The 23.50 London-Glasgow/Edinburgh
prepares for departure from Euston late on
June 17, with No. 92010 at the head of the
16-coach train of Mk5 stock. PAUL SMITHCaledonian Sleeper’s new Mk5 stock has rarely been out of the headlines since it was
introduced.Ben Jonestakes a ride on this new generation of Spanish-built overnight
stock to see if it delivers on its promises of a quality hotel experience.
H
aving been in decline
for decades, killed off by
indifference, variable quality,
high operating costs and the
advent of budget airlines, overnight trains
seem to be on the cusp of a surprising
renaissance in Europe.
As climate change becomes an
increasingly high-profile issue, more and
more travellers are looking for convenient
alternatives to short-haul flights.
Overnight trains offer the tempting
combination of a night’s sleep and several
hundred miles of travel for the cost of a
hotel room. They also avoid an alarm call
in the middle of the night to drive to an
airport at an uncivilised hour for an early
flight.
In the UK, the relatively short
distances between major cities meant
that overnight services were cut back to
just two main routes by the late-1980s- London to Cornwall and the Anglo-
Scottish trains serving lowland Scotland
and the Highlands.Once part of the ScotRail franchise,
the latter have been operated as a separate
entity since 2015, branded ‘Caledonian
Sleeper’ (CS) and managed by Serco on
behalf of the Scottish Government.
A major commitment for the new
franchise was the replacement of the CS
sleeper fleet, which consisted of ex-BR
Mk2 day coaches from the 1970s and
Mk3 sleepers dating from the early-1980s.
Immediately after winning the franchise,
Serco awarded Spanish train builder CAF
a £150million contract to supply 75
vehicles of five types, including sleeping
cars, seated coaches and lounge cars –
a perennially popular feature of these
services.
The order comprises 40 sleeping
cars with six en suite luxury cabins and
four cabins without en suite facilities
(Nos. 15301-340), 14 sleeping cars with
two fully accessible cabins (one with a
double bed and one with a foldable upper
bed), two cabins with en suite facilities,
showers and double beds and two cabinswith foldable upper berths, plus two
shower rooms (Nos. 15201-14),
10 ‘brasserie’ style Club Cars with bar
and lounge (Nos. 15101-110) and
11 seated cars with brake accommodation
(Nos. 15001-011).
They are formed into four 16-coach
trains (comprising two eight-coach
portions), plus 11 spare vehicles, and
will be dedicated to services between
London Euston and Glasgow/Edinburgh,
Aberdeen, Inverness and Fort William.High profile
From the outset, Caledonian Sleeper
has been keen to promote its new trains
as a step up in quality from those they
are replacing. Promises of ‘hotel quality’
service and comfort have attracted the
attention of the mainstream media, travel
writers and bloggers alike.
Features such as cabins with double
beds, wheelchair accessible rooms, charging
points, keyless access, showers and wi-fi
all point towards a higher quality productOVERNIGHT
SENSATION?
TRAINTEST