Only having one toilet per unit is going to cause serious problems, especially on the long distance routes and seems a backward step when compared with the 158s and 175s.
The only positive is for Manchester-South Wales services, they'll be 5 car, either mk4 or 2+3 197s. But for those services with only a single unit then the risk of a toilet being out of service will be a concern.
I really like the class 195 (and by extension the 331 but I prefer the 195 cus I like the engine sound) and these just look like better 195s was actually planning on going to wales at some point this year so hopefully I will get one of these :)
I don’t like the lack of table seats and luggage rack stacks compared to a 158! I live in Aberystwyth so all my journeys are 3 hours and those two things are very useful, I find airline seats horrible
Your TfW 158s are the lovely. Are TfW retaining some or all to concentrate them somewhere and new units elsewhere? Biggest problem with them is capacity as ever. One set Birmingham International to North Wales just isn’t enough. Plus so smart in new livery.
@@Rail_Focus thanks for your thoughts! I’m pained to see so many compromises on what appear good units in the 197s. Ridden 195s happily a few times but never sought a bathroom, yet. Hope Northern or GWR maybe could make use of them. Perhaps even ScotRail could boost Fife Circle capacity until new bi-modal et al in the longer view. Guess it depends on engineering compatibility with so many changes made to different sprinters over the years.
Someone did tell me they're the same seats as the Class 800, but they do seem to have more padding than the LNER sets, which is the only 800 I've sat on.
What is the difference between the class 197 and the northern 195 the inside looks similar and the engine sounds literally the same were they made by the same people
I'm not sure tbh, not that I've noticed, but surely there would be a least a small sign. If not see if you can see the catering area (silver cabinets) cycle storage is by those
Most likely cost, it is a relatively large order. But there's also the issue of interoperability and flexibility. The need 2 car units for the Conwy Valley, but also, 3, 4 and 5 car units depending on the route and time of day, the Flirts don't seem to be suited to working in multiple with space lost due to the centre power car. The 197s are far from perfect, but will be an improvement over 15Xs.
@@Rail_Focus Fair point on the flexibility. We have 3 car flirts in East Anglia running 2 car platforms (Sudbury branch for instance) but they don't see the seasonal traffic variation and you're right a 6 car Flirt is pretty long.
It's a very subjective thing. For instance I thought the seats in Amtrak's coaches are rather luxurious, with the thick padding and generous leg room the times I rode them. I have heard other people say they are worn out, broken down, and desperately need replacement. There's a lot of room for opinion.
Looks like a class 150 unit currently in service and not a match for a 170 that are used on my local line to ebbw vale don't feel confident traveling on the local services in the future with these things on long distance service and a tram in the valleys with no toilet going back to the days of the 116 units t f w you can do better than this
For wheelchair users, I am afraid they are a major step backwards. No table in the wheelchair space, so not safe to have hot drinks. They are far inferior to those they replace, and to think they may be around for more than 20 years.
It is frustrating considering the Valleys are getting step free access, which shows it is possible. But even so they could perhaps of made the onboard facilities better.
Not sure about the "made in Wales" more like "stuck together with superglue in Wales". Cheap As F*ck (I'm sure that's what CAF stands for?!) are having serious issues getting these and the class 196 units into service - the quality of build and software is atrocious! Looking forward to seeing these on the Cambrian Line in Summer with less seats and 1 less toilet than the current 2 car 158s..... Great video BTW!
I hate it, it's horrible hardly any table seats, hardly any toilet only those stupid electric door ones that I hate, only 2 carriages, no damn buffet car what's the bloody point complete waste of money TransportForWales really is the worst train service in the world I've been on better indian trains. Totally disappointed.
