In case you couldn't get enough of the Voyagers...

It's Sunday, 17 November 2024 — the end of the 46th week of the year — I'm Seb, and this is This Week on the Railway. Let's take a look at what happened this week, starting with some big news on rolling stock.

Class 807 in service: It's official. While Avanti West Coast's new rolling stock had a 'soft launch' at the end of October, the train operating company gave its new EMUs the fanfare they deserve.

807001 departed Liverpool Lime Street station for London Euston at 09:01 am on Monday. The new trains will be partnering the Class 805s, both under the 'Evero' brand name, which were introduced with the June timetable earlier this year.

The Class 807s, as already mentioned, are electric. The 805s, meanwhile, are bi-modal. The Class 807s are formed of seven cars, whereas the 805s are formed of five. Both will be maintained in partnership with Alstom at Oxley depot in Wolverhampton.

Avanti West Coast are due to receive ten Class 807s. They have been brought in as the replacements for the Class 221 'Super Voyagers'. Though, unlike its predecessors, these new trains cannot tilt.

They will take up operations on routes to and from London, Liverpool, the West Midlands, and Blackpool.

Speaking of routes: With the December 2024 timetable changes, CrossCounty will introduce a new, direct route between Edinburgh and Cardiff. The full journey takes seven hours, in case you couldn't get enough of the Voyagers.

It will be a weekday-only service with one train per direction a day making the 455-mile journey, connecting 22 stations across Scotland, England, and Wales.

The service from Edinburgh Waverley will depart at 1:07 pm and arrive at Cardiff Central at 8:07 pm. In the other direction, the train departs Cardiff at 9:45 am, arriving in Edinburgh at 5:08 pm, right in time for dinner. (Well, that depends when you have your dinner.)

Alas, as advance single fares are unregulated, CrossCountry is free to put a ridiculous price on this journey. And put a ridiculous price on this journey they have. Without a Railcard and at the time of writing, the full trip would set you back over £200.

Yikes — I like trains, but not that much. It's also a Voyager.

Eurostar 30th anniversary: Eurostar's inaugural train service across (rather, underneath) the Channel departed on 14 November 1994, thirty years ago.

In 1994/95, the train operating company transported three million passengers to and from the continent. The figure for 2023 multiplied six fold from where it started, now sitting above 18 million.

I would say 'time flies', but I'm not as old as the Eurostar. In the grand scheme of things, it wasn't that long ago, so there's no need to feel old if you were around when the service started.

Happy 30th anniversary, Eurostar!

ETCS active: Network Rail and Govia announced on Wednesday that every single train on Great Northern's Moorgate to Finsbury Park route is now controlled by ETCS — the European Train Control System. It's a digital signalling system, in which track information is relayed directly to the drivers in their cabs.

The old, trackside signals will be switched off in due course, now that the migration to the new system is complete. The southern portion of the East Coast Mainline is undergoing the same treatment, too.

Some more TfL systems active: Last week, we reported that some of TfL's digital application systems were coming back online, following a cyber attack. More progress has been made this week, with travellers now being able to apply for 60+, 18+ Student, Apprentice, and 18–25 Care Leaver Oyster photocards.

Perth–Inverness rail replacement: Buses are replacing trains between Perth and Inverness on weekends, starting yesterday (16 November) until 8 December. Network Rail engineers will be renewing and refurbishing switches and crossings along the line.

Ipswich–Saxmundham rail replacement: More where that came from. Buses will also replace trains between Ipswich and Saxmundham stations in Suffolk on weekends between 30 November and 15 December. Over 3,000 new, concrete sleepers, as well as over 7,000 tonnes of ballast, are set to be installed.

Thank you for tuning in, and I'll see you next week.