Overview | |
---|---|
Service type | Passenger train |
Current operator(s) | London North Eastern Railway |
Former operator(s) | Virgin Trains East Coast East Coast National Express East Coast GNER InterCity East Coast British Rail |
Route | |
Termini | London King's Cross Aberdeen |
Distance travelled | 523 miles |
Average journey time | 7 hours |
Service frequency | Daily |
Train number(s) | 1W11 (previously 1S11) (northbound) 1E15 (southbound) |
Line(s) used | East Coast Edinburgh to Aberdeen |
Technical | |
Rolling stock | Class 800 Azuma |
Operating speed | 125 mph |
The Northern Lights route map | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Northern Lights is a named British passenger train operated by London North Eastern Railway. It runs daily in each direction between London King's Cross and Aberdeen via the East Coast Main Line and Edinburgh to Aberdeen Line. The northbound service departs London King's Cross at 10:00am, and the southbound service departs Aberdeen at 09:52am. The route is one of the longest in Britain at 523 miles and the train takes just over seven hours to cover the journey. London North Eastern Railway operates another two services in each direction between London and Aberdeen as well as one each day to and from Leeds. [1]
Presently both of the services are operated by a Class 800 Azuma. This is a bi-modal train due to the line being diesel only beyond Haymarket, with the train being on electric power to and from the latter.
Trainset | Class | Image | Type | Top speed | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
mph | km/h | ||||
Hitachi AT300 | Class 800 Azuma | Bi-mode multiple unit | 125 | 200 |
Until December 2019, the Northern Lights service was operated by an InterCity 125 HST for a number of years until the whole fleet of HSTs were replaced by the Azuma fleet.
Trainset | Class | Image | Type | Top speed | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
mph | km/h | ||||
InterCity 125 | Class 43 | Locomotive | 125 | 200 | |
Mark 3 | Passenger coach |
Great North Eastern Railway, often referred to as GNER, was a train operating company in the United Kingdom, owned by Sea Containers, that operated the InterCity East Coast franchise on the East Coast Main Line between London, Yorkshire, North East England and Scotland from April 1996 until December 2007.
The East Coast Main Line (ECML) is a 393-mile long (632 km) electrified railway between London and Edinburgh via Peterborough, Doncaster, York, Darlington, Durham and Newcastle. The line is a key transport artery on the eastern side of Great Britain running broadly parallel to the A1 road.
The InterCity 125 or High Speed Train (HST) is a diesel-powered high-speed passenger train built by British Rail Engineering Limited between 1975 and 1982. Each set is made up of two Class 43 power cars, one at each end, and a rake of Mark 3 carriages. The name is derived from its top operational speed of 125 mph (201 km/h). Initially, the sets were classified as Classes 253 and 254.
InterCity was introduced by British Rail in 1966 as a brand-name for its long-haul express passenger services.
The British Rail Class 180 is a class of 14 diesel-hydraulic multiple-unit passenger trains manufactured by Alstom at its Washwood Heath factory in 2000/01 for First Great Western (FGW). They are part of the Coradia 1000 family, along with the Class 175.
Hull Trains is an open-access railway operator in England owned by the multinational transport company FirstGroup. It operates long-distance passenger services between Hull / Beverley and London King's Cross. It has a track-access agreement until December 2032.
The Flying Scotsman is an express passenger train service that operates between Edinburgh and London, the capitals of Scotland and England, via the East Coast Main Line. The service began in 1862; the name was officially adopted in 1924. It is currently operated by London North Eastern Railway.
The British Rail Class 43 (HST) is the TOPS classification used for the InterCity 125 High Speed Train power cars, built by British Rail Engineering Limited from 1975 to 1982, and in service in the UK since 1976.
Durham is a railway station on the East Coast Main Line, which runs between London King's Cross and Edinburgh Waverley. The station, situated 14 miles 3 chains south of Newcastle, serves the cathedral city of Durham in County Durham, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by London North Eastern Railway.
Darlington railway station is on the East Coast Main Line in the United Kingdom, serving the town of Darlington, County Durham. It is 232 miles 50 chains north of London King's Cross and on the main line it is situated between Northallerton to the south and Durham to the north. Its three-letter station code is DAR.
Lincoln railway station serves the city of Lincoln in Lincolnshire, England. The station is owned by Network Rail and managed by East Midlands Railway. East Midlands Railway provides the majority of services from the station, with other services being provided by Northern and London North Eastern Railway.
Grand Central is an open-access train operating company in the United Kingdom. Presently a subsidiary of Arriva UK Trains, it has operated passenger rail services since December 2007.
CrossCountry is a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by Arriva UK Trains, operating the Cross Country franchise.
The Highland Chieftain is a named British passenger train operated by London North Eastern Railway. It operates daily in each direction between London King's Cross and Inverness via the East Coast and Highland Main Line. It is one of the longest train journeys in the United Kingdom at 581 miles with a journey time of eight hours.
National Express East Coast (NXEC) was a train operating company in the United Kingdom, owned by National Express, that operated the InterCity East Coast franchise on the East Coast Main Line between London, Yorkshire, North East England and Scotland from December 2007 until November 2009.
East Coast, the trading name of the East Coast Main Line Company, was a British train operating company running the InterCity East Coast franchise on the East Coast Main Line between London, Yorkshire, North East England, and Scotland. East Coast ran long-distance inter-city services from its Central London terminus at London King's Cross on two primary routes; the first to Leeds and the second to Edinburgh via Newcastle with other services reaching into Yorkshire and Northern and Central Scotland. It commenced operations on 14 November 2009 and ceased on 28 February 2015.
Lumo is a British open-access operator owned by FirstGroup that operates passenger trains on the East Coast Main Line between London King's Cross and Edinburgh Waverley. It is headquartered in Newcastle upon Tyne.
The British Rail Class 800 Intercity Express Train or Azuma is a type of bi-mode multiple unit train built by Hitachi for Great Western Railway and London North Eastern Railway. The type uses electric motors powered from overhead electric wires for traction, but also has diesel generators to enable trains to operate on unelectrified track. It is a part of the Hitachi AT300 product family.
The British Rail Class 801 Azuma is a type of electric multiple unit (EMU) built by Hitachi for London North Eastern Railway. The units have been built since 2017 at Hitachi's Newton Aycliffe factory and have been used on services on the East Coast Main Line since 16 September 2019. As part of its production, the Class 801 units were ordered as part of the Intercity Express Programme and are in the Hitachi AT300 product family, alongside the closely related Class 800 units. LNER have branded the units as the Azuma, just like on their Class 800 units.
London North Eastern Railway (LNER) is a British train operating company. It is owned by the DfT OLR Holdings for the Department for Transport (DfT). The company's name echoes that of the London and North Eastern Railway, one of the Big Four companies which operated between 1923 and 1948.