IETs into passenger service from 16 Oct 2017 and subsequent performance issues

[whole diary]

[IndustryInsider]

Just watched the 07:59 from Swansea, a 10-car IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train), arrive at Paddington with the rear 5 locked out of use.  The front half looked wedges to the rafters.  The locked out train was then unlocked at Paddington so all 10 were in service as it boarded for the 11:30 to Bristol.  After most passengers had settled those on the rear five were then turfed off minutes before departure as the back 5 were then hastily locked out of use.  Front five wedged again and a 10 minute late departure due to sorting the resulting mess out.

If this sort of nonsense isn’t sorted by the summer then I dread to think how we’ll cope.  Utterly pathetic!

[grahame]

Just watched the 07:59 from Swansea, a 10-car IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train), arrive at Paddington with the rear 5 locked out of use.  The front half looked wedges to the rafters.  The locked out train was then unlocked at Paddington so all 10 were in service as it boarded for the 11:30 to Bristol.  After most passengers had settled those on the rear five were then turfed off minutes before departure as the back 5 were then hastily locked out of use.  Front five wedged again and a 10 minute late departure due to sorting the resulting mess out.

If this sort of nonsense isn’t sorted by the summer then I dread to think how we’ll cope.  Utterly pathetic!

And on the way back ... or is that a different train doing the same thing??

13:00 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington due 14:41
Facilities on the 13:00 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington due 14:41.
This is due to a shortage of on train staff.
Additional Facilities Information
Only the front 5 coaches will be in use on this service today.

[grahame]

I recall a promise that all of the busiest trains in and out of Paddington would be 9 or 10 carriages - none of them would be just 5.   Were we promised all 9 or 10 carriages in use?

[Timmer]

Just watched the 07:59 from Swansea, a 10-car IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train), arrive at Paddington with the rear 5 locked out of use.  The front half looked wedges to the rafters.  The locked out train was then unlocked at Paddington so all 10 were in service as it boarded for the 11:30 to Bristol.  After most passengers had settled those on the rear five were then turfed off minutes before departure as the back 5 were then hastily locked out of use.  Front five wedged again and a 10 minute late departure due to sorting the resulting mess out.

If this sort of nonsense isn’t sorted by the summer then I dread to think how we’ll cope.  Utterly pathetic!

There’s quite a few 10 down to 5 IETs listed on JC today. The sooner the 9 car IETs arrive the better. GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) are struggling to provide crew for one train so it’s no surprise they can’t provide two sets of crew for these 2 x 5 trains. Why not have built the 9 car sets first?

All that’s happened is a new problem has been created of trains running with no passengers. Hardly the image protrayed on the famous 5 adverts is it?

[TaplowGreen]

Just watched the 07:59 from Swansea, a 10-car IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train), arrive at Paddington with the rear 5 locked out of use.  The front half looked wedges to the rafters.  The locked out train was then unlocked at Paddington so all 10 were in service as it boarded for the 11:30 to Bristol.  After most passengers had settled those on the rear five were then turfed off minutes before departure as the back 5 were then hastily locked out of use.  Front five wedged again and a 10 minute late departure due to sorting the resulting mess out.

If this sort of nonsense isn’t sorted by the summer then I dread to think how we’ll cope.  Utterly pathetic!

There’s quite a few 10 down to 5 IETs listed on JC today. The sooner the 9 car IETs arrive the better. GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) are struggling to provide crew for one train so it’s no surprise they can’t provide two sets of crew for these 2 x 5 trains. Why not have built the 9 car sets first?

International rugby at Cardiff tomorrow and this combined with the usual lack of staff on a Sunday could prove very embarrassing for GWR if they've got nothing arranged........accepting of course that they are immune to embarrassment.

[grahame]

All that’s happened is a new problem has been created of trains running with no passengers. Hardly the image protrayed on the famous 5 adverts is it?

Perhaps an idea for 1st April
... 5 car train will be carriages A, D, G, J and T for Anne, Dick, George(ina), Julian and Timmy

[martyjon]

International rugby at Cardiff tomorrow and this combined with the usual lack of staff on a Sunday could prove very embarrassing for GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) if they've got nothing arranged........accepting of course that they are immune to embarrassment.

But they have, if you believe notices. When at Bristol Parkway yesterday afternoon there was a prominent notice advising of two extra services to the Rugby International but, mind you, I didn;t read the notice just noticed it so it could be a motley collection of assorted sprinters cobbled together running from BTM^▸ (Bristol Temple Meads (strictly, it should be BRI)) and BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains) only. Have to have a look at RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website) later.

[IndustryInsider]

International rugby at Cardiff tomorrow...

Are you sure this time? 

[Gordon the Blue Engine]

It may seem obvious, but one of the key tasks for a TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) is to recruit, train and retain enough traincrew to run the service they plan to operate.  Clearly GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) are failing miserably on this. 

In my day (and I think this goes for a few of us who post here) cancelling trains because of a shortage of traincrew was almost unheard of, even through the periods of training for HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) and Turbos for example.  Why does GWR find the management of traincrew so difficult? 

[ellendune]

It may seem obvious, but one of the key tasks for a TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) is to recruit, train and retain enough traincrew to run the service they plan to operate.  Clearly GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) are failing miserably on this. 

In my day (and I think this goes for a few of us who post here) cancelling trains because of a shortage of traincrew was almost unheard of, even through the periods of training for HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) and Turbos for example.  Why does GWR find the management of traincrew so difficult? 

Didn't someone say that the number of train crew was specified in the franchise?  If that is true then no one would plan on supplying more or they would not get the contract. There is also a limit to how many people can be trained to drive at once and rail companies are competing for a finite pool of drivers. Of course GWR could improve their chances by giving better terms and conditions, but many of this parish want to make them worse by making Sunday work mandatory so there and DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) want DOO^▸ (Driver-Only Operation (that is, trains which operate without carrying a guard)) more the norm so there is a bit of a conflict here. 

It has been explained a number of times how knock on effects of the delays to electrification has compressed the the training on new (or cascaded) stock so that the number of drivers hours being taken up with training is much higher than could be planned - albeit over a shorter period.  It has also been reported that in some or even many cases, drivers are available, but they are not qualified for the stock being used.   

The DfT like other government departments is clear that it wants its contractors to cut costs to the absolute minimum without realising the lack of resilience that provides when things don't go to plan - in this case electrification delays and the consequent delays in cascading stock. 

This all sounds to me like a problem of people who think they can have their cake and eat it. But then that is government policy.

So then there is the matter of why GWR don't come out explain it all. 

To answer this we should perhaps consider who GWR's customers are.  Yes of course it's all of us! But we are what economists call inelastic customers, we are relatively unlikely to go elsewhere, because we have no alternative.

However, if you look at it another way their main client and the one most likely to take their business elsewhere is DfT since they could not operate the line without the franchise.  So if coming clean means you have to say its all the fault of your biggest customer who could mark you down for the next contract what do you do?

[TaplowGreen]

It may seem obvious, but one of the key tasks for a TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) is to recruit, train and retain enough traincrew to run the service they plan to operate.  Clearly GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) are failing miserably on this. 

In my day (and I think this goes for a few of us who post here) cancelling trains because of a shortage of traincrew was almost unheard of, even through the periods of training for HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) and Turbos for example.  Why does GWR find the management of traincrew so difficult? 

Didn't someone say that the number of train crew was specified in the franchise?  If that is true then no one would plan on supplying more or they would not get the contract. There is also a limit to how many people can be trained to drive at once and rail companies are competing for a finite pool of drivers. Of course GWR could improve their chances by giving better terms and conditions, but many of this parish want to make them worse by making Sunday work mandatory so there and DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) want DOO^▸ (Driver-Only Operation (that is, trains which operate without carrying a guard)) more the norm so there is a bit of a conflict here. 

It has been explained a number of times how knock on effects of the delays to electrification has compressed the the training on new (or cascaded) stock so that the number of drivers hours being taken up with training is much higher than could be planned - albeit over a shorter period.  It has also been reported that in some or even many cases, drivers are available, but they are not qualified for the stock being used.   

The DfT like other government departments is clear that it wants its contractors to cut costs to the absolute minimum without realising the lack of resilience that provides when things don't go to plan - in this case electrification delays and the consequent delays in cascading stock. 

This all sounds to me like a problem of people who think they can have their cake and eat it. But then that is government policy.

So then there is the matter of why GWR don't come out explain it all. 

To answer this we should perhaps consider who GWR's customers are.  Yes of course it's all of us! But we are what economists call inelastic customers, we are relatively unlikely to go elsewhere, because we have no alternative.

However, if you look at it another way their main client and the one most likely to take their business elsewhere is DfT since they could not operate the line without the franchise.  So if coming clean means you have to say its all the fault of your biggest customer who could mark you down for the next contract what do you do?

.......and if you were in any doubt, you can now see that it really is possible to be that smug.

[ellendune]

.......and if you were in any doubt, you can now see that it really is possible to be that smug.

I try and explain that the system stinks.  Are you suggest is that I am being smug?

[grahame]

.......and if you were in any doubt, you can now see that it really is possible to be that smug.

I try and explain that the system stinks.  Are you suggest is that I am being smug?

Describing a system doesn't indicate support for it - but can so easily misread as being its advocate.   However, there's a hugely useful function in describing a system if you want to understand it and improve it.

[eXPassenger]

I came down on the 17:00 (2 x 5) from Paddington to TM^‡(resolve) today.  My first journey on an IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train) and I thought it went well.  I was happy with the seats, negligible diesel engine noise and the lower seat backs make the carriage far more open.

The 'catering trolley' appeared after Reading with an apology.  There was 1 trolley that had done the other 5 carriages before Reading.

Interestingly the boards at Paddington, RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website) and the train displays stated we would stop at Didcot.  The guard announced at Reading that we would not and then took pleasure in telling the passengers to ignore the display and announcements as we were proceeding through Didcot at full speed.

[mjones]

Another post on my why aren't IEPs^▸ (Intercity Express Program / Project.) using electricity theme: I'm on the 1730 Pad to Taunton train today. Electric power to Reading, then they started the diesels. Why not switch at Didcot?