Great Western Coffee Shop

On Saturday 30th November 2013 I was waiting at Frome for the 1007 to Gloucester. According to the announcements the train was delayed by "an unusually large passenger flow" and that "this train has four coaches" which it usually has had recently. When I saw that the approaching train had only two coaches I made haste to the centre of the platform and just managed to board. The train was vastly overcrowded, very uncomfortable, and many passengers were left behind. I would submit that rather than the train being delayed by the passenger flow it was delayed by the short formation. Two extra carriages were waiting at Westbury to be attached, there were already quite a few passengers on board, and by the time we left it was pretty well filled from the overflow from the original unit. It was back to full and standing at Trowbridge. Would it not have been possible to have run the unit waiting at Westbury to Frome given that train and station staff were aware of the (potential) passenger numbers? While it might not cause too much inconvenience to be left behind where there is another train 20 minutes or so later, a two and a half hour wait for the next train is a little unreasonable if you happen to have just purchased a ticket. 

To run the unit from Westbury to Frome and attach there to the service up from Weymouth would require 'calling on' signals at Frome station.

Fairly certain no such facility exists at Frome station.

Yes, sorry, I forgot all about 'calling on' signals. It seemed like a bright idea whilst perfecting my sardine impressions on Saturday!
Anyway, I wish every success to all those involved in the new improved Trans Wilts on Sunday, have a good day, I'm sorry that I can't be there, but I look forward to a trip to Melksham one day next week.

Frome station has a rather sparse train service, particularly off-peak and at weekends, and demand is growing (not least driven by significant housing development within a short walk of the station in the last few years). As for the Sunday service, it is trapped in a timewarp from days when working and shopping on Sundays were relatively unusual activies with only about four trains a day each way. Overall the service provision has not changed significantly in the 25 or so years I've been living in the area, despite significant population growth and changes in employment patterns.

It's probably a difficult one to solve economically: Frome is naturally served by trains operating between Westbury and Weymouth, but it's probably difficult to make a case to increase the level of service on the route as a whole. Maybe there is scope for more services to run on parts of the route, however I guess that this might also require additional subsidy. I understand that some options were considered as part of the aborted Greater Western refranchising.

Regarding train formations, overcrowding is becoming more frequent, and is a real problem on days when there is a rugby match in Bath. When there are additional attractors such as the Christmas market, we see severe problems such as that experienced by Alan Pettitt. I realise that rolling stock is not a free resource, but I wonder if more can be done to lengthen trains off-peak and at weekends, using the additional coaches which are used in the peak (provided that this rolling stock can be in the right place at the right time)?

I think that bignosemac is correct that the operating arrangements at Frome do not currently allow for routine joining and splitting of trains. I remember once that a train was attached to another which had broken down in the platform, however the time taken to plan and undertake this manoeuvre suggested that special arrangements had to be made to allow it to happen.

This is a more general problem - all rail services are trapped in this timewarp.

Frome should really be on the radar of campaigners for an improved service. A similar sized town in the neighbouring county has just got a much improved rail service.

Frome has the potential, if not already so, to be a major railhead for a very large catchment area. At the moment it is somewhat out on a limb, being only served by an infrequent service between Bristol and Weymouth. With a couple of token services to/from London.

With signalling (and available rolling stock - the perennial problem) there should be scope for an hourly Bristol<>Frome service. And/or Swindon<>Frome via TransWilts.

Ideally, the line to Radstock and Midsomer Norton should be reopened with a re-sited Frome station on North Parade to avoid reversals. That though is a pipe dream. A more frequent service to/from Westbury/Bath/Bristol/Swindon should be the immediate aim.

The other problem in making the case for additional trains at Frome is its proximity to Westbury. For those potential passengers who would drive to Frome station (particularly in the north of the catchment, Stonebridge etc.), once in the car you might as well make the twelve minutes drive to Westbury and benefit from the more frequent train service.

And those without a car?

Buses aren't particularly good in that neck of the woods.

I agree. I specifically gave up my car six years ago to use the train nearly every day, back then you could at least usually get on the said train! FGW seem to be proud that HoW usage has increased (nearly doubled) but no extra trains. I make a point of never complaining to FGW staff because I think they do a fantastic job with the equipment available.

Therein lies the problem. And it's not unique to Frome. Demand has outstripped the available rolling stock across the country. Maybe, just maybe, there is scope for a more frequent service on the Heart of Wessex Line, but rolling stock pressures may preclude this. What is immediately available* is going to TransWilts for that improved service. Then there's the possibility of the return of loco-hauled services between Cardiff and Taunton from December 2014. That'll free up another couple of DMUs, but I suspect they will be used to strengthen existing services rather than provide the opportunity to increase frequency.

*Nothing additional as far as I'm aware, just a change in diagrams. Although possibly an extra unit hired in from SWT. grahame?

I'm just guessing but perhaps poor Doris didn't realise there were only 2 coaches for part of the journey, as you mention there were 4 from Westbury onwards.

The CIS does tend to get a bit confused where the formation is not the same throughout the journey, and quite often gets it wrong.

I seem to recall that rolling stock was at a premium on Saturday, with the added draw of a rugby international in Cardiff, which would certainly have soaked up many spare dmu's.

A doubling of traffic doesn't necessarily mean that a doubling in provision (be it longer trains or more of them) is required; if the trains were previously half empty and the extra traffic fills them - good. And community rail in many areas is about doing (and having done successfully) that extra loading.  I know the HoW CRP has done very well in adding passengers; I don't know enough about the line to say with certainty if and when it passed the threshold of really needing more capacity, but clearly growth tends to happen on all services so that it does bring potential overcrowding issues on what were the busiest of trains already.  It may not be an accident that there is no Saturday northbound connection being provided in the early evening from Weymouth to Swindon even after 8th December, but it is there on the other 6 days of the week.

Frome and Melksham are of similar size and not too far from each other.  They could be said to have similar characters too.  Frome has 14 services per day towards Westbury, and station usage figures of 145,540 last year; Melksham had 2 services per day and station usage figures of 11,330.  The service count in one direction at Melksham rises to 8 from next week, and it will be interesting to see just how much passenger numbers rise there, and how quickly, in the direction of the Frome numbers.

I wouldn't argue with suggestions that an increase of trains from Frome (there are 4 or 5 significant gaps towards Westbury, taking that example) would go down well. Indeed it's probable that filling the gaps would bring significant extra traffic.  There is logic for Westbury terminators from the Trowbridge direction to carry on there if the timing is right. Logically, the coming of IEP, electrification timetable changes through Chippenham and Bath, and a new longer franchise are going to be the time to take a look at that and indeed at extending other Westbury terminators to Salisbury, or even being run by trains based there. That's not really what's happening from next weekend, though.

They either walk/cycle/taxi to Frome station and make do with its relatively sparse train services, or they use one of the regular bus services to Bath or Trowbridge. My point was that for many passengers who access the railway by car, it's a short drive to another station with more trains. If Frome station had more trains with decent connections then these passengers (myself included) might be less inclined to drive to Westbury or Bath. But that's fairly speculative on my part :)

Well considering this is my local station, I should chime in... ;)

There is alot to reply to, so I'll try and cover everything based on my personal experiences of the station.

Digital Doris Lying:

Sorry to say, Digital Doris was decommissioned a very long time ago. The new system, ATOS Anne, does often make significant mistakes. It does not cope very well with the few services that Terminate at Frome and reverse. (5 Services per day). ATOS Anne also struggles with coaches being added/removed during the journey, 2x Coaches were booked to be added at Westbury so where entered into ATOS Anne. Problem is this can also update to stations priorto Westbury giving the wrong impression. The same system also can't be trusted to tell you which end of the train has the First Class Coach. This is especially true of CrossCountry Trains to the point, I stand mid way and look for the "Yellow Bar" and don't bother with the announcements. They are often wrong! Regular XC Passengers adopt a similar method.

Service Pattern:

Frome does indeed have a very random level of service. Sometimes you see trains within 20 minutes of each other, then nothing for 3+ hours. I personally think the late evening services are fairly good. The last train leaving Bath at 23:38 is pretty good in my opinion. Timewise it is also probably the most punctual service on that line. It's one of the few in my list of trains that is guaranteed to be running and highly likely to be on time. There are others I have in my list as likely late runners.

The Sunday service in IMHO is awful. The First "Bristol bound" train leaves in the Afternoon. Considerably less than ideal and the last return to Frome being 20:49 (Bristol Temple Meads - Weymouth Train). Not great really.

This is why I no longer bother coming back on from Southend on a Sunday because of the sparse level of service in the evening. I would often when I was on PAYE and working 09:00 - 17:00 Catch the 04:Something from Chalkwell - Westbury in order to get to work for 09:30 on the Monday Morning. That is how much I detested the Sunday Service. Now I come back normally on the 10:30 PAD - BRI Train which has the Travelling Chef. Being Self Employed I can often work onboard that train with pretty good 3G/4G signal, Breakfast and without too many problems.

The service could be improved. Not necessarily by extra services. But amending the provision of the existing service to offer a more clock face based timetable. Take a look at the "Off Peak Services" so to speak. The first Off-Peak Service to Bath Spa / Bristol Temple Meads is at 10:18 (From memory). The first Off Peak Bus that accepts ENCTS Passes from Frome is the 09:38 Frome - Chippenham. The first Off Peak Bus to Bath is at 09:09. This arrives in Bath before the first Off Peak Train Service leaves Frome! So which are those who have both an ENCTS Pass and a Railcard going to choose??

Access to the station:

We used to have a good Bus service to Frome Station. The First Bus decided it's 234 was to revert back to the previous route and run to Sainsburys via The Butts. (A route served also by the 161, 184 and X34 Services) Now were after left with the 53 Frome - Warminster Bus Service which only serves the station in 1 Direction. The stop is rather inconspicuous and leaves you crossing a busy road. The bus route only serves the station in 1 direction and is not suited to passengers with mobility difficulties or heavy/bulky luggage... ::) The bus service operated by Frome Minibuses also does not link with the Train Service too well either. Any times it does is entirely by chance.

From the town centre - railway station, it can be walked in just short of 10 minutes. It's an easier to walk from the station to town as it is mostly downhill. A Taxi from the Town Centre Taxi Rank - Station will set you back around ^4.00 on Normal Time.

I too am guilty of having to get a Taxi from Frome - Trowbridge/Westbury/Bath Spa because the train service is not suited to my travel requirements. That costs me ^15.00, ^12.00 and ^25.00 retrospectively. This is a regular customer discount rate however. My Taxi Fare from Frome -  Bath Spa Station often costs MORE than my First Advance to Southend Victoria. I must stress however that if I was charged the normal rate I would be looking at ^60.00 in Taxi Fares as I normally Taxi to Bath Spa on a Saturday Morning at around 03:30AM, which is Double Time. Then wait in McDonalds for the 05:43 to London Paddington ;D

I also use buses which are frequent enough from Frome - Trowbridge and Frome - Bath to connect into High Speed Services to Bristol/Taunton/London etc.

I envy those who can drive to Westbury and pay a few quid to park when I am faced with a Taxi to a station with increased service. It this type of situation which really shows the disadvantages of Public Transport. I am not expecting a perfect service, far from it infact. But I do agree that if the service was clock face and had the right connections to the station by buses/taxi share etc then more would be encouraged to use it and it could sustain itself. Unlike those who have a car, I have to make the best of what is essentially the situation I am found in. I won't say it's a bad situation as it could be ALOT worse! Denton springs to mind... ::) I can't say Melksham anymore! :P ;) ;D

Finally, The TVM at the station (Ticket Machine) is MORE than temperamental and frequently breaks down. It also doesn't take cash.

Obviously nobody told ATOS Anne otherwise.   Another point.  I was aiting at Westbury recently and it was announced the 13 08 Weymouth to Gloucester consisted of 4 coaches but it arrived with only 2.     It is booked for 4 but only forward from Bristol T.M.

I quite agree with you thetrout that the Sunday service at Frome is poor, although not quite as bad as you suggest - the first train to Bristol leaves at 0925 (0939 from 8th December). Granted, miss that and it's almost a six hour wait for the next one......... :o

Some good news for any Christmas shoppers is that an additional train is running to Bristol leaving at 1101 for the next three Sundays  :)

My Bad... I was thinking of Bruton and the 15:08 service which is then the 15:21 from Frome. I forgot about the 09:39 which starts at Frome IIRC?!

So yes... A gap of well over 5 hours!! That makes the evening gap for return services to Frome look small. That gap is just over 3 hours! 17:43 and 20:49 from Bristol Temple Meads both to Weymouth call at Frome. The 20:49 is also the last service to Frome from the North end of the Heart of Wessex (HoW) line and also the last Sunday train of the day.

Monday - Friday the last train from Bristol Temple Meads to Frome being 23:20 (2C36) and Saturday slightly EARLIER at 23:11 (2C38)

Why FGW don't keep that train consistent Monday - Saturday I'll never know. It catches an awful lot of people out, myself included... :-[ Annoyingly the earlier trains run mostly the same times as the weekday service... ::)

Saturday is also the busiest day for this service and is rarely more than 2 Coaches. Often a Class 150/1 with a seating layout totally unsuitable HoW services >:(

Weekdays is usually a 3 Coach Class 158 with a couple of units locked out of use as part of a stock me.

I'm noticing that the new TransWilts service on a Sunday has a significant layover / turn around time at Westbury, and should the 11:38 from Swindon run through to Frome, and the 13:32 from Westbury to Swindon start back from Frome in a future timetable, a gap will usefully be filled and there might be a bit of traffic generated by an otherwise idle unit.  Of course, I can't speak for driver rest periods, track availability on the main line, whether the crew would get bored waiting around in Frome, etc ... but the Heart of Wessex folks might like to ask.

It's all part of a big, complex equation. I can remember glowing press reports of the early success of Southampton Parkway, (and to a lesser extent, Bristol Parkway) based on passenger numbers. But a large proportion at both were believed to be passengers extracted from further west travelling at a lesser fare to London and beyond. Paradoxically, Frome probably doesn't fall into that profile. . . But it really makes no sense stopping WofE trains at both Westbury and Frome.

Other operational issues not withstanding, perhaps running through to Castle Cary might address the crew boredom issue.

On the outward journey, this could potentially provide connections from Frome/Bruton towards Taunton, Exeter & Paignton by changing onto the 1324 at Castle Cary.

On the return journey, this could potentially provide connections from Penzance, Plymouth, Exeter & Taunton to Frome/Bruton by changing from the 1232 arrival at Castle Cary. Also, connections from Frome/Bruton towards Reading/London could potentially be provided onto the 1354 at Westbury.

Of course, find a way of adding a stop at Westbury in the 1057 London-Penzance service, and you could potentially end up with a "full house" of Frome/Bruton connections. Whether one would want to push one's luck that far, though...

I understand that on the current driver rotas, it's the lunch break, and it would be very tight to get to Frome and back and have the required stop for lunch in the rota ... so on that basis, Castle Cary would cut into the minimum mid shift break.  Not to say rotas couldn't be changed, I suppose, but on a Sunday morning ...