Stockport to Birmingham New Street Driver's Eye View

Welcome aboard 43013 on the New Measurement Train's 1Q23 Stockport to Northampton service on 20/06/2024. We travel down to Cheadle Hulme, before heading left towards Macclesfield, Stoke, Stafford and then to Wolverhampton and Birmingham via the Stour Lines.

[@railfreightdrivergallagherGBRf]

Probably my most driven route! I know every inch of it. Long time since I drove an HST (BR/VT)along there though. Great video to give the youngsters of today an insight into what could become their career. JG.

[@30041946]

As always first class. Thank you.

[@JohnDrewVoice]

For me, this is enchanting. As a fifteen-year-old young man living in Wilmslow, Cheshire, my girlfriend, who lived in Handforth, Cheshire, and I repeatedly took trains to be together and to go on dates, often to the Manor Lounge in Stockport. She attended school in Macclesfield. So, this driver's eye view is fascinating to me.

[@cowaylon1681]

Was your girlfriend Jackie Weaver from the Handforth Parish Council?

[@edwardbarnes2702]

Hi Ben, just discovered your channel superb filming! I watch a lot of this type of Cab ride but don’t know why but on his ride you Do really get the sense of speed and the sound of that engine! Whow. Brilliant Eddie🤓

[@brianlawrence7119]

absolutely brilliant as usual thanks for all you time and effort

[@shamus2503]

Thank you again Ben for a insightful video :) Love the radio traffic!

[@philipalldred333]

Thanks for sharing very interesting to watch, more please

[@BensPlanesTrainsProductions]

Great watching all these routes you cover, hopefully you do the Reading to Penzance section soon. Great to see a video of the HST from driver eye view on that route.

[@davidwinkle4168]

You are chasing yellow aspects for quite a way here Ben. There are definetly parts of the WCML that need slow lines to clear bottlenecks and congestion. As ever, another good and enjoyable video.. Thanks.

[@mrdavidwalker]

Very enjoyable video Ben, thank you 👍

[@jessicamorgan3073]

Thanks Ben and team

[@paulmark63]

Hi Ben it’s Paul in Kent I watched the whole video it was brill thank you so much really appreciate the great video Paul in Kent

[@John2Ward]

Same from me, John in Kent. ^_^

[@abeonthehill166]

Thanks for sharing …….

[@terratec1001]

A chamois leather, some soapy suds, and a bit of elbow grease, and that driver's windscreen could have come up sparkling.

[@heckelphon]

Another belter of a video! Many thanks.

[@stev6free146]

Good video mtu sounds smooth and clean.

[@phwbooth]

Great stuff once again, Mr E. Thanks.

[@garryrimmer4897]

Thanks Ben for another great video. Keep up the good work.

[@andrewholloway231]

I enjoyed this... thank you very much. 😊

[@ohheyitskevinc]

26:40 I believe the place on the left there before Longport is where 56081 went back at the end of April to be converted to a class 69. A little further down the line - Etruria was a great little station me and my friends would travel to on the old slam door Piccadilly to Stoke regional railways class 304s (305s?) Those were great days (whether they were full of asbestos or not :)) Great video as always!

[@gordonchell8787]

You're spot on r.e. the place by Longport converting the 56 to a 69

[@ianclarkson2251]

Again spanking vid Ben, you can feel the concentration levels through the TV INTENSE pleasure to watch keep em coming Cheers IAN

[@ramonwilliams5721]

Great video Ben, you lads and lassies have to be on the ball nowadays, not like the gentle days when I was on steam.Kind Regards 🚂🚂🚂

[@JelMain]

Went past in front of us northbound at Enfield Chase c1400 today. A steady 30.

[@daniel50035]

Enjoyed that journey Ben. Great work👌

[@Mounhas]

Previously I watched a cab video from 1987 of a class 33 from Waterloo to Salisbury. It was a rough & noisy ride. This HST is like a lullaby in comparison. Is it also because of track improvements?

[@screwdriver5181]

What a pity the Adswood to Cheadle Hulme section isn’t 4 track. A flying junction where the Hazel Grove line joins the down would also improve matters considerably. Great video, my territory as well.

[@OfficialRyanx]

I mean, the entry to New Street from Wolverhampton is Olympic sprinter fast compared to Five Ways 😅😂

[@davidoswald9253]

Great idea to paint platform numbers on walls at New Street

[@richardmabey7320]

As a boy I lived around Yarnfield and was interested to see the North Staffs line from Stone to Norton Bridge. About where Yarnfield junction is now there used to be a junction where a twin track 2 mile branch lead to Coldmeece station all built at the beginning of WW2. It was a four platform terminus complete with run around loops. It served the Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF) Swynnerton for passenger traffic only, during WW2. Workers commuted from around the Potteries in 3 shifts over 24 hours to help fulfill the 15,000 workforce at its peak. It also welcomed personnel from the US Army Airforce who were accommodated at Hostels in the area prior to their postings to various airfields. I used to go there train spotting after school in the early 50's when the traffic was considerably reduced with just three trains departing hauled by a couple of tank engines and one tender engine. The line was closed in the late fifties and I believe no trace of it remains. Richard Melbourne Australia

[@m-arky66]

Taken to watching cab rides at X2 speeds, just as good IMO!

[@DrGreenGiant]

What do the different audio tones mean? I noticed a high pitch beep, a high triple beep, a low short and low long tone, and a medium ping that fades like an airline cabin call. Forgive me if I've got a few of those muddled up, first time watcher of inside a train cab! Really enjoyed it

[@TheGreatWesternGuy]

Brilliant video! Ive always wondered what it eould be like to be in the cab of an HST at speed! By the way, was it you I saw through Coventry on the Northampton working and through Canley on the return?

[@jonathonblacker299]

I'm taking a while guess he as see that you go over the speed limit on the sections of rail network and see its Electrified, that the measurements are too see if the speed limited can be increased on the more modern high speed trains?

[@wistowings]

Great video

[@deauvilledad07]

Nice capture, sorry you had so long to get it. 🤓

[@alwayslight2658]

Cleaning the windshield? Otherwise perfect. Many thanks.

[@King-Kaye-Games]

love the video. as a railfan I enjoy these vidz. Are there always so many yellows on this route normally? its like that AWS alarm is on every light.

[@fionakierton1231]

Really enjoyed it beeps and all

[@markgr1nyer]

Does the HST and 37 hauled test trains have different equipment or do the testing speeds depend on the tests been done?

[@yvindascanius6061]

Alright, Ben. First man on board here. Let's go!

[@Baby2011JJ]

The bird strike got me 😂😂😂😂😂 R.I.P lol

[@thompjackson]

HST all the way, don't you love it?

[@michaellittlejohns7968]

U was in the flying banana train

[@dezwatson6993]

Like the bird-strike!

[@bradw8102]

One bird was harmed in the making of this video.

[@beverleydobson3442]

please excuse my ignorance, what does eps indicate when refering to linespeed?

[@ChangesOneTim]

Enhanced Permissible Speed, which applies only to classes 221 Voyager and 390 Pendolinos with tilt activated. The permissible speed (the top sign on each post) is the max anything else can do.

[@PaulMeddle]

maybe express passenger service????

[@peterkerr4214]

Do we know what he’s driving?

[@ChangesOneTim]

@@peterkerr4214 Network Rail's new measurement train, basically a short-formed HST set.

[@WCMLtrainspotter]

Did you sign 5Z43 York Holgate - York Holgate?

[@beneliastrains]

@@WCMLtrainspotter nope

[@paulcaswell2813]

1:19:11 You got the caption wrong. It's Hell Incarnate.

[@fionakierton1231]

Do you do any trips Leicester ↔️ Hinckley↔️ Nuneaton at all?

[@bradw8102]

Are those signals early on in the video searchlight ones? I haven't seen that design otherwise, particularly with the green light on a 4-aspect on top for a non-dwarf signal.

[@beneliastrains]

Yes they're the AnsaldoBreda searchlight types. They're awful and need to be replaced, extremely difficult to see.

[@bradw8102]

@@beneliastrains thank you for confirming. Judging by the presence of LED signals that look very new further up the line I'm guessing replacement is on the cards.

[@janettetaylor8760]

Do u have video of Manchester Piccadilly to Edinburgh

[@mrbig9595]

New measurement train been out 20 years

[@charlie.dowd-lebow]

Any particular reason for the Thameslink video to be moved to Facebook?

[@charlie.dowd-lebow]

The reason why I'm asking is that I can't get the resolution to go above 720 when I try to cast from there.

[@EdgyNumber1]

I seem to see this trainset hanging around New Street quite regularly. Is it based nearby?

[@John2E0GTU]

why isn't a bell ringing in the cab every now and again?

[@BibTheBoulderTheOriginalOne]

Loved this and felt it was way superior to those put out by Don someone or other.

[@jonathanwilson773]

What were those coaches in the sidings on the left just before Stoke? They looked quite modern.

[@chunkymonkeyg]

They are ex class 460, removed from 458/5 on conversion to 458/4 !

[@jonathanwilson773]

​@@chunkymonkeyg thank you

[@StevenBoyd-yy6rw]

Ben was you the driver on this train

[@М62]

1:11:04 Oops...

[@philipsampson8707]

Ben. What is being measured?

[@gumpoandwordy]

Poor pigeon 😢

[@sigil5772]

Hope this isn't a dumb question, but if, as I presume, you know your route precisely and accurately, and you know what speed limits are on certain sections, is signalling ever used as a (semi?) permanent reminder that you will have to slow down shortly even though you already know you will? Or does signalling only ever reflect conditions at any particular moment?

[@beneliastrains]

@@sigil5772 the signalling is only used to slow you down if you are diverging at a junction with a speed more than 10mph lower than the speed on the main route at the turnout. Otherwise it's not used to slow trains unless there's an occupied section ahead or another issue which means trains need to be stopped.

[@sigil5772]

@@beneliastrains Really appreciate this Ben thank you!

[@davidbailey533]

What the eps in corner stand for

[@DownTheLineASMR]

Enhanced permissible speed, allows class 221’s and 390’s to run up to 125mph due to them being able to tilt whereas non tilting trains are limited to 110 along the West Coast Mainline.

[@davidbailey533]

@@DownTheLineASMR cheers for that

[@FlyingPhysicist]

How do I get your job please

[@deltic1964]

Another Belter Ben

[@fuzzyblueProductions4553]

Hi ben I was wondering if I could have a cab ride with you friday please!!! I will litterally do anything just to have a cab tour

[@chriswaring5565]

1:11:05 R.I.P PERCY WOOD PIGEON LEFT A SUICIDE NOTE IN THE NEST FOR MRS WOOD PIGEON

[@BIGV710]

window needs cleaning on the inside with finger prints all over ruins the video ben

[@beneliastrains]

@@BIGV710 the inside of the window is clean. The dirt is fly splats. Unavoidable.

[@peterryan917]

Would it have been possible to have the window cleaned before filming?

[@robbieknox1012]

Cheeky little F***s

[@MrSulzerboy]

Looks like you picked up a passenger just after Dudley Port, albeit probably a dead one. About an hour and eleven minutes into the video if you want to see it.