Friday 14th May saw the final Great Northern Class 365 service leave London's King's Cross Station, with a commemorative headboard made and carried for the occasion.
Known as The 18:12 Farewell service after the departure time, heading out behind 365 522, commuters rode across 12 carriages, eight had originally been booked but a further four were added due to demand.
Travelling up the East Coast Mainline, the Great Northern operated train stopped at Stevenage, Biggleswade, St Neots, Huntingdon and finally Peterborough.
9th of December 1996 saw the introduction of Class 365s on the East Coast Mainline by British Rail, operating out of King's Cross to both Peterborough and King's Lynn.
The service back then was named “Networker Express”, which was written on the headboard for the final run after 25 years of service. With newer more modern Class 387s and 717s entering service with Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), in 2017, the Class 365s are now surplus to requirements.
Managing Director for Great Northern and Thameslink Tom Moran said: “It was a real honour to be on the last Class 365 out of King's Cross. I'd like to thank every member of the team who's played a role in keeping them running so reliably for the last quarter of a century!
“You could see the affection our customers and colleagues have for these trains from the response we had as we set off from King's Cross and at each stop on the route.”
Chief Operating Officer Steve White said: “Today marked another milestone in the progressive renewal of our fleet as we said goodbye to our Class 365s. When they were introduced 25 years ago, they were ahead of their time and they have served us well.
“With the introduction of our summer 2021 timetable, newer, air-conditioned, Class 387 trains will temporarily support the GN network. This will help our passenger recovery from COVID-19 and also reduce our costs ensuring better value for taxpayers.”
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I will definitely miss the Class 365 Networker EMUs. Maybe Varamis Rail should inherit them to use them for light freight and logistics to be operated on the East Coast Main Line. Or will they go for scrap.
Well I’ll BE… This is really is th end of another era, especially after almost a quarter of a century… I think the Networker Express Class 365 units were the Greatest passenger trains the UK ha ever seen.
I do hope some of these Networker Express Class 365 trains are Potentially Preserved, Hopefully for a new sort of good use along Heritage Railways anywhere across the UK.
I also think the livery for these trains, is of nostalgia, as well as full of character through & through…
Introduced during the final year(s) of a now sadly defunct (retired) British Rail, now set to retire itself after almost 25 years on… not only the end of another era, but also the fresh new starting next chapter in the history of this part of the UK’s Rail Network.