UK Caledonian Sleeper Consist

[CSXfoamer1997]

What is the usual consist of the Caledonian Sleeper trains?

I plan to purchase the Class 67 DLC on Steam, which also includes the Caledonian Sleeper coaches. When I do, I would like to create a prototypical consist of it.

 

[ScouseAndy]

Depends which route, there are 2, the lowland sleeper which travels between London and Edinburgh/Glasgow(splitting at Carstairs) and the Highland Sleeper which travels between London and Inverness/Aberdeen/Fort William splitting at Edinburgh Yard - no passenger are able to disembark here but it does pick up an extra coach and baggage for the Fort William Portion. Class 67's only operate north of Edinburgh unless the London trains are diverted off the wires

So in effect you have 7 different consists, the shortest being the FW portion which in winter can be just 1 Sleeper, 1 Coach and 1 Café & 1 Baggage(sometimes not even the baggage) and the longest being the Full Highland Sleeper from London which is 2 Coaches, 2 Baggages and numerous Sleepers double headed by Class 90's or Class 92's

FWIW The Caledonia sleeper are phasing out and will no longer uses Class 67's north of Edinburgh since it was taken over by serco as they are now using Class 73's which where built in the 60's as they are more suitable for the routes (especially the FW route)

 

[CSXfoamer1997]

That's a shame. I personally like the Class 67's.

 

[ScouseAndy]

they are a bit of a white elephant tbh, purchased for mail train services predominately and entered service just as the UK postal service axed 90% of their rail services and went over to air thus leaving a brand new main line locomotive with poor route availability left pulling specials and royal trains.

 

[CSXfoamer1997]

they are a bit of a white elephant tbh, purchased for mail train services predominately and entered service just as the UK postal service axed 90% of their rail services and went over to air thus leaving a brand new main line locomotive with poor route availability left pulling specials and royal trains.

Speaking of the Class 67's, why is it that many trains had 2, one on either end, rather than just one?

 

[ScouseAndy]

we dont have many wyes, a silly law about maximum distance a passenger train can reverse (google Scarborough station and the long station bench for an extreme example of how railway companies got around this law in the past) and for passenger services a lot of mid journey terminus stations with no run round facilities or station shunters so none multiple units have to have a loco at each end.

 

[CSXfoamer1997]

Also, a second note: These locos also have double cabs, so why not also switch them to the other end of the train? Not enough switches (or points)?

 

[Seaboard92]

It depends on the station as to if it has points. Like let's take a station I'm personally familiar with München HBF in Germany. It's a stub end terminal with no points near the stub. While most trains now are multiple unit design. And the conventional cars normally have cab cars. There are trains that don't like the night trains and EC/IC brand that don't. In those cases a train comes in with a locomotive. While it's doing station work another engine comes from the other side and attaches while passengers unload. Then once it's attached and providing HEP the one that brought it in will be uncoupled and pulled five ft away from the consist. When it departs the new engine moves the train out and the old engine follows it out of the platform a few minutes later and heads to the yard. Sometimes at the same time too.

 

[PerRock]

Depends which route, there are 2, the lowland sleeper which travels between London and Edinburgh/Glasgow(splitting at Carstairs) and the Highland Sleeper which travels between London and Inverness/Aberdeen/Fort William splitting at Edinburgh Yard - no passenger are able to disembark here but it does pick up an extra coach and baggage for the Fort William Portion. Class 67's only operate north of Edinburgh unless the London trains are diverted off the wires

So in effect you have 7 different consists, the shortest being the FW portion which in winter can be just 1 Sleeper, 1 Coach and 1 Café & 1 Baggage(sometimes not even the baggage) and the longest being the Full Highland Sleeper from London which is 2 Coaches, 2 Baggages and numerous Sleepers double headed by Class 90's or Class 92's

FWIW The Caledonia sleeper are phasing out and will no longer uses Class 67's north of Edinburgh since it was taken over by serco as they are now using Class 73's which where built in the 60's as they are more suitable for the routes (especially the FW route)

Not to mention that Serco (the operating company) is getting new cars, so the Mk2&3 consist you'd be building will be not accurate as well.

peter

 

[ScouseAndy]

Also, a second note: These locos also have double cabs, so why not also switch them to the other end of the train? Not enough switches (or points)?

Yeah we just don't have the run round facilities at most stations. Points [switches] cost money to maintain and operate the fewer you have on the network the cheaper the costs.