Disruption on Monday 23 and Tuesday 24 December 2013

[whole diary]

[SandTEngineer]

First Down train 1C84 1303 Paddington to Plymouth and first Up train 1E63 1505 Plymouth to Leeds just passing through the flooded area between Cowley Bridge Jcn and Tiverton Parkway at 1630ish.

[grahame]

Tickets will be valid for travel on Friday 27th December, if required.

Sensible ... but reminds me of the time, many years ago, that an airline cancelled the flight I was taking the children on for a Christmas Holiday (around 18th December) and (in that case ONLY) offered me a flight 2 weeks later on the basis "well, you bought a cheap ticket and that's our next flight with cheap seats available".   Just imagine the cancellation of a train with an advanced ticket requiring you to rebook on the next train with advanced fares available at the same price - unthinkable.   The railway does have a lot right 

[bobm]

Well I made it!

As already reported the Penzance to Paddington sleeper didn't leave until after midnight. Those in the berths were then woken around Teignmouth to be told the service was terminating at Exeter St David's as both the routes forward were flooded.

Within 10 minutes of getting off the train at 4am I was in a taxi heading for Reading. My eventual destination was Swindon, which although we passed it on the M4, it's against the rules to be dropped off there.   On arrival at Reading it became clear there wasn't going to be train to Swindon anytime soon. So time for some lateral thinking. There was a XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) service to Newcastle leaving at 06:40 which called at Oxford. Took that and the Stagecoach bus service 66 from Oxford to Swindon for the princely sum of ^4.60 and arrived in Swindon at 08:50 - long before any train.

Collected the post, processed it, dealt with messages and a couple of domestic chores and then back to the station. My planned train was cancelled but another West of England service was diverted to call at Swindon a few minutes later. That reached Tiverton Parkway in good time after only calling at Bristol Temple Meads, Weston-super-Mare and Taunton.

There were a few problems loading the buses. Mostly caused by people collecting or dropping off friends parking randomly and preventing buses turning etc.  On the flip side some offered lifts to strangers which eased the queue. The coach took me to Exeter St David's from where the trains were running west again.

I saw one incident of "suitcase rage" but other than that most people just got on with it.

Full marks to FGW^▸ (First Great Western). Technically I can claim a refund for most of my journeys over the last 36 hours but it almost feels churlish to do so given all they have done.

[Chris from Nailsea]

Well I made it!

Welcome back, Bob! 

[TaplowGreen]

In situations like this, surely there is an argument for some early Christmas Day & Boxing Day services?

Yes, we all know & appreciate how much Rail staff like to have these two days off, but surely in these circumstances something could be arranged? Otherwise there are people who are not going to see their families at all.

Suspend engineering works, pay generous overtime and get some trains running - I was passing through Reading today (local Reading-Paddington trains all OK so well done FGW^▸ (First Great Western) for that), but there were people literally weeping on the concourse - not blaming the staff, just in despair.

Myself and my staff may well have to pitch in over Christmas to cope with the effects the weather has had on our industry......we're just doing it because it has to be done - come on guys, step up to the plate and have your Christmas lunch a bit later!!!

You've done a great job to maintain any sort of service in the last 24 hours, let's see if you can really pull it off! (so to speak!), what a great advert for the rail industry that would be! 

[JayMac]

Well I made it!

One for the memoirs there bobm! 

[Electric train]

In situations like this, surely there is an argument for some early Christmas Day & Boxing Day services?

Yes, we all know & appreciate how much Rail staff like to have these two days off, but surely in these circumstances something could be arranged? Otherwise there are people who are not going to see their families at all.

Suspend engineering works, pay generous overtime and get some trains running - I was passing through Reading today (local Reading-Paddington trains all OK so well done FGW^▸ (First Great Western) for that), but there were people literally weeping on the concourse - not blaming the staff, just in despair.

Myself and my staff may well have to pitch in over Christmas to cope with the effects the weather has had on our industry......we're just doing it because it has to be done - come on guys, step up to the plate and have your Christmas lunch a bit later!!!

You've done a great job to maintain any sort of service in the last 24 hours, let's see if you can really pull it off! (so to speak!), what a great advert for the rail industry that would be! 

The problem is not the TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) staff or the NR^» (Network Rail - home page) Ops staff to run the service it would be the cost of binning the engineering works all of the Christmas work will have been planed for over the last 2 years (if not longer) will have been contracted out certainly in the last year.   There are literally thousands of people contracted to work over the next few days. 

Much of the work if it were binned now at this short notice would cost many millions of pounds and would put some projects (like Crossrail) back years and I do mean years.

I am already involved in detailed planning works for Christmas 2015 and Easter 2016 with planning for Christmas 2016 and Easter 2017 some of these contracts will be let in the next few months.

[ellendune]

Is this correct? (from JourneyCheck)

17:39 Cheltenham Spa to Chippenham due 19:09
This train is being delayed at Bath Spa and is now expected to be 1496 minutes late.
This train will be diverted from Swindon.
This train will be terminated at Bristol Temple Meads.
This train will call additionally at Bath Spa, Oldfield Park, Keynsham and Bristol Temple Meads.
This train will no longer call at Melksham, Trowbridge, Westbury, Dilton Marsh, Warminster and Salisbury.
This is due to signalling problems.

Which way did it go?

Was it really over 24 hours late?

[Worcester_Passenger]

Is this correct? (from JourneyCheck)

17:39 Cheltenham Spa to Chippenham due 19:09
This train is being delayed at Bath Spa and is now expected to be 1496 minutes late.
This train will be diverted from Swindon.
This train will be terminated at Bristol Temple Meads.
This train will call additionally at Bath Spa, Oldfield Park, Keynsham and Bristol Temple Meads.
This train will no longer call at Melksham, Trowbridge, Westbury, Dilton Marsh, Warminster and Salisbury.
This is due to signalling problems.

Which way did it go?

Was it really over 24 hours late?

Perhaps it got stuck behind http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=13339.0.

[grahame]

Perhaps it got stuck behind http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=13339.0.

Nope - according to Real Time Trains, that ran right time or even a minute early (tut!) all the way. It appears to have even had special permission to run between Llandecwyn and Penrhydeudreath - multiple times - whilst that is currently bustituted for regular services

Boring explanation ... that train normally uses a unit on hire from SWT^▸ (South West Trains) at Salisbury and this run is part of its run home. With the early morning cancellations, the Stroud line (Golden Valley) was probably run by a Bristol based unit, and this was the logical route home for it.  And someone (!) entered "25th" not "24th" into the system 

[TonyK]

From FGW^▸ (First Great Western)'s Journey Check at 10.15 on Christmas Day:

17:39 Cheltenham Spa to Chippenham due 19:09
 This train is being delayed at Bath Spa and is now expected to be 1496 minutes late.
 This train will be diverted from Swindon.
 This train will be terminated at Bristol Temple Meads.
 This train will call additionally at Bath Spa, Oldfield Park, Keynsham and Bristol Temple Meads.
 This train will no longer call at Melksham, Trowbridge, Westbury, Dilton Marsh, Warminster and Salisbury.
 This is due to signalling problems.

So it still ain't there yet, but at least time has stood still.

[Chris from Nailsea]

No longer really 'news', but just for the record - from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Floods strand 200 rail travellers in Taunton for eight hours


About 200 passengers on a train from London to Plymouth were stranded for eight hours, in Taunton

More than 200 rail passengers were stranded for eight hours after the line became blocked during bad weather.

The 20:50 Paddington-to-Plymouth service apparently hit a tree branch before flooding forced it to be terminated in Taunton.

The collision occurred just before 01:00 GMT, when passengers said they heard a "big clunk".

Travellers were eventually taken to Exeter by coach at 07:30 before reaching final destinations by taxi.

Because of wider weather-related disruption in the South West, First Great Western said customers could use tickets on any service.

Steven Rowe, who was travelling on the train, said he was left at Taunton from 00:50 until 07:30, when he was put on a coach to Exeter. Mr Rowe said: "We left London at 20:50 and on the way we had a 50mph speed restriction towards Newbury, so that took ages. We heard a big clunk and apparently we hit a big tree branch on the line, so that delayed us even further. After that we came across flooding on the line and signal problems, so we terminated the train at Taunton at 00:50. We were standing there right until 07:30 when they told us we were going on coaches to Exeter."

Dan Paynes, from First Great Western, said: "We kept people warm and fed and watered through the night and we got them on their way this morning. Our staff on the trains were superb. We kept passengers as informed as we could. Unfortunately, we were hoping the water would subside so we could run the train to its final destination but that wasn't to be. Nobody wants to be stuck on a train overnight. We're very grateful to those customers for their patience and understanding."

[TaplowGreen]

............I wonder what they'll be offered by way of compensation? 

[JayMac]

............I wonder what they'll be offered by way of compensation? 

Strictly speaking, nothing. FGW^▸ (First Great Western)'s Customer Charter doesn't pay delay compensation for problems outside the control of the rail industry. And the severe weather conditions were something they couldn't control.

FGW Customer Charter Compensation Arrangements

National Rail Conditions of Carriage allow for a full refund from the point of purchase if you decided not to travel at all due to disruption/cancellations, but delay compensation will most likely be only as a gesture of goodwill on a case by case basis. I'd always suggest asking - because if you don't ask you don't get. But ultimately, FGW, unlike TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company) who offer 'Delay Repay', are not obliged to offer compensation for weather related delays to journeys undertaken.

[TaplowGreen]

It's interesting that in the case of a flight, the onus is on the airline to look after its passengers, make alternative arrangements for them or arrange suitable accommodation if a flight is cancelled for whatever reason, whereas rail passengers are pretty much left to their own devices.

No-one can control the weather that's a fact (not even a strike threat from Bob Crow could do that!), but if FGW^▸ (First Great Western) dig their heels in and say that they're not going to even make a gesture of goodwill "because the book says they don't have to" after an 11 hour nightmare like that it says more about their concept of Customer Service than anything else.

I note Easyjet had their staff in today, Christmas Day at Gatwick and laid on extra flights for stranded passengers.