Northern Lights (train)
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 operate another two services in each direction between London and Aberdeen as well as one each day to and from Leeds.[1]
| 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 | |
| Start | London King's Cross |
| End | 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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Operation
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 | |||
References
- "Our timetables". www.lner.co.uk. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
External links
- London North Eastern Railway website
- National Rail Enquires website - main web portal for UK train fares, times and other travel information