Weather disruption caused in 2014, and how to prevent it happening again - ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[warrej]

I have an advance ticket for travel tomorrow from Paddington to Exeter. Does the lifting of ticket restrictions mean that I could use that ticket today?  With the bad weather forecast for tomorrow I am considering travelling back early

This note issued to staff would seem to suggest you can

Any customer holding a valid ticket for travel on today or any date up to and including Sunday 16th February may choose to use that ticket on any of these dates (at any time of day) without additional charge. This also applies to those customers who may have held over their journey from Monday 10th, Tuesday 11th or Wednesday 12th February.

Thanks bobm

[ChrisB]

A different take on "Rail Replacement Road Transport"? 

[bobm]

Like the way the power car's tail lamps are still lit.

[broadgage]

Like the way the power car's tail lamps are still lit.

Yes, rather odd. I would expect that this would run the batteries down, would also expect that the batteries in a locomotive or power car would be isolated before moving by road.
I would expect that the road vehicle would be equiped with whatever lights are needed, after all most exceptional loads are not ready fitted with lights !

[ChrisB]

If you look carefully, the rear lights on the low-loader are lit as well

[ChrisB]

From a brief sent to the Customer Panel

Issued: 12th February 2014 @ 1750

FGW^▸ (First Great Western) Ticket Restrictions from 12th to 16th February

Customer Travel Advice for Thursday 13th February Disruption in the Maidenhead, Dawlish and Bridgwater-Taunton areas continue to have a significant impact on service provision.
We are strongly advising customers not to travel unless absolutely necessary, and to consider alternative routes. If a customer chooses to travel they should be advised that services will be subject to delay and are likely to be extremely crowded.

Ticket Restrictions In light of the above travel advice: we have a number of ticket easements in place, with some additional ones from today. For travel wholly with First Great Western, we continue to have no time restrictions in place from Tuesday 11th February to Friday 14th February for both Walk-Up and Advance fares.

This easement also applies to the time restrictions on the application of Railcard discounts where travel is wholly with First Great Western. To clarify, Rover and Ranger products are excluded from these easements.

Any customer holding a valid ticket for travel on today or any date up to and including Sunday 16th February may choose to use that ticket on any of these dates (at any time of day) without additional charge. This also applies to those customers who may have held over their journey from Monday 10th, Tuesday 11th or Wednesday 12th February.

Owing to the flooding at Fordgate, and therefore bus replacements between Taunton and Weston Super Mare, many customers may wish to travel via Bristol between Exeter and the Weston Super Mare / Yatton area. FGW price some tickets routed ^Direct^ between Exeter area and Weston Super Mare / Yatton area, which offer a saving over the Via Bristol fares for the same journeys. While there are bus replacements between Taunton and Weston Super Mare, please allow customers to travel with First Great Western via Bristol Temple Meads with these tickets routed ^Direct^.

Full refunds (no penalty) will apply to any customer holding a ticket for travel on Wednesday 12th February ^ including Advance tickets ^ where the customer chooses not to travel. Please offer instant refunds where possible or where not possible please direct customers to FGW Customer Relations.

Mutual Ticket Acceptance
Mutual ticket acceptance is in place with SWT^▸ (South West Trains), Chiltern Railways, Virgin and London Midland into London as well as SWT and Cross Country elsewhere on the network.

Advance Purchase tickets
In order to manage customers with Advance Purchase tickets the following applies:
Any customers with Advance Purchase tickets for travel with us that no longer wish to travel because of service cancellations can have their ticket refunded. These refunds can be paid (where funds allow) instantly at Ticket Offices.

Customers with Advance Purchase tickets valid for travel with us on Tuesday may use them on any service for the rest of this week (up to and including Friday).
Other customers with Advance Purchase tickets for travel with us dated from Monday 10th to Sunday 16th February have been permitted an extension that allows them to use their tickets on a choice of the next few days, so tickets dated for travel on Monday 10th to Sunday 16th February are also valid for travel on any one date up to and including Sunday 16th February.

Refund Policy
Full refunds (without penalty) will be available to any customer whose chooses not to travel with us on any journey in the near future. This arrangement shall apply for tickets already purchased for travel between now and 31st March 2014. This applies to all ticket types, including normally non-refundable ^Advance^ tickets.

Future Reservations Seat reservations, and therefore Advance fares, are still temporarily unavailable for many First Great Western services which serve the West of England via Newbury. FGW HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) services between London Paddington and Exeter St David's (and reverse) have today re-opened for reservations on Thursday 13th, Friday 14th, Sunday 16th, and Tuesday 18th up until Friday 21st February. We are anticipating the re-opening tomorrow of the same services due to run on Saturday 15th and Monday 17th. At present, our West of England services due to run via Newbury on or after Saturday 22nd February are still temporarily unavailable.

[johoare]

Does this mean that tomorrow I can buy an off peak railcard and still travel on a peak train from Maidenhead?(My monthly season ticket ran out yesterday)..

[Tim]

Does this mean that tomorrow I can buy an off peak railcard and still travel on a peak train from Maidenhead?(My monthly season ticket ran out yesterday)..

I think it does (assuming you mean a travelcard).   I travelled Bath-Cardiff in the peak on an off peak return yesterday.  Train was more or less on time and I only saved a couple of quid, but lady in booking office was more than happy to sell me the off peak ticket despite knowing when I intended to use it.

[TaplowGreen]

Here's a question that we've been discussing in the office today and I'm hoping someone on here can answer...........in times such as these with only 20% or so of trains running, what do all the "spare" train drivers do?

Are they temporarily redeployed in Customer Service or similar roles, or is it just a case of waiting around for a train that they can drive?

Thanks

[insider]

Method of Work Twyford to Maidenhead...

The Main Lines are temporary Block Working. This means stopping get special permission(authorised to proceed by a handsiganller and a special form) to pass a number of signals, proceed at 50mph, except 15mph over points (so Ruscombe on Up), and then stopping at end of specified section to give up permission(by handing form back in to another handsignaller).

Limits of TBW^▸ (Temporary Block Working) are as follows UM31 just to west of Twyford Station (actually end of platform 2) until S5 signal at Maidenhead.

On Down Main from S36 at Maidenhead until TR6 at Ruscombe.

In both directions approx 5- 6 signals are being ignored. This whole process takes approx 20-30 mins per train.

On the Down Relief talking by two signals DR26 & DR27 this is due to a track circuit SOWC due to flooding in four foot at DR27 signal and is overlap of DR26 section. From DR26 to DR27 drivers are under caution which just means 'proceed at a speed, being prepeared to stop short of any obstruction, so faster in daylight than at night but somewhere around the 15-20mph at night, as a guide. When drivers get to DR27 they will also be given instruction to do 5mph through the floodwater as the height in the four foot is close to rail head, this is for approx 100-150 yards, then proceed at caution again.

On the Up Relief talking by UR26 signal due to track circuit SOWC, and proceed at caution, next signal UR27 is then working, all be it only single yellow, then talking by UR27A due to signal failure.

Again this whole process adding approx 12-15 mins per train.

The larger delays are occurring when services bunch up, hence why only 5 trains (FGW^▸ (First Great Western)) per hour are running in each direction.

Think that all makes sense???

[ChrisB]

Are they temporarily redeployed in Customer Service or similar roles, or is it just a case of waiting around for a train that they can drive?

You seriously think that the union would allow them to do the former? 

They can volunteer, in their own time however. It's not the driver's fault they can't do their job, so the latter is likely.

[insider]

Here's a question that we've been discussing in the office today and I'm hoping someone on here can answer...........in times such as these with only 20% or so of trains running, what do all the "spare" train drivers do?

Are they temporarily redeployed in Customer Service or similar roles, or is it just a case of waiting around for a train that they can drive?

Thanks

More waiting around than anything else from what I understand from a friend who is a LTV^▸ (London [and] Thames Valley) driver....biggest problem at the moment is that the trainplan is adhoc, and crew don't have diagrams reflecting the emergency train plan...this should improve in coming days.  

[ChrisB]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page)

Mr McLoughlin told MPs^▸ (Member of Parliament) it was "important we ensure the [transport] network is resilient to threats of this nature in future"

Disruption caused by the storm-stricken Dawlish line along the Devon coast continues but Mr McLoughlin said trains were expected to start running again around 18 March

And BBC Weather's John Hammond warned the incoming storm from the Atlantic on Friday will be "every bit as intense, if not more" than Wednesday's.

[insider]

Summary of additional stops in HST^▸ (High Speed Train)'s.

1C20 1530 Paddington to Weston; calls additionally at Maidenhead
1C22 1630 Paddington to Weston; calls additionally at Maidenhead
1C24 1730 Paddington to Weston; calls additionally at Maidenhead
1C26 1830 Paddington to Weston; calls additionally at Maidenhead
1C28 1930 Paddington to Weston; calls additionally at Maidenhead.

1W07 1722 Paddington to Hereford, calls additionally at Slough
1W08 1822 Paddington to Hereford, calls additionally at Slough
1W09 1922 Paddington to Hereford, calls Slough

1B51 1545 London Paddington to Swansea; calls additionally at Twyford
1B59 1645 London Paddington to Swansea, calls additionally at Twyford
1B69 1745 London Paddington to Swansea, calls additionally at Twyford
1B79 1845 London Paddington to Swansea, calls additionally at Twyford
1C96 1945 Paddington to Exeter; calls additionally at Twyford.

1C86 1506 Paddington to Exeter St Davids; calls additionally at Slough and Maidenhead
1C87 1606 Paddington to Exeter St Davids; calls additionally at Slough and Maidenhead
1C89 1703 Paddington to Exeter St Davids; calls additionally at Slough, Maidenhead,
Hungerford, Pewsey, Westbury and Castle Cary.
1C92 1803 Paddington to Exeter; calls additionally at Slough, Maidenhead, Newbury,
Hungerford, Bedwyn and Pewsey
1C95 1903 Paddington to Exeter; calls additionally at Slough and Maidenhead

1A87 1458 Exeter to Paddington; calls additionally at Slough
1A89 1600 Exeter to Paddington; calls additionally at Slough
1A91 1700 Exeter to Paddington; calls additionally at Slough
1A92 1800 Exeter to Paddington; calls additionally at Slough

1A22 1500 Bristol TM^‡(resolve) to Paddington; calls additionally at Twyford and Maidenhead.
1A24 1600 Bristol TM to Paddington; calls additionally at Twyford and Maidenhead.
1A26 1700 Bristol TM to Paddington; calls additionally at Twyford and Maidenhead.
1A28 1800 Bristol TM to Paddington; calls additionally at Twyford and Maidenhead.

[TaplowGreen]

Are they temporarily redeployed in Customer Service or similar roles, or is it just a case of waiting around for a train that they can drive?

You seriously think that the union would allow them to do the former? 

They can volunteer, in their own time however. It's not the driver's fault they can't do their job, so the latter is likely.

Blimey - I thought demarcation disputes went out with British Leyland!!!