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On this day
20th Apr (1789)
Opening of Sapperton Canal Tunnel
Train RunningCancelled
08:58 Bristol Parkway to Swansea
09:05 Bristol Temple Meads to Cardiff Central
09:35 Swindon to Cheltenham Spa
09:55 Bristol Parkway to London Paddington
10:05 Bristol Temple Meads to Cardiff Central
10:49 Cheltenham Spa to London Paddington
12:30 Swindon to Cheltenham Spa
13:30 London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads
14:00 Cheltenham Spa to Swindon
15:09 Liskeard to Looe
15:29 Swindon to Cheltenham Spa
15:40 Plymouth to Penzance
15:41 Looe to Liskeard
16:35 Par to Newquay
17:00 Cheltenham Spa to London Paddington
17:09 Weston-Super-Mare to Severn Beach
17:16 Bristol Temple Meads to Severn Beach
17:30 London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads
17:37 London Paddington to Swansea
17:48 Bristol Temple Meads to Weymouth
17:55 Newquay to Par
18:00 Cardiff Central to Taunton
18:01 Severn Beach to Bristol Temple Meads
18:15 Penzance to Plymouth
18:35 Severn Beach to Bristol Temple Meads
19:43 Swindon to Westbury
20:00 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington
20:09 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central
20:11 Weymouth to Bristol Temple Meads
20:17 Taunton to Bristol Temple Meads
21:39 Bristol Temple Meads to Gloucester
22:45 London Paddington to Bristol Parkway
23:12 Bristol Temple Meads to Weston-Super-Mare
23:49 Weston-Super-Mare to Bristol Temple Meads
Short Run
Additional 07:45 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington
07:59 Exeter St Davids to Cardiff Central
08:15 Penzance to London Paddington
08:47 Penzance to Cardiff Central
09:22 Bristol Temple Meads to Portsmouth Harbour
10:00 Cardiff Central to Taunton
10:25 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour
10:55 Cardiff Central to Penzance
10:57 Paignton to Exmouth
11:41 Swindon to Weymouth
11:50 Penzance to Cardiff Central
12:26 Exmouth to Paignton
13:16 Taunton to Cardiff Central
14:09 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central
15:00 Cardiff Central to Penzance
15:35 Severn Beach to Weston-Super-Mare
16:18 Penzance to London Paddington
16:25 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour
18:00 London Paddington to Penzance
18:11 Castle Cary to Swindon
19:39 Bristol Temple Meads to Worcester Shrub Hill
20:30 London Paddington to Weston-Super-Mare
20:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour
21:57 Worcester Shrub Hill to Bristol Temple Meads
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Great Western Coffee Shop > All across the Great Western territory > Smoke and Mirrors > 2C36 and 2C38 Set Formations
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Author Topic: 2C36 and 2C38 Set Formations  (Read 5798 times)
thetrout
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« on: March 19, 2013, 22:38:03 »
2C36 is the Monday - Friday 23:20 Bristol Temple Meads - Frome. Normally formed of 5+ coaches but Front 3 in use only.

2C38 is the Saturday 23:11 Bristol Temple Meads - Frome. Formed nearly always of 2 coaches only (Class 150) Angry

Whilst Monday - Wednesday 2C36 isn't that busy. Thursday is when it starts to get busier. The Friday working is probably the busiest working of the weekday week, but nearly always get a seat.

Saturday however is a different story (No surprises there Tongue ). However when the 150 turns up it becomes a massive scrum and free for all with people trying to barge on before people have even got off! Angry Needless to say a 2 car is slightly dicing with death. You always end up with people standing who invariably have had more than a bit to drink. Then comes the diverge at Bathampton Junction. Someone always ends up failing over!

So why do FGW▸ (First Great Western) only provide a 2 Car on a Saturday when this is clearly the busiest day of this late evening last train home??

The cynic in me wants to say that it's because FGW have one less carriage to clean that is almost guaranteed to get some form of bodily fluid or food/drink substance abuse... Roll Eyes

Discuss...:
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Grin Grin Grin Grin
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« Reply #1 on: March 19, 2013, 23:08:40 »
The only reason it's formed of multiple carriages in the week is because it is used to get stock to Westbury for the start of service the next morning. On a Saturday all that is needed to move to Westbury must be a 150. It may be worth complaining to FGW▸ (First Great Western), other carriages could probably be added to the service with some rejigging on the diagrams, but I wouldn't like to say how likely it is that would happen.
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grahame
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« Reply #2 on: March 19, 2013, 23:14:43 »
Quote from: thetrout on March 19, 2013, 22:38:03
So why do FGW▸ (First Great Western) only provide a 2 Car on a Saturday when this is clearly the busiest day of this late evening last train home??

The cynic in me wants to say that it's because FGW have one less carriage to clean that is almost guaranteed to get some form of bodily fluid or food/drink substance abuse... Roll Eyes

Discuss...:

It's probably because the Monday to Friday trains are used to get an extra set out to Westbury ready for the start of the following morning's service (peak trains into Bristol).  On Saturday, there isn't the need for an extra set at Westbury for Sunday.

Now - if First were to run an 07:30 Westbury to Swindon and an 08:20 Swindon to Weymouth via Westbury on a Sunday morning, they would have the excuse to run the extra capacity on the Saturday evening too. We know that Sunday train works - we had up to 68 people on the 07:30, and around 400 on the 08:20, when it ran for a few weeks as an experiment for 8 weeks in 2011.

Something about getting all our ducks in a line.   Looks like this does ... nice new diagram, and it would also give a Sunday morning Weymouth to Bristol service.  As I recall, the HoW‡(resolve) team has been looking for Sunday morning trains all year for a while ...



Edit to add ... Written as Southern Stag was also posting ... I think I've provided an interesting suggestion for the ongoing Saturday night diagram!
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bobm
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« Reply #3 on: March 19, 2013, 23:16:52 »
..and of course ugly ducklings turn into swans....  Grin
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