British Rail Scotrail-Falkirk Grahamston & Glasgow Queen St 1989

[@imcadam121]

A fab video.Captured in the year that I left school & joined the railway.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

A great time back then, with lots of classic BR traction around....

[@pacerchaser9434]

Another great video Soi! The 120 near the start appears to have a piece of plywood instead of one of its windows .... proper craftsmanship 😂 Please keep posting these videos, it's great to relive the days of BR when I was just a young trainspotter 👍

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

The 120s were on their last legs by this time, the fitters probably did all they could to keep them in traffic.....

[@terrysmith5684]

❤the 37s were great and the 26s pure magic

[@craigsibley8161]

Excellent video 👍👍👍

[@jangray395]

I'm no train expert, although I've always loved it as a mode of travel, but I want to thank you for this video as I used to live near there and used the Grahamston station to go to Queen Street often. I just wanted to see it as I remember it. Many many thanks.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Your welcome, i like my vids to bring pleasure to others!

[@davidwolstenholme6413]

Another great video thank you. I did a freedom of Scotland that year and this video has brought back some good memories.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I'm pleased you enjoyed it......

[@russellbenton2987]

Great video. It’s my era . A time of change on the Railways with lots of new liveries. The Sprinters were new to Scotland . Great memories

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Keep an eye out, i have more Scotrail vids so will get more up. Am trying to work my way around the country re uploading as i travelled about quite a bit!

[@kamana6435]

Wow, what a great video such a diverse array of trains. Good job capturing the action. I wish someone had saved the class 120 for preservation, but alas no.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Quirky looking units, i have a soft spot for the original DMUs and have film of them all around the country.

[@timothyparsons8327]

I started collecting DMUs in 1971 and 120s were reallocated to DY (around 1968?) from the WR. They replaced 3 car Cravens which lost their trailers and sent North to Newton Heath. The Swindon 120 s were luxurious and even had a micro-buffet in the trailer cars. You could travel all stations from Lincoln to Crewe!!

[@adriancarter2863]

See the SRPS site at Bo’ness. Have a preserved working Class 120 off the old ex-G&SWR Stranraer-Glasgow Central service. We’re operated as two three-car sets, with the facing ends of each set resembling a BR(S) EMU.

[@chris-io1ki]

Got to love the class 120. I remember Cardiff had some of these.

[@davidgriffiths7215]

Thanks for an excellent trip down memory lane. I particularly enjoyed the motley collection of first generation DMUs. In 1989 I travelled daily on the East Kilbride line and you never knew what was going to turn up. It was usually 101s and 107s but 120s put in a few appearances and were remarkably comfortable. If the train was in poor mechanical order (not exactly infrequent) it could be touch and go whether it made it up the hill from Thornliebank. Happy days!

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I'm pleased you've enjoyed it. I went to East Kilbride once in 1981 on a class 140! It was a very square looking BR+Leyland National looking experimental DMU. I quite liked the original DMUs and filmed them all over the country, always some interesting class combinations!

[@DTPORT5723]

Amazing variety of traction, seemed so much busier!

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I'm pretty sure that's the case re freight in this area, indeed i think the amount of freight is down all over the UK but particually hard in Scotland.

[@tinsley.tmd.41a52]

That's a hell of a video that, great quality and content thoroughly enjoyed watching it thank you.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Thank you. I still have a large amount of BR vids to get uploaded, from all sorts of places, happy viewing!

[@djtrainspotter]

Brilliant upload thanks again! Them Swindon built class 120's , sound just like a 119! Last months of them 120's in service at this time.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

This may be my only video of them, they looked pretty quirky!

[@stephenduncan3605]

Really wish I could have travelled on Scotland railways in this era. Really love the class 120 dmu at 3:01 along with its loud fart sounding revving noise, such a shame non of the power cars from them were preserved!

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Yes, there was some good trains knocking about then, 303 EMUs, old DMUs and loco hauled still around, diesel & electric. Plus sleepers, including the one to Plymouth (which got knocked on the head at privitisation as no company wanted it however useful for us mere passengers!) and Motorail. And there was still a reasonable amount of freight traffic if you went looking for it. Happy days!

[@TrainFan_95]

Wow this is such good quality footage for the time! Thanks for uploading.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I'm pleased you like it. I was lucky enough to have a full sized video camera that took E180 VHS tapes so there was no copying involved, everything was filmed onto a master tape. Cam-corders had to copy from small tapes to larger ones so lost the original quality which sadly shows. After DVD came out all my tapes were transfered to that medium and now all are also on MP4--and there's lots more to come! Happy viewing!

[@djtrainspotter]

Well, keep em coming sir, these are top class :D

[@kevinduval5751]

Great Livery "StrathClyde Transport" 👍🏻 Great bit of nostalgia Cheers..

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

My first trip to Scotland, back in 1978/79 time, on a railtour with my Dad. Saw lots of weird looking units with Mk1 caoch ends but with cabs! Class 126's if i remember correctly, on the Ayr services. All had large GG symbols for the Great Glasgow network. Too early for me doing vids then but have some darkish photos somewhere.

[@kevinduval5751]

Soi Buakhao I know we should embrace progress, evolution & all that, but being in my Late 40s & growing with this traction.. Was so much better than the non- descript stuff in this day & age!

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I chased all this 'old' traction because i grew up with it and it had real character, and it was old. But the age of some of these DMU's is younger than the 'new' stock that replaced them! Sprinters are now 30+ years old, but they are still 'new' to me!

[@danielsellers8707]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus I was born in 1982 and only consider Pacers to be life expired today, not the 150-156s etc.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

@@danielsellers8707 The Sprinters are now as old as these DMUs seen on this upload, they will need replacement in the next 10 years and it may well have to be more diesel units.....

[@keef71]

That orange 107/101 unit seemed to follow you about! I've seen it in a few of your videos (black and white coach numbers on the 101). I think in those days, if a unit was working they kept it as it was - they were a right mixture just to keep them in traffic

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Yes, towards the end of DMU operation anywhere on BR the fixed formations were mixed and matched to keep serviceable cars running. Just check out my West Drayton upload to see what I mean.....

[@dvidclapperton]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus You mean the end of mark 1 dmu operation because the sprinter class 150 and 156 dmu's replaced the class 101, 107 and,120's on Scottish suburban operations anyway. Surprisingly we thought at the time in the early 1990's DMU's replaced locomotive operations on the Scottish express route network and hourly services used 3 carriage DMU's instead of 6 carriage locomotive trains. But the 3 carriage 170's were alright on Edinburgh to Glasgow where services incresed from every 30 minutes to every 15 minutes. No more DMU's opersting in the Scottish central belt now apart from the Fife circle.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

@@dvidclapperton Yes, i meant original DMU operation rather than Sprinter DMU's.....

[@Pmjs]

The Old Strathclyde DMUs were on the Edinburgh to Glasgow Central via Shotts.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

They worked a variety of routes around Glasgow at this time including Paisley Canal, Whiiflet, Edinburgh via Shotts from Glasgow Central but these seen here were working off Glasgow Queen Street.

[@AndreiTupolev]

I didn't know the Class 120s were still in service that late. I thought they were all gone by the mid 80s. Seems odd to see them alongside class 150s.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

BR had lots of odd things running here and there, sometimes only peak hour stock. After the Clacton 309 units were withdrawn on the GE lines some ended up in the Manchester/Crewe area as well as some 305 units replacing life expired 304s.

[@crompton33022]

Happy days in Scotland. Good memories

[@davidwolstenholme6413]

And great to 47 642 Strathisla again, one of my favourite 47s.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

After Scotrail it headed south and worked on Cross Country services as i recall.....

[@davidwolstenholme6413]

It did move south where I encountered it on the Liverpool - Newcastle north transpennine workings, just before that route became infested with 158s.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

@@davidwolstenholme6413 I knew i had seen it again..... check out this upload here kzbin.info/www/bejne/oHXUqHewfNqCjdE

[@davidwolstenholme6413]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus Thank you for your wonderful video. The transpennine trains were a source of much joy to me at that time, and many others. And Strathisla turning out was the best bit of a thoroughly entertaining video. The last day of forty sevens on that train was an unhappy day indeed and Leeds was never the same again.

[@nickrockall2845]

Wat a lovely video

[@Pmjs]

I worked HSTs from Edinburgh Waverley to Glasgow QSt.

[@supertrains156.66]

It’s odd to see a class150 to Glasgow Central insted of a class 156

[@Qwerty1235945]

I hate to think him many hours I spent on Class 120s between Nottingham and Derby to a day out in Crewe. I hated them. How I’d Lloyd to see one now. AIUI none were preserved because of asbestos. What a wonderful video though.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Thank you.....i think these may be my only shots of them. I do recall them from the late 1970s/early 80s when i did trips out with my Dad but no vid camera back then!

[@dvidclapperton]

Yes the old mark 1 dmu trains were truly terrible trsins. The class 101, 120 and others like it must give the pacers a real run for their money in terms of how awful an experience of a train journey you could get.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

@@dvidclapperton I don't know what ones you rode on but i always enjoyed a ride on first gen DMUs. Comfy seats and bogied vehicles plus generally a view of the line ahead.....

[@30453trains]

Smashing video of some old school BR diesel traction. Also nice to see Queen Street with something approximating daylight in there! Interesting how they were quite content to allow some 4 or more coaches hang over the platform with only a slam door to stop the passengers getting off- no selective door opening then! That 47/Mk2 air con rake at Grahamston looks like quite a long train too- I’m guessing it was bound for Inverness going by the direction, do you know if it was the Clansman/Chieftain by any chance?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

A different world back then where we took resposibility for ourselves, if there's no platform there don't get out!!! The 47 on the air con stock was filmed around mid afternoon so i'm guessing it was the morning Euston-Inverness, i'm not sur which name that one used. The Up working was 47 635 which i bashed from Perth to FG and is seen arriving in the Scotrail Perth video i've posted.

[@30453trains]

Soi Buakhao cheers for the extra info. FYI the old Euston-Inverness service via the WCML was ‘The Clansman’, at some point, possibly post-BR but m not sure of the date, the London-Inverness services were routed via the (more sensible in my view) ECML and to/from Kings Cross and renamed ‘The Highland Chieftain’.

[@Aidankiwi]

Almost certainly the Highland Chieftain. The Clansman took a rather unusual routing, departing out of Euston up the WCML, it diverted at rugby along the West Midlands loop (Coventry-Birmingham New St-Wolverhampton) before rejoining the WCML at Stafford. It would the take the conventional route north as far as Motherwell before branching off avoiding Glasgow and changing from electric to diesel traction at Mossend yard. The Clansman would then head up towards Falkirk through Coatbridge, Garnqueen North junction and Greenhill junction but would not pass through Grahamston and not join the line from Edinburgh until Carmuirs North Junction between Falkirk and Larbert. The routing would then be Stirling-Perth-Pitlochry-Aviemore-Inverness.

[@30453trains]

Aidankiwi thanks for the info

[@dvidclapperton]

I think it was the Clansman rather than the Highland Chieftain because of the class 47. The Clansman did go via Grahamston eventually. Loved the Euston train from Grahamston. From what I recall when the Clansman was operating via Grahamston it took 8 hours to get to Euston from Grahamston.

[@fatwalletboy2]

Any gen on what the 47 hauled load 11 service would have been ??? An Aberdeen to the south west service? Rerouted Clansman ?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I seem to recall it was a Euston-Inverness service. Back then Euston also ran direct while now it's only Kings Croass (apart from Sleepers).....

[@briankemp2290]

Question the guys in the know, that single wagon that is in the shot on the other side of the bridge heading westbound. That must have been there for a good 20 years. This must have been taken when the Springfield yard and Bisons concrete were demolished?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I don't know what happened to it but i'm guessing it was knocked out of a train for a fault and dumped there and forgotten about?...

[@pacerchaser9434]

There is a chance it was acting as a buffer stop... Manchester Piccadilly platform 3 had a defunct wagon at its end for many years because the buffer stop was defective. I don't know for certain, but it's a possibility 🤷

[@ryanmcquade6157]

Didn't know queen street done a service to kings cross back then

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Yes, and Cross Country. The HST sets were used as local communter trains before heading off to their main duties, the reverse happened at night.

[@ryanmcquade6157]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus my aunt and uncle live near the hawthorn street bridge and i remember seeing it as a child many moons ago

[@DKS225]

If the government approves funding for the second Crossrail Scheme Or The Wallis Line if it gets built will Rail-Connect Glasgow Central to Glasgow Queen Street for the first time instead of either walking or getting a bus or cab to get between the two. Fingers Crossed that The Wallis Line will be built.But another classic fantastic clip especially The Class 101

[@adriancarter2863]

Still waiting ☹️. SNP seam to have turned their face against rail development in the west of Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 after the Glasgow Airport Rail Link debacle. After 10 years of SNP governance, still waiting for a viable Air-Link to Glasgow (and further afield via the Glasgow Cross-Rail Scheme); St.Andrews to be reconnected to the National Network (StarLink); the Waverley Route to be relaid to Hawick (and possibly onto Carlisle); and the ex-GNoS line to Peterhead from Aberdeen. SNP should commit to its Green Agenda by ensuring ALL Scottish towns over 10,000 population will rail-served by 2030 🚃🚃🚃.

[@jrainey94]

What route did the 43s operate on that year?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

They ran once a day to Inverness and around 3 times too Aberdeen, plus their usual East Coast, Great Western, Midland and Cross Country routes. Some HST's were extended to/from Edinburgh to Queen Street at the start and end of their main diagrams to help with peak time loadings.....

[@christopherhood9241]

great to 47s in glasgow qs

[@djtrainspotter]

Soi, apologies, but do you have a precise date for this vid as i am researching when exactly 37232 had its repaint from BR blue to Petroleum sector livery, as its missing from plt.5 publications at the time. According to that, 37232 stayed in blue until its overhaul at Glasgow works Nov 1990, when repainted into CE 'dutch'. but there are pics of that loco in petroleum livery as early as september '89! Many thanks :)

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Hi there, yes the exact date is 14 June 1989, hope this helps.

[@djtrainspotter]

Yes that does help, thank-you sir :)

[@MarioStahl1983]

Oh boy! The dark days before electrification. What a nightmare! 😂 Thank God those times are long gone.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

From an entusiast point of view this was some hellfire heritage stock running! And even today stock of a similar age is still running, the BR built Sprinters all date from the mid 1980s and the 158's the late 80s, so all are now older than the loco hauled stock seen here!

[@MarioStahl1983]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus True! But if we are honest, we must admit that these old DMUs were pretty low quality even back then when they were new. They were a low budget solution for regional services. Not more. They were a far cry from other achievements from the era of British Rail such as class 87 or class 55. With only very few exceptions it wasn't an era of technological progress at all. Instead British railways were "dieselized to death". A disaster from which Britain nowadays (many years later) slowly but gradually recovers.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

@@MarioStahl1983 The diesels were meant to be a stopgap until we strung the wires up but the problems of the late 60s and into the 1970s meant that didn't really happen in a big way. So more diesels were required. And we're still at it! The IEP bi-modes (nothing new there either, class 73s date from the 1960s abd they are bi-modes!) still mean we are building diesel's because the Dft won't put up the wires, hoping for a technology to appear that renders all before it useless (there is nothing awaiting to happen including driverless cars anytime soon!) so we have another fleet of diesel trains for the next 30-40 years!

[@MarioStahl1983]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus I know. It's outarageous. I'll never get over the "Grayling axe" of 2017 when several electrification schemes were either downscaled or cancelled. I wonder what they think how supposedly stupid we are! No, hydrogen is NOT a good solution because you have to produce electricity to produce hydrogen fuel and then distribute it all over the country and refuel the damn' trains every f'ing day!! There is no alternative to electrification. But I think it's more a psychological thing. Conservatives and New Labour are still angry that privatization did NOT save money as they had hoped. So, they wanna "at least save some money" on the investements.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

@@MarioStahl1983 Back to the troubles BR lived under then! History does indeed repaet itself.......will they NEVER learn?.....

[@dvidclapperton]

That low bridge west of Grahamston is no longer.

[@stephenduncan3605]

Well obviously they would have had to replace it to accommodate the overhead wires on this route!

[@AndreiTupolev]

Is that a window boarded up in the rear car at 3:05? :P

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I've never really noticed before but yes it does indeed look to be boarded up. I'm guessing the depot didn't have the correct piece of glass and rather than cancel a train they made this temp fix. They were near withdrawl at this time so i imagine the expense of getting the right glass wasn't woth it!

[@kevinduval5751]

Soi Buakhao Today that unit would've been taken "Out of Service" @ next destination! Changing times eh..

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Before Health & Safety went mad along with the compo culture, the railway tried to keep things running as much as possible. Now everyone wants to cover their arse.....and there's always a taxi for you to finish your TRAIN journey in!!!! Joy-not!

[@kevinduval5751]

Soi Buakhao Yeah ☝️ Sounds like a response from someone in the industry 😉

[@adriancarter2863]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus Experienced this some years ago with ScotRail. Following a city-break to Inverness on a late Sunday afternoon southbound 158+158 Inverness-Glasgow Queen St. service, change at Perth for a 170/4 service to Edinburgh Waverley (and our stop at Inverkeithing). After leaving Dunkeld, the Guard came through asking ALL passengers wishing to connect with the Edinburgh service to make themselves known. He then came back to me and my wife and informed ourselves that only we and a French 🇫🇷 couple wished to change. Turned out, ScotRail wanted to cancel the service to save money (not that they’ll admit that), and would we all mind pilling into a taxi 🚕 at their cost? Ended up rattling down the M90 at 70mph+ and dropped at the door in Dunfermline 🙂. French couple were taken onto Edinburgh...

[@dvidclapperton]

Those class 150's inside looked like the layout of an Edinburgh tram. As the class 318's are the electric equivalent you can say they do look like the layout of an Edinburgh tram inside.

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

I've yet to ride an Edinburgh tram so i can't say one way or the other!

[@s125ish]

David Clapperton in what way ?

[@dvidclapperton]

Doors in the centre of carriages and only 1 or 2 windows between doors is layout that is ideal a suburban tram, not on a main line train. The 156 layout is far better than the 150 and 318.

[@dvidclapperton]

No more diesel steam coming out of the roof of the trsins per the class 101 and 120's.

[@paulanderson79]

Where's Galsgow?

[@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus]

Well spotted! I have corrected it now, thank you.

[@paulanderson79]

@@SoiBuakhaoRoutemasterbus Been there many times myself. As in typo's not Galsgow. Have a great evening my friend, first Saturday in December we're all entitled to wind down a bit, Cheers and best wishes, P.