The Voyager Family

By Fred Kerr

When British Railways was privatized in 1994, much interest was generated by the franchise arrangements, including the new operators and the specific requirements of the franchise agreements. The West Coast Main Line (WCML) was a major operation offered as two franchises covering Inter City and Cross-Country services, and both were initially won by Virgin Trains (albeit operated by separate companies within the Virgin group).

The Inter City franchise was awarded to Virgin Trains West Coast (VTWC) and the Cross-Country franchise was awarded to Virgin Trains Cross Country (VTCC), but both franchise agreements were awarded on condition that the existing rolling stock was replaced. In the case of VTCC this meant replacing the mix of ageing locomotive-hauled train sets by a new fleet of diesel multiple unit train sets, leading to two designs being ordered in 1998 with deliveries beginning in 2001. The Class 220 ‘Voyager’ was a 4-car train set specified for VTCC’s Inter City services, whilst the Class 221 ‘Super Voyager’ was a 5-car train set with tilting mechanism for Cross Country services; the ‘Super Voyager’ order also included four 4-car train sets for operation on Euston – Holyhead services.

The new fleets quickly provided a standard fleet, but the Virgin Trains’ franchises soon became involved in political issues that affected both the running of the companies and the operation of the train sets, leading to the Cross Country franchise changing operators in 2006. At the same time, political interference in franchise agreements led to other franchisees being forced to make decisions regarding fleet renewals and train operation that led to variations to the original ‘Voyager’ designs being introduced to service.

The Voyager Family covers the earliest days of operation while reflecting the many changes that have taken place, both in the franchisees who have operated them and in their spheres of operation. Despite the many criticisms, the train sets continue to provide an extensive range of services, all of which are celebrated in this book.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pen and Sword
• Release date: Jun 30, 2018
• ISBN: 9781526731456

Fred Kerr

Fred Kerr was born in Edinburgh in 1948 where he gained an interest in railway locomotives from both the LMSR and LNER companies whose services permeated the local network. When his parents moved to Corby in 1956 the local steelworks provided further interest from its mix of freight services, including seeing the last of the Beyer Garrets and the replacement Standard Class 9Fs whilst the industrial locomotives of the internal steelworks network offered further insight into the variety of steam locomotives. This was a time of change and during the 1960s the interest in locomotives included the new order of diesel and electric traction without reducing the interest in steam traction. While his interest in Diesel Traction led to his early involvement with the Diesel & Electric Group and its preservation activities during the 1970s, his move to Southport in 1982 restored his opportunities to return to his first love of viewing steam locomotives at work and this album records some of the locations that he chose to visit and the locomotives that he was able to photograph.Today his interest continues as a life member of the A4 Locomotive Society, Keighley & Worth Valley Railway and Ribble Steam Railway whilst he also support bodies concerned with preserving steam locomotives, diesel locomotives and infrastructure extensions.