So, ATW is a possible customer for the D-Train, though the Welsh
journos have lost sight of the District Line route map in their desire
to alliterate. The solitary comment is also from someone who knows
nothing of the D-Train design.

From:
http://www.carmarthenjournal.co.uk/C...#ixzz3bFLwJbrk

From Covent Garden [sic] to Carmarthen: London Underground trains
could be used in Carmarthenshire

By Carmarthen Journal | Posted: May 25, 2015

LONDON Underground trains could soon swap Charing Cross for Carmarthen
and Waterloo [sic -- why not Westminster?] for Whitland as railway
managers seek new ways to reduce overcrowding in Wales.

Arriva Trains Wales is reported to be planning to talks with Vivarail,
a small company which has bought scores of surplus underground coaches
and started converting them from electric to diesel power. The trains
could provide welcome relief for ATW passengers as early as next
spring – years before the Valley Lines electrification scheme brings
in a new fleet of trains.

At a recent transport conference in Cardiff ATW managing director Ian
Bullock said that Vivarail had spotted that no new diesel trains had
been ordered in Britain for several years. "We're reaching a point
where we really do need some additional trains," he said.

He told a Vivarail representative at the event: "We are going to come
and see you."

Vivarail's trains are larger than the small tube trains which run in
tunnels deep beneath London. They used to run on the District Line,
connecting areas such as Richmond, Putney and Wimbledon to Kensington,
Paddington and Westminster.

Vivarail is fitting several Ford diesel engines, as used in Transit
vans, to each train. The trains were built in the early 1980s and
modernised 10 years ago.

The company predicts that the trains, which feature lightweight
aluminium bodies, will be able to accelerate rapidly, making them
ideal for routes with frequent station stops.

Vivarail's designers are developing a choice of train interiors to
suit different routes, including rural lines. Alice Gillman, of
Vivarail, said that the trains would be ideal for remoter parts of
ATW's network.

"One of the benefits is that because the trains don't require going
back to the depot for maintenance, they could be put on the branch
lines and maintained there," she said. "You're not taking trains off
the line for routine maintenance."

South Wales-based transport consultant John Davies has been reported
as saying that one candidate for the trains could be the Heart of
Wales line, from Llanelli to Craven Arms via Llandovery and
Llandrindod.

Mr Davies said other options included Carmarthen to Tenby and Pembroke
Dock, and the smaller Valley Lines routes in the Cardiff area, such as
the Coryton line.

Using the Vivarail trains in rural Wales would release Sprinters to
lengthen trains on the Valley Lines or other routes where overcrowding
occurs. Alternatively, the displaced Sprinters could enable ATW to
provide additional services.

The Welsh Government has already pledged additional services between
Holyhead and Cardiff and on the Ebbw Vale line, after two track
capacity upgrades are completed.

However, Mr Davies said the former underground trains would have a
maximum speed of 60mph and this could be a limitation where they would
have to fit in between trains running at 75mph or higher.

He pointed to the Heart of Wales line service's continuation along
main lines from Llanelli to Swansea and from Craven Arms to
Shrewsbury.

"On the Pembroke Dock branch, the service isn't self-contained. They
[former underground trains] would have this speed problem on the line
to Swansea, where the maximum speed is 75mph," said Mr Davies, a
former British Rail manager.

"The slower trains would not create delays for following services,
because that section of railway was not intensively used, but he
added: "It would slow the schedules down a bit."

This comment was echoed by Peter Absolon, a rail user who lives near
Milford Haven. He said the lower maximum speed would not be a problem
on the Pembroke Dock branch line but would be a significant
disadvantage east of Whitland.

"Do we really want to have these trains just on the branch and
passengers changing at Whitland? That seems a step backwards."

Mr Absolon, a member of the Pembrokeshire Rail Travellers'
Association, said the former underground trains would be better suited
to the Valley Lines because of their fast acceleration and the
frequent station stops there.

On 26.05.15 13:38, Recliner wrote:
So, ATW is a possible customer for the D-Train, though the Welsh
journos have lost sight of the District Line route map in their desire
to alliterate. The solitary comment is also from someone who knows
nothing of the D-Train design.

From:
http://www.carmarthenjournal.co.uk/C...#ixzz3bFLwJbrk

From Covent Garden [sic] to Carmarthen: London Underground trains
could be used in Carmarthenshire

By Carmarthen Journal | Posted: May 25, 2015

LONDON Underground trains could soon swap Charing Cross for Carmarthen
and Waterloo [sic -- why not Westminster?] for Whitland as railway
managers seek new ways to reduce overcrowding in Wales.

Arriva Trains Wales is reported to be planning to talks with Vivarail,
a small company which has bought scores of surplus underground coaches
and started converting them from electric to diesel power. The trains
could provide welcome relief for ATW passengers as early as next
spring – years before the Valley Lines electrification scheme brings
in a new fleet of trains.

At a recent transport conference in Cardiff ATW managing director Ian
Bullock said that Vivarail had spotted that no new diesel trains had
been ordered in Britain for several years. "We're reaching a point
where we really do need some additional trains," he said.

He told a Vivarail representative at the event: "We are going to come
and see you."

Vivarail's trains are larger than the small tube trains which run in
tunnels deep beneath London. They used to run on the District Line,
connecting areas such as Richmond, Putney and Wimbledon to Kensington,
Paddington and Westminster.

Vivarail is fitting several Ford diesel engines, as used in Transit
vans, to each train. The trains were built in the early 1980s and
modernised 10 years ago.

The company predicts that the trains, which feature lightweight
aluminium bodies, will be able to accelerate rapidly, making them
ideal for routes with frequent station stops.

Vivarail's designers are developing a choice of train interiors to
suit different routes, including rural lines. Alice Gillman, of
Vivarail, said that the trains would be ideal for remoter parts of
ATW's network.

"One of the benefits is that because the trains don't require going
back to the depot for maintenance, they could be put on the branch
lines and maintained there," she said. "You're not taking trains off
the line for routine maintenance."

South Wales-based transport consultant John Davies has been reported
as saying that one candidate for the trains could be the Heart of
Wales line, from Llanelli to Craven Arms via Llandovery and
Llandrindod.

Mr Davies said other options included Carmarthen to Tenby and Pembroke
Dock, and the smaller Valley Lines routes in the Cardiff area, such as
the Coryton line.

Using the Vivarail trains in rural Wales would release Sprinters to
lengthen trains on the Valley Lines or other routes where overcrowding
occurs. Alternatively, the displaced Sprinters could enable ATW to
provide additional services.

The Welsh Government has already pledged additional services between
Holyhead and Cardiff and on the Ebbw Vale line, after two track
capacity upgrades are completed.

However, Mr Davies said the former underground trains would have a
maximum speed of 60mph and this could be a limitation where they would
have to fit in between trains running at 75mph or higher.

He pointed to the Heart of Wales line service's continuation along
main lines from Llanelli to Swansea and from Craven Arms to
Shrewsbury.

"On the Pembroke Dock branch, the service isn't self-contained. They
[former underground trains] would have this speed problem on the line
to Swansea, where the maximum speed is 75mph," said Mr Davies, a
former British Rail manager.

"The slower trains would not create delays for following services,
because that section of railway was not intensively used, but he
added: "It would slow the schedules down a bit."

This comment was echoed by Peter Absolon, a rail user who lives near
Milford Haven. He said the lower maximum speed would not be a problem
on the Pembroke Dock branch line but would be a significant
disadvantage east of Whitland.

"Do we really want to have these trains just on the branch and
passengers changing at Whitland? That seems a step backwards."

Mr Absolon, a member of the Pembrokeshire Rail Travellers'
Association, said the former underground trains would be better suited
to the Valley Lines because of their fast acceleration and the
frequent station stops there.


Other cases in the world where underground trains are being converted to
regional rail or national services?

I have heard that retired M1/1A EMUS from New York have turned up in
Mexico as DMUs, though I have never seen any pictures to prove that.

I have seen, however, pictures of Dk4 trains from the Pyongyang Metro
converted to use for regional passenger service.