West Berks Commuters worries over post-electrification service

[whole diary]

[eightf48544]

Just to add to the complications of service planning  for the B&H^▸ (Berks and Hants - railway line from Reading to Taunton via Westbury) and Cotswiold line with electrification there is the issue of Crossrail in the Inner Thames Valley. If as still seems to be case Crossrail operates an all stations stopping service to Maidenhead then there is a need for at least a Reading to Paddington semi fast  service to cater for the people from West of Reading and Reading and Twyford who commute to Maidenhead, Slough, Hayes and Ealing.

What worrys me is that Taplow and Burnham will lose their through Reading trains with Crossrail requiring a change at Maidenhead thus losing the ability to travel to many parts of country with one change at Reading. Although the advent of Vomiters vice 47/8 s and Mark 2 and HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train)  makes that option less attractive for Birmingham and Northwards.

The Socialogical aspects of people chosing to live in certain area and travel by train does not seem to figure in current thinking. I am sure many people have chosen to live West of Newbury and Oxford because there are through trains to Reading/London.

Grahame has remarked on this issue in many threads particulary as regards to Melksham where a growing usage was devestated with the last franchise change. It has also happened I believe at places like Willingtin and stations on the Nottingham Lincoln line.

So I have a lot of sympathy with the residents of Kintbury Hungerford nad Bedwyn and those on the Cotswold line over the uncertainty of how they will get to work..

[BandHcommuter]

What worrys me is that Taplow and Burnham will lose their through Reading trains with Crossrail requiring a change at Maidenhead thus losing the ability to travel to many parts of country with one change at Reading. Although the advent of Vomiters vice 47/8 s and Mark 2 and HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train)  makes that option less attractive for Birmingham and Northwards.

The specification for the new Great Western franchise still requires the TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) to call 46 trains a day at both Burnham and Taplow after Crossrail is fully operational. See table 2.1 in the service requirement on the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) website. http://assets.dft.gov.uk/publications/rail-passenger-franchise-great-western/a-service-requirement.pdf. I imagine that these trains would operate to/from Reading. I think I read about a potential Reading to Slough shuttle somewhere.

[Andrew1939 from West Oxon]

 eightf48544 is quite correct in the statement that many commuters have chosen to live in the West Berks & Cotswolds area because of the train services. My familarity is with Hanborough on the CL and I know that much of the growth in the use of Hanborough has come from people relocating home the London outer suburban areas and east Berkshire because the prices of housing has been escalating beyond many peoples incomes. I recall talking to a newcomer at Hanborough who had relocated from Wokingham to east Witney, about a 5 mile drive from Hanborough done in about 10 minutes. He said that he had wanted to move to a larger home (expanding family) and discovered that the lower costs of the home he wanted would reduce his mortgage costs so much that he could afford the extra costs of his annual season ticket to London. Moreover, the travel time between Hanborough and Paddington is not that different than from Wokingham to Waterloo due to the slower trains and many more station stops. I suspect that the case is similar in West Berks and is likely to be the case at Bicester for commuting to Marylebone.

[Btline]

What a complete mess of services the Thames Valley will have - all because Xrail doesn't just get extended to Reading!

[grahame]

I have split off a topic covering concerns about the stations in Wiltshire (Bedwyn, Pewsey and Westbury) served by the Berks and Hants line - see http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=11361.0