Mk3 future?

[hhf8]

Does anyone know what the future is for these?are they going to be scrapped or refurbished. To me it seems a waster to scrap them. Most jouneys i've had with them have been pleasant. They're only as old as the lhb darts?

[shweeney]

word on the street is they're going to be scrapped or sold as they are surplus to requirements once the new intercity stock arrives, and because they are airconditioned they can't easily be put into storage. Probably won't happen for a few years though.

[ACustomer]

For a start, I assume the Push-pull Mk IIIs are to be retained. This means that retaining at least some of the ordinary Mk IIIs makes some sense (common parts, etc etc).

There should be a role for at least 2 MkIII sets if the Belfast service is to be seriously enhanced. There is at present a standby MKII set at Connolly; should it graduate to a MK III? Also while the Cork service has 7 MKIVs in service with one on standby, this will not always be possible when the standby is in for serious repairs, so you will need a MK III standby at Heuston. Finally there might be demand for one or two MK III sets if the 6-car Rotem sets are not enough for the principal Intercity routes.

So there is a case for retention and possible serious refurbishment of maybe half the MK III fleet. However IE don't seem to do refurbishment very well; they prefer to get lots of free capital from the Exchequer for new stock. There will be plenty of locos for the MK IIIs; the only problem is increased operating costs for running around and increased track wear. I would like to see a serious study of the costs and benefits of MK III retention versus the alternatives.

[richards]

Was on a Mark III recently for the first time in a while recently. Was very impressed with the ride quality however the interiors are begining to look a little tatty.

I would love to see IE refurbish these carriages as they are reliable and very comfortable. In the UK Mark III's which are ever older than IE's are still in existence. IN Continental Europe I suspect that there is still a lot of Rolling Stock which dates from the 70's and the 80's'

What strikes me about the Mark III's is that to me they seem to have aged better than the DBE De Dietrich carriages which have become very shabby over the last ten years. The other issue is that Mark III's are much more reliable that the De Dietrich sets currently in use.

The advantages of having a large stock of MK III's is that IE can easily add additional services or have larger trains where necessary. Would personally like to see IE get rid of the De Dietrich stock and replaced with refurbished MK III's. Could have an hourly service with more reliable rolling stock.

P.S. I believe that the Cravens are finally gone! They where in existence for nearly 40 years. While dated, they certainly the most comfortable rolling stock on IE's rail network. They will be missed.

[Thomas J Stamp]

I understand that the push pulls are being kept, will do Thurles/Athlone/Kilkenny length commuter services

City gold sets from Cork should be going to augment the Belfast Services Cu Na Mara maybe as well.

apart from that - bye bye.

[Thomas J Stamp]

I understand that the push pulls are being kept, will do Thurles/Athlone/Kilkenny length commuter services

City gold sets from Cork should be going to augment the Belfast Services Cu Na Mara maybe as well.

apart from that - bye bye.

Oh, and although you dont see them Cravens are still in the timetable, not gone yet!

[CSL]

Mark what's the breakdown of errors on Enterprise sets - do the carriages themselves fail or is it that old saw about the engine providing electric power - some are but I thought that had been worked out and most of the issues were now due to other causes