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Swindon to Westbury - comment for next franchise, in answer to Department for Transport's request in which they write:


Overview - TransWilts services between Swindon and Westbury
- Trial extra service from 2014 to 2016, now part of current franchise arrangement
- Aim of around 120,000 journeys per annum by 2016.  Figure achieved was 247,000
- Trains full / standing / (over)crowded - to increase from 1 to 2 carriages in early 2018
- Sunday morning summer francise service now running all year
- Additional train running at lunctime to plug gap, Monday to Friday

In answers to the specific questions asked
- Need for evening trains to give people way home; current last departures early evening.
(pragmatic solution is a single extra round trip by the unit that shuttles up and down the line)
- Need for Sunday morning train (08:30 ex Westbury) to be in franchise year round
- We would encourage you to specify this train to start back at Warminster at 08:20 (current first train 10:49)
(no change to operation as it will be from December 2018 - just include in franchise please!)
- The second lunch time train is also an additional service to the current SLC

* Reasoning
1. Later evening train will allow completion of round trips
2. Later evening train will allow people to get home from longer trips
3. Commuters who may have to work late will be re-assured to get home.
4. Early Sunday train allows people to take retail jobs in Swindon (completes travel for them - weekday knock-on effect too)
5. Early Sunday train allows days out / visits to year round sporting events
6. Long Day out from Warminster currently not possible on Sundays
* Evidence
1. Requests / Social and sporting returners
2. Heavy loads onto other late(r) trains in area such as SWI to CNM connection
3. Heavy loadings on late bus Bath to Melksham
4. 2014 Survey; 2017 survey ex Melksham to be done mid October
5. Up to 50 joining the current first Sunday train at Warminster, which fills even at 5 carriages

Beyond the questions

We are still strongly supportive of linking Swindon - Westbury, Westbury - Salisbury and Salisbury - Southampton and Airport services, to meet exisiting flows more efficiently than at present, to provide new direct airport links from Swindon, Chippenham, Melksham, Trowbridge, Westbury and Warminster, and to regularise the service at Dilton Marsh which is currently peverse, and expensive on resource in how it meets the current SLC.

Our full report indicatates that further significant growth should be anticipated along this route, with services increased to hourly.

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Here are the specifics as we feel they should be along the lines of hoe SLC specs are written:

* Monday to Friday

Early train from Westbury to arrive in Swindon before 06:15
(As per current specified SLC from start of 2019)

Early train to Westbury to leave Swindon before 06:15
(As at present)

Late train from Westbury to arrive in Swindon after 22:00
(requires one extra service)

Late train to Westbury to leave Swindon after 22:30
(requires one extra service)

Current SLC is 8 trains each way per day, but 9 are running
One service per day currently extends to Frome (? outside SLC)

Key timings to maintain existing commuter traffic
- 2 services to arrive Swindon between 07:45 and 08:45
- 2 services to leave Swindon between 17:15 and 19:00

Minimum service frequency - 150 minutes
Maximum end to end journey time - 50 minutes

* Saturday

Early train from Westbury to arrive in Swindon before 08:30
(As at present)

Early train to Westbury to leave Swindon before 08:45
(As at present)

Late train from Westbury to arrive in Swindon after 22:00
(requires one extra service, or two to avoid huge evening gap)

Late train to Westbury to leave Swindon after 22:30
(requires one extra service)

Current SLC is 8 trains each way per day, and 8 are running

Minimum service frequency - 150 minutes (allow 1 gap 180 minutes)
Maximum end to end journey time - 50 minutes

* Sunday

Early train from Westbury to arrive in Swindon before 09:20
(As in summer, and it will be from 10th December 2017)

Early train to Westbury to leave Swindon before 09:20
(As in summer, and it will be from 10th December 2017)

Late train from Westbury to arrive in Swindon after 22:00
(requires one extra service)

Late train to Westbury to leave Swindon after 22:30
(requires one extra service)

Current SLC is 7 trains northbound and 6 southbound in
summer, 6 northbond and 5 southbound in spring, autumn and winter;
as from 10th December 2017, summer (7 and 6) spec running all year.

Minimum service frequency - 150 minutes
Maximum end to end journey time - 50 minutes

Both the DfT and GWR should know/be able to easily ascertain which services are not currently in the SLC. For heaven's sake, who wrote the SLC and who approves the timetable (a 'subsidiary' of the DFT!).

A brand new timetable on most lines is coming for 2018 and for some, 2019. How are we to know right now what services (that might disappear before the new franchise for better timings in 2018) ought to be specified for the new franchise?

On many lines, the 2018 timetable will be totally different to that currently - so they are making the answer to that latter question quite difficult.

I have no objection to reading their own SLC to them - helps me know what's what.  And the SLC for 2019 has been published.

I'm seeing this as a sensible way to provide data as to what the communities will use / want / need, rather than being a railway planning operation - that's up to them.    But, yes, I have worded it in "if you did this" terms.

An SLC isn't in any way a timetable, and, as they note, an operator may offer services outside any SLC. So our operator may (well) offer services in 2018/9 that we wiuld wish to be protected by a new franchises SLC, no?

Indeed, the operator & their subsidiary may be discussing earlier/later/Sunday trains right now as a request from said operator. We stand to miss protecting any new services - and the DfT may already be aware of these are

Indeed, for example, we might ask for a first train befo say 1900, when the actual one

We do indeed need / wish to be careful that we're not too frugal nor too demanding;   being a Community Rail Partnership, I hope and think that most of the things that have (and will) come up prior to the next franchise are on our radar.

One to add is the 1830 Westbury - Swindon to run 1 hour later as om the other days of the week to provide a connection from Weymouth for day trippers

Indeed that's fair comment ... but that's not "earlier first service", "later last service" or "Sunday"  >:(  .  I have drafted in a later Saturday service, with a potential request for two extras;   need to phrase it carefully because of the law of unintended consequences!     Run the 18:30 at 19:30 and you end up with two trains in Swindon back very close to each other ...

P.S. not really "an hour later as on other days" ... as there's a train at around 18:30 every day of the week; the 19:30 is an extra.  Never have it simple if it can be complicated!!!

 
May wish to alter that typo?

Indeed, thank you  ;D