Great Western Coffee Shop

Yesterday(Friday) virtually all the up Penzance to Paddington trains were full and standing resulting in 15/20 minute late arrivals into Exeter.The delays being compounded between Newton Abbot and Exeter as these trains can get further delayed behind Paignton/Exmouth stoppers because of a late departure from Newton Abbot.This seems now to be a regular feature of FGWs timetable west of Exeter these days.Clearly FGW is having problems running to the existing timetable between Penzance and Exeter particularly at busy times so whats the solution,extended journey times/Coach with power doors,thoughts?.

Platform extensions in cornwall so you dont need to use SDO
Emply a second person to assist with loading / door etc between Pnz and Ply

Last passenger to board closing the door behind them :o

Very interesting comment yesterday evening from a well know campaining gentleman in the Bristol / Wiltshire area who uses the term "we" when talking about first.  Dr Andrew Murrison (MP for South West Wilts) was talking at a public meeting, and the question of very light staffing at Warminster (i.e. zero at times) and heavy staffing / dispatching at Westbury was raised.

To quote

"Because there are slam door trains operating at Westbury, all trains must be seen away by a dispatcher.   It's a health and safety issue - people could get hurt by a door flying open if they weren't shut properly.  So that takes precedence over staffing elsewhere"

Are there really dispatchers present for all HST departures / station stops all the way down to Penzance (not my neck of the woods - I don't know), or was "XX" talking a load of tosh? It seems more likely to me that Westbury's heavily loaded with dispatchers to keep trains running on time through a station with limited platform availablily, and multiple routes - Salisbury, Bath, Reading, Yeovil, Taunton and (very occasionally) Swindon.

On the power doors ... didn't FGW choose to send back the 125 mph units they had which were fitted with power doors, and keep exclusively the manual doored stock?   It does make a difference - I was getting on a 125 at Swindon the other day; couple of poeple stood inside wondering how to get out, and a couple of young ladies on the platform standing looking helpless too.  I - err - stepped around them and showed them how a door handle works  ;)

Tosh.  But obviously its takes a lot longer to self despatch an 8 coach train with manual doors as against a 3 coach train with automatic doors. However you are going to concentrate you despatch resources at stations where HST will call to keep dwell times and station delays to a minimum.

They usually manage. Are you suggesting lenthening journey times - as that will only lead to the very small number of people who do use the train switching to the skies like all the other travellers ;)

Now your just being silly. Passengers closing slam doors properly behind them? Whatever next...
 ;D

The trains yesterday were all busy! The small unit trains and the HSTs leaving the county all completely rammed with either passengers travelling back from the half-term break or local day-trippers. I would be surprised if any managed to keep to time given the amount of people/luggage getting on and off. One of the factors is a lot of older travellers on the Club 55 tickets, travelling without reservations and clogging up what is already a very busy time.

Club 55 aka Saga Louts.

;D

Doesn't Redruth need a dispatcher for every train due to the curve in the platform?

:D ;D :D

My first ever post on the Coffee Shop was about extended station stops in Cornwall.  If trains are to run to time in Cornwall (and elsewhere in fact eg Reading) then FGW must either extend the dwell times at these stations to something realistic or address the reasons why dwell times are longer than they've planned.  It's no good just hoping that everyone will hop in and out in 30 seconds or whatever with no plan as to how this will be achieved.

The old Southern Region was best at managing quick station times.  12 coach slam door trains would often be in and out of East Croydon in 30 seconds - but us ex BR types always knew that no-one could run a passenger Railway like the Southern.

That's true, but their passengers were also largely commuters who had been using the trains for years, and a significant number would have jumped off and been halfway up the stairs before the train had come to a halt, leaving the doors flapping open which I very much doubt would be considered safe nowadays. So although the train may have only been stationary for 30 seconds, half of the unloading had happened before it came to a stop! The other fact is that the commuters were very disciplined, knew the drill and closed doors behind them. And they weren't travelling with lots of luggage. And they understood that slam doors don't open if you just stand and look at them.

I reckon if you dropped a load of ex-BR(S) men on platform 4 at Reading they'd have trouble despatching an HST any faster than the current staff, who by and large do a sterling job at getting HSTs in and out pretty smartly. I certainly doubt that station calls in these days of power doors at East Croydon are still that quick, since no-one can get off until the train's at a complete stand and the doors are opened but they're probably much safer.

Incidentally, in my very limited experience of the Swiss Railways they tend to open the doors before the train has come to a stand - I wonder if that's related in any way to their legendary punctuality...

Yes and any door on the catch would be dealt with a swift boot from the outside or yank from the inside and no questions asked.  Times have changed.

As it has not been mentioned yet, worth saying that Friday was a dreadful day for adhesion problems in Devon and Cornwall - the annual leaf fall problem was at its worst. Numerous reports of trains struggling up various hills, including some that could not make it up Rattery. And a freight that slipped to a halt approaching the single line section in Cornwall, with the route already locked over Largin viaduct.

Caused many more issues than passenger loadings, I suspect.

Have to agree about the dispatchers on platform 4 at Reading - on the whole, they do a remarkable job. However, the three that work platforms 5-8 must be the busiest by a country mile in FGW land.

There's been a radical cut back lineside - very noticeable through the Glyn Valley but the draught from a passing HST can draw leaves in from far away - made some trips up and down through Devon & Cornwall last week and there was a lot of concertinering when alternate Power cars lost and regained grip.

I thought I'd seen a new solution whilst awaiting a connection at Bodmin Parkway - the track was covered in grey sand - was only a leaky freight from St Austell.
   

So should Saltash, St Germans, Hayle - straight or inward curving platforms result in the same delays if the TM has to walk the length of the train twice shutting doors.
Travelled once with a Lady TM who made a big fuss of helpful passengers who closed doors and after arriving on time felt her attitude contributed to it - maybe it did/didn't but it certainly sounded good.

I like vocal TMs - travelled down from Newton Abbot once with a TM who kept us informed in a rather nice documentary style about the Devon banks & tunnels.
 

If the platform is straight though the TM can see all of the train and so it can be dispatched safetly without platform staff.

Still happens! If the trains only just started up and the door near you is on the catch, common reaction is to kick it closed. Official policy is to stop the train, get the signal put back (sometimes not possible cos of the overlap), check all the doors, cause a delay, tell signal box, stop new customers trying to get on, check doors again, give signal, fill in paperwork.

Ended up doing that myself after seeing an HST pulling out of an un-named station with an insecure door (CDL engaged and yellow light extinguished but with the primary lock handle pointing vertically downwards). I did shout to alert the platform staff but they were too far away and didn't hear, so I gave the door a clout as it passed me to close it properly.

I suppose technically I shouldn't have done it but it was a bit of a reflex/instinctive action that I didn't really think about. In all honesty I was half expecting to get admonished or threatened with the BTP for breaching health and safety protocol when a despatcher turned round and saw me do it, but in fact they thanked me, as did the train manager as their window passed me.

And I would have thanked you as well. Stopping a train after it has departed causes huge amounts of paperwork.
Plus you get Swindon moaning at you because of delay mins.

The whole of Swindon moaning at you?  ::) ::) ;D

You get Kevin (http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=1178#Kevin) (and his team) moaning at you - that's bad enough!  ::) :o ;D