Caledonian Sleeper facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Caledonian Sleeper

Caledonian Sleeper with 92038 in Serco midnight teal livery, at Euston, April 2015
Franchise(s):	Part of ScotRail (31 March 1997 – 30 March 2015) Standalone franchise (31 March 2015 – present)
Main (s):	West Coast Main Line Edinburgh to Aberdeen Line Highland Main Line West Highland Line
Fleet size:	75 Mark 5 carriages
Stations called at:	48
National Rail abbreviation:	CS
Parent company:	Scottish Rail Holdings

The Caledonian Sleeper is a special overnight train service. It connects London with different parts of Scotland. Imagine going to sleep in London and waking up in Scotland! This train is one of only two overnight sleeper services in the United Kingdom. The other one is the Night Riviera, which travels between London and Penzance.

These trains are like a hotel on wheels. They let you travel long distances while you sleep. This saves you time and money on hotels.

History of the Caledonian Sleeper

Early Sleeper Trains in Britain

Overnight train services have a long history in Britain. The very first sleeping car was shown off in February 1873. It made its first trip on February 24, 1873. This train went from Glasgow to London.

Later that year, another sleeper service started. It ran between Glasgow and London Euston. This was on the West Coast Main Line. Back then, a sleeping spot cost an extra ten shillings.

For over 100 years, sleeper trains ran to many places. They went to Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Glasgow, and more. But over time, fewer and fewer sleeper services were offered. By May 1988, all sleeper trains on the East Coast routes stopped running.

The Caledonian Sleeper Brand is Born

On March 5, 1995, the Anglo-Scottish sleeper services were moved to ScotRail. This was part of changes happening with British Rail. On June 4, 1996, the overnight service got a new name: the Caledonian Sleeper.

Each part of the service got its own cool name. For example, the train to Glasgow was called the Night Caledonian. The one to Edinburgh was the Night Scotsman. The train to Fort William was the West Highlander.

Privatization and New Trains

On March 31, 1997, the service became part of the ScotRail franchise. This meant it was run by a private company, National Express. The trains used were older ones from British Rail.

In January 2000, new seated carriages were added. These were Mark 2 carriages that had been updated. The sleeping cars were also refreshed and painted in ScotRail's purple and blue colours.

On October 17, 2004, FirstGroup took over the ScotRail franchise. This included the Caledonian Sleeper.

Serco Takes Over and Modernizes

In 2012, the Scottish Government decided the Caledonian Sleeper should be its own separate business. In May 2014, a company called Serco won the contract. Serco promised to spend £100 million on new trains. These new trains would have fancy rooms with bathrooms and a new style of club car.

On March 31, 2015, Serco Caledonian Sleepers started running the service. In 2019, the brand new Mark 5 carriages were finally introduced. These modern trains replaced the older ones.

Sometimes, there were disagreements between staff and Serco. This led to strikes in 2015, 2019, and 2021. These strikes were about things like safety and working conditions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the service ran much less often.

In October 2022, the Scottish Government decided to end Serco's contract early. The service is now run by Scottish Rail Holdings since June 25, 2023. This means it's back under public ownership.

How the Caledonian Sleeper Works Today

Caledonian Sleeper class 92 (right) and Avanti West Coast class 221 at London Euston in 2023

The Caledonian Sleeper runs six nights a week. It does not run on Saturday nights or Sunday mornings. Two main trains leave London Euston each night. They travel north to Scotland.

The trains usually go up to 80 miles per hour. But they can go up to 100 miles per hour if they are running late. They use the West Coast Main Line for most of their journey. Sometimes, if the West Coast route is closed, they might use the East Coast Main Line.

Caledonian Sleeper passengers can use special lounges. These are available at several stations in Scotland. They can also use shared lounges at major stations. These include Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow, and London Euston.

The Highland Sleeper

The train for Fort William at Corrour in 2015

The Highland Sleeper leaves London Euston in the evening. It picks up passengers at a few stops. Then it arrives at Edinburgh about six and a half hours later. This train has 16 carriages. An electric Class 92 locomotive pulls it.

At Edinburgh, the train splits into three parts. These parts then go to different places in the Highlands. They go to Fort William, Aberdeen, and Inverness. A diesel Class 73/9 locomotive takes each part the rest of the way.

In the evening, three separate trains leave Aberdeen, Inverness, and Fort William. They travel to Edinburgh. At Edinburgh, they join together to form one long train. Then, an electric Class 92 locomotive takes the full train back to London Euston.

The Inverness part of the train has six sleeping coaches. It also has one seated carriage and a "club car" (lounge car). The Aberdeen part has two to four sleeping coaches. It also has a seated carriage and a lounge car. The Fort William part only has sleeping coaches between London and Edinburgh. Seated and lounge cars are added or removed at Edinburgh for the Fort William trip.

The Lowland Sleeper

The Lowland Sleeper leaves London Euston later in the evening. It stops at Watford Junction to pick up passengers. Then it travels non-stop until Carlisle. After that, it reaches Carstairs.

At Carstairs, this train also splits into two parts. The front part goes to Glasgow. The back part goes to Edinburgh. Both parts arrive at their destinations the next morning.

Going south, two separate trains leave Glasgow and Edinburgh. They combine into one train at Carstairs. The train then calls at Carlisle. It travels non-stop to Watford Junction and then to London Euston.

Trains and Locomotives

A suite (room) inside a new Mark 5 sleeping car.

The Caledonian Sleeper now uses modern Mark 5 carriages. These were introduced in 2019. They replaced the older Mark 3 sleeping coaches and Mark 2 seated carriages. The new Mark 5 carriages have different types of rooms. Some even have their own bathrooms.

Two types of locomotives pull the Caledonian Sleeper trains. On the electric railway lines between Scotland and London, electric locomotives are used. These are mostly Class 92 locomotives.

On the parts of the route in Scotland that don't have electric lines, different locomotives are used. Rebuilt Class 73/9 electro-diesel locomotives pull the trains there. These can run on both electricity and diesel.

Current Fleet (Trains Used Now)

Class	Image	Type	Top speed		Number of Trains	What they do	Built	Notes
			mph	km/h
67		Diesel-electric locomotive	125	200	2	Edinburgh - Aberdeen/Fort William/Inverness	1999-2000	Rented from GB Railfreight.
73/9		Electro-diesel locomotive	90	145	6		1962, 1965–1967 (Updated 2014–2017)
92		Electric locomotive	87	140	7	London - Glasgow/Edinburgh	1993–1996
Mark 5		Passenger carriage	100	161	75	Used on all routes	2016–2018

Past Fleet (Trains Used Before)

Here are some of the trains that used to be part of the Caledonian Sleeper service:

Class	Image	Type	Top speed		Number of Trains	What they did	Built	When they left
			mph	km/h
37/4		Diesel-electric locomotive	90	140		Edinburgh - Fort William	1960–1965	2006
67			125	200		Edinburgh - Inverness	1999–2000	2019
86		Electric locomotive	110	177	2	London - Edinburgh/Glasgow Sleeper. Moving empty trains.	October 1965
			100	161			January 1966
87			110	177	1		June 1973
90					-	London - Glasgow/Edinburgh	1987–1990
Mark 2		Lounge car Seated coach	100	160	22	All routes	1969–1974
Mark 3		Sleeping car	125	200	53		1975–1988

Incidents

When the new Mark 5 carriages started in April 2019, the first trip was very late. Other trips in 2019 were also delayed. This was because of "technical problems" with the new trains.

On August 1, 2019, a train split at Carstairs. The Edinburgh part of the train went past the platform at Edinburgh Waverley. This happened because a brake valve was closed by mistake. An investigation was done. They suggested changes to railway rules and to the train's design. This was to prevent similar problems in the future.

Images for kids

• 

  Sleeping cabin in a Mark 3 sleeper

• 

  Saloon of a Mark 2 seated coach

See also

• Night Riviera