I Traveled First Class on Scotland's Highland Mainline Railway - It didn't go as planned...

[@Parakeet-pk6dl]

I hope that you were being sarcastic when you said "the station is blending is very nicely with its surroundings" 🙃

[@nk-i-sumpan]

Sarcasm is Simon's middle name.

[@Simon-Andersen]

Being the only building set back from the main street, with a massive parking lot and huge signs right in front, is definitely not a massive contrast to the rest of the surroundings. ;)

[@markmbalagtas2230]

Sarcasm is Simon's second language

[@kevinellis8869]

The 170s are one of the better DMUs operating in the UK, the seats in the new generation (195-197) being very hard. We spent 8 days in Scotland using a Freedom Pass in Summer 2022 and should have had several HST trips but none happened, a mixture of driver and equipment issues.

[@supertrains156.66]

Hard seats aka ironing board seats

[@Simon-Andersen]

Yeah seems like the HSTs are quite unreliable, but at least the 170s are not too shabby! Hope you had a good trip :D

[@RWL2012]

Not just hard seats on 195/196/197 but also a rough ride from lightweight bogies (and I'm saying that as a 170 _and_ 19x fan).

[@johneyton-ze6ws]

Good video and I am glad you liked the scenery. I know you are a train specialist.... If you are going to the Highlands in 2025 try the Scottish Citylink buses. The scenery is better on the bus routes. As an example you can go from Inverness...along the banks of Loch Ness and the Glens to Fort William. Then to Glasgow through dramatic Glencoe & more scenery....then along the Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond and the River Clyde into Glasgow. .

[@Simon-Andersen]

Ill have to consider that next time! I for sure trend to overlook busses with my enthusisim for trains :D

[@dazlebluefrogify]

Some buses might even be quicker than the train routes lol😅​@@Simon-Andersen

[@RWL2012]

That 170 is a later Bombardier build (2003-2005) because it has the newer/bigger headlights/tail lights and the extra side-window-mounted exterior destination displays.

[@Simon-Andersen]

Cool! Now i know how to tell them apart!

[@jfmezei]

The contrast between the 170 "regional train" and the HST image you provided for first class is huge, and f I had paid the suopkement for first class expecting HST first class and got a regional train instead, I wouldn't be too happy. But for a 3 hour train, perhaps not that big a deal.

[@Simon-Andersen]

I was mostly just happy that my train wasn’t canceled in the end. But yeah, the 170s have more of a regional first-class product, while the HSTs are definitely for long-distance travel.

[@mattevans4377]

The thing is, it is more of a regional style journey. The trains do not do intercity speeds. Honestly, they should use 67s or 68s with the Marks 3s, instead of 43s

[@Danse_Macabre_125]

​@mattevans4377 Impossible. These aren't MK3As or Bs. These are just MK3 coaches - so they can only work with Class 43 powercars and have no buffers + different wiring and electrics. Also, HST PCs weigh nothing vs a 67 or 68, so they can operate at higher speeds; 67s were restricted to under 20mph on parts of the Highlands back when they hauled the diesel leg of the Caledonian Sleeper due to their immense weight.

[@mattevans4377]

@Danse_Macabre_125 Well whatever 100mph diesel you could get to haul coaches, or something like FLIRTs. The HSTs are overspecced for the route, as well as being on the verge of death due to age

[@Danse_Macabre_125]

@mattevans4377 FLIRT is honestly your best bet, although the Highlands being wired are a long way away, and the FLIRTs have enough power on diesel... but tiny fuel tanks. 100mph diesel would also have worse acceleration than the HSTs; apparently the 0-100 times of a 2+4 HST and 385 are very close. So I'd say the best bet is a large FLIRT.

[@Michal_Niskiewicz]

Worth the wait for the video

[@Simon-Andersen]

Thanks Michal! Back to normal schedule again on sunday :D

[@Clivestravelandtrains]

I enjoyed that a lot, as I live between Glasgow and Stirling and use this line a fair bit. The HSTs are extremely good, reflecting an age when comfort was considered important. Unfortunately because of their age the availability is poor and substitutions are common. If you really want to ride one, the Aberdeen run is more reliable for seeing them as most substitutions seem to be on the HML. Having said that, I have always liked the 170s and for modern trains they are quite comfortable. (I consider them "modern" as I am 70!) I have done a few films on my own channel of the Highland Main Line. It's always a pleasure to take some snaps!

[@neilgwynne5158]

The turbostars have been used for nearly 20 years on this service. The HSTs were bought in as although old are very comfortable and offer a intercity level of service. There has been significant issues with bodywork corrosion and fitting power doors and they are proving very expressive to run. They are excellent trains but are at end of life. Scotrail has put out a tender for new trains, i am hoping we get something like a stadler flirt than can be switched to electric as electrification extends to the Highlands.

[@Simon-Andersen]

Fingers crossed for some Flirts! The ones in Anglia seem nice, and Stadler, in general, makes good-quality trains

[@neilgwynne5158]

@Simon-Andersen they are very good. The Welsh ones are getting rave reviews as well. It may be the cost that swings it

[@neilgwynne5158]

The electrification programme seems to have slowed down recently, mainly as Scottish government has no money. But most of the central belt is now electrified. It's around 70% of Scottish ridership is now under electric services Talked of discontinuous electrification for forth bridge and only the Stranraer, West Highland, far north and Kyle line would remain un- electrified.... I would assume dates are starting to slip on this now however. Something like a east midlands meridian could also be a intercity stop gap.

[@EntertainmentWorldz]

super great video 😍😍❤❤

[@Simon-Andersen]

Thank you :D Greetings from Denmark

[@kevanhubbard9673]

We have Sir Richard Branson to thank for the complex tickets and he apparently wants to get back into running trains....he shouldn't be let anywhere near a railway.

[@robtyman4281]

To be fair, Virgin Trains were alot better than Avanti West Coast. Same trains but that's where things end. The service and overall experience of Avanti is not a great one. Poor Customer Service generally, and the trains are often filthy. Virgin Trains were alot cleaner, and the service was considerably better. It's why I won't use Avanti if I'm travelling to Birmingham. I'll use Chiltern trains out of Marylebone instead. A much better and more pleasant service. I find Avanti quite stressful. Plus I can't stand Euston. The ticket hall is too small, so gets overcrowded very easily. And the so called 'Euston stampede' - what's that all about??! lol Imo, they should demolish the entire station and start again, from scratch. It's a horrible and ugly station, with bad signage and poor routing throughout it. It's not up to the same standard as most other London Terminal stations, and given how much money has been spent on others over the last decade; Euston really sticks out now. Its faults are glaringly obvious.

[@chriswright4349]

Aviemore was an interchange for a secondary route to Inverness (the old main line), not to Perth.

[@Simon-Andersen]

Ah yeah youre correct, not sure how i got that messed up.

[@Fraslet]

Druim Uachdar = The high ridge

[@Letsgobyland]

nice video, remember my journeys in Scotland, unfortunately, I have no videos. Must do some from that area.

[@Simon-Andersen]

Scotland is great! Hope you get the chance to go back

[@floris3239]

Semaphore signals are still very modern in The United Kingdom. 😊

[@JScot92]

Unpopular opinion: the 170 is a nicer experience than the HST, provided it's not overcrowded. Nicer ambience, more comfortable seats, warmer, bigger windows.

[@speccylimone3684]

@@JScot92 I totally agree as someone who uses both on a daily basis. Unfortunately the rose tinted glasses crowd will whinge

[@class313]

​@speccylimone3684 anyone who disagrees with you just has rose tinted glasses?

[@Simon-Andersen]

I wouldn't know! Every time I've tried to get one in the UK, something has gotten in my way - but the 170s are indeed comfy!

[@RoyTheMouth]

The 170 you passed at Kingussie 170470 doesn’t have any First Class so at least you didn’t end up on that one 🤣🤣

[@Simon-Andersen]

Wow, I didn’t know that was a thing! Haha, that would have probably made this video a lot more negative had i ended up on that 🤣🤣

[@RoyTheMouth]

@ Yeah 470 & 471 were part of a batch of 9 for Strathclyde operations in Glasgow once upon a time, we had some other Suburban non First Class units but they have transferred to Northern Rail along with all bar 470 + 471. We also have ex Hull Trains 170’s 393 - 396 which HAD First Class but now don’t

[@ollyshighlightreel6530]

Hi Simon! I am a reletively new subscriber to the channel and I do enjoy your videos! Very informative on both the route and the train and it's always nice to see the scenary beyond the UK! Make me want to travel around Europe again, but it's a bit... scary for me at the moment. I'd love for you to review the trains that are in my region! The 15x line of DMU's are really noisy and outdated, the CAF Civity's are nice to ride with a good ambiance, just the seats aren't designed for long distance commuting. And the oddity that's the Class 323... I guess the silver lining is that you never rode on a Pacer. They were... a bouncy castle on rails.

[@Simon-Andersen]

Sounds like you're based in Northern territory. While I don't have any plans to make videos there at the moment, I did have the unfortunate experience of traveling on a Class 142 in the Liverpool area about eight years ago. The Class 156 I caught later that day was much better in comparison :p

[@dazlebluefrogify]

I was born in manchester but in my 22years living there never went further north than newcastle (to watch football match) how i regret never going to scotland such a beautiful scenic country, i will get there one day but now i need to fly first as i've been in France 30 odd years 😅

[@Simon-Andersen]

Its worth a trip! Especially in summer

[@supertrains156.66]

Ayy atleast it’s unique seeing a different train for a route right like I know class 158 is good for mountain climbing (especially at the Kyle of lochoush line) but how unique a class 156 taking a trip to there I even saw a 3 car class 158 from northern pass by glengarnock(for real this time)

[@macflod]

Ive had that happen once before too- was meant to be a class43 but got a turbostar due to a break down :(

[@walterfillingham]

Most people who live in Inverness use LNER if going to Edinburgh for a day, the first class is far superior with much more modern trains and superb catering including hot freshly cooked breakfast on the way down and a hot meal on the way up, along with lots of complimentary teas, coffee, drinks and snacks. Considering you get your meals both ways, it makes a nice day out in Edinburgh and relatively good value. ScotRail first class is completely rubbish, old grubby trains, non existent catering and more expensive.

[@demil3618]

I like how you give very comprehensive info, especially the route map overview! If you see the Caledonian Sleeper at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="239">03:59</a> being pulled by a class 66, it probably means that the loco behind it failed and caused disruption. Class 170 are ok, but still a bit noisy. And I cannot imagine they are very efficient with the torque converter locking very late- although the speed of 160 km/h sounds good. The complimentary food was a bit slim however. Was the coffee good or was it instant? You got to be very careful in the UK with instant stuff being labelled "coffee".

[@speccylimone3684]

66s haul the Sleepers regularly now as the 73s are unreliable, on occasion it is two Class 73s. You're partially right but it's supposed to happen now due to the ailing reliability of the Class 73s, so no disruption is caused

[@Simon-Andersen]

Thank you! I am not very good when it comes to coffee, but it came for a big tank, so i dont think it was instant, but something similar to what youd find in a canteen :D

[@demil3618]

@@speccylimone3684 So unreliability is integrated into the schedule already? 😁 Why have a 73 at all if there is a 66 anyway? Double the cost!

[@speccylimone3684]

@@demil3618 Pretty much aye, the 73 has to stay as the 66 can't provide heating to the train on its own as they were never really designed for passenger work

[@demil3618]

@@speccylimone3684 Wow, that's massively inefficient. Is there no other loco that could do it? And I thought those 73s were refurbished. Seen them at Paddington...

[@inspectorsands6960]

to get onto the wifi you have to go to your notifications and click on the wifi login one

[@Simon-Andersen]

I tried! It wouldn't load the page either, even when I tried pasting the URL manually. :(

[@DougPaulley]

Thank you for this, interesting trip. Please out of interest, when did you make the trip, approximately? Cheer

[@DougPaulley]

Ah, got it from the ticket machine ;-) 4th November.

[@Simon-Andersen]

Yes indeed! Otherwise i put the month of travel after the intro, 0:22 on this video :-)

[@martinstilton1535]

Those Inter7City HSTs get substituted regularly, unfortunately due to unreliability. Shame you were unlucky this time. It's a spectacular journey though.

[@oldtechnobodycaresabout]

The class 170 is not low floor?

[@Simon-Andersen]

Depends on what you mean by it. I mostly mention it for accessibility reasons-that there are no internal steps on/into the train. If platform heights are built to match, you’d have level boarding. Whether that actually happens anywhere on the ScotRail network, I don’t know.

[@oldtechnobodycaresabout]

@Simon-Andersen I think this might be a language issue, the only trains in Britain which are level boarding are the FLIRTs which have floor height of 950mm, I would say these are medium floor trains. The 170s have a floor height of 1100mm which means they are high floor and definitely don't have low floors.

[@mdhazeldine]

I was going to say the same. We basically don't have any low floor trains in the UK (with the one exception being the FLIRTs on Greater Anglia, and they're not that low). We just have relatively high platforms. One of the few advantages the UK railway network has over other countries.

[@Simon-Andersen]

​@@mdhazeldine Ah yeah, I guess using the term "low floor" in this context is probably not the best. I just assumed that, since the train was fairly close to level at some of the stations along the route and had no internal steps, it probably aligned with the platforms at newer stations.

[@MikeWillSee]

​@@Simon-Andersen not an unreasonable assumption to make at all, but rather illogically it seems most modern trains in Britain are built to be higher than the national platform standard. As others have said, the only trains we (currently) have which are capable of achieving level boarding are the ones built by Stadler used by Greater Anglia, TfW, and Merseyrail. ...At least those are the only trains which can achieve level boarding at platforms built to the national standard height. Even more confusingly, some lines such as Crossrail have stations built higher than the national standard in order to line up with the trains, rather than the other way round!

[@markmbalagtas2230]

So freight trains also have the right of way in Europe? I thought this is only a thing here in the USA 😢 and did i miss the bathroom review on this particular train?

[@Simon-Andersen]

Mostly not, only in this case. No bathroom review, not sure where my footage of it went :(

[@SteamboatWilley]

Not so much a case of having the right of way; it's a single track railway, so you have to give way to anything coming in the opposite direction.

[@Andrewjg_89]

Scotrail should keep the Class 170 Turbostars as they are very reliable trains. Same with the Class 158 Sprinter Express. I don’t know why they want to get rid of the Class 43 Inter7City HST stocks.

[@andrewphillips9391]

I believe it's to do with the crash worthiness, especially since the Carmont accident

[@TheJononator]

Unreliability and crashworthiness. They have 26 sets and only ever use about 13 of them a day and the cabs fall off in an accident.

[@Andrewjg_89]

⁠Totally agree. Thanks for the information 👍

[@MrScootmcg]

The reliability of the HSTs has been abysmal, I believe they are suffering badly from flat spots at the moment. The other problem is that 170 would have been taken from a commuter service somewhere which was cancelled or ran as a 3 instead of 6 car. Still it could have been worse, you might have ended up on a 158!

[@Simon-Andersen]

Or, as another commenter pointed out, we passed a Class 170 without first, probably about as good as a 158 :D

[@supertrains156.66]

I think with the dinting on the seat it look like there use to be a different table <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="512">8:32</a>

[@Simon-Andersen]

Ah yeah i see! Good catch

[@Nobody-jo3tv]

Dumb question: How much of the scottish railway network is electrified?

[@jmgrahit26]

Most of the network in/around, and South of, Glasgow and Edinburgh

[@TheReduxGB]

25% electrified in 2022 The plan was to have it all electrified by 2035 - which will probably not be met but id hope it would be a high percentage electrified by that point

[@Phil-oj5nr]

@@TheReduxGBThe maximum likely electrification, will not cover Fort William/ Mallaig or the Far North Line from Inverness to Thurso and Wick.

[@Nobody-jo3tv]

@@TheReduxGB Rip LOL

[@stephenbates306]

Interesting that you used a Railcard, which one? Most single travellers are not eligible for this.

[@Simon-Andersen]

I am still young by railcard standards for a bit yet :P

[@robertmawby3021]

Sadly, there are NO FIRST CLASS public trains anymore. The pathetic offerings criminally sold as first class now are hopeless. Even the seats are rubbish these days.

[@ABTrainsYT]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="412">6:52</a> American rail style

[@TheRealMartinDominik]

You mispronounced "Kingussie" en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingussie

[@exsandgrounder]

If the spoken and written forms of names don't match, then it's going to happen. Either fix the pronunciation to a hard G (the current soft G sounds more like Swedish) or change the spelling to a Y.

[@Simon-Andersen]

Not too bothered about pronouncing a random Scottish town perfectly I'm probably only going to pass through once in my life, to be honest.

[@johannesbols57]

@@Simon-Andersen

[@przemys4466]

It's strange to see a train station without overhead lines

[@trainviation]

The UK (less so Scotland), rural-wise, is horrible for not having electrified lines. You'll rarely find any wires north of our two largest cities Edinburgh and Glasgow, with the outlier being the stretch of electrified track past Stirling and up to Dunblane, but cuts off 25 miles (40km) short of Perth.

[@Simon-Andersen]

Rather common in the UK (and also my home country denmark :(( )

[@trainviation]

@ Besides mainlines and some smaller routes, the majority of the UK north of Manchester and in Yorkshire and up is still run by diesel trains. There have been projects to electrify these routes, some underway, some cancelled just like my local route… 😭😭 (the Fife Circle, north of Edinburgh)

[@przemys4466]

Have they actually been closing down routes?

[@Phil-oj5nr]

@@przemys4466No, they reopened Edinburgh to Tweedbank a few years back, and also Stirling to Alloa. Several new stations have been added in the last twenty years, and several closed stations from the 1960’s have been restored.