Of all the train companies I have travelled with, I would have to say my best experiences have been with Midland Mainline.
About Midland Mainline ************************** Midland Mainline as we currently know it was founded in 1996 and is part of the National Express Group. They currently principally run routes from Sheffield and Nottingham to London St. Pancras but also operate services as far north as Leeds and Scarborough!
Midland Mainline operated stations include Sheffield, Chesterfield, Derby, Leicester, Kettering, Wellingborough and Market Harborough. Midland Mainline trains currently carry more than nine million passengers per year! Whew!
There are 133 MM train services operating every day. There's one every hour from Derby to London St. Pancras, which I think is perfectly adequate.
The trains *********** There are two types of MM train - the high speed trains and the "Meridian" trains.
If you have ever travelled on a Virgin Voyager train, the Meridian trains are basically the same. The high speed trains are slightly older, but are comfortable, feel safe and travel very fast!
I have travelled on both types of MM train and I have no complaints. The MM website (midlandmainline.com) has pictures of the inside and outside of both trains. I have found both types of train to always be clean.
The toilets on the high speed trains tend to be a little small, however, but are usually clean. On the Meridian trains, the toilets are larger (exactly as Virgin Voyager) and usually clean.
I find that there is usually good, sufficient luggage space on the high speed trains, but the Meridian trains are designed in such a strange way (like Virgin Voyager): there are quite small luggage racks at the end of each carriage and also ones in the middle. It's very difficult to drag a very heavy suitcase down the aisle to the luggage rack in the middle. It would have been better for them to simply make a bigger luggage space at each end of the carriage. I suppose the luggage space in the middle is for people who really want to watch their suitcases and are sitting towards the middle. In most carriages (more detail later) there is a space for wheelchair passengers. If there is no wheelchair passenger, this space can be (and I have seen it) used as a luggage space.
On Meridian trains there are points to plug in your laptop and mobile phone charger. This is very useful, particularly if you are on a long journey and you want to play, sorry… I mean work on your laptop, or your phone is running out of power.
There are "Ms" bars on all MM trains that I'm aware of. They sell food and usual train things, but I tend to never buy things on trains as they're usually extortionate. At the moment, a ham sandwich costs £2.55, a croissant £1.10, £0.70 for Walker's Big Eat crisps and £1.10 for a coke. They offer a £3.50 meal deal including any sandwich, soft drink or water and Big Eat crisps. OK, that's not so bad…
The staff onboard are very helpful and friendly. With other companies I've often had train managers (the ones who check your ticket) who have no time for you and aren't very friendly when they check your ticket. With MM I've found them to always be friendly, courteous, and helpful. If there's a delay, they will tell you and give you estimates of the delay. What more can you ask for?
Punctuality ************ Now for a little (true) story: I was on my way from Leeds to Luton Airport Parkway, to catch a plane. I had booked a seat on the 1:10PM Virgin train from Leeds to Luton Airport Parkway, with me having to be at the airport for 6:15PM. Reasonable time allowance, wouldn't you say, considering it's just under a 4 hour journey? Well, as usual, the train was delayed... by 2 hours! It simply was not going to make it on time. I finally got on the train, to be told that it would be faster to change at Derby to get a Midland Mainline train to Bedford and then another one from there to the airport. My journey was saved... thanks to the speedy and, most importantly, on-time Midland Mainline train! The staff onboard the MM train were very sympathetic, friendly and informative. I could not have asked more. I got to the check-in desk at 6:13PM! My flight was delayed anyway... but that's beside the point...
I have been on many MM trains and I don't think many have been late. A few years ago one lost an engine (there's more than one apparently) so it was travelling only half as fast, but it was only 30 minutes late arriving. In general they're on-time and I would trust MM to get me to the airport with only a 45 minute buffer. I wouldn't recommend doing that, as your blood pressure may get to dangerous levels, but I doubt you'd be late with MM anyway. What is it with airports and stress?
Stations ********* As I previously said, MM stations include Sheffield, Chesterfield, Derby, Leicester, Kettering, Wellingborough and Market Harborough.
I personally use Derby Station very often, and Sheffield occasionally. Derby's currently undergoing a refurbishment, but it's still not a bad station; covered platforms, always clean, with very friendly and helpful staff and clear signs and information screens. It just looks unfinished. The ticket office staff, I've found, are always willing to spend time getting you the best tickets, even if there's a queue. This means that there might be a little waiting time if it's busy, but if you're in a rush, there's a ticket machine for paying by card for tickets for that day. The people on the information desk are very friendly and will point you in the right direction with a smile. The people on the platforms are similarly helpful.
The only thing I don't like at Derby station are the people who work at the food outlets. There are three: Pumpkin café on one of the platforms, Upper Crust/Derby's Hero pub and a Café Ritazza. I usually use Upper Crust because it's cheaper, but the staff there tend not to be the most friendly of people. Other than the food outlets, Derby Station also has a WH Smith and a dry cleaner's.
I'm not so familiar with Sheffield Station, but the platforms are covered, there are nice enough toilets and good signs and information screens.
Ticketing ********** You can buy general train tickets (as I normally do) from any station to travel on MM trains, or you can buy specifically a MM ticket.
As with pretty much all train tickets, the earlier you book, the better deal you're going to get. Prices to London start at £6 one way for Standard Class. You can also reserve your seat at no extra cost.
The good thing about Midland Mainline is that they do "Days Out" tickets. These are combination tickets which include return train fare, return bus fare and (if applicable) the entry fee. The (arguably) best one they do is to Alton Towers from Derby or Leicester. They're not publishing their prices at the moment because Alton Towers is shut, but I believe mine cost about £25. Considering it cost £22 to get into Alton Towers alone, that's not bad at all, I think!
Disabled facilities ******************** I have not personally tested the disabled facilities onboard MM trains, but I have noticed them and the MM website provides good information about this. They have a telephone number to call for more information or to request assistance: 08457 221125 or textphone 08457 078 051.
If you require assistance to board or alight the train, it can be provided by pre-booking. At Derby and London St. Pancras there are even motorised people carriers to take you around the station.
On Meridian trains, there are disabled toilets and disabled seating in both First and Standard Class. On the high speed trains there is disabled seating in both First and Standard Class but only a disabled toilet in First Class on most trains. I'm sure the staff would not have a problem with you using the First Class toilets if you're disabled. Scooters of a maximum width of 0.67m can fit on high speed trains.
There are disabled facilities of varying degrees at MM stations. All MM stations have disabled toilets, assistance during scheduled train operating times, accessible waiting rooms, ramp, a wheelchair available and they are all wheelchair accessible. All MM stations but Wellingborough and Market Harborough have disabled accessible taxis serving them.
Though they don't explicitly say so, they have a picture of a person with a guide dog so I imagine they welcome guide dogs (where doesn't? Everywhere should…).
All in all ********* Midland Mainline are not a bad train company. If I had the choice between Midland Mainline and Virgin (they operate similar routes), Midland Mainline would win every time, on punctuality, cleanliness, friendliness and speed.
More details
Speed of trains
Fast
Safety of trains
Very safe
How extensive is their Rail Network?
Average
How well does it cater for disabled people?
Don't know
Ticketing System
Excellent
Value for Money
Good
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