NEW FGW HST125 Livery

Thrashin · Post by **Thrashin** » Mon Apr 10, 2006 5:47 pm

To be quite honest, all I knew was that it had been Northern Spirit, Arriva, and then Nothern. Therefore I assumed it was two franchises.

pepsipowell · Post by **pepsipowell** » Mon Apr 10, 2006 6:30 pm

I think the new neon is an improvement over the barbie colours and the fag packet (not that that is difficult!) IC Swallow or the original GW green were still much nicer though.

The thing I find funniest about all the livery changes is that for the TPX 158s, First couldn't be bothered to paint the entire train, just pust First vinyls along the bottom half. This gives rise to the 158 with the top half still in RR livery and the bottom half in First TPX, several franchises apart!

It reminds me of a cartoon I saw in a railway magazine years ago when privatisation was just happening (mid 90s?) - a pink class 58 covered in flowers pulling some pink coaches. There were two people in the foreground: 'So this is what you get from a professional design agency'. No further comment...

Jonathan

lumpchase · Post by **lumpchase** » Mon Apr 10, 2006 9:18 pm

OK, MTL was skint and sold out to Arriva. So yes its two owners but still only one franchise old.

chuxn2005 · Post by **chuxn2005** » Tue Apr 11, 2006 2:44 pm

Just to some up.
The new livery is not aimed at people like us.
It is aimed at your average joe, who is going to see the new train and think oh that looks futuristic, smart and fast, not like the old trains.
That is why they aren't going to have original GWR colours or anything like an I.C livery.
From an advertisment and media point of view i think its a great new look.

tydev417 · Post by **tydev417** » Tue Apr 11, 2006 11:05 pm

I think the livery looks great! It gives the HST a new look, very clean-shaven, and modern which is what the companies are going for. Yes some may prefer IC livery or whatever ice cream, maroon, cream color, chocolate, GWR, LNER, NSE livery but those are out, as chux said. In the US many don't agree with the new BNSF livery but you just got to deal with it, things change, we have to deal with it and on top of that the rail companies don't care what "we the railfans" think about what the livery should be!

As long as it pleases them and is raking in more customers and passengers, then the livery will change for the newer and "better", not the older liveries of the past.