Pacer Safety

[52A]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-15390172

These things were rubbish the day they were built!

[60800]

There's usually one sat in a siding at Scunthorpe station and I would kill myself if it was my train to Doncaster on any occasion.. fortunately I've never had to go on one of those awful things. Thank god for Transpennine express

[Deltic18]

The same thing was possibly said when diesel railcars replaced Autocar and local steam services.

[IAK]

Chicken coops on rails...
Mind even chooks would complain methinks...

[hq1hitchin]

A relic of the days when BR was starved of funds - best they could come up with for the money available, most likely. The Leyland National buses upon which they were based are long gone, but these things soldier on and I'm only too familiar with them in the Exeter area, where they work a lot of the local services. In the Winsford collision of 1999, an empty Pacer collapsed like an old concertina when hit by a Class 87 on the 0630 out of Euston.

[52A]

As you say a relic, but the mugs travelling on them are charged full fare!

[Deltic18]

At least the 142's will be leaving Exeter in the next month or so. Shame the 143's won't be going at the same time.

[Blink Bonny]

Ay up!

Oooh, I still bear the scars from a trip from Leeds to Carnforth on one of those things. They were bad enough on good track but get 'em on the jointed rails with dipped joints and the passengers bounced around like drunken gymnasts! And as for reliability, they've never been wonderful. The only reason they were better than the 1960s units they replaced was that the older units weren't getting any preventative maintainance!

The sooner they go the better. And the fewer preserved the better I reckon!

[60800]

Just remembered I have been scarred by one of these trash cans; Darlington to Shildon.... was actually rather fun.... well the scraping, squeaking, creaking and the look on my mum's face was anyway

I think I would rather have been on Sans Pareil!

[Trestrol]

So the Pacers are near the end of their life after 25 or so years. Funny how those Met-Cam class 101's lasted so long. Proof that you get what you pay for and it's designed well they will last. The same applies to the MK3 which i think they want to use for the next 20 years.

[manna]

G'Day Gents

So, we all rubbish the 'Pacers'.........but without them, some of the rural branch lines, may well have closed back in the late 80's there cheap running cost's kept them open, and what have the operator's been doing with all the profits they've made with these cheap to run units, there not plowing there profits back into new trains, to make bigger profits, No these grubby little companies, keep the profits (for there shareholders) then tell you, 'Oh we need some new trains for you, and your going to buy them for us, to keep our profits up' What scumbags

manna

[S.A.C. Martin]

G'Day Gents

So, we all rubbish the 'Pacers'.........but without them, some of the rural branch lines, may well have closed back in the late 80's there cheap running cost's kept them open, and what have the operator's been doing with all the profits they've made with these cheap to run units, there not plowing there profits back into new trains, to make bigger profits, No these grubby little companies, keep the profits (for there shareholders) then tell you, 'Oh we need some new trains for you, and your going to buy them for us, to keep our profits up' What scumbags

manna

But that's not how it works Manna - the operators don't, for the most part, own their own trains but have them leased to them over the run of a contract from the DfT. Look at the problems Virgin have had with getting the DfT to agree to them extending the length of the Pendolinos, or the forced purchases from companies like Bombardier for London Midland and you can see that the whole TOC/Network Rail/DfT/ORR quadrangle is a big problem for any long term investments in new trains.

At least, that's my understanding of the situation - is there anyone who can clarify further?

[manna]

G'Day Gents

Sorry if I got it wrong ! 12,000 miles don't help, So the D of T 'own' them, the D of T is run by the Government, which you elect, the private TOC's pay the Government for the privilege of making a profit out of the UK general public, which the Government condones ('cos all the MP's have shares in the TOC's) Ahhhh, now I'm getting the drift of all this underhanded *$#@^* going on, yes it all makes perfect sense, in the mean time you get the luxury of the 'Pacers'....You lucky b******

"Privatization,You know it makes sense"...................For some

manna

[60800]

If you ask me, the government should have a fleet of new build Peppercorn A1's. They could all be named after good Prime Ministers too (oh wait, Churchill was the only good one, and a bullied pacific is already named after him)

[60800]

you get the luxury of the 'Pacers'....You lucky b******

lucky b****** my a***. You get these two streamlined beauties

EDIT: Probably fair to note that I once made a card model of 520 and plonked it on top of Hogwarts castle!
I've still got my Duchess of Hamilton card bodyshell for my old tender drive Silver Fox somewhere. Both card bodyshells are years old.