWR, Crosscountry & Virign Trains took over.
@@dan27032 No we don't. Not possible to run 10 cars any way due to platform restrictions....... normally booked a 5 car Aberdeen Penzance and every effort is made to maintain that, but can be a 4 car dependant on availability.....
These trains were an absolute nightmare when I was living in Devon as if I ever wanted to go north it meant being squeezed into one of these. Hopelessly undersized they were an absolutely terrible idea. Hopefully have been or will soon be replaced y something more appropriate!
Nice trip report yes cross-country is a long distance operator in the UK and I hope to travel with them in the future. Reading Station was rebuilt in 2013 and it looked great when I went there and in this video I wouldn't say its dated compared to many other Victorian stations in Britain. People in the UK complain à great deal about trains due to price and mass overcrowding if fares were cheaper and if the gauge was bigger it could accommodate double decker trains like continental Europe and would solve some overcrowding problems anyway I hope you enjoyed your time here and hopefully you will come back here one day 😊😊😊
There isn't space on overhead racks bc of the train's design (tilting design). It was designed as a tilting train, but it never got added to 220s (yes to 221s but XC removed it since 2007/2008, so only Virgin/Avanti have tilt)
The staff at crosscountry are always pleasant for me. I personally havent had any issues, they were polite and happy to help. Also trains in the uk generally arent on time. You get lucky with the companies you pick and time, take me with you 😂
I'll be honest, I've learnt a lot of things about CrossCountry (XC) and about 2 more reasons whu the DfT wouldn't provide extra seats if that makes sense. It took me til Autumn 2013 / July 2014 to properly appreciate the Voyagers. My favourite trains in the XC leet (which I feel still look very modern) are the HST's - those, the Oxford to Birmingham New Street (BNS) corridor and BNS take me back to my first times of train travel in the 1990's (I'm 27). I hope in the next franchise til new trains come in that XC gets all the Voyagers from Avanti West Coast vice 222's from EMR - XC have 221's and 222's aren't compatible with Voyagers. All come in 5-coach sets compared to the EMR sets. Also extra Voyagers will be far quicker and easier to introduce. A few things I particularly like about the Voyagers are I can't recall a plug socket (since using them) not working and the journey I think is far nicer when the weather is freezing outside. That's because the Voyagers have a fantastic heating system that works! One thing I like about XC is them not offering a choice of direction of travel (even for trips that mean the train doesn't reverse) - saves complaints about reverse formations 🙂.
In the UK it’s not called 2nd class anymore it’s Standard that’s why you will have STD on your ticket, Also before Cross County was formed it was part of Virgin Trains and these trains had some Virgin music and entertainment channels. They haven’t been operating for many years. At least 10
The trouble with UK trains is that they have good days and bad days. When the service is running ok then the service is very good, but unfortunately when things go wrong large areas of the country are disrupted. The Class 220 are not the best trains we have so I am glad you liked it because you will see in the future we can do better. But please don't say Reading station is outdated - it is almost brand new and cost a lot of money so a lot of people will get upset!!
Arriva was originally a UK company from Sunderland in North East of England and in fact still has its European hq in Sunderland however they run a better service in the Netherlands than in the uk
@Paul Brown It's actually owned by Deutsche Bahn (DB) i.e , the German government. DB is supposed to be privatised now, but the Geman government owns almost all the stock. Abellio is owned by the Netherlands State Railways (NS). Meanwhile, Arriva does run some train service around Groningen in the Netherlands.
220s are a bit cramped, IMO. While they're not tilting trains, they share the same body profile with the 221s, some of which can (XC's 221s have had it 'turned off' permanently). I went on one of these in the opposite direction and to be honest, the High Speed Trains (which XC are going to add sliding doors and retention toilets to) are much better.
220s never had tilt, but they shared the same body. The 222s do too, but for some reason feel less cramped. The 221s were limited to tilting on the West Coast Mainline and originally between Banbury and Oxford (this was only ever as a test of the tilting systems before full deployment on the WCML). When Cross Country took over from Virgin, the franchise was changed to remove the services that carried on past Manchester to Scotland, and it was decided that the cost of maintaining the tilting systems far outweighed the benefits of keeping it for the few sections of the WCML where they still ran.
Considering how many claim to hate Voyagers, it makes a change to see a quite objective report that doesn't begin from the starting point of "they're ghastly"
Great report. 😀 There was a plan some years ago to fit pantographs/transformers etc and make them a bi-mode train but if I remember correctly the cost was too high.
@@dswarner1571No. Some government minister with no clue said it woukd be a good idea before it was pointed out it was virtually impossible outside cloud cookoo politician land.....
@@ianhudson9398 The minister was ill-advised. Vomiters are diesels that think they are sparkies. It is possible. The trick is having enough other units to cover while being rebuilt. AWC 221s and EWR 222s are to be made redundant over the next 12-18 months, which creates a golden opportunity to do lengthening plus conversion to bi-mode plus thorough interior refurb. But this is Britain so I'm not holding my breath.
I've tried out the Class 220 myself (From York to Edinburgh Waverley, The train's origin is from Plymouth or Penzance and its destination towards Aberdeen) and it's pretty ok for me
Please dont call our Standard Class seats Second class. The signs say standard. It is quite confusing but don't worry. Also the entertainment system is an old system derived from when Virgin Cross Country (apart of Virgin group) operated the service.
@@christophe77700 Quite recently I was looking at the south end of the Up Main platform on Shrewbury station where it extends over the bridge over the Severn. The sleepers have been covered with tarpaulin sheeting to catch the poo from toilets while trains are stood at the platform. Passengers are asked not to but they do. There was lots of poo that someone has to pick up. When flushed at speed direct deposits on the track form an aerosol harmful to track workers... nasty...!
The Voyagers also operate in Scotland and Wales, so they are not an "English" train. If you think Reading station was "dated" you should have seen the one before it was re-built. Your journey on a Voyager was very short. On a long journey they are cramped and uncomfortable - yet they are utilised on some of the longest train journeys in Britain. I had never noticed the left and right colour scheme with the funny political connotation - thanks for that bit of wit! Finally, if you think British trains are so punctual, how come my bank statement is regularly littered with refund payments from train companies!
I think the at seat entertainment system has been switched off; the Virgin Trains' Class 220 and 221 and Pendolino trains don't have it anymore. However they have an entertainment system which operates through the WiFi
I've been on a Class 220/221 a couple of times between Reading and Oxford. And I'm sorry but I dislike these trains quite a lot, I much prefer to get the GWR service using Class 800s and 802s, which with maybe the exception of the seats, are much better to travel on.
Entertainment system's out of use since the trains were transferred from Virgin. The trains have been the same ever since Virgin, just minus the onboard shop and buffet. The only thing Cross Country do is cut corners with those things. They haven't been bothered to even refurbish them to their own style.
It's not the track gauge our intrepid reporter is discussing, it's the loading gauge which refers to the width and height of the trains compared with some other countries. Our tunnels are narrow in the UK therefore the trains are built to fit the existing system. It's the reason why we don't have double-deck carriages.
I only had a couple of coffees on the train I could only see the usual type of food and drink ie tea coffee soft drinks and sandwiches crisps as I travelled mid morning
Why do I think that Redding UK station architecture makes me think of the Stamford Connecticut USA station. The only real difference is the American one is smaller
Yeah the entertainment on those seats haven't been in use since they were formally with the train operator Virgin and so they don't work and haven't done in years.
There was an online petition started by Fraser Pithie some time last year.The idea was to lobby the DFT into reinstating the HST sets that are languishing unused in sidings providing an ideal solution to th overcrowding on Cross-country routes.This solution would enhance the network creating many more seats on routes that provide wholly inadequate 3/4/5 car trains.As far as I know the DFT put the earplugs in and no response was forthcoming.Utter disgrace in my opinion.Scotrail seem to be using refreshed HST sets with great success.
Merci pour ta vidéo, je ne connais pas du tout les trains hors SNCF. Ce sera génial quand tu auras fait ton trip en Europe pour mieux comparer les services ! Mais je n'ai pas bien compris ton ressenti, par rapport aux trains en France, c'est à peu près pareil, vraiment moins bien ou vraiment mieux? Et tu as eu le choix entre plusieurs compagnies de transport?
Mieux en terme de choix et de services. Il y a tout le temps des trains toutes les 5 minutes et à n'importe qu'elle heure. Le service et la ponctualité sont toujours au rendez vous
Je connais un peu des UK trains je connais les trains comme la 800, Javelin et HST Tu peux essayer le Javelin de Londres St Pancras jusqu'à Canterbury ou Douvres Priory de Southeastern (faite attention à 3rd rail, ne tombe jamais sinon vous êtes electrotuté)
I don't like CrossCountry. The cabin is filthy (sometimes dirtier than China's slow train) and often crowded. The train is far too short for its passenger volume and too old to be comfortable (the cab lights are very dim on an old train). The speed is okay but all its service runs on daytime. And like all the British Rail services, the 2+2 is narrower than 2+3 somehow.
Why not let Crosscountry keep the Class 220 Voyagers. And to inherit more Class 220 and Class 221 Voyagers from Avanti West Coast who are replacing them with the IETs. I have been on the Voyager and Super Voyager trains.
2:18 when you say departure from reading as always in uk that is plain wrong I seen a cross country HST today and it was 68 minutes delayed so you don’t always get any trains on time anywhere really
'Loading gauge' i.e. tighter clearances to structures such as overbridges, tunnels and platforms; also coach end overthrow on curves. Britain paid the penalty of being first in the world with railways!
personally since I have travelled on one of these from Exeter to York as well as the route your doing now they are nowhere near as nice as the hst or even the iets.
A Class 220 is a British train. The Class 700 for example, is an English train as it operates in England only. The Class 380 is a Scottish train, operating only in Scotland. The Class 175 is a Welsh train, though it does run into England, it’s operated only by Transport for Wales Rail, making it a Welsh train. The train in this video is a 220, which is British though the 220 variant mainly runs in England.
Wonderful cross country trains we have a fantastic service from Cardiff to the west midlands have 3 hour gaps in the service and the voyager trains umm my local buses are more comfortable than these awful trains
Stink of diesel fumes & dirty toilets overcrowded filthy seats & meal trays encrusted with food been there for ever rude staff never a seat even when you have booked one worst train company ever a German company the Germans would not stand for this I’m certain roll on end of franchise
> The station of Reading is a bit outdated in architecture... It's like 4 years old :D Completely rebuilt
Thank you mate I didn't know
Yes
Simply Railway should check out good old Euston station
@@indogaming2442 I really like Euston☺
@@indogaming2442 oh god 😂
Crosscountry operate some of the most long distant and useful routes BUT they have hopelessly inadequate trains. The Super Voyager trains just don't have the capacity required and results in frequent overcrowding. Even if you have a seat reservation you are likely to find someone in your seat especially on busy routes.
Too short trains. They have been told lots of times.
@@Listenerandlearner870 Yes. They know... and the overcrowding is hard on their staff... who are unfailingly polite
@@stephensmith799 it may help if they get extra Voyagers. I don't know if Voyagers can have extra carriages added.
@@Listenerandlearner870 Even one extra carriage per set would help...
@@Listenerandlearner870 That was the plan in 2007, however, they didn't select Virgin for the bid who were planning to lengthen all 58 Voyager trains to 6 carriages (they are atm 4 or 5), but went with Arriva instead who increased capacity by adding 5 HST sets with 7 carriages each.
The Virgin plan also called for making the trains able to use the overhead electric lines by installing a transformer in one of the extra carriages, this would allow the trains to use OHLE when it was available, but retain the exceptional acceleration for a diesel train when those are not.
Not long been viewing your videos, and though I prefer your French ones, this was still a fine trip report. However, I thought you'd like to know that the reason people complain about UK trains so much is because you often pay a lot of money for tickets and get an overcrowded service that often runs late, sometimes on trains that are about thirty or forty years old. The CrossCountry Voyager fleet here have been around since 2000, but they replaced trains that were longer and regarded as more comfortable.
In the north though, the Class 142/3/4 Pacer trains are pretty much bus bodies on railway wheels (not even a proper bogie, just two wheels on each end) that are loud, bumpy, uncomfortable, and only now being withdrawn. I'd say you picked a very good service, and in fact when everything runs normal it's actually quite good. Very rarely have my London journeys on a Class 390 Pendolino had any issues at all. Even so, those trains have smaller windows and smaller luggage racks compared to the ones they replaced.
Alright, I'm not used to British trains... But It's always on time and for me it's not really expensive ...
@@SimplyRailway Oh you'd be surprised how cheap it can be. It's not unknown, for example, for a First Class return ticket to be cheaper than Standard. The fare structure confuses many passengers. But often times you can get pretty cheap tickets. Don't worry too much about not being used to British trains anyway, some locals aren't even good with them :P
The smaller windows are to be for more safety.
I think the problem with punctuality and reliability is that from a visitors point of view, or even an irregular user, unless you are unlucky then things generally seem ok. On the other hand regular users will see problems much more often. As an example, if 1 in 10 trains on a route is cancelled, if you use that service once then there is a 9 out of 10 chance the train will run and probably be on time. On the other hand if you use it daily, pretty much once a week you will get a cancellation. Works the other way too, but if the one time you use the service it's cancelled you'll probably put it down to bad luck since you can't compare. Personal example is Germany. The first time I visited Germany, the first night I experienced a cancellation due to a breakdown. Put is down to "even they have problems occasionally I suppose" and didn't think anything more. Now having gone back to Germany many times since I've experienced a lot more delays and cancellations and realised that actually they aren't that reliable.
The other side too is that if you're a regular commuter, a 10min delay is going to be more of an issue if it happens regularly than if you're a tourist. Even for important connections (like heading to the airport etc) people tend to leave more time.
@@SimplyRailway It's not that expensive, but British people just like to moan about EVERYTHING to do with trains.
I presume that he hasn't seen the UK on a bad day lol that is why we complain getting a seat is classed as rare at peak time in the Uk
Good video, thank you.
A couple of issues with some things you said however.
The narrow width of the class 220 is only partially down to the British Gauge, it was also because they were built as tilting trains and therefore extra narrow. XC however disabled this function.
Reading station was upgraded to its current look only a few years ago and it probably one of the most modern stations around.
The class 220 is not Bi-modal and that means you were 100% diesel for the entire journey regardless of the overhead electrification.
And finally, Oxford to Birmingham is not a long journey at all.
XC offer the longest journey in the UK from Penzance to Aberdeen which is circa 13.5 hours in a class 220/221!
Used to live in Reading and it's developed fast! The station hasn't changed much and there wasn't any overhead wires when i was there. Intercity 125 and Network Southeast at the time before GWR, Crosscountry & Virign Trains took over.
Cross Country trains oporate the UK'S longest train journey from Penzance to Aberdeen. It takes around 13 hours in one of those cramped trains!
Actually for that journey they use 10 car class 221 Super Voyagers, not 4 car class 220s.
@@dan27032 No we don't. Not possible to run 10 cars any way due to platform restrictions....... normally booked a 5 car Aberdeen Penzance and every effort is made to maintain that, but can be a 4 car dependant on availability.....
@@ianhudson9398if CrossCountry used the HSTs on the Aberdeen to Penzance service that would be so much better
These trains were an absolute nightmare when I was living in Devon as if I ever wanted to go north it meant being squeezed into one of these. Hopelessly undersized they were an absolutely terrible idea. Hopefully have been or will soon be replaced y something more appropriate!
Yes. Scrap them!
Nice trip report yes cross-country is a long distance operator in the UK and I hope to travel with them in the future. Reading Station was rebuilt in 2013 and it looked great when I went there and in this video I wouldn't say its dated compared to many other Victorian stations in Britain. People in the UK complain à great deal about trains due to price and mass overcrowding if fares were cheaper and if the gauge was bigger it could accommodate double decker trains like continental Europe and would solve some overcrowding problems anyway I hope you enjoyed your time here and hopefully you will come back here one day 😊😊😊
There isn't space on overhead racks bc of the train's design (tilting design). It was designed as a tilting train, but it never got added to 220s (yes to 221s but XC removed it since 2007/2008, so only Virgin/Avanti have tilt)
I travel on these regularly. You were lucky the train wasn't busy!
The staff at crosscountry are always pleasant for me. I personally havent had any issues, they were polite and happy to help. Also trains in the uk generally arent on time. You get lucky with the companies you pick and time, take me with you 😂
At 71 years of age and a life long train enthusiast, I have seen lots of equipment, this present day "stock" is crap!
I'll be honest, I've learnt a lot of things about CrossCountry (XC) and about 2 more reasons whu the DfT wouldn't provide extra seats if that makes sense. It took me til Autumn 2013 / July 2014 to properly appreciate the Voyagers.
My favourite trains in the XC leet (which I feel still look very modern) are the HST's - those, the Oxford to Birmingham New Street (BNS) corridor and BNS take me back to my first times of train travel in the 1990's (I'm 27).
I hope in the next franchise til new trains come in that XC gets all the Voyagers from Avanti West Coast vice 222's from EMR - XC have 221's and 222's aren't compatible with Voyagers. All come in 5-coach sets compared to the EMR sets. Also extra Voyagers will be far quicker and easier to introduce.
A few things I particularly like about the Voyagers are I can't recall a plug socket (since using them) not working and the journey I think is far nicer when the weather is freezing outside. That's because the Voyagers have a fantastic heating system that works!
One thing I like about XC is them not offering a choice of direction of travel (even for trips that mean the train doesn't reverse) - saves complaints about reverse formations 🙂.
Cross-country seems to be the best train ever even though of I have not been on it this train is very good. 👍💗🚞🚊
Please come back after you have sampled a Scotland to Penzanze journey onboard one, not nicknamed the vomit comet by accident. 🤮
The CrossCountry trains from Leeds are always rammed as the trains are too short. They're Class 43 HSTs are much better than they're Voyagers.
their
The HST one is better but go Devon please.
And more comfortable both 2nd and 1st are not much different
In the UK it’s not called 2nd class anymore it’s Standard that’s why you will have STD on your ticket, Also before Cross County was formed it was part of Virgin Trains and these trains had some Virgin music and entertainment channels. They haven’t been operating for many years. At least 10
5:06 Catering service Good!!
Recently it has disappeared in Japan. Because almost people buy food and drink before riding.
Yeah the Ekibenya-sans and the Kiosks at the stations have killed off the onboard catering.
@@yasukiwi You are familiar with the situation in Japan.
The onboard catering decrees.
2:14 "as always in UK"
eeeeemmm I wouldn't say that
The trouble with UK trains is that they have good days and bad days. When the service is running ok then the service is very good, but unfortunately when things go wrong large areas of the country are disrupted. The Class 220 are not the best trains we have so I am glad you liked it because you will see in the future we can do better. But please don't say Reading station is outdated - it is almost brand new and cost a lot of money so a lot of people will get upset!!
I didn't know at all, many people told me so... I was in Reading for 10 min I didn't have the time for a complete review :(
I second that, i arrived at my local station and the train was due to arrive at 8 am and was delayed until 8.35 am and no explanation why
Here in the Netherlands, Arriva does some Train and bus routes. Funny to see a company like Arriva operating in the UK :P
Arriva was originally a UK company from Sunderland in North East of England and in fact still has its European hq in Sunderland however they run a better service in the Netherlands than in the uk
Patrick Hamhuis Scotrail another uk train company is owned by abellio another Dutch company
@Paul Brown It's actually owned by Deutsche Bahn (DB) i.e , the German government. DB is supposed to be privatised now, but the Geman government owns almost all the stock. Abellio is owned by the Netherlands State Railways (NS). Meanwhile, Arriva does run some train service around Groningen in the Netherlands.
220s are a bit cramped, IMO. While they're not tilting trains, they share the same body profile with the 221s, some of which can (XC's 221s have had it 'turned off' permanently). I went on one of these in the opposite direction and to be honest, the High Speed Trains (which XC are going to add sliding doors and retention toilets to) are much better.
I thought the 220s were built with tilt too but disabled by XC.
Hence the narrow cabin width, they were built to tilt and are therefore narrower.
220s never had tilt, but they shared the same body. The 222s do too, but for some reason feel less cramped. The 221s were limited to tilting on the West Coast Mainline and originally between Banbury and Oxford (this was only ever as a test of the tilting systems before full deployment on the WCML). When Cross Country took over from Virgin, the franchise was changed to remove the services that carried on past Manchester to Scotland, and it was decided that the cost of maintaining the tilting systems far outweighed the benefits of keeping it for the few sections of the WCML where they still ran.
Hello There, great review, thank you for posting this. Cheers Peter :)
Considering how many claim to hate Voyagers, it makes a change to see a quite objective report that doesn't begin from the starting point of "they're ghastly"
Great report. 😀 There was a plan some years ago to fit pantographs/transformers etc and make them a bi-mode train but if I remember correctly the cost was too high.
Actually, I think this was the Class 221's not the 220's. Silly me.
@@dswarner1571No. Some government minister with no clue said it woukd be a good idea before it was pointed out it was virtually impossible outside cloud cookoo politician land.....
@@ianhudson9398 The minister was ill-advised. Vomiters are diesels that think they are sparkies. It is possible. The trick is having enough other units to cover while being rebuilt. AWC 221s and EWR 222s are to be made redundant over the next 12-18 months, which creates a golden opportunity to do lengthening plus conversion to bi-mode plus thorough interior refurb. But this is Britain so I'm not holding my breath.
I've tried out the Class 220 myself (From York to Edinburgh Waverley, The train's origin is from Plymouth or Penzance and its destination towards Aberdeen) and it's pretty ok for me
Please dont call our Standard Class seats Second class. The signs say standard. It is quite confusing but don't worry. Also the entertainment system is an old system derived from when Virgin Cross Country (apart of Virgin group) operated the service.
Nice trip report, have to admit I’m not a fan of the 220/221’s. Liked and subscribed 👍
i Always grab the Proper Tables on those trains if i can
Aaahhh !!! Le Toilets Time ! Toujours un grand moment !
And I dont think these units drop high speed poo and piss straight onto the track like many other designs still do.
@@stephensmith799 It is not done anymore. It falls into a box or a grinder, right?
@@christophe77700 Quite recently I was looking at the south end of the Up Main platform on Shrewbury station where it extends over the bridge over the Severn. The sleepers have been covered with tarpaulin sheeting to catch the poo from toilets while trains are stood at the platform. Passengers are asked not to but they do. There was lots of poo that someone has to pick up. When flushed at speed direct deposits on the track form an aerosol harmful to track workers... nasty...!
@@stephensmith799 Indeed, if the passengers do it while stationary, it is not very clean. An experience not to live.Thanks for your answer.
I live in Reading and do this journey quite a bit to Birmingham on these trains. Good, but not a patch on the GWR class 800's
The Voyagers also operate in Scotland and Wales, so they are not an "English" train. If you think Reading station was "dated" you should have seen the one before it was re-built. Your journey on a Voyager was very short. On a long journey they are cramped and uncomfortable - yet they are utilised on some of the longest train journeys in Britain. I had never noticed the left and right colour scheme with the funny political connotation - thanks for that bit of wit! Finally, if you think British trains are so punctual, how come my bank statement is regularly littered with refund payments from train companies!
Nice! What do you use to edit your videos?
I always feel cross country is a less glorified virgin west coast mainline as most aspects are similar or the same
That's because Cross Country was Virgin originally, and whilst the Voyagers have seen some changes, certain aspects are still the same.
I think the at seat entertainment system has been switched off; the Virgin Trains' Class 220 and 221 and Pendolino trains don't have it anymore. However they have an entertainment system which operates through the WiFi
It has, yes.
@@WMTrainspotting what happened to the videos on your channel?
I've been on a Class 220/221 a couple of times between Reading and Oxford. And I'm sorry but I dislike these trains quite a lot, I much prefer to get the GWR service using Class 800s and 802s, which with maybe the exception of the seats, are much better to travel on.
XC has a complex route network. Punctuality is not *overall* the best. Also these diesel trains are not bi-mode. Diesel power only.
Plus smaller capacity 170s operate certain parts, so it's gonna be a mixed bag
I went on a cross country to Birmingham and it was spot on time arriving
I was on a 2 car 170 XC from Oakham to Leicester last year. Been on 220s when it was Virgin and used the radio then!
The Voyagers get very crowded on Saturday going from Reading to Manchester. The Voyagers have 4 or 5 coaches whereas Pendolinos have 11.
The station was completely re built 5 yrs ago 1 year ago when u recording it ,it is very modern
Entertainment system's out of use since the trains were transferred from Virgin. The trains have been the same ever since Virgin, just minus the onboard shop and buffet. The only thing Cross Country do is cut corners with those things. They haven't been bothered to even refurbish them to their own style.
What's the guage in France? America? Russia? We have 4ft 8 1/2 "(inches)
It's not the track gauge our intrepid reporter is discussing, it's the loading gauge which refers to the width and height of the trains compared with some other countries. Our tunnels are narrow in the UK therefore the trains are built to fit the existing system. It's the reason why we don't have double-deck carriages.
Went from reading to Manchester Piccadilly 1st class last November on cross country train thoroughly enjoyed the trip
David Tidbury what you get in terms of food and drink
I only had a couple of coffees on the train I could only see the usual type of food and drink ie tea coffee soft drinks and sandwiches crisps as I travelled mid morning
Oh, I have put A350XWB on my computer screen, too :)
Cool
Why do I think that Redding UK station architecture makes me think of the Stamford Connecticut USA station. The only real difference is the American one is smaller
Yeah the entertainment on those seats haven't been in use since they were formally with the train operator Virgin and so they don't work and haven't done in years.
That was really interesting !!! Thank you for sharing !!! :):):)
I'm not keen on the red and blue colour scheme in standard. It looks like a McDonald's. First class is a bit more easy on the eyes.
There was an online petition started by Fraser Pithie some time last year.The idea was to lobby the DFT into reinstating the HST sets that are languishing unused in sidings providing an ideal solution to th overcrowding on Cross-country routes.This solution would enhance the network creating many more seats on routes that provide wholly inadequate 3/4/5 car trains.As far as I know the DFT put the earplugs in and no response was forthcoming.Utter disgrace in my opinion.Scotrail seem to be using refreshed HST sets with great success.
Merci pour ta vidéo, je ne connais pas du tout les trains hors SNCF. Ce sera génial quand tu auras fait ton trip en Europe pour mieux comparer les services ! Mais je n'ai pas bien compris ton ressenti, par rapport aux trains en France, c'est à peu près pareil, vraiment moins bien ou vraiment mieux? Et tu as eu le choix entre plusieurs compagnies de transport?
Mieux en terme de choix et de services. Il y a tout le temps des trains toutes les 5 minutes et à n'importe qu'elle heure. Le service et la ponctualité sont toujours au rendez vous
Ok merci pour l'info 😀 vivement ton trip européen pour avoir toutes les comparaisons
Je comfirme j'habite au uk depuis moins d'un an et j'ai jamais eu à me plaindre pour des retards ou service à bord :)
Je connais un peu des UK trains je connais les trains comme la 800, Javelin et HST
Tu peux essayer le Javelin de Londres St Pancras jusqu'à Canterbury ou Douvres Priory de Southeastern (faite attention à 3rd rail, ne tombe jamais sinon vous êtes electrotuté)
Excellent train choice, XC so comfortable even on regional journeys
They operate up to Scotland to, long routes
s125ish yes Aberdeen to Penzance which takes almost 13 houts
Reason why it's called Croscountry
@@liamg5845 Well it is a brilliant service and can be the best for easier journey and can be helpful if there is an emergency is London.
Lolz yes its one of my favourite train companies nice staff and a good service
Absolutely love these trains gotta love the sound of them engines
I don't like CrossCountry. The cabin is filthy (sometimes dirtier than China's slow train) and often crowded. The train is far too short for its passenger volume and too old to be comfortable (the cab lights are very dim on an old train). The speed is okay but all its service runs on daytime. And like all the British Rail services, the 2+2 is narrower than 2+3 somehow.
British trains actually have a very long history of frequently being late.
Super trip , comme d'hab quoi😀
Et en plus super qualité vidéo
Ouai, mais le meilleur train aurait été un Networker class 166 de GWR ils sont très confortables
Et si en plus il pourrait faire l'underground de Londres perfect
Why not let Crosscountry keep the Class 220 Voyagers. And to inherit more Class 220 and Class 221 Voyagers from Avanti West Coast who are replacing them with the IETs. I have been on the Voyager and Super Voyager trains.
That should be the plan anyway to increase capacity
British people complain because trains are expensive in the UK
2:18 when you say departure from reading as always in uk that is plain wrong I seen a cross country HST today and it was 68 minutes delayed so you don’t always get any trains on time anywhere really
I don't understand why england has small gauge. They should make it standard gauge.
These trains are the worst on the network. There cramped, the lighting is dull and the seats.........simply completely uncomfortably
I love your videos💗
Standard Class is technically Third not Second.
No it's not...
why does he keep going on about the small English gauge?, we use the same one as in the rest of europe 1435mm
Alexander Wall loading gauge not track gauge, UK generally has the most restrictive loading gauge in Europe
@@bovdebov Lines were originally Victorian
'Loading gauge' i.e. tighter clearances to structures such as overbridges, tunnels and platforms; also coach end overthrow on curves. Britain paid the penalty of being first in the world with railways!
The entertainment things don’t work,they were from virgin(previous operators) but cross country stopped them
even Virgin shut them down on the Pendolinos and their Super Voyagers 3 years later in 2010 in favour of WiFi
Salut mec ! une petite question, avec les fichets ATOC tu peux prendre toutes les compagnies de train en Angleterre ?
Oui....avec l'exception des trains des societés "open access" (Grand Central & Hull Trains).
Not enough carriages on cross country no idea how they got contract
They operate the longest train in Britain
Aberdeen to Penzance
personally since I have travelled on one of these from Exeter to York as well as the route your doing now they are nowhere near as nice as the hst or even the iets.
also there is a Lamborghini dealership about 3 miles outside Oxford and that how you know that you will be arriving at oxford soon
Please please please, it's British trains NOT English trains!! There is a big difference!
Alright ... thank you ;)
A Class 220 is a British train. The Class 700 for example, is an English train as it operates in England only. The Class 380 is a Scottish train, operating only in Scotland. The Class 175 is a Welsh train, though it does run into England, it’s operated only by Transport for Wales Rail, making it a Welsh train. The train in this video is a 220, which is British though the 220 variant mainly runs in England.
Excellent 👍👍👍💖💖💖💖😀😀😀
The description says GWR not CrossCountry as the operator
Oops thank you
Do you like cross country
It's a fab train!
Try travelling that route on Sat.
Who needs a footrest when you can pit your feet on the floor? 🤣
Where was Didcot ??
XC usually go via the Avoider
CrossCountry operate the worst long distance trains in the UK
Railway company is GWR?
No. The Company is Cross Country owned by Arriva(UK).
He said it's from Arriva
Nice video. Shame about the weather!
2:19 as if!
Wonderful cross country trains we have a fantastic service from Cardiff to the west midlands have 3 hour gaps in the service and the voyager trains umm my local buses are more comfortable than these awful trains
2:58 urmm if you think that is long,try plimouth- dundee
Or Penzance to Aberdeen, the longest UK service!
It's actually run by cross country on their voyagers I believe.
@@underwaterdick Yes I see the train in Aberdeen in the morning
@@underwaterdick does CrossCountry still run from Aberdeen to Penzance?
Hi
Stink of diesel fumes & dirty toilets overcrowded filthy seats & meal trays encrusted with food been there for ever rude staff never a seat even when you have booked one worst train company ever a German company the Germans would not stand for this I’m certain roll on end of franchise
British people complain because we like to complain.
Dang he has a nice face
Not as good as an A220
Ahah true
Standard class
Glad you enjoyed CrossCountry
Ooh latest pilot jobs….
You need to SLOW down, your camera moves need to be controlled: panning. And your subtitles change too quickly!