Avanti West Coast London–Glasgow

Tilting Pendolinos sway through the Lune Gorge and over Shap summit on Britain’s busiest mixed-traffic artery.

The West Coast Main Line is Britain’s heavy-haul Anglo-Scottish artery, electrified through to Glasgow in 1974 and bent enough that only tilting Pendolinos can keep time on it. The drama is saved for the north: the assault on Shap summit across the Cumbrian fells, the green squeeze of the Lune gorge, then Beattock bank over the Southern Uplands before the Clyde leads the wires into Glasgow Central. Generations of enginemen measured themselves against those two climbs; the Pendolinos barely notice.

Stations

1. 0 kmLondon Euston
2. 292 kmWarrington Bank Quay
3. 311 kmWigan North Western
4. 335 kmPreston
5. 369 kmLancaster
6. 400 kmOxenholme Lake District
7. 451 kmPenrith (North Lakes)
8. 479 kmCarlisle
9. 643 kmGlasgow Central

The stations OpenStreetMap lists for this service, in order, with the distance along the line as drawn here. A train may skip some of them.

Along the way

• Trent valley racing ground
• Lune gorge beside the fells
• Shap summit
• Beattock bank
• Clyde valley descent
• Glasgow Central’s glass roof

How this line was checked

• Line drawn from OpenStreetMap relation 6346230 — the same nodes OpenStreetMap holds for this railway, thinned to within 46 m of them
• Checked against OpenStreetMap: the whole line lies on real track, a median 15 m from it
• Checked against the running timetable via ÖBB Scotty: our line sits under 100 m from the shape of the scheduled train on this line
• Wikipedia has an article for this line
• See for yourself: open this line on the map with OpenStreetMap's own railway drawn underneath it

Questions and answers

How long is the Avanti West Coast?

The Avanti West Coast runs 645 km from London to Glasgow. It runs through England and Scotland.

How long does the Avanti West Coast take?

The fastest scheduled journey is 4 h 30 min for the 645 km. That is an average of 143 km/h end to end. The line's top service speed is 200 km/h.

Who runs the Avanti West Coast?

Avanti West Coast, with Class 390 Pendolino.

How old is the Avanti West Coast?

The line has been in service since 1974. That is the year the atlas dates it from: for a modern brand running over an older railway, it is the railway's date, not the brand's.

How often does the Avanti West Coast run?

Hourly.

View on the world railway map →

Read more on Wikipedia ↗