Timetable and other upcoming changes - overview (from GWR) last Monday

[whole diary]

[Gordon the Blue Engine]

Just to clarify, will these be 12 car from Didcot with SDO^▸ (Selective Door Opening) Cholsey to Tilehurst (which are will be 8 car of course), or will they pick up/ drop off cars 9 - 12 at Reading?

[stuving]

RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website) and GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) are now showing that from May we have a new 1P97, 0806 from Didcot Parkway, 0820 from Pangbourne, then semifast to Paddington.  In best tabloid tradition I’ll say “it’s GTBE wot did it” (but I think we all now know that it was a data glitch at NR^» (Network Rail - home page)!).

Currently 1P97 starts up at Maidenhead at 0844 formed by ECS^▸ (Empty Coaching Stock) from London: timings from Maidenhead from May are unchanged.

So this is a gain for Cholsey – Tilehurst passengers heading beyond Reading. 

I did wonder if GWR were still working on the choreography, but it now looks like single dance routine so probably one of the dancers got lost - in NR or maybe in GWR. There always was a train at Didcot able to run into London at 8:06, and since it fits timing-wise with an existing train from Maidenhead you wonder if that's just lucky or if that was always the idea. The ECS from PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) to RDG^‡(resolve) to form 1P17 is the one now running to MAI^▸ (Maidenhead station) and forming 1P97 - so no loose ends, nor extra paths on the busy bits.

[IndustryInsider]

Just to clarify, will these be 12 car from Didcot with SDO^▸ (Selective Door Opening) Cholsey to Tilehurst (which are 8 car of course), or will they pick up/ drop off cars 9 - 12 at Reading?

Other than the first one towards London in the morning, all are 12-car between Didcot and Paddington from what I can interpret.  The longest running platform extension program in history at Cholsey, Goring, Pangbourne and Tilehurst, should be complete by then with doors opening on 8 vehicles, rather than the 7 that currently open.  Extensions at Slough and Maidenhead should also be complete making 12-car operations there much easier.

[Gordon the Blue Engine]

Both platforms at Pangbourne were finished a few weeks ago and the temporary barriers were taken away, but I've not yet seen anyone standing on the new bit at the Didcot end on the Up platform waiting for the doors in car 8 to open! Obviously makes sense to wait to remove the 7 car SDO^▸ (Selective Door Opening) until Tilehurst, Goring and Cholsey are all finished too.

[Lee]

I did wonder if GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) were still working on the choreography, but it now looks like single dance routine so probably one of the dancers got lost - in NR^» (Network Rail - home page) or maybe in GWR.

He's just turned up now: