Refurbished Virgin Trains East Coast

I am travelling south today from Aberdeen using the Virgin Trains East Coast service and this is the first time I have been on one of the newly refurbished trains.
Whilst the actual train is an old HST125 diesel probably built in the late 1970s the refresh within the carriages works well as a stop gap until new rolling stock is introduced in the coming years.

In the First Class coaches new carpet and leather seat coverings look classy and the general deep clean makes it feel nice. The Standard Class coaches also look much brighter. The staff also seem happier working in this improved environment.

A good effort and really need to keep these old units going for a few more miles.

Looking at designs of the new trains I think I may well prefer a refurbished HST to the new stock coming in. Don’t care how old they are if they are to a high spec inside. The HST is a true success of the UK Rail industry – not much else compares inside a Quality Mark 3 carriage – nothing since “betters” it.