Jim
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« on: February 29, 2008, 19:26:32 » |
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Another fabulous story of FGW▸ playing its joker card.
16.30 arrives Westbury 18.02, 150+153373. 153 coming off at Westbury. 150 allready full and standing. 98% of customers make it in to the150, despite being in the cab area and everywhere.
So, the guard, (a nice young lady) refuses to take it. By 18.15 she is on the blower to control, after much head scratching looking for the bloke with a brain, they were found. Ah, the 153 can stay on till Salisbury now. So all passengers spread back out, departs around 18.27.
Typically, the person who was made to look the most daft was the guard. A big well done to her for refusing to take it.
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Cheers Jim AG's most famous quote "It'll be better next week"
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Conner
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« Reply #1 on: February 29, 2008, 20:13:16 » |
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Good on her, must have taken some guts to refuse to take it and hold up all the commuter on the train.
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Jez
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« Reply #2 on: February 29, 2008, 20:16:40 » |
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I see on the live station arrivals/departures thing it says "This train has been delayed by an earlier train fault".
It also says it will arrive in Portsmouth Hbr 20.14 rather than the timetabled time of 19.52.
I cant understand why they would want to take the extra carriage off at Westbury in the first place? And why wasnt there a 158 available - isnt the 16.30 one of the busiest services especially on a Friday with more people finishing work earlier and weekend travellers etc. ?
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« Last Edit: February 29, 2008, 20:19:49 by Jez »
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Jim
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« Reply #3 on: February 29, 2008, 20:26:40 » |
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Good on her, must have taken some guts to refuse to take it and hold up all the commuter on the train.
No, just safety first. It was packed, not just packed, but like you had never seen it before.
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Cheers Jim AG's most famous quote "It'll be better next week"
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Conner
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« Reply #4 on: February 29, 2008, 20:46:37 » |
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158 shortages are due to them being refurbshed quickly as they must all be refurbished by May to start 3-car operation.
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Chris from Nailsea
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« Reply #5 on: February 29, 2008, 23:54:28 » |
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Typically, the person who was made to look the most daft was the guard. A big well done to her for refusing to take it.
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My comment, Jim, quite simply is: 'Good for her!' Let me quote a paragraph from the standard letter one gets from FGW▸ , if one raises the question of 'crowding': "We never want any service to become uncomfortable, but we don't turn passengers away until there's a danger that the service will become unsafe. There's no set number of passengers for this, just as there is no legal limit to the number of people we can carry on a train. We leave the decision to the professional judgement of the train manager and the driver." In this particular case, she used her professional judgement - and she is a credit to FGW for doing so! The general support for her decision, from other members posting here, just confirms that, IMHO▸ .
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« Last Edit: March 01, 2008, 00:24:37 by chris from nailsea »
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William Huskisson MP▸ was the first person to be killed by a train while crossing the tracks, in 1830. Many more have died in the same way since then. Don't take a chance: stop, look, listen.
"Level crossings are safe, unless they are used in an unsafe manner." Discuss.
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Timmer
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« Reply #6 on: March 01, 2008, 07:42:29 » |
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As great as FGW▸ 's announcement of three car 158s returning to Cardiff-Portsmouth is, there is still a couple of months of overcrowding to put up with on this line. As qprrule says probably as a result of more units being sent for refurb so they can get the fleet ready in time for May's TT change which takes place on May 18th. Even after this change, many services will still be very busy but at least it will mean that passengers will no longer be left at stations as everyone should be able to get on.
When the time eventually comes to introduce new rolling stock to this route, (yes I know, dream on!) it should be at least four possibly five car trains as passenger numbers are only going to increase just like on other routes around the country.
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John R
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« Reply #7 on: March 01, 2008, 10:24:37 » |
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As great as FGW▸ 's announcement of three car 158s returning to Cardiff-Portsmouth is, there is still a couple of months of overcrowding to put up with on this line. As qprrule says probably as a result of more units being sent for refurb so they can get the fleet ready in time for May's TT change which takes place on May 18th. Even after this change, many services will still be very busy but at least it will mean that passengers will no longer be left at stations as everyone should be able to get on.
When the time eventually comes to introduce new rolling stock to this route, (yes I know, dream on!) it should be at least four possibly five car trains as passenger numbers are only going to increase just like on other routes around the country.
5 coach trains? There's a thought. Anyone know of any such trains? I would prefer to see a half hourly service made up of 2 coach sets than an hourly 4 coach train, with one of the two services accelerated. But I agree Timmer, by 2009 3 coaches once an hour will be inadequate.
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Btline
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« Reply #8 on: March 01, 2008, 16:09:59 » |
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Hopefully, ATW▸ will replace their 158s on the Cambrian Line with 175s.
That will release a biggish set of stock for FGW▸ /Valley Lines.
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Jez
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« Reply #9 on: March 01, 2008, 17:18:14 » |
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Hopefully, ATW▸ will replace their 158s on the Cambrian Line with 175s.
That will release a biggish set of stock for FGW▸ /Valley Lines.
But arent all of the 175s taken up with the Manchester-North Wales/South Wales services.
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Btline
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« Reply #10 on: March 01, 2008, 20:19:38 » |
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Hopefully, ATW▸ will replace their 158s on the Cambrian Line with 175s.
That will release a biggish set of stock for FGW▸ /Valley Lines.
But arent all of the 175s taken up with the Manchester-North Wales/South Wales services. I thought new ones.... Part of the 1,300 carriages...
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Conner
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« Reply #11 on: March 01, 2008, 21:04:20 » |
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Hopefully, ATW▸ will replace their 158s on the Cambrian Line with 175s.
That will release a biggish set of stock for FGW▸ /Valley Lines.
But arent all of the 175s taken up with the Manchester-North Wales/South Wales services. I thought new ones.... Part of the 1,300 carriages... ATW aren't getting any of the 1,300 carriages. Plus they have the whole fleet of Class 175's.
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eightf48544
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« Reply #12 on: March 03, 2008, 11:06:28 » |
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I don't think you can look to ATW▸ for any spare 158s isn't one of their problems that their fleet is being modified to add ERTMS▸ for the Cambrian line experiment.
So they will need to keep a fleet of 158s to run the Cambrian lines because even if they have spare 175s they won't be fitted with ERTMS so won't be able to run Cambrian services.
As it is the Cambrian fleet has to be RETB▸ (single line block by radio) fitted, but this is not so bad as there are portable units available, basically a portable radio which displays the token issued. So the train doesn't have to be fitted with RETB to run on the line.
We had one with on a 67 from Lowestoft to Ipswich. Previously there were only a few class 37s (including at one stage D 6700 in green) at Ipswich which were RETB fitted for the flask trains to Sizewell. Hence very few loco hauled railtours over the East Suffolk line.
ERTMS has to be fitted to interact with the trains control system and is integral part of the train.
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