Hi Geoff ... The reason why Brading didn't get raised platforms was that the entire track was re-laid lower ... I was in the initial night crew that went across In October & November 2020 that did the survey work and we dug down some test pits 1.5 meters down below the initial track level to see exactly where the platform foundations were ... They also did core samples of the area around Brading station just to clarify what was there, even when the mains electric was turned off we still had residual voltage in the damp craggy soil around the track, which was far from safe. Areas of the original track were also lowered to accommodate the extra height of the 484's ... Where the height of the track couldn't be lowered, the platforms were raised to accommodate for the 484's ride height, also preserving the original platform decks I think they still have preservation orders on some of the old stock so it had to be preserved, it's also still the property of Network Rail and I think there were some provisions laid down by Network Rail what could & couldn't be done ... Many a wet night was spent at Brading & Shanklin over the week that I was there, commuting over & back on the Portsmouth Ferry ...
@@sIightIybored Yeah ... not really sure to be honest ... Network Rail are the people to ask as they still own this as far as I know ... I wouldn't expect a lot as there are preservation orders on this old stock, nice to see that the old signal house is looking good ...
Glad to see Geoff focusing heavily on accessibility issues. Although I'm quite capable of jumping gaps and climbing stairs, our public transport infrastructure should be for everyone, not just the fit and able.
I now have big problems with mobility but I recall well trying to get about London in the 80s with two huge suitcases. Stairs were so very hard and often that's how it had to be. I think at one point I did one big suitcase at a time down 1/2 flights. Never forget guy asking me if I needed help when I was 2 steps from being entirely done. What timing. LOL.
Greater accessibility benefits everyone. The Stadlers little bit that closes the gap is extremely convenient if you have a suitcase or even if you don't want to look up from your phone.
@@OlanKenny Agree on the first point but disagree on the last point. You really shouldn’t be focussing on a handheld device if you are disembarking from a vehicle of any kind.
We went to the iow for our holidays as kids in the 60's, and it always felt like I was going abroad when the white buildings built into the hills at Ryde came into view. Looked very continental.
Thanks Geoff; I remember my dad taking me to ride on the steam trains here, just before they disappeared. He came from the IoW and he said "Esplanade" to rhyme with "lemonade", for what it's worth...
Lovely to see the connections to Ventnor on the Timetable! in the hopes the railway might reach there again! and nice to see they retained the semephores at Johns Road!
Lovely bit of drone footage at the end! And a great video. Really like your style of presentation - nicely informal but without being unintelligent. Cool looking units and looks like a well matched service proposition to the needs.
I used to travel on D trains a lot so it's interesting how familiar these trains sound - perhaps there should be a video about how different tube trains sound.
I was born in July 1974, so I too traveled extensively on D Stock trains, I too loved all the sounds made by the D Stock; mind you they sounded very much like the 1983 TS During the 80’s
A 7 month delay is not so bad. In Holland we have seen some heavy to light rail conversions that had a much longer delay. My favourite part of the Bitish railway network: IOW. Good luck with the new trains!
In 2017 we had a 4 day break to I.O.W. staying at Sandown. The last day was a bus to Ryde and the old train back to Sandown. Nice to see better trains and service for the residents.
The lovely man I met that I sat next to on the replacement bus from Newport-Southampton has been waiting for this for ages and I remembered watching your video on the line closing and realised how much it actually affected residents! So happy!
I went over there last week. I was well impressed with the "new" trains, it does seem weird having ex-D78 Stock on the island though...I was equally pleased to see that there were no significant issues with Ryde Tunnel, it did feel on entering that you were then going to emerge into Bow Road or Bromley-by-Bow, rather than still being in Ryde!!
Another place you can see the Vivarail units is, bizarrely, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Two battery-powered units are being tested out on the trackage of a heritage railway.
I used them a lot in London but always referred to them as Underground trains as they were on cut-and-cover lines and not running in tubes. Their loading gauge is compatible with surface stock and therefore far more appropriate for a surface line.
Blimey I remember in 1979 seeing the D stock at Richmond Station for the first time. I was luckily I got a ride on the 38 stock two years ago. It was great fun travelling on these lovely trains again.
Geoff, I was born in Ryde, commuted to school in Sandown by train (originally steam before the *first* tube stock arrived) from Ryde Esplanade. The street and the station are pronounced Esplan-AID.
great to hear, Islanders will be happy I'm sure, went over to the Island in September, the amount of traffic was as bad as a school holiday on the island.
Thanks for the video Geoff I loved the old stock could never drink a cup of tea lol. Will miss them but new refurbished tube trains were needed. It's all looking good and a good time to definitely move forward with the line. Cannot wait to get overseas to have a ride!!😎🚃🚃🚃🚃🇬🇧💯
After seeing this video I was looking forward to travelling the whole length of this railway but nothing prepared me for the delightful "clickety click" of the wheels on the track! Awesome!
I went to IOW for holiday every year during 60’s and remember the steam trains followed by the first tube stock which I think dated back to 1929 and were only ten years younger than the steam trains they replaced. The IOW has never had new stock, has always been second hand. These latest trains are totally refurbished and are as near to new as anything the island has had in the past
Being incredibly pedantic, the Isle of Wight Railway did have brand new engines and carriages when it opened in 1864. I think at least one of the carriages is being restored at Havenstreet. A new engine was also built for the Isle of Wight Central Railway in 1890. So yeah, no truly new stock for a mere 132 years :) The D78s are just 44 years old, so actually older than the first set of tube stock replacements in 1967. But from the video they look really nice, and a lot smoother! I too am just old enough to remember the old steam trains on Ryde-Ventnor/Cowes and it is very nostalgic to ride in them again at the IoWSR at Havenstreet.
Great to see. I must have sat on those very carriages many times over the years as district line trains and most certainly my head as slid across the glass when asleep 😆
Delighted to have discovered your channel, Geoff. I enjoyed your engaging presentation here as well as learning of this very attractive refurbishment of classic old tube stock, giving it a new lease on life. Also love that they maintained transverse seating - very attractive new interiors. Drone shots showing the trains at dusk were lovely, too. I will hope to experience this line when I get back across the Pond. Meantime, you're giving me lots of reasons to think in that direction! Cheers!
Good to see this modernisation taking effect. My paternal grandfather's family was from IOW and I have dim childhood memories of the old steam trains. Such a pity so many of the lines were torn up.
Brilliant Video Geoff, I managed to visit the Isle of Wight for the first time on the 1st November and really enjoyed it, the Class 484s are brilliant, love the USBs between the seats but the most memorable bit I will remember about my visit was boarding the 0845 to Shanklin at Ryde Pier Head and it got cancelled! Because it arrived 10 minutes late into Ryde Pier Head and wanted to get it back on track. Now I just remember that this was all a dream because the Isle of Wight don't exist lol! (just kidding) but seriously as Geoff said at the end, Do visit the Isle of Wight, it is amazing and I was impressed every stop towards Shanklin, would love to go again! :D
So did you have to wait an hour for the next train then? Not great especially with a frequent bus alternative (from Esplanade onwards). They should at least have shuttled it down the pier to Esplanade to save everyone the walk. I've seen a similar problem on the Portsmouth-Ryde ferry with only one operating; the one hour circuit is very tight for time and on a choppy day with plenty of passengers the ferries were running a few minutes late, gradually increasing during the day. So we missed the connecting train and waited for the one 20 minutes later. It stopped at Esplanade and didn't come to the pier because the choppy water and high tide meant waves were occasionally breaking over the pier. Cue a half mile walk down the pier for the next train in 40 minutes (these were the old trains and old service pattern).
For someone who’s never been to the Isle of Wight, you seem to go there a lot! Really informative video and very enjoyable - the noise of those trains takes me back to commuting in London!
I remember taking the train from the pier head down to Brading (I think it was) when my class was on a week-long school trip to a big house on the Isle of Wight, in late spring 1964. I remember the (quite old) tube stock -- how many generations ago? Of course, this was long enough ago that we were checking out passenger liners going to/from Southampton when we were on the beach. My logbook (written as part of the school trip) records seeing RMS Franconia, SS Andes, SS United States and SS France. Then visited HMS Victory on the way back. I haven't thought of that visit (complete with Isle of Wight railways) in a long time -- thanks for the prompt to go down memory lane
The ride is a lot smoother now. As well as the "new trains," the ballast on the track when the '38 Stock was running used to be beach shingle in places, this was all replaced by "proper ballast" during the shutdown.
Great video Geoff l, I love going to the Isle of wight,I've only been a couple of times but it's a great little island, I've never been on the island line though and it's something I want to go on one day.
Lovely ex LT District Line Stock. Absolutely brilliant revamping these old trains. Good on you I.O.W., it looks a really modern upgrade. Thank you Geoff for another professional video.
Tell you what, you really put the effort in to convince us that you *have* been to the Isle of Wight, when we all know you haven't ;) Great video! I was there on the very first train of the very first day, bleary-eyed but I made it! And I love how everything about the line, including the new trains, are improvements while also retaining the classic spirit of the line - the stations still have a lovely vintage feel, and of course, the tradition of tube trains on the Isle of Wight lives on! ^_^
Geoff, thanks for uploading another great vid. I visited the line on the first day of operation (1st Nov 2021) to see the upgrade - a far cry from steam to Ventnor I remember as a child! Overall, I was not very impressed with what has been done over here. The timetable is slack yet on day one it fell apart; the door operation is very slow and adds to dwell times. There didn’t seem to be any urgency to make up time and on an hourly service terminating short and starting back from that station is not really an option for passengers marooned at the station(s) not being served. The track obviously remains jointed not CWR but the acceleration of the trains was poor and no doubt contributed to the sloppy operation on day one. I noted mechanical signalling still in use - a missed opportunity to have a modern, digital signalling system? Vivarail stock may unfortunately be the life-saving option for some routes but frankly the Class 484s are inadequate rolling stock in my view. The matter of provision of toilets (on presumably DfE specified stock) has been aired on other videos on your site and in 2021 the absence of toilets on trains seems to be another gross shortcoming - elsewhere, your viewers make a good case for provision. Apart from the doors being slow to open, all the audible signals etc were a nuisance and added to the unsatisfactory passenger experience. Tube stock seating layout also, to my mind, is not appropriate for this line and is a lazy aspect of stock conversion. Re stations, the various work you recorded was noted on my visit and your observations on disabled access are well made. Another example is the connection at Ryde Esplanade with the hovercraft where passengers have to use the footbridge to gain the station entrance. I don’t know the specific objectives of the project but in the long period of closure, albeit in lockdown, much more surely needed doing. For example, the roof on Ryde Pier Head station buildings are old corrugated cement sheets and parts of the wind breaks have not been replaced. Surely this was an ideal time to do a better refurbishment. There was also an absence of dot matrix indicators at several stations - I would have thought this was basic passenger information provision nowadays. Overall, not at all impressed by what has been achieved. A bit of upgrading/renewals but replacing older Underground stock with tarted up 40 year old rolling stock looks as though the Island Line has been treated poorly. I wonder if, say, a tram option had been considered with the possibility of extension beyond Shanklin?
Lived on the island for 6 months and spent time on and off. What an amazing line. Have travelled the length of the line many times. My stops of choice were Brading and Shanklin where I’d go to ring 2 of the islands sets of Church bell 🔔 towers. But that’s another story. As always a great video. Top tip if you have a rail card then you will get a discount on the island line and if coming from the main line get a train ticket to Ryde esplanade not only will you get a discount on the ferry but the trip to the second station is included. Saves the long walk along Ryde pier. Did this trip many times.
Great to see the new trains over there, and just fantastic to see them running two sets together - it's been many years since I saw anything other than a single two car set running. Brings back memories of the old 1926 stock they had over there back in the 60's and 70's, you often saw them running 7 car trains. Nice to see the track doubled at Brading once again, I remember when that double section of track went all the way between Brading and Sandown. I also remember when both platforms were in use at Ryde Esplanade. And did you know that there used to be another branch of the railway (originally the Isle of Wight Central Railway) that branched of from Sandown and travelled across to Newport? I have read recently that the council is hoping to reinstate it, will wait and see on that one! If you ever want to delve into the history of railway lines, the island is a fantastic place to do so, there were a lot of lines running all over the island in the past. Two different lines running into Ventnor, a line running out to Freshwater, plus the other two lines running into Newport from the east - one from Smallbrook Junction, and the other from Sandown. Just lots of interesting railway history on a relatively small island.
I love the look of the new trains and the improvement along the line (I heard about the passing loop been installed at Brading for a 1/2 hour service, better late then never as they say). I did come to the Island on holiday 20 years ago and traveled on both railway with both the 1938 stock tube train and the steam service so I am sorry not to see them again but I will be looking forward to a more up-to-date and futuristic Island Line if and when I come for another visit to the Isle of Wright. As ever a great video to watch. Thank You Geoff. 😊👍🚃
Many moons ago it was double track between Brading and Sandown - it helped with the half hourly timetable. If you look out between Brading and Sandown you’ll notice the redundant third rail from the lifted line is still in situ. Apparently there were power issues when the line was lifted and the third rail remained. The line is downhill on the up line from Shanklin and is immediately 45 mph when departing the station, so that probably explains the timetable difference. There are speed restrictions leaving all the other stations, and there appears to be a temporary speed restriction between St Johns and Smallbrook. Train was busy yesterday and was only two cars. But it was on time. It’s been really busy this week and timings have suffered. There’s not a great deal of leeway to meet the fastcat if the train is delayed. Fastcat used to depart at 47, now it’s 45, and the train is supposed to get to the pier head at 41. The guard no longer opens the doors from the rear of the train. The new ‘panels’ are opened with a key that the guard carries. Makes their job rather tricky when the train’s full of passengers. And the guards door only opens when the train is stationary. Couple this with the door opening and closing beeps, the time opening and closing is somewhat longer than the 38 stock. All this adds up. Will be interesting to see if they can run half hourly consistently. Great news it’s running again. Just need to give it time to bed in and review once the data is in.
So they’re only running an hourly service instead of half hourly, but instead of choosing the timing so that people have a 30 minute wait for the ferry (or the train if arriving), the train is timed to leave 4-6 minutes or so either way, for everyone to get off and onto the ferry (or train), which is also hourly. By all accounts the train is missing the ferry, leaving the passengers to sit (well, actually mostly stand in a draughty hall) and wait just under an hour for the next ferry/train. The only reason the train goes to the pier head is to serve the ferry. Typical British integrated transport!
@@MV-XD2 The ferries also sometimes run late, in particular if they have one ship on an hourly service which has very tight turnrounds. One delay due to heavy seas or slow boarding and it is late for the rest of the day. And of course the ships and trains are no longer operated by the same company, so no official cooperation.
Hi, I love the IOW and always wondered why they have old tube trains. So glad this came up on my feed, as I normally don't like trains but you made that very interesting. Keep up the content and started to watch other videos too.
The loading gauge (body envelope) of the Isle of Wight is too small for normal main line stock. In steam days it used small engines and 1900-20s carriages, some may have run on the Hastings line which had tight clearances. A bit of work was needed even to enable the D78 subsurface stock to fit. Presumably it was felt that none of the later types of true "tube" stock was in good enough condition to be reused after it was withdrawn.
With those green screen skills Geoff you’ll never actually need to go on holiday again. Isn’t technology amazing...! Great video! Pleasure as always to watch, keep it up and stay safe!
Lovely to see the old D stock repurposed and living a new life on the Isle. Nice to see the infrastructure has been updated without trashing everything that gave the line its character too 😎 We keep saying we’re going to visit the IoW so this might just give me the extra incentive to do it 🤔 Cheers 👍🍻🍀
Those refurbished trains look brand new. Amazing what you can do. Kinda similar idea to the old as hell Budd passenger cars on VIA in Canada, some are from the 40s but they are crisp new inside and wonderful to ride.
Geoff ... I believe that they have kept one of the 483's on the Island and it has been taken across to the old Steam railway, not sure if they are doing it up or if it's just getting a paint job, but I'm sure at least one is there ... !
Lovely video Geoff, as a born and bred Isle of Wighter, thanks for showing the interest in our little railway, so far I have only been up Ryde Pier on the new train. There is talk of trying to reopen a line into Newport (there has been for years), it should never have been closed. It is just about possible from the Isle of Wight Steam railway at Wootton, or the latest buzz is maybe the old line from Sandown to Newport. Yes of course I knew about the second entrance at Sandown, and it is definitely Ryde Esplan ayde, as in aid.
Went over to the island in July and went on the new trains They're cool, we also went on the heritage railway which is also amazing, and it's so good they have that station at smallbrook junction, just a shame that most of the islands railway has been removed 😢
Joining the steam line to this and finding a way to run into Cowes would be be a massive improvement. This would create a heritage line while providing transport and a tourist attraction. Mainland visitors could come by boat without cars while the Island line could mimic the San Francisco Historic Streetcar line where people can ride historic trams.
Nice thought but that would be a big stretch. I cycled most of the rail-trails on IOW in 2007 and there are significant gaps through Newport and Cowes where the old right-of-way has been redeveloped and there is no practical way to get the railway through there again.
Been patiently waiting for this video , as someone who only lives 2 minutes away from Ryde saint johns road , over the last few months I could hear the 484’s testing most days , it’s getting used to the new whistle and not hearing as much rail noise compared to the 1938 stock, I hope to ride one soon when I get some spare time , great video as per usual Geoff :)
Good video. Looking forward to sampling the 3rd rail D-Train version soon. I found the diesels on Bedford-Bletchley amazingly refined, with a better ambience than the sprinters they replaced. Interesting that ORR has apparently given the nod for the footpath crossing at Brading to stay in situ and be upgraded for reopening the redundant platform.
What a lovely job they've done on both the refurb work on the D-stock (they look fantastic) and the amount of work raising the platforms (we'll ignore Brading).
Hi Geoff, Another good video of recycled re furbished rolling stock...I first came across these on the Bedford-Bletchley line when they were first itroduced. My over job at the time took me all over the UK and I was standing at Bedford one day and spotted this unfamiliar looking train in London Midland livery. I asked a Driver on the platform what it was and he told me all about them, how they had been recycled from tube stock and fitted with diesel engines. Later that month I had to travel on one and I was quite impressed, fresher and more airy than there predecessors. I would imagine the I -O-W stock was an easier conversion being electric in as much that the old centre collection shoe was swapped for an outer rail type. Take care and catch you on the next one...(video that is...😀) Jon Barnes.
Excellent content as always Geoff. I’m going to do a mini mysteries of the railway series in the new year where one of the episodes has me looking into why six of the stations on IoW have only one platform
9:37 Regarding that Esplanade pronunciation question... Funnily enough, ages ago here in Singapore when the Esplanade Theatres first opened, there was a debate here as to whether it should be "nard" or "nayd". Most felt that "nard" sounded more "foreign", while "nayd" was the more "local" pronunciation. In any case, our MRT system - which gained an Esplanade MRT station 8 years after the Esplanade Theatres opened - use the "nayd" pronunciation in its announcements relating to said station.
Hi Geoff ... The reason why Brading didn't get raised platforms was that the entire track was re-laid lower ...
I was in the initial night crew that went across In October & November 2020 that did the survey work and we dug down some test pits 1.5 meters down below the initial track level to see exactly where the platform foundations were ... They also did core samples of the area around Brading station just to clarify what was there, even when the mains electric was turned off we still had residual voltage in the damp craggy soil around the track, which was far from safe. Areas of the original track were also lowered to accommodate the extra height of the 484's ... Where the height of the track couldn't be lowered, the platforms were raised to accommodate for the 484's ride height, also preserving the original platform decks I think they still have preservation orders on some of the old stock so it had to be preserved, it's also still the property of Network Rail and I think there were some provisions laid down by Network Rail what could & couldn't be done ...
Many a wet night was spent at Brading & Shanklin over the week that I was there, commuting over & back on the Portsmouth Ferry ...
Quality post Deano
I would hope there is more planned at Brading then, at 4:48 there is a definite gap below the doors to the platform.
@@sIightIybored Yeah ... not really sure to be honest ... Network Rail are the people to ask as they still own this as far as I know ... I wouldn't expect a lot as there are preservation orders on this old stock, nice to see that the old signal house is looking good ...
@@TTWGD3 Cheers ... Very welcome ... Dean'o
Meanwhile on the rest of the BR network - Mind the Gap
Tell you what, your green screen skills have gone up massively.. bravo!
I thought he was acc there
@@zakbakali1870 you will learn
@@zakbakali1870 Where? What place are you on about? Never heard of it.
@@geofftech2 so great that you managed to fake an entire island
As a viewer with "accessible needs", I'm very happy to see you highlighting this, thank you.
Geoff is basically the "Train Guy" and I love his personality
100% true my friend
* the train guy's train guy. 👌
@@aston-martin-internationalist an honorary wheeltapper and shunter.
Great to see old stock, still in motion somewhere else, instead of being scrapped.
Glad to see Geoff focusing heavily on accessibility issues. Although I'm quite capable of jumping gaps and climbing stairs, our public transport infrastructure should be for everyone, not just the fit and able.
I now have big problems with mobility but I recall well trying to get about London in the 80s with two huge suitcases. Stairs were so very hard and often that's how it had to be. I think at one point I did one big suitcase at a time down 1/2 flights. Never forget guy asking me if I needed help when I was 2 steps from being entirely done. What timing. LOL.
Don't ever try and use the trains in the USA.
Greater accessibility benefits everyone. The Stadlers little bit that closes the gap is extremely convenient if you have a suitcase or even if you don't want to look up from your phone.
@@OlanKenny Agree on the first point but disagree on the last point. You really shouldn’t be focussing on a handheld device if you are disembarking from a vehicle of any kind.
So true!
We went to the iow for our holidays as kids in the 60's, and it always felt like I was going abroad when the white buildings built into the hills at Ryde came into view. Looked very continental.
The efforts he will go to in order to convince us he has visited the IOW, even hiring actors to play his "companions" !
Thanks Geoff; I remember my dad taking me to ride on the steam trains here, just before they disappeared. He came from the IoW and he said "Esplanade" to rhyme with "lemonade", for what it's worth...
Lovely shot at the end at dusk with the birds flying by 😃 11:45
Lovely to see the connections to Ventnor on the Timetable! in the hopes the railway might reach there again!
and nice to see they retained the semephores at Johns Road!
Lovely bit of drone footage at the end! And a great video. Really like your style of presentation - nicely informal but without being unintelligent. Cool looking units and looks like a well matched service proposition to the needs.
11:47 lovely shot of the 484 and the flocks of birds. All flying in the same direction
I used to travel on D trains a lot so it's interesting how familiar these trains sound - perhaps there should be a video about how different tube trains sound.
I was born in July 1974, so I too traveled extensively on D Stock trains, I too loved all the sounds made by the D Stock; mind you they sounded very much like the 1983 TS During the 80’s
A 7 month delay is not so bad. In Holland we have seen some heavy to light rail conversions that had a much longer delay.
My favourite part of the Bitish railway network: IOW. Good luck with the new trains!
In 2017 we had a 4 day break to I.O.W. staying at Sandown. The last day was a bus to Ryde and the old train back to Sandown. Nice to see better trains and service for the residents.
1:45 a lovely shot of the pier and Ryde seafront there Geoff, brings back good memories of holidays to the IoW
The lovely man I met that I sat next to on the replacement bus from Newport-Southampton has been waiting for this for ages and I remembered watching your video on the line closing and realised how much it actually affected residents! So happy!
One of the old Class 483 sets has found its way onto The Llanelli and Mynydd mawr railway where it will keep some former TfW Pacers company.
The one at sandown is soon to follow
I went over there last week. I was well impressed with the "new" trains, it does seem weird having ex-D78 Stock on the island though...I was equally pleased to see that there were no significant issues with Ryde Tunnel, it did feel on entering that you were then going to emerge into Bow Road or Bromley-by-Bow, rather than still being in Ryde!!
Thanks-I was born in Sandown many decades ago and remember the steam trains .
This train looks beautiful. I am very impressed with it, a nice upgrade from the original but I will still miss it.
Another place you can see the Vivarail units is, bizarrely, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Two battery-powered units are being tested out on the trackage of a heritage railway.
The HQ of their parent company is in PIT...
I used them a lot in London but always referred to them as Underground trains as they were on cut-and-cover lines and not running in tubes. Their loading gauge is compatible with surface stock and therefore far more appropriate for a surface line.
Blimey I remember in 1979 seeing the D stock at Richmond Station for the first time. I was luckily I got a ride on the 38 stock two years ago. It was great fun travelling on these lovely trains again.
Nice video Geoff, I did love the 1938 stock but they were 80+ years after all! Its still nice to still see ex tube stock on the Island!
Geoff, I was born in Ryde, commuted to school in Sandown by train (originally steam before the *first* tube stock arrived) from Ryde Esplanade. The street and the station are pronounced Esplan-AID.
Wonderful ! Hope we will be able to re-visit the Isle of Wight railways one day. Thanks for sharing.
great to hear, Islanders will be happy I'm sure, went over to the Island in September, the amount of traffic was as bad as a school holiday on the island.
Thanks for the video Geoff I loved the old stock could never drink a cup of tea lol. Will miss them but new refurbished tube trains were needed. It's all looking good and a good time to definitely move forward with the line. Cannot wait to get overseas to have a ride!!😎🚃🚃🚃🚃🇬🇧💯
Having followed your account for over 4-5 years now, I must say you have improved significantly; especially with the drone effects. Loved it👌🔥
After seeing this video I was looking forward to travelling the whole length of this railway but nothing prepared me for the delightful "clickety click" of the wheels on the track! Awesome!
I went to IOW for holiday every year during 60’s and remember the steam trains followed by the first tube stock which I think dated back to 1929 and were only ten years younger than the steam trains they replaced. The IOW has never had new stock, has always been second hand. These latest trains are totally refurbished and are as near to new as anything the island has had in the past
Being incredibly pedantic, the Isle of Wight Railway did have brand new engines and carriages when it opened in 1864. I think at least one of the carriages is being restored at Havenstreet. A new engine was also built for the Isle of Wight Central Railway in 1890. So yeah, no truly new stock for a mere 132 years :) The D78s are just 44 years old, so actually older than the first set of tube stock replacements in 1967. But from the video they look really nice, and a lot smoother! I too am just old enough to remember the old steam trains on Ryde-Ventnor/Cowes and it is very nostalgic to ride in them again at the IoWSR at Havenstreet.
Hi geoff. These new trains look great!
Glad to see the Island Line running again! I'll look forward to visiting and a 484 bash!
When I was on the iow I actually saw a truck carrying the new trains!
Great to see. I must have sat on those very carriages many times over the years as district line trains and most certainly my head as slid across the glass when asleep 😆
Delighted to have discovered your channel, Geoff. I enjoyed your engaging presentation here as well as learning of this very attractive refurbishment of classic old tube stock, giving it a new lease on life. Also love that they maintained transverse seating - very attractive new interiors. Drone shots showing the trains at dusk were lovely, too. I will hope to experience this line when I get back across the Pond. Meantime, you're giving me lots of reasons to think in that direction!
Cheers!
Absolutely loved this video! The new trains and platforms look awesome. Thank you for this free content on my phone 😁
Good to see this modernisation taking effect. My paternal grandfather's family was from IOW and I have dim childhood memories of the old steam trains. Such a pity so many of the lines were torn up.
Nice drone skills! The drone footage add some nice shots to the video.
As always a good presentation and great to see your 2 helpers for the film as well
Brilliant Video Geoff, I managed to visit the Isle of Wight for the first time on the 1st November and really enjoyed it, the Class 484s are brilliant, love the USBs between the seats but the most memorable bit I will remember about my visit was boarding the 0845 to Shanklin at Ryde Pier Head and it got cancelled! Because it arrived 10 minutes late into Ryde Pier Head and wanted to get it back on track. Now I just remember that this was all a dream because the Isle of Wight don't exist lol! (just kidding) but seriously as Geoff said at the end, Do visit the Isle of Wight, it is amazing and I was impressed every stop towards Shanklin, would love to go again! :D
It's the Isle of White that doesn't exist lol
So did you have to wait an hour for the next train then? Not great especially with a frequent bus alternative (from Esplanade onwards). They should at least have shuttled it down the pier to Esplanade to save everyone the walk. I've seen a similar problem on the Portsmouth-Ryde ferry with only one operating; the one hour circuit is very tight for time and on a choppy day with plenty of passengers the ferries were running a few minutes late, gradually increasing during the day. So we missed the connecting train and waited for the one 20 minutes later. It stopped at Esplanade and didn't come to the pier because the choppy water and high tide meant waves were occasionally breaking over the pier. Cue a half mile walk down the pier for the next train in 40 minutes (these were the old trains and old service pattern).
Those trains look soooo good! Sad to see the old trains gone but time moves on and this is a very good improvement
Well you cant blame them considering those trains were 90 years old
For someone who’s never been to the Isle of Wight, you seem to go there a lot!
Really informative video and very enjoyable - the noise of those trains takes me back to commuting in London!
I remember taking the train from the pier head down to Brading (I think it was) when my class was on a week-long school trip to a big house on the Isle of Wight, in late spring 1964. I remember the (quite old) tube stock -- how many generations ago? Of course, this was long enough ago that we were checking out passenger liners going to/from Southampton when we were on the beach. My logbook (written as part of the school trip) records seeing RMS Franconia, SS Andes, SS United States and SS France. Then visited HMS Victory on the way back. I haven't thought of that visit (complete with Isle of Wight railways) in a long time -- thanks for the prompt to go down memory lane
So looking forward to trying them out in the Summer on our annual holiday.
The ride is a lot smoother now. As well as the "new trains," the ballast on the track when the '38 Stock was running used to be beach shingle in places, this was all replaced by "proper ballast" during the shutdown.
Incredible green screen Geoff! Almost looks like you're really there.
Great video Geoff l, I love going to the Isle of wight,I've only been a couple of times but it's a great little island, I've never been on the island line though and it's something I want to go on one day.
4:45 That sound 😍😍😍
Woah it’s yawwie
I can still feel the bounce of the old trains and I was only on them twice! :D
Lovely ex LT District Line Stock. Absolutely brilliant revamping these old trains. Good on you I.O.W., it looks a really modern upgrade. Thank you Geoff for another professional video.
Blimey; there’s a blast from the past… Rob W! Not seen him with Martin C for many years 😮
Great to see the Island Line getting its long overdue station and rolling tock upgrades.
Tell you what, you really put the effort in to convince us that you *have* been to the Isle of Wight, when we all know you haven't ;)
Great video! I was there on the very first train of the very first day, bleary-eyed but I made it! And I love how everything about the line, including the new trains, are improvements while also retaining the classic spirit of the line - the stations still have a lovely vintage feel, and of course, the tradition of tube trains on the Isle of Wight lives on! ^_^
Nice to see those District line trains put to good use.
Geoff, thanks for uploading another great vid. I visited the line on the first day of operation (1st Nov 2021) to see the upgrade - a far cry from steam to Ventnor I remember as a child! Overall, I was not very impressed with what has been done over here.
The timetable is slack yet on day one it fell apart; the door operation is very slow and adds to dwell times. There didn’t seem to be any urgency to make up time and on an hourly service terminating short and starting back from that station is not really an option for passengers marooned at the station(s) not being served. The track obviously remains jointed not CWR but the acceleration of the trains was poor and no doubt contributed to the sloppy operation on day one. I noted mechanical signalling still in use - a missed opportunity to have a modern, digital signalling system?
Vivarail stock may unfortunately be the life-saving option for some routes but frankly the Class 484s are inadequate rolling stock in my view. The matter of provision of toilets (on presumably DfE specified stock) has been aired on other videos on your site and in 2021 the absence of toilets on trains seems to be another gross shortcoming - elsewhere, your viewers make a good case for provision. Apart from the doors being slow to open, all the audible signals etc were a nuisance and added to the unsatisfactory passenger experience. Tube stock seating layout also, to my mind, is not appropriate for this line and is a lazy aspect of stock conversion.
Re stations, the various work you recorded was noted on my visit and your observations on disabled access are well made. Another example is the connection at Ryde Esplanade with the hovercraft where passengers have to use the footbridge to gain the station entrance. I don’t know the specific objectives of the project but in the long period of closure, albeit in lockdown, much more surely needed doing. For example, the roof on Ryde Pier Head station buildings are old corrugated cement sheets and parts of the wind breaks have not been replaced. Surely this was an ideal time to do a better refurbishment. There was also an absence of dot matrix indicators at several stations - I would have thought this was basic passenger information provision nowadays.
Overall, not at all impressed by what has been achieved. A bit of upgrading/renewals but replacing older Underground stock with tarted up 40 year old rolling stock looks as though the Island Line has been treated poorly. I wonder if, say, a tram option had been considered with the possibility of extension beyond Shanklin?
Lovely travelogue Geoff and thanks for the details (and enthusiasm once more).
Wow! I've been watching the Hovercam for months. Finally gave up. Thanks Geoff - something to do on the dark evenings.
Lived on the island for 6 months and spent time on and off. What an amazing line. Have travelled the length of the line many times. My stops of choice were Brading and Shanklin where I’d go to ring 2 of the islands sets of Church bell 🔔 towers. But that’s another story. As always a great video. Top tip if you have a rail card then you will get a discount on the island line and if coming from the main line get a train ticket to Ryde esplanade not only will you get a discount on the ferry but the trip to the second station is included. Saves the long walk along Ryde pier. Did this trip many times.
thanks Andy, great comment! i should have used my Railcard yes ... !
Great video Geoff. I didn’t realise the differences between these units and the ones used on the Bletchley-Bedford line, interesting.
Great to see the new trains over there, and just fantastic to see them running two sets together - it's been many years since I saw anything other than a single two car set running. Brings back memories of the old 1926 stock they had over there back in the 60's and 70's, you often saw them running 7 car trains. Nice to see the track doubled at Brading once again, I remember when that double section of track went all the way between Brading and Sandown. I also remember when both platforms were in use at Ryde Esplanade. And did you know that there used to be another branch of the railway (originally the Isle of Wight Central Railway) that branched of from Sandown and travelled across to Newport? I have read recently that the council is hoping to reinstate it, will wait and see on that one! If you ever want to delve into the history of railway lines, the island is a fantastic place to do so, there were a lot of lines running all over the island in the past. Two different lines running into Ventnor, a line running out to Freshwater, plus the other two lines running into Newport from the east - one from Smallbrook Junction, and the other from Sandown. Just lots of interesting railway history on a relatively small island.
I love the look of the new trains and the improvement along the line (I heard about the passing loop been installed at Brading for a 1/2 hour service, better late then never as they say). I did come to the Island on holiday 20 years ago and traveled on both railway with both the 1938 stock tube train and the steam service so I am sorry not to see them again but I will be looking forward to a more up-to-date and futuristic Island Line if and when I come for another visit to the Isle of Wright. As ever a great video to watch. Thank You Geoff. 😊👍🚃
Many moons ago it was double track between Brading and Sandown - it helped with the half hourly timetable.
If you look out between Brading and Sandown you’ll notice the redundant third rail from the lifted line is still in situ. Apparently there were power issues when the line was lifted and the third rail remained.
The line is downhill on the up line from Shanklin and is immediately 45 mph when departing the station, so that probably explains the timetable difference. There are speed restrictions leaving all the other stations, and there appears to be a temporary speed restriction between St Johns and Smallbrook.
Train was busy yesterday and was only two cars. But it was on time. It’s been really busy this week and timings have suffered. There’s not a great deal of leeway to meet the fastcat if the train is delayed. Fastcat used to depart at 47, now it’s 45, and the train is supposed to get to the pier head at 41.
The guard no longer opens the doors from the rear of the train. The new ‘panels’ are opened with a key that the guard carries. Makes their job rather tricky when the train’s full of passengers. And the guards door only opens when the train is stationary. Couple this with the door opening and closing beeps, the time opening and closing is somewhat longer than the 38 stock. All this adds up. Will be interesting to see if they can run half hourly consistently.
Great news it’s running again. Just need to give it time to bed in and review once the data is in.
So they’re only running an hourly service instead of half hourly, but instead of choosing the timing so that people have a 30 minute wait for the ferry (or the train if arriving), the train is timed to leave 4-6 minutes or so either way, for everyone to get off and onto the ferry (or train), which is also hourly. By all accounts the train is missing the ferry, leaving the passengers to sit (well, actually mostly stand in a draughty hall) and wait just under an hour for the next ferry/train. The only reason the train goes to the pier head is to serve the ferry. Typical British integrated transport!
@@MV-XD2 The ferries also sometimes run late, in particular if they have one ship on an hourly service which has very tight turnrounds. One delay due to heavy seas or slow boarding and it is late for the rest of the day. And of course the ships and trains are no longer operated by the same company, so no official cooperation.
The D-stock trains are back! These are definitely nicer and smoother than the old District line carriages
Isle of Wight certainly seems like a interesting place to go what with ryde pier head and that!
love how regardless of the stock on the isle of wight, the doors are always slow
It was something to do with the Toc spec for guard operation
Hi, I love the IOW and always wondered why they have old tube trains. So glad this came up on my feed, as I normally don't like trains but you made that very interesting. Keep up the content and started to watch other videos too.
The loading gauge (body envelope) of the Isle of Wight is too small for normal main line stock. In steam days it used small engines and 1900-20s carriages, some may have run on the Hastings line which had tight clearances. A bit of work was needed even to enable the D78 subsurface stock to fit. Presumably it was felt that none of the later types of true "tube" stock was in good enough condition to be reused after it was withdrawn.
With those green screen skills Geoff you’ll never actually need to go on holiday again. Isn’t technology amazing...! Great video! Pleasure as always to watch, keep it up and stay safe!
At Brading station they have instead lowered the trackbed rather than raise the platform.
Lovely to see the old D stock repurposed and living a new life on the Isle. Nice to see the infrastructure has been updated without trashing everything that gave the line its character too 😎 We keep saying we’re going to visit the IoW so this might just give me the extra incentive to do it 🤔
Cheers 👍🍻🍀
Well done Geoff for wearing a mask when most other people on the train wasn't, despite it being not ideal for filming. That deserves some respect!
yes totally. and when hardly anybody else is wearing them, it's so easy to slip into not doing so.
Nice to see Geoff not on the Isle of Wight again 😂
Mourning the loss of the ‘38 vintage and the bouncy track!!… have to go visit again soon.
That MUSIC AND SUNSET just beautiful.
That looks superb with those new (refurbished) trains. Next step is to extent the rail network on the island.
Those refurbished trains look brand new. Amazing what you can do.
Kinda similar idea to the old as hell Budd passenger cars on VIA in Canada, some are from the 40s but they are crisp new inside and wonderful to ride.
Very nice green screen skills Geoff!
Geoff ... I believe that they have kept one of the 483's on the Island and it has been taken across to the old Steam railway, not sure if they are doing it up or if it's just getting a paint job, but I'm sure at least one is there ... !
Yes it is, I have to see it at some point just to give it a hug
I travelled this line from Shanklin to Ryde last week - fabulous ride and super refurbished train stock
Excellent but we will miss the legendary 1938 tube stock.
Lovely video Geoff, as a born and bred Isle of Wighter, thanks for showing the interest in our little railway, so far I have only been up Ryde Pier on the new train. There is talk of trying to reopen a line into Newport (there has been for years), it should never have been closed. It is just about possible from the Isle of Wight Steam railway at Wootton, or the latest buzz is maybe the old line from Sandown to Newport. Yes of course I knew about the second entrance at Sandown, and it is definitely Ryde Esplan ayde, as in aid.
its nice to see that the island line trains are ran by south western railway
I used to live in the flat above Sandown station. I love the Island Line, brings back so many memories.
I remember going on holiday,with my parents , by train to Shanklin. Steam hauled etc 1960.
0:47 hay geoff Looks like I need to go back to the Isle of Wight and wave hello to the new train
Loving your videos Geoff! UK railways are really fascinating... And kinda iffy 😀
Love the pin you brought!!! The new trains are a great addition but will miss the old ones.
can't believe geoff had a twenty quid note on him - who carries cash these days ?!
Went over to the island in July and went on the new trains They're cool, we also went on the heritage railway which is also amazing, and it's so good they have that station at smallbrook junction, just a shame that most of the islands railway has been removed 😢
Joining the steam line to this and finding a way to run into Cowes would be be a massive improvement. This would create a heritage line while providing transport and a tourist attraction. Mainland visitors could come by boat without cars while the Island line could mimic the San Francisco Historic Streetcar line where people can ride historic trams.
Nice thought but that would be a big stretch. I cycled most of the rail-trails on IOW in 2007 and there are significant gaps through Newport and Cowes where the old right-of-way has been redeveloped and there is no practical way to get the railway through there again.
Fabulous trains, fabulous episode, fabulous contributors. Well done. 👏👏👍😀
Been patiently waiting for this video , as someone who only lives 2 minutes away from Ryde saint johns road , over the last few months I could hear the 484’s testing most days , it’s getting used to the new whistle and not hearing as much rail noise compared to the 1938 stock, I hope to ride one soon when I get some spare time , great video as per usual Geoff :)
Great shot at 11:36 looks like something you'd see in a high budget film!
Good video. Looking forward to sampling the 3rd rail D-Train version soon. I found the diesels on Bedford-Bletchley amazingly refined, with a better ambience than the sprinters they replaced.
Interesting that ORR has apparently given the nod for the footpath crossing at Brading to stay in situ and be upgraded for reopening the redundant platform.
Those doors opening slow are going to become a pain.
Probably due to the retrofitting. Unfortunately there's not much that can be done to resolve that if I'm not mistaken.
@@Yawwie Just give them a push
What a lovely job they've done on both the refurb work on the D-stock (they look fantastic) and the amount of work raising the platforms (we'll ignore Brading).
Hi Geoff,
Another good video of recycled re furbished rolling stock...I first came across these on the Bedford-Bletchley line when they were first itroduced. My over job at the time took me all over the UK and I was standing at Bedford one day and spotted this unfamiliar looking train in London Midland livery. I asked a Driver on the platform what it was and he told me all about them, how they had been recycled from tube stock and fitted with diesel engines. Later that month I had to travel on one and I was quite impressed, fresher and more airy than there predecessors. I would imagine the I -O-W stock was an easier conversion being electric in as much that the old centre collection shoe was swapped for an outer rail type.
Take care and catch you on the next one...(video that is...😀)
Jon Barnes.
Excellent content as always Geoff. I’m going to do a mini mysteries of the railway series in the new year where one of the episodes has me looking into why six of the stations on IoW have only one platform
9:37 Regarding that Esplanade pronunciation question...
Funnily enough, ages ago here in Singapore when the Esplanade Theatres first opened, there was a debate here as to whether it should be "nard" or "nayd". Most felt that "nard" sounded more "foreign", while "nayd" was the more "local" pronunciation.
In any case, our MRT system - which gained an Esplanade MRT station 8 years after the Esplanade Theatres opened - use the "nayd" pronunciation in its announcements relating to said station.