The new free train driving experience launching in England that both kids and adults will love
ONE of the most popular train journeys in the UK is set to be given a makeover to make it even more enjoyable.
Those who have taken a ride on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) line in London will know the joy of sitting right at the front and pretending to drive.
The trains are driverless, so passengers are able to perch on seats right at the front and look out upon the tracks as if they were in charge.
For those who like to imagine that they’re driving the trains, a new instalment could make it feel even more realistic.
Several of the trains running on the DLR lines could soon be fitted with cardboard steering wheels, allowing kids – and adults too – to act as driver.
Transport for London (TfL) is first trialling vinyl stickers in the front carriages, with a view to potentially adding cardboard ones in the future.
Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, was asked by Lib-Dem London Assembly member Caroline Pidgeon if he supported the fun promotional campaign to encourage more people to use the DLR.
The London Evening Standard reports that the Mayor said: “TfL will consider how it brings to life the ‘driving the DLR’ experience for children. This could involve cardboard steering wheels.
“TfL will review learnings from the front seat ‘driving the train’ vinyl sticker trial in early 2024 before finalising plans.”
The stickers will come along with new trains on the line, that will include air conditioning, USB chargers and walk-through carriages.
It’s not the only new train experience to come to the UK, with high hopes for a new service set to link two capital cities that could be quicker than flying.
According to the East Lothian Courier, a revamped rail service could soon operate between London and Edinburgh, with journeys taking just over four hours.
If the proposals are given the green light by the UK Government, a new hourly service would cut journey times by as much as half an hour.
The LNER service would stop at only Newcastle and York along the way.
It’s expected that northbound services will take just 4 hours and 5 minutes, while southbound services would take 4 hours and 8 minutes.
The company’s managing director, David Horne, has promised that the service “will be quicker, or at least as quick, door-to-door, as if you had been travelling by air”.
Elsewhere, a new sleeper train joining Brussels to Prague is set to start running later in 2024.
Launching by company European Sleeper, the overnight service will begin on March 25, 2024, and will take around 15 hours from one city to the other.
Along the way, it will call in at Antwerp, Rotterdam, Amsterdam and Berlin before a final stop in Dresden and then Prague.
The route will line up perfectly for Brits, with the Eurostar currently connecting London St Pancras to Brussels, from where they can change to the sleeper service.
Meanwhile, the most scenic train journey in the world could be in Britain, with tickets for just £23.
And this UK train journey offers spectacular views from start to finish.