117.5mph ECML average speed submitted to RPS database is UK's fastest recorded passenger service

The fastest average speed ever recorded by an RPS member aboard a domestic train service carrying fare paying passengers is now 117.5mph. The journey log recorded on 15 August 1991 aboard the 11:00 Kings Cross to Edinburgh Class 91 locomotive no 91021 and 8 Mk IVcoaches over 112.1 miles between Peterborough and York - journey time 57 minutes 16 seconds. The log was recorded on service, but only recently submitted because the recorder only recently joined the RPS.

The previous record of 116.3mph was also set on the ECML between London Kings Cross and York - underlining the line's heritage for high-speed running.

Both runs were set in the 1990's at a time when longer non-stop journeys were possible, and the ECML did not have the capacity problems that we experience today, caused by huge passenger demand for services. However, some ECML average speeds recorded in the last few years have been as high as 114mph - mainly Hull trains services which utilise the powerful class 222 and 180 diesel trains. Although these trains run at the same 125mph service speeds  as the older HST and Class 91 trains, their superior acceleration and braking mean they outperform anything else on the ECML today.

WCML average speeds on the rise

The newly modernised 125mph West Coast Main Line (WCML) with its high-performance Pendolino 125mph trainsets is starting to catch up with the ECML in terms of average speeds. The fastest average speed recorded to date on the WCML is now 115.5mph recorded in September 2009 between Watford Junction and Coventry. Unit 390035 reeled off the 76.58 miles in 39 min 45 seconds. The new timetable coupled to the high-performance of Pendolino trains and drivers’ confidence and familiarity with the trains means that higher average speeds are expected. The RPS has now recorded 110mph+ average speeds over more than half a dozen station to station sections of the WCML, with dozens more now exceeding 100mph.

HS1 - 110mph average speeds being achieved

Records of journeys over Britain’s' first domestic high-speed service are starting to filter into the RPS from its members. Despite running at speeds of up to 140mph, the relatively short station to station sections means that the highest average speed recorded so far is a shade less than 112mph for the 33.38 miles between Ashford International and Ebbsfleet International in Kent.

Great Western Main Line services - which were once some of the fastest in Britain, have now dropped back to fourth place in the league of Britain’s fastest trains. The fastest GWML average start-to-stop speeds of around 111mph were set back in the 1980's. Current services are constrained by extra stops, capacity issues and extra speed restrictions - particularly at London and Reading. The HST sets which still ply the route have additional vehicles inserted into their formations, lowering their power to weight ratio and blunting performance. Notably - one of the few 100mph+ average speeds to be achieved on GWML metals in modern times was recorded aboard a Class 180 DMU. These trains have since been dispensed with by First Great Western and now ply their trade on the ECML on Hull trains and Grand Central services.

The fastest Eurostar average speed between two UK railway stations still shows what could be achieved if a high-speed line were to be built to the north. A 123.6mph (199.1km/h) average speed was recorded over the 56 miles between Ashford International and London St Pancras in February 2008.

More News