Cut Pacer fares plea as train ends up in museum

Museum pieces are still in use

A NORTHERN Pacer train has arrived at the National Railway Museum (NRM) amid calls for the upcoming fares rise across the railway network to be scrapped on routes where they are still used.

The NRM said the 1980s-era train will “spark debate” when it goes on display at its site in Shildon, County Durham.

Northern political leaders say the continued use of outdated Pacers – known for being slow, uncomfortable and noisy – shows a wide disparity in transport investment between the region and the South-East.

The addition of a Pacer to the NRM’s collection comes weeks after Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, Sheffield City Region mayor Dan Jarvis and Leeds Council leader Judith Blake wrote to Northern – one of three operators still using the trains – calling for fare reductions on routes where they remain in operation.

Rail fares will increase by an average of 2.7 per cent across Britain from tomorrow.

The NRM’s Pacer was retired by Northern and donated by leasing company Angel Trains earlier this month. The long-term aim is to keep the train in working order so it can operate passenger rides on the museum’s rail line.

NRM senior curator Anthony Coulls denied it will look out of place alongside more esteemed exhibits such as steam locomotives and record-breaking trains.

“It will fit very well because the National Railway Museum isn’t just about the fastest, the oldest, the most iconic,” he said. “It’s about the everyday history of the railways. In terms of moving millions of people millions of miles over 30 years, the Pacer has earned its place in history.”

Mr Coulls described travelling on the trains as a “lively experience” because they “bounce along” the tracks.

YORKSHIRE’S LONGSUFFERING rail passengers could be forgiven a snort of derision at learning that an example of the reviled Pacer trains is to take its place in the National Railway Museum, home to iconic rolling stock of the past.

Those who are using the trains to return to work this week – and paying more for that dubious privilege as fares rise – will undoubtedly be able to think of many other words, most of them rude, instead of iconic to describe Pacers.

A scrapyard, rather than a museum, would seem a more fitting destination for these obsolete rattletraps, many of which will remain in service during 2020, much to the chagrin of their passengers being bumped and jolted along.

But perhaps there is some merit to having a Pacer on display – as a reminder of how bad rail travel can get and a monument to the need for the industry to do better.