WGN-CAR Avanti West Coast – Standard

Operator: Avanti West Coast

Headcode: 9S85

Route:    WGN-CAR

Class:    Standard Class

Seat:     ??

Date:     Monday 24^th June 2024

The end of day one of my mini tour of the north-west saw me heading north, almost to the Scottish border, to stay the night in Carlisle. From Merseyside, and more specifically Headbolt Lane, the easiest way to do this was to head east on a Northern service to Wigan Wallgate and then cross the road (literally) to Wigan Northwestern to jump on a train north. With a 20 minute connection at Wigan, I was initially a bit nervous, but the one minute walk from station to station meant this wasn’t a problem and I was soon waiting on one of Wigan Northwestern’s platforms waiting for my Avanti West Coast (AWC) service.

I was travelling on 9S85, a London to Glasgow service that had ran via the West Midlands as opposed to the direct Trent Valley route, although seemingly this was of benefit to me as the train that should have been 10 minutes ahead of it had been delayed and was shown on the boards as due at the same time. Thankfully my train wasn’t delayed by the other and right on time 390043 pulled into the platform to allow me to start the final leg of the first day of this trip. My journey to Carlisle was planned to last around 90 minutes with three intermediate stops at Preston, Lancaster and Penrith.

The unit working the service, 390043, is a refurbished nine-car Pendolino, and whilst generally the refurbishment makes these units more comfortable, this one was having a nightmare with technology. Neither the standard power socket or USB were providing power, and the seat reservations had also seemed to have failed. Finally, whilst I could connect to the Wi-Fi, it didn’t seem to actually be providing internet and certainly wouldn’t even allow me to attempt ordering from the onboard shop via the e-portal. Overall not great from a technology standpoint then.

The run through southern Lancashire from Wigan to Preston was less than 15 minutes and passed uneventfully, with not much to mention other than the impressive view of the River Ribble as we crossed it on the approach to Preston station. Unfortunately, the stop at Preston itself was longer than planned as disruption during the day meant we were delayed by 15 minutes awaiting the onward driver. Eventually we were on the move and again the less than 20-minute run to Lancaster was nondescript as was the stop in Lancaster itself. Lancaster did mark the furthest north I’d regularly been on the West Coast Mainline (WCML) other than on the sleeper, with only one journey north of there during daylight hours (read about that here) and so I was looking forward to enjoying the view.

As the hills of the Lake District started to make themselves known, the first point of note was between Carnforth and Holme as we passed a very distinctive large hill, which after some research I found to be Hutton Roof Crags. Next up, just north of Grayrigg, was Low Gill viaduct, a former railway viaduct that carried the Ingleton Branch Line from the WCML across the valley of a beck near the hamlet of Beck Foot. Despite having been disused since 1954, the viaduct remains a prominent landmark and holds Grade II listed status with Historic England. The final noteworthy point from the run between Lancaster and Penrith was crossing Shap Summit, the highest point of the WCML in England, although in reality this wasn’t even noticed by the Pendolino powering its way north.

I had been planning on visiting the onboard shop for some food, however with the crew change at Preston it had been closed from before I boarded at Wigan Northwestern and only re-opened after we had departed Lancaster. When it did re-open, the announcement by the onboard crew did not inspire confidence in the options available, with it being implied that there was a very limited selection left and so I didn’t bother making my way down the train to coach C. Thankfully the stop at Penrith North Lakes meant we were only about 15 minutes from Carlisle where I’d be able to find somewhere for a proper dinner, however I was glad I wasn’t travelling all the way to Glasgow as the post 2100 arrival there would make getting food a bit harder.

The stop at Penrith was quick, although marker by the ruins of Penrith Castle next to the station. Dating from the early 15^th century, we’re probably quite lucky that the ruins of the castle remain as intact as they are, having passed into the ownership of the railway in the 1800s and so quite easily could have ended up like Berwick castle. Today the castle is owned by English Heritage and is Grade I listed, so thankfully is protected for future generations. After Penrith, we were soon approaching Carlisle and passed the mostly disused Upperby TMD which having closed in 1994, was partially re-opened by Locomotive Services Ltd in 2023 and now has a rake of various carriages stored. Unfortunately, the formerly impressive carriage shed was mostly demolished in 2016 and all that remains is the façade of the shed with some overhead lines connected to it.

As we pulled into Carlisle’s platform 3 at 2018, a total of 18 minutes late, I was able to reflect on what was generally a pleasant journey with AWC. The delay was unfortunate, however it didn’t snowball like this things often do, and whilst the limited food options was disappointing, I was glad the staff were honest and saved me a wasted trip. The refurbished Pendolinos are definitely more comfortable than their East Coast competitors, however the number of technological faults on this train definitely let the side down.

Lounge              0*

Seat/Facilities     2*

Food                2*

Service             5*

Punctuality         3*

Overall Rating      12/25 (read about my rating system here!)