East Coast train: no cycle space available

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Mad Doug Biker

Just a damaged guy.
Location
Craggy Island
Why the companies never advertise the DVTs, I don't know. They used to have them on the Intercity and Virgin West Coast services and I only ever saw staff encouraging people to use them once at Euston.
 

TheDoctor

Europe Endless
Moderator
Location
The TerrorVortex
The DVT is where the bike spaces are, 6 in total IIRC.
If the OP was / is unable to book them, that's almost certainly because they're already full. The East Coast site is the easiest to book bike spaces on - I use it to book tickets on FGW to South Wales.
 

Mad Doug Biker

Just a damaged guy.
Location
Craggy Island
The equivalent on the London Liverpool Street - Harwich and Norwich services is the DMBSO (unless they have now started to use DVTs cascaded from Virgin West Coast).

These are found at the Country End ...sorry, 'Country End' refers to the end leading away from London.

These vehicles exist if you know what you are looking at!
 

Mad Doug Biker

Just a damaged guy.
Location
Craggy Island
TheDoctor said:
The DVT is where the bike spaces are, 6 in total IIRC.
If the OP was / is unable to book them, that's almost certainly because they're already full. The East Coast site is the easiest to book bike spaces on - I use it to book tickets on FGW to South Wales.

Fairdos, they DO advertise the things after all!!
Well blow me! I've never seen a full DVT in my life!! :blush:

I wonder if it's the same as the seated section of the Sleeper, where they always say it's booked up, but in reality, it isn't anywhere near (no seriously, that happens a lot!), hmmm.*

The DVT is capable of carrying more than 6 too, but of course, it's all down to how they can be secured, etc I suppose.

6 is well measly when you think about the size of the space.

What kind of space is there on the FGW services, bearing in mind those are HSTs?

* - I have traveled on the sleeper at the last minute quite a lot, and often I'm told it's booked up. When I arrive at the station, the fecking thing is usually empty!! Seriously, I'm not making that up!
 

TheDoctor

Europe Endless
Moderator
Location
The TerrorVortex
FGW - I think it's 4, but I wouldn't swear to it.
EDIT, after a quick Google, it's 6.
The same as in a DVT, despite the fact there's a ruddy great Diesel engine in there too!!!
I've actually taken the Brommie the last few times, as once I get past Swansea I'm on Arriva DMUs. They have two bike spaces, which are always full of luggage. Last time I stood the Brommie on the floor and sat on that!!!
 

Mad Doug Biker

Just a damaged guy.
Location
Craggy Island
TheDoctor said:
FGW - I think it's 4, but I wouldn't swear to it.
EDIT, after a quick Google, it's 6.
The same as in a DVT, despite the fact there's a ruddy great Diesel engine in there too!!!

They have the bikes in the Power Car?? Good God!!, that can't do them much good!!
I always though that the bit at the back of a '43 was originally meant to be a guard's and Luggage van but it was far too noisy, not to mention shakey from 30+ tonnes of Paxman Valenta or Mirlees power Unit churning away to itself!! (They have MTUs these days, I know).

Would have thought bikes and so on would be in the MK3 behind.

You can tell I have never traveled with a bike, can't you??

I've actually taken the Brommie the last few times, as once I get past Swansea I'm on Arriva DMUs. They have two bike spaces, which are always full of luggage. Last time I stood the Brommie on the floor and sat on that!!!
Brommie??

Bromsgove?? :sad:
 

TheDoctor

Europe Endless
Moderator
Location
The TerrorVortex
Brompton M6R - 6 gears and a rack. Not my fastest bike, but it does the job.

It's a partitioned off bit - it might actually be in the end of the first carriage, not sure now.
 

Auntie Helen

Ich bin Powerfrau!
We once got 23 bikes (including a recumbent trike) on the Norwich train to Liverpool Street after one of my rides. This is the service with a Guard's Van and there's masses of room in there, as long as you know who needs to get their bike off first. It would still only be possible to book six bicycle spaces, however.
 

Mad Doug Biker

Just a damaged guy.
Location
Craggy Island
There is a bit at the front of the MK3, I agree, but since in a previous life my only aim in life when on an HST was to get to the front droplight, I never looked too closely either! :sad::laugh:
 

Mad Doug Biker

Just a damaged guy.
Location
Craggy Island
Auntie Helen said:
We once got 23 bikes (including a recumbent trike) on the Norwich train to Liverpool Street after one of my rides. This is the service with a Guard's Van and there's masses of room in there, as long as you know who needs to get their bike off first. It would still only be possible to book six bicycle spaces, however.

Yes that'll be the aforementioned DBSO I talked of earlier.

DBSO - I said DMBSO earlier but I was wrong as here is no motor in it. It's only a Driving Brake Second Open.

So there you go!

23 is more the amount I'd allow to have in these vehicles if I ran the trains.

Of course, you could have been creating a potential exit hazard for the driver if the train was about to crash and he tried to leg it out of the way in time so that he didn't get crushed along with the cab, or, there was a fire! :sad:
 

Mad Doug Biker

Just a damaged guy.
Location
Craggy Island
Ah but I feel the same when you lot talk about bits of bike!


DVT - not Deep Vein Trombosis (we were familiar with the term DVT LONG before the medical thing became well known), but Driving Van Trailer.

The clue is in the name really, it's a Trailer that is Driven (propelled from behind) and is a luggage Van. DVT.

DBSO - the same really except it's a Standard Open (I said Second before) :sad:

HST - High Speed Train, or Intercity 125 as most people still know them as.

Just thank your lucky stars we aren't talking about Southern Region Units and all the different 3 letter names they were given!!
THAT'D be SAD!!
 
OP
OP
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Wendel

New Member
Location
Germany
Thank you folks for the discussion.

I also thought of taking a car but the one way rental is quite expensive.
Right, I'm heading for the Arran ferry and I checked the link via Carlisle. There is only few direct connections from Newcastle to e.g. Kilmarnock and there seems to be no discount on them. So, the fastest and cheapest (and most frequent) way is via Glasgow.

I see I shall not rely on being lucky :rofl: so I bought another ticket with cycle reservations for a later train, to be on the safe side. If we won't make it for the first booked connection, we'll try the next. With the latter connection we will still catch the same ferry *, so this will be fine.
* What about reliability of train times...? The latter connection has a direct link to the ferry.

See you in UK... :biggrin:
Regards from Germany
Wendel
 

Auntie Helen

Ich bin Powerfrau!
Wendel, reliability of trains is a bit varied. Usually they are OK but there can be delays and sometimes you don't know why. There is a whole sub-culture of humour in the UK about excuses for late trains ("leaves on the line", "the wrong kind of snow", etc). There's not much that can be done about these events. Plus one of the railway workers' unions is doing some strikes at the moment, although I don't think there's anything planned in the future.

You can usually check up in advance if there are any 'planned engineering works' here. The information changes so it's worth looking at it every week or so as your holiday approaches. Usually when there are engineering works (maintenance of the track) they put on buses instead - which won't take bicycles - so that could also cause a problem.

The train that has the direct link to the ferry might mean that the ferry waits for the train, but it might not.

When you're doing your ride in Scotland I will be doing a tour of the Mosel, taking the train from Hoek van Holland to Trier via Venlo/Mönchengladbach/Koblenz. Do you happen to know anything about the new Eurobahn trains (the RE13 line) and why they aren't allowed in Holland, and whether this is being sorted out or whether we will have to change trains again in Kaldenkirchen. I can only find a few German newspaper reports and nothing official. Thought you might have more of an idea where to look - Deutsche Bahn's website doesn't seem to explain it at all...
 

toroddf

Guest
Arran ferry......... I guess that means the ultimate destination is Islay ? There may be some disruptions on that ferry now. They are removing a sunken ship just outside the ferry port before a new ferry is being introduced early next year.

You will love Arran though. The south coast is extreme hard, the direct route up to Lochranza is pretty easy with only a big hill (200 meters above sea level) just before Lochranza. I have plenty of info on my homepage.
 
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