Due to a shortage of available trains, the following services will be formed of 3 coaches only:

All Ormskirk line services

1643 Southport to Hunts Cross

1751 Hunts Cross to Southport

When will the new rolling stock be up and running?

Scrapping trains before the new one's are even close to being in service, incompetence

Originally Posted by Red devil

Scrapping trains before the new one's are even close to being in service, incompetence

Well, thanks for that informed and insightful quote.
This has come about because several of the train sets have now reached the mileage at which a major overhaul is scheduled. This has come about because of COVID: Merseyrail has maintained a service as the government demanded, and generally used 6 car formations to allow maximum social distancing...but this means that more trains have reached, or are approaching, their maximum mileage sooner than they would have. However COVID has delayed manufacture, delivery, checking and testing of the new trains. They are now all built, but not all delivered, they are going through testing as we speak...this has revealed that they all need minor modification (mainly computer software) but other things too....this is why they test. This work is done at Crewe.
They then need to train the drivers in the intricacies of the new trains, and the way that they operate has yet to be fully agreed with the unions.
Meanwhile train sets are being mothballed (not scrapped), though some damaged trains have been scrapped. They could be sent for major overhaul, again such overhauls have never been done here, they need to go to Crewe. However an overhaul such as this would cost well into the hundreds of thousands per train set, on a train due to be replaced this year or next. Spare parts for the oldest mainline trains manufactured by BREL (long closed and factory long demolished) are in short supply. Merseyrail are therefore eking out the mileage of the existing fleet by trying to reduce mileage by using 3 car sets.

So what would YOU do?

Originally Posted by Snig's foot

Well, thanks for that informed and insightful quote.
This has come about because several of the train sets have now reached the mileage at which a major overhaul is scheduled. This has come about because of COVID: Merseyrail has maintained a service as the government demanded, and generally used 6 car formations to allow maximum social distancing...but this means that more trains have reached, or are approaching, their maximum mileage sooner than they would have. However COVID has delayed manufacture, delivery, checking and testing of the new trains. They are now all built, but not all delivered, they are going through testing as we speak...this has revealed that they all need minor modification (mainly computer software) but other things too....this is why they test. This work is done at Crewe.
They then need to train the drivers in the intricacies of the new trains, and the way that they operate has yet to be fully agreed with the unions.
Meanwhile train sets are being mothballed (not scrapped), though some damaged trains have been scrapped. They could be sent for major overhaul, again such overhauls have never been done here, they need to go to Crewe. However an overhaul such as this would cost well into the hundreds of thousands per train set, on a train due to be replaced this year or next. Spare parts for the oldest mainline trains manufactured by BREL (long closed and factory long demolished) are in short supply. Merseyrail are therefore eking out the mileage of the existing fleet by trying to reduce mileage by using 3 car sets.

So what would YOU do?

Interesting and most informative, thanks.

Originally Posted by Snig's foot

Well, thanks for that informed and insightful quote.
This has come about because several of the train sets have now reached the mileage at which a major overhaul is scheduled. This has come about because of COVID: Merseyrail has maintained a service as the government demanded, and generally used 6 car formations to allow maximum social distancing...but this means that more trains have reached, or are approaching, their maximum mileage sooner than they would have. However COVID has delayed manufacture, delivery, checking and testing of the new trains. They are now all built, but not all delivered, they are going through testing as we speak...this has revealed that they all need minor modification (mainly computer software) but other things too....this is why they test. This work is done at Crewe.
They then need to train the drivers in the intricacies of the new trains, and the way that they operate has yet to be fully agreed with the unions.
Meanwhile train sets are being mothballed (not scrapped), though some damaged trains have been scrapped. They could be sent for major overhaul, again such overhauls have never been done here, they need to go to Crewe. However an overhaul such as this would cost well into the hundreds of thousands per train set, on a train due to be replaced this year or next. Spare parts for the oldest mainline trains manufactured by BREL (long closed and factory long demolished) are in short supply. Merseyrail are therefore eking out the mileage of the existing fleet by trying to reduce mileage by using 3 car sets.

So what would YOU do?

Until recently they were only running half a time table which means the Covid argument doesn't hold water, they could use the new stock they already have on the Wirral Line, also the driver training doesn't hold up because a few months ago that was cited as being the reason for a lack of staff.
Me thinks this is just a money saving exercise.

Originally Posted by Snig's foot

This has come about because

Thanks - you clearly have inside info which is useful ( though would be interesting to know what the 'minor modifications' are)
One point I would make though is that - in this country - a lot of procedures are dragged out and happen sequentially when in many cases they could take place contemporaneously.
For example negotiating the way they operate with the Unions could be happening now - why does that have to wait? Do 90% now and if anything changes after mods then it should take less time to complete one would have thought.
With the departure of the East Euros and their work ethic it might be my imagination but I seem to be noticing more groups of 4 workmen standing staring at a 5th actually doing the work. You don't have to be a 'remainer' to also view this with alarm.

Originally Posted by Alikado

Until recently they were only running half a time table which means the Covid argument doesn't hold water, they could use the new stock they already have on the Wirral Line, also the driver training doesn't hold up because a few months ago that was cited as being the reason for a lack of staff.
Me thinks this is just a money saving exercise.

Well, yes, currently they don't have enough stock to run the full service because some are life expired on their maintenance. If they had run a full service over COVID and six car trains then almost ALL of the trains would have reached their maintenance mileage. The trains can run but only if enormous sums are spent on major overhauls on 40 year old trains when they have already bought 52 new trains which await full approval, driver training, etc, etc. So, yes, it is a cst saving exercise from that point of view.