Hi everyone, Graeme from Young in New South Wales, Australia. I recently purchased the above DLC with the intention of running them on WCML. My question is, what is the speed limits that these cars were allowed to run at. I'm aware that the class 47 has a top allowable speed of 95 miles per hour. Thanking you for any replies in advance...... Graeme
This is a bit strange... Network Southeast was a region in the south and southeast of England, which didn't include the West Coast Main Line (WCML). Class 47s did run there, but probably not in that livery. How fast? I think the stock is Mk2 coaches, IIRC, which means they'd be fine up to 95mph. Some sections of that line were originally meant to be 140mph, an APT unit testing there in the 1980s achieved a speed of 142mph. Although the APT was ultimately cancelled, the HST (seen in my profile picture) and later more modern units are allowed to run up to 125mph on some sections of the route.
Southeastern worked the commuter lines across London, it also ran on the WCML as far as Bedford according to Wikipedia. I know the class 50s ran what is now Southwestern routes and it wouldn't surprise me to have 47s running up that route at least once.
The Class 47 pack comes with NSE Mk2 Coaches which have a maximum permitted speed of 100mph, so the maximum permitted speed for a Class 47 and Mk2s would be 95mph; As you've already stated the maximum permitted speed of the Class 47 is 95mph, so that would be the limiting factor for the train.
The locomotive can do 95mph the coaches can do 105mph, so, ensure you wave to the loco driver as you overtake him.......lol
Actually the train to set the UK rail speed record of 162.2 miles per hour (261.0 km/h) in December 1979
Thanks gentleman, I just did a shunt with some of the carriages and noticed the speed limit listed on the end of the cars.
Most of the UK Coaches we have are 90mph for Mk1s, 100mph for Mk2s. In theory the Mk3 Loco Hauled stock should be 110 but as they are repaints of HST they show 125 or nothing HST vehicles are 125 as are Mk4 Loco Hauled stock. Peter