Other than electric services, there now seem to be 2 distinct schools of Northern services, those that are Civity routes operated with 195s and those that are Sprinter routes operated with 15x, with very few lines seeing both types regularly and increasing standardisation on these 2 service groups.
I am in general quite interested in which lines particular rolling stock pass over so I can have a good guess for 195s.
I would highly doubt 195s have ever been to:
- Ellesmere Port
- Stalybridge*
- Kirkby/Headbolt Lane
- Ormskirk
- Colne
- Blackpool South
- Clitheroe
- Morecambe/Heysham Port
*either from Manchester Victoria, Stockport or Guide Bridge. Or between Bolton and Blackburn, or Lostock Junction and Crow Nest Junction.
And on the east side, with less certainty I doubt they have been on:
- ANY of the Airedale/Wharfedale lines towards Shipley or Hellifield
- ANY of the 170 operated services towards Harrogate, Doncaster, Goole, Hull or Scarborough (which makes me think I’m not sure about Micklefield/Church Fenton - Hull)
- ANY of the lines east of Doncaster or Gainsborough towards Grimsby/Cleethorpes
- Huddersfield - Barnsley via Penistone
- Leeds - Knottingley via or Knottingley - Goole (which makes me think one has never been to Castleford)
- Moorthorpe - Church Fenton via Pontefract Baghill and Burton Salmon Junction
The only route I am absolutely unsure of is Leeds - Sheffield via Wakefield Westgate or Moorthorpe. It is one you would expect to see 195s on, especially with 331s on the Leeds - Doncaster electric service, but I am unable to find ANY evidence of a 195 operated service that way. Are there clearance issues for them on part of this line? This would be consistent with 195s not running other services between Sheffield, Swinton and Moorthorpe.
195s
HAVE however run to:
- Southport ONCE only, where it was stuck for several weeks afterwards. When contacted, Northern claimed that this was purely for stabling at Southport, but it was obviously an unsuccessful gauging run. You do not run a new unit down a line it is not cleared on purely for stabling purposes at the remote end.
- Edge Hill - Earlestown via the electrified line, inexplicably the first train from Manchester Airport to Lime Street was Diesel operated (but have they done Huyton Junction - Springs Branch Junction via St Helens Central?)
- The other route to Sheffield on Leeds - Nottingham/Lincoln services via Wakefield Kirkgate and Barnsley, meaning they have been all the way to Gainsborough. Is it a 195 that does the once a day service to Retford High Level?
- Services from Manchester Piccadilly to Sheffield, New Mills Central and Rose Hill Marple via Ashburys, but not Hadfield/Glossop, although Sprinters have been on the electrified line to Hadfield/Glossop on hot days.
- Milner Royd Junction - Leeds via Dewsbury etc Non Stop when Bradford Interchange is closed for engineering works.
- Euxton Junction - Golborne Junction on the WCML when the Barrow/Windermere services previously went that way.
- Wigan North Western - Manchester Victoria via Atherton. There was formerly 1 diagram formed of a 195 to cover for the withdrawal of 153s until an additional pair of 158s could be allocated.
There are 2 routes which I believe 195s have only passed over very recently.
- Manchester Piccadilly - New Mills South Junction via Hazel Grove. Hope Valley services are currently going this way due to an infrastructure failure at New Mills South Junction, calling at Stockport. I travelled this way on the morning of 10 February, but before that, had a 195 ever called in service at Stockport? and
- Salford Crescent - Euxton Junction. When Barrow/Windermere services were diverted to serve Bolton. If I’m honest, it was better when they went the other way, but until then, I don’t think a 195 had ever reached Bolton. They have also been running all stops between Preston and Bolton when terminating there due to engineering works. I am aware there is a neutral section on the line, somewhere north of Lostock Junction. If the overhead wires are isolated, is it not possible for an electric device to reach Bolton?
After all this, it may be the case that 195s have still never reached Doncaster or Huddersfield, or anywhere south of Manchester Airport or Edgeley Junction. Despite no Northern crews currently signing it, it certainly matters if 195s have never done any of the route between Miles Platting/Guide Bridge and Heaton Lodge.
