Let's Ride … The New Class 777 Trains

On the Merseyrail network, the old Class 507/508 units are being replaced by modern "space age" Class 777 trains. The first one entered service in January 2023. so it was was time to go and take a trip to Liverpool and ride them for the day ...
More info on the new trains here : www.merseyrail.org/new-trains...
NOTE: The part where you can tap your foot and re-open the doors only works where the train is at a stand still at a terminus station - as it was for us at Kirkby - not scheduled to leave for another few minutes, so we weren’t holding things up.
With thanks to David Powell at Merseytravel.
#Class777 #Merseyrail

[@geofftech2]

All the 7's, all of them (and they were all yellow)

[@Tyler.T214]

Love it

[@Tyler.T214]

My local is 444

[@MiniforceRailfan]

Class 777 MerseyRail will have a Great Time Working on His Routes

[@goatgamer001]

3 of them, actually

[@A_S12042]

Love your videos Geoff- keep them going!

[@peter_smyth]

That guy you interviwed is great. Enthussiastic about the service upgrades, but still honest and sincere.

[@Nooticus]

Agreed! He was the star of the video for me!

[@oldtechnobodycaresabout]

He should be on a least used station/request stop

[@fijijournal]

Yep agreed, and he told the skinny bums to beef up, if you want to travel in comfort...

[@waffle_bars]

Thank goodness there’s space to store my Geoff under the seats. They’ve really thought of everything with these trains!

[@GreenJimll]

But will he fit in the small overhead rack? There's only one way to find out.... 🙂

[@elliott142]

Interview with David was great. Fantastic to see someone so honest, even when things aren’t quite as planned rather than hide dates away.

[@twyfordlion]

David is very impressive, knows how to operate a railway well.

[@RandomHuman4022]

The whole "press the button before the train stops so the doors open immediately" was something that blew my mind when I went to Vienna last year and rode the U-Bahn. I had no idea it was in some parts of the UK! Why isn't this a feature on every train ever??

[@OntarioTrafficMan]

The trams in Toronto have that as well and it is maddening that the trains in the Netherlands don't

[@RobWVideo]

Same with the new trains in Brisbane, Australia.

[@DeBert]

@@OntarioTrafficMan Well, most of the trains in the Netherlands do in some sort. The GTW trains of private operators work the same way. NS Sprinters you usually can press once when lit green and they will open as soon as the door step folds out. Most other NS stock you can press the open button continually - even if the train is still moving - and when the driver enables door opening, they will open at once. All these tricks do save a couple of seconds :-)

[@littlewickhamtrolleys]

Some older Paris metro trains have a mechanical system to achieve the same. In fact it's easier to release the door in advance as the door isn't pulling at the latch

[@neeha9449]

I was also baffled when I came down to Manchester's Metrolink and sneakily found out how it works!

[@ronmac9522]

As a disabled mobility scooter user I love the thoughts that they have put into the new trains. The plate to open the door is genuinely a simple ye brilliant idea to make alighting easier. So may times the doors have closed and damaged my scooter paint work. Also the door illuminated is great. These trains are a game changer.

[@roboftherock]

Is the grab-pole in the middle of the door area a potential hazard for mobility scooter users when humans are congregated around it? That would make getting on - and the manoeuvring necessary afterwards - awkward.

[@ronmac9522]

@@roboftherock nope. Plenty of room.

[@Toffeeabi81]

I wish we had these in Devon. I'm partially sighted, and It would make train travel so much easier. I wouldn't need to book assistance unless I was going to an unfamiliar station, and then it would only be to find the way out ir to underground if in London.

[@grahamcroucher5251]

Long overdue having door 'advanced opening request recognition', as in Swiss railways. Very handy.

[@NikasGamer]

The Programme Director, David Powell, seems like such a nice and genuinely enthusiastic guy! We need more leaders in the train field to be like him - listening to rider's views on what trains should be like is a no brainer!!

[@iloveimageprocessing]

"If you're from Manchester then you've probably had enough of Mersey 7 gags." 🤣

[@daviddearden6372]

The blue half appreciates the joke.

[@stevieinselby]

Nice shot of the daffodil! One point about the new trains being "4-car" is that Stadlers have short carriages, so it's only about the size of 3.2 regular carriages.

[@highpath4776]

Daffodi is yellow ?

[@alexdavis5766]

See the daffodil made me feel weirdly happy. The weather is suddenly so wet and cold and spring feels forever away that seeing the daffodil made me feel optimistic that it is coming 💐

[@Andre-rt5hg]

2:36 everyone waiting to leave be like 👁👄👁

[@tardismole]

Loved it. All the sevens kept popping up so I backtracked to watch again. A lot of fun and pretty trains to boot.

[@alsi2023uk]

Brilliant Geoff!!! Merseyrail Extension Plan: 1. Ellesmere Port - Warrington Bank Quay 2. Headbolt Lane - Wigan Wallgate 3. Ormskirk - Preston 4. Bidston - Wrexham I have been told that 1 full battery charge of 777140 can take the train 146km - 3 times what was predicted 😊

[@yarslowmodelrailway1]

As a Southport resident, we have been looking forward to these trains for some time. Most travel into and out of Liverpool although the airport is south of the city. I can see the door-stop board causing all sort of trouble when the school kids travel.

[@davidpnewton]

Oh yes. Children messing around will be a serious problem with those doors.

[@geofftech2]

So the door stop thing is only whilst the train is having stand time at a terminus (as we were at Kirkby). when it's at a regular stop, you won't be able to do it ... i believe!

[@davidpnewton]

@@geofftech2 those who wish to remain sane and arrive on time hope!

[@CitytransportInfoplus]

From the days when I was a schoolboy I vaguely recall door stop being used on London's tube trains (EHO refurbished 1938ts). This was on the door edge rubber strip. It did not last very long - possibly because too many passengers invoked it as a way to catch a train that they would otherwise have missed.

[@roboftherock]

I would like to think that the consulted comittee would have addressed this potential problem. So with today's intellegent trains there is likely to be provision that when the driver has initiated the door close sequence, anyone pressing the door stop board will not have any effect. At other times it will work as designed.

[@danieltoth-nagy5097]

This was one of recent times best of Geoff! So much fun to watch from start to end, packed with interesting stuff. Thank you

[@danieltoth-nagy5097]

@@geofftech2 I hope and think you enjoyed it as well and that also adds a lot to it!

[@CitytransportInfoplus]

It will be interesting to see a comparison with the Tyne & Wear 555s

[@Dean256]

I love Merseyrail. Along with London Underground to me they are the only rail services in the UK that actually operate effectively and offer a proper public transport network.

[@globalist1990]

Definitely they put other operators to great shape. It's curious that liverpool gets both the best and the worst (northern)

[@HistoryNeedsYou]

It’s great to see the C19th railway spirit alive and well in David. Can we build a line across Chat Moss? Yes we can! Can we run battery 777s to Runcorn? Yes we can!

[@exsandgrounder]

It's good. I still think electrification would be better- at least to the new Headbolt lane terminus for now- avoids having to lug the batteries around.

[@neilyoungman9814]

I need to change the batteries. There are no more AAs in the cupboard🙄

[@davidpriestley1650]

@@exsandgrounder Batteries also means that if there is a power problem on a section of the line, then trains can still run as long as they can pick up power on either side of the outage. Although with only 7 units having batteries - thats not that useful on the network as a whole.

[@TrainsOfDorset]

I love the attention to detail with all of the hidden 7s. Even Carl's drink at 5:40 was labelled with a 7 🤣

[@pocki892]

Resently saw them being build here in Berlin from the inside of an S-Bahn, can you believe it!

[@EuroDC1990]

Travelled on one the other week, absolutely fantastic trains. Exactly what a modern commuter train should be - light, airy and accessible. I also think they've far better ambience and more character than a lot of other new trains on much longer routes. As for the seats, they're not the most comfortable in the world but they're only for journeys under an hour and they're better than what they're replacing, they look smart, they give plenty of personal space and they've not gone the way of Tyne and Wear or DLR with longitudinal seating. Other than a lack of toilets these appear to be the perfect commuter train.

[@marcusdamberger]

I'm not from U.K., but I don't think I've ever seen commuter train's with bathrooms. Is that common on U.K. trains? I'm going to look out for that in the future when traveling to other countries.

[@neeha9449]

@@marcusdamberger pretty common. In most normal train routes they will definitely have toilets onboard. The only trains without toilets are metro/subway styled trains such as the London Underground and the Tyne and Wear Metro.

[@Nooticus]

The new (well 5 years old now!) Class 717’s on Great Northern routes in and out of Moorgate also dont have toilets, just to add some info! Their maximum journey time is 1 hour 5 minutes from Moorgate to Stevenage via Hertford North.

[@OnTheRailwayOfficial]

@@neeha9449Most of our commuter trains don’t actually.

[@dodahspeak]

I can't believe no toilets! Can't believe it!

[@philipbrailey]

I always feel like I’m watching the history channel and not KZbin. Geoff is great. 🇦🇺

[@PokhrajRoy.]

0:16 OMG so happy to see him again! It’s hard to forget the style swap both of you pulled off brilliantly 😂

[@smdhomeworkhelp]

It is always a great Monday when the Northern Correspondent appears in a Geoff video drop!

[@smdhomeworkhelp]

And also good to see him giving local craft beer a plug too! All the 7s! :)

[@zdavis4222]

David Powell was a great interviewee and was very unpretentious, given how senior he is.

[@moskari26]

3:59 / Request to open the door before arriving -feature is a shared thing on Stadler trains! Flirt's in Switzerland, Helsinki, Oslo etc. all do the same trick.

[@tomzitiger]

The oslo ones unfortunately dont always do since some are older, but our metros do

[@tomzitiger]

Specifically the stadler ones wont always do

[@moskari26]

@@tomzitiger Weird, I just came from Norway and at least on Østlandet-services they did open.

[@gentuxable]

In Switzerland it's a de facto universal standard even on busses and trams (except on trains with manual door handles, goes without saying really)

[@tomzitiger]

@@moskari26 maybe i'm mixing it up but i took one of those trains today, i just didnt check

[@mattjeffrey6489]

this is genuinely a cinematic masterpiece

[@andrewreynolds4949]

What a friendly program manager Maybe it would be a better idea to have an intermediate lighting level, with only some of the lights on to reduce the impact on passengers of flipping on and off frequently

[@andrewcook3475]

I find the lighting on the Class 345 Elizabeth line trains to be at a restful level, yet bright enough to be able to read a paper. 'Indirect lighting' is used on these trains. The light source is concealed, and reflected or bounced off the ceiling, resulting in a restful lighting level.

[@court692able]

It’s finally nice to see the UK, implementing features like green and red lighting around doors and level boarding to their new trains, something that mainline Europe has done for years

[@EngineerLewis]

nice daffodil shot at 00:57 in keeping with the yellow theme! 🌻 😃

[@sabbathrbest2655]

I like how these trains, the Elizabeth Line and Thameslink all have a decent wide isle despite the UK loading gage.

[@Blubatt]

I really hope they consider expansion to Wigan Wallgate, via Headbolt Lane. The connection for places like Rainford, and Orrell, and Wigan itself will really benefit the local area. Selfishly, it would also benefit people like myself. The line has one train per hour, Monday to Saturday, until 7pm, and no trains on Sundays.

[@simracer1256]

The joys of the truly abysmal upholland branch line

[@frankw9619]

Will be messy ticket-wise though as Orrell, Pemberton, and Wigan Wallgate come under Greater Manchester. As someone who lives in Pemberton, I'd be concerned about my ticket to Mánchester for work no longer being valid.

[@johnchurch4705]

Pity the ORR are so against the extension of anymore 3rd rail power supply.

[@davidlally592]

Yes absolutely daft.one of the.lines from redhill could be easily extended by 3rd rail..but govt says no..

[@Mitch-Hendren]

I'm old! I remember the first 507's going into service . The main complaint then was the hard seats compared to the outgoing 502's .. with their fully sprung horsehair sofa like seating ........ everything just repeats and repeats 😋

[@Darcy_prince]

I think it was really funny that Karl was getting excited over being able to call the doors. Here where I live (Adelaide, SA) It has been the standard on all trains and trams for years! 😆

[@JomirBrands]

The bloody lights. On and off 😂😂😂

[@Nooticus]

Absolutely one of your best videos in a long while geoff! All the easter eggs were brilliant, both David and the great Northern Correspondent were incredibly entertaining and informative, and the editing exceptional! Top work!

[@peterdowden7694]

that level boarding is top class, even a Dalek could get on.

[@roboftherock]

Let's not forget little R2D2!

[@Victorious626]

You can pre-request the doors to open in Adelaide, Australia 🇦🇺 too. The button stays green after you press it as a visual reminder.

[@kosmischesynth]

Yes, you would get the train from Hunts Cross to Southport. My family used to regularly go on day trips from Cressington station to Southport - so sore bums sound to be likely. The old trains are really clunky but I'll miss the comforting, nostalgic noises they make.... "ch-chug-ch-chug, ch-chug-ch-chug".

[@davidemmott6225]

I've travelled from Cressington (two stops from Parkway) to Southport quite often. I can't wait for the new trains (though apparently it will be at least a year), but might have to bring my own cushion.

[@neilcrawford8303]

I remember the prototype PEP and 508s when I lived down south, now live in Southport and witnessing the twilight years of the 508s. I/we've done Southport or Birkdale to Hunts Cross a few times, and Liverpool South Parkway, one stop from Hunts X is a regular visit for both bus connections to the airport or with rail services from Manchester or further afield. As Merseyrail's Northern Line doesn't serve Lime Street, changing at South Parkway is sometimes a better option, especially when the weather is bad.

[@timgreen3869]

Thanks for the tip of pressing the opening button to pre-book the doors to open. Great that they now run from Hunt's Cross.

[@joepschoenmakers8599]

Interview with David was fantastic. Refreshing!

[@officialoison]

I can't wait for the Class 555 Tyne And Wear metros! Please ride them next year!!

[@SamRoebuckisTheBest]

Brilliant video as always. It seems nicely designed train, even the lights at the ends are in the shape of a M, very cool

[@AaronD_]

Nice to see you in our local area, been waiting ages for this!

[@WRYouTube326]

Love your work Geoff. Thanks for what you do.

[@SunshineGaming69]

Another amazing video, keep it up Geoff!!👍

[@XNA2NW3]

What a joy, Geoff. What an absolute joy. Thank you.

[@AmandaOutThere]

507s never had buttons. 508s came North with them but we're plated over. Stayed like that until they were revamped and then the wedge was removed

[@geofftech2]

Thanks Amanda! Good info, appreciated 👍

[@MrMIIMARIO]

Fabulous video!

[@lunchtakenearly]

Love to see you outside London. And two splendid guests too

[@vincentyoung4726]

The push button to open the door before the station wasnt copied from Manchester, its been a thing on Swiss trains and trams for a long time. It's used on some lines to make a request stop. The old trams just disappearing from Zurich have it and theyve been around for a good while now. Unsurprisingly, seeing how Stadler is a Swiss company, most of what those new trains have is also found on current Swiss rolling stock, including the foot plate that stops the doors closing, the light strips round the doorways, smart information displays, the LED headlights and the rather firm seats with the molded in headrests. Now we just need to get double deck commuter trains in..... after we've widened our loading gauge and tunnel diameters.

[@vanwesthuizen7427]

Amazing video, love the trains, love seeing more and more Stadler Metro Types everywehre in the World. Also really loved the enrergy, your videos always make me smile!

[@proxy9557]

Great video! Love how the numbers on the coffee cup add up to 7, good detail.

[@andrewmagnusthegreatesttra1230]

Awesome video Geoff Marshall

[@tonywallow964]

Nice Geoff thanks have a great week

[@davidpriestley1650]

If you went around the corner from Central to Parr Street Studios - thats where Coldplay wrote and recorded "Yellow", so it was fairly appropriate to end the episode

[@JohnTalbot-k6xi]

That was FUN … btw Great Interview can see where the joy emanates from (!!)

[@andyt2510]

Looks like Merseyrail and their passengers have hit the jackpot with these trains!

[@KristerL]

Lovely trains, congratulations Merseyside!

[@Ztbmrc1]

Nice trains. I guess when it was tested in Germany that was probably on the rail testtrack at Wegberg Wildenrath, a former RAF airbase close to the border with the Netherlands. If I had known that I could have taken a look there, and made some videos of the trains doing their test runs. Thanks for sharing!

[@TrainNingaH]

I love them been waiting for this vid for a bit of time and love the yellow coat

[@Rorschach.]

Hi Karl! Always good when our NC turns up for a video.👍

[@edwardlamb]

Itching to see these on the Wirral line. Thanks for asking - sounds like this year! 👏

[@rnj117]

As an ex southport resident, on merseyrail we used to not have to open the doors with a button, in fact it was weird to me when I moved elsewhere that this was a thing! I will definitely forget to press the button next time I am home!

[@TravelsWithCharlie]

Like the look of these - some nice ideas that we don't get in London. Will have to get ourselves up to Liverpool soon

[@rickkearn7100]

This was so good, I subscribed. It helps to restore my faith in mankind (a desperate journey!) to see the love and enthusiasm of you Brits for your trains. Very posh. Cheers!

[@petercreed2539]

Geoff you have such fun😊

[@GeorgeChoy]

777s look great, thank you both

[@WALKER-27606]

Can't wait for the new Tyne and Wear metros also made by stadler to start running hopefully a new Geoff video.

[@Bab07184]

I loved this video Geoff, would love to see more Merseyrail content in the future !

[@andyK1878]

Great assessment of the new trains Geoff, your questions to Dave Powell were enlightening. Looking forward to seeing the new 777s on the Chester & Ellesmere Port lines asap. 🤞

[@rickyzuc]

I’ve got my weekly train / railway fix from Geoff 👍🏻 top content as usual, please keep them coming!! ❤😊

[@symy92]

Good to see Carl the Northern Correspondent. Those trains look great, great video as well.

[@jayfielding1333]

Very stylish trains. I've long been a fan of Merseyrail's network.

[@collectivelyimprovingtrans2460]

I wish America could have trains like this

[@TeamSenke]

They will never

[@midnight_styx]

@@TeamSenke They could

[@Baloongis2]

​@@TeamSenke they might

[@generalfilms9947]

I'm from the UK and I agree with you I want America to have good trains like they have in Europe

[@TeamSenke]

@@Baloongis2 how?

[@christopherbutler7588]

Great 👍 thank you 😊

[@maxwyss7447]

Nice refreshing video!

[@johnp7686]

Nice! Asking good questions!

[@elainemulberryrat5300]

Looks like you had fun despite the weather.

[@isctony]

The lights came on in time for the tunnel by the looks of it... did such a great job you didn't even notice the tunnel!

[@andycleaver9135]

Blackpool trams also 'release' doors if pressed before stop - also act as a bell

[@ashleybentham9396]

So excited for these to go on the wirral line, I'm gonna miss the 507 and 508s though, they were they trains I've travelled on since I was a kid

[@RJC1142]

Obligatory lovely to see Karl and having him assisting with quality puns to cheer up a Monday comment.

[@Karlinski73]

🤗

[@duncancurtis5108]

Extending to Helsby and Frodsham would be a real joy, no more bumpy old 80s DMUs finally.

[@Benji_transport_vids]

Nice video, Geoff! I was hoping you'd ride one of these some day!

[@cjbirkett]

Very enjoyable video, especially nice to see the return of everyone's favourite Northern Correspondant! With regards to door opening arrangements on the 507s/508s that you discussed in the video, the native 507s never had any passenger operated door controls, doors have always opened under guards control on the 507 and508s on Merseyside - however when the 508s originally arrived on the network, they were still equipped with passenger control panels from their time on the Southern Region. They were plated over both inside and outside the units, but the plated over panels remained in place until I believe the early 2000s refurbishment of the Merseyrail stock when they were removed. Apologies if this has been pointed out by countless people before me! The 777s are, in my opinion very impressive units and obviously far exceed their predesessors on Merseyside, however as someone who has lived his entire life with the PEP derived 507s and 508s (they were introduced about 2 years before I was born so apart from a few very vague 503 memories are really all I recall) I will greatly miss the old units when they retire - particularly the 508s that still tick away as if they're from the 1950s! Progress has been long awaited on Merseyside, and will be rightly celebrated. I do hope, however, that equally celebrated will be the incredibly reliable and resiliant stock that has served the Northern and Wirral lines so well over the past 40+ years. They certainly don't owe anyone anything at this stage in their career. Dare we hope that at least a carriage from a unit may make it into preservation? We can but wish!

[@indonesianrailwaysalvian]

Great train and nice shot

[@Emily_20095]

777 the next floor above the devil.... lol this video was rlly good and great merseyrail trains!

[@christill]

These trains look amazing. My favourite colour. We need more yellow trains. I love the battery option and how passionate David is about the whole thing. I wish we had someone like that in charge of our transport on the south coast.

[@LE1GHDG]

Thank you Geoff for this birthday treat :)

[@miketrueman5473]

Nice to see you in my neck of the woods Geoff. I haven’t been on one of these new trains yet but I’m really looking forward to when they enter service on The Wirral line so I can finally get to try them.

[@Tyler.T214]

Love your vids

[@tubemapper]

Oooh I like these!

[@sarahjoyholden7856]

That's freaky just watching an old mercy rail video on another channel. And yours, which is better than just came up in my subscribers' notifications

[@stanpapior3409]

Great video, Geoff. Nice to chat to you at Fixation last week.

[@aeronautic2374]

1:13 Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh! Ah! Oh! We have light! Loved it!