Didn't we have a lovely time, the day we went to Marylebone?

With some time to kill whilst in Birmingham this week I decided to take advantage of a Chiltern Railways offer of a Super off Peak return ticket from Moor Street station to London Marylebone for only £28.90.

Having just missed the 09.55 service, the first train I could have caught was this…

168004 departs from Birmingham Moor Street, 19/02/14

The 10.15 (10.12 from Snow Hill) in the shape of 168004 but I was waiting for this…

67014 Thomas Telford at Birmingham Moor Street, 19/02/14

The 10.55 Mainline service hauled by 67014 Thomas Telford.

A fleet of BR Mk.3a coaches has been extensively modified for Chiltern with sliding plug doors and toilets with retention tanks and they are extremely quiet and very comfortable, and best of all, the seats line up with the windows giving a good view of the countryside slipping past (at speed!)

BR Mk.3a TSO 12602 at London Marylebone, 19/02/14

I had just enough time at Marylebone to take a couple of photos and grab a coffee before climbing back aboard for the return trip, now with 67014 propelling and the driver doing his stuff up front in the BR Mk.3b Driving Van Trailer 82301.

BR Mk.3b DVT 82301 at London Marylebone, 19/02/14

Both trains were well loaded but not unpleasantly so and I can easily see why people choose Chiltern over the competition for a journey from the West Midlands to London.

I must thank the ticket office staff at Moor Street station for insisting on checking whether the 10.55 was going to be loco-hauled or not before I parted with my money, such consideration is rare but very welcome to us enthusiast types.