2018 cancellation and amendment log

[whole diary]

[bobm]

Hate to tell you this - they have both just been re-instated.....

[grahame]

Hate to tell you this - they have both just been re-instated.....

Not sure what emoticon to use for that ....

   

Mixed emotions!

[grahame]

Hate to tell you this - they have both just been re-instated.....

Not sure what emoticon to use for that ....

   

Mixed emotions!

OK ...

Change at Cardiff (done when I first heard), Bristol and Chippenham and I'll be in Melksham at 11:13 as planned.   So it's 

Might even have done it that many-change way if I had had the dogs with me ... and I've switched from a hard seat from Swansea to a softer one from Cardiff.

[bobm]

The 09:48 left 26 minutes late so the 10:47 return is likely to be at least 15 minutes late starting.

[grahame]

The 09:48 left 26 minutes late so the 10:47 return is likely to be at least 15 minutes late starting.

MADE IT!!   ... just 9 late into Melksham.   A 166 on a 153 schedule does rather well.   Passenger numbers disappointing - about 25 on the train, 2 off and 3 on at Melksham.  Always a quiet one this - flagging it up as cancelled, after the earlier one was cancelled too, probably suppressed numbers.

On that note - Melksham station car park on Tuesday - 8 + 2 + 18 = 28 vehicles parks late morning
on Thursday - 2 + 0 + 11 = 13 vehicles parked.  Reduction due (I would be pretty sure) due to train cancellations.

[RA]

The 09:48 left 26 minutes late so the 10:47 return is likely to be at least 15 minutes late starting.

MADE IT!!   ... just 9 late into Melksham.   A 166 on a 153 schedule does rather well.   Passenger numbers disappointing - about 25 on the train, 2 off and 3 on at Melksham.  Always a quiet one this - flagging it up as cancelled, after the earlier one was cancelled too, probably suppressed numbers.

On that note - Melksham station car park on Tuesday - 8 + 2 + 18 = 28 vehicles parks late morning
on Thursday - 2 + 0 + 11 = 13 vehicles parked.  Reduction due (I would be pretty sure) due to train cancellations.

The 07:04 Westbury to Cheltenham Spa service departed from Westbury 56 minutes late after the original 166 had engine problems and had to be swapped for another. Train terminated at Gloucester. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that some people chose to drive to Chippenham instead, especially if the help point was just saying 'delayed' with no estimate for the arrival of the train.

[grahame]

The 07:04 Westbury to Cheltenham Spa service departed from Westbury 56 minutes late after the original 166 had engine problems and had to be swapped for another. Train terminated at Gloucester. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that some people chose to drive to Chippenham instead, especially if the help point was just saying 'delayed' with no estimate for the arrival of the train.

Ah ... many thanks for that update.   The Help Point is very good at just saying "delayed" at Melksham, and on past form the folks on the information button might not have been able to provide much more detailed updates.   I suspect that many regulars clubbed together, those with cars giving lifts to other to Chippenham, with others simply driving off ...

It's on mornings like that we really could do with a knowledgeable semi-formal presence - for example a community cafe / volunteer who could help organise / co-ordinate and perhaps be on the devices to the Faceoook or Twitter teams.

[grahame]

17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:19
17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:19 will be cancelled.
This is due to a broken down train.
Last Updated:14/03/2018 17:20

Also note from Monday (12th) ... 19:35 Westbury to Cheltenham Spa cancelled due to Conductor being taken Ill.   

With only three northbound and four northbound trains this week - less than half the normal number - wouldn't you think they could fine enough trains and staff who weren't ill to operate the remaining skeletal service?

[RA]

17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:19
17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:19 will be cancelled.
This is due to a broken down train.
Last Updated:14/03/2018 17:20

Also note from Monday (12th) ... 19:35 Westbury to Cheltenham Spa cancelled due to Conductor being taken Ill.   

With only three northbound and four northbound trains this week - less than half the normal number - wouldn't you think they could fine enough trains and staff who weren't ill to operate the remaining skeletal service?

17:36 Swindon to Westbury cancelled because of a medical emergency at Chippenham. 16:30 Bristol TM^‡(resolve) to Paddington still sat in the up platform at Chippenham as at 18:00. Air ambulance attending so unfortunately sounds serious. Services being thinned out to allow some services to run reversible between Thingley and Wootton Bassett. Not helped by additional diverted freight and passenger services. Empty stock for the 17:36 from Swindon diverted from Thingley back to Bathampton to Westbury. 17:03 Paddington to Penzance will call additionally at Chippenham. It already calls at Swindon and Westbury.

[grahame]

17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:19 will be cancelled.
This is due to a broken down train.

With only three northbound and four northbound trains this week - less than half the normal number - wouldn't you think they could fine enough trains and staff who weren't ill to operate the remaining skeletal service?

17:36 Swindon to Westbury cancelled because of a medical emergency at Chippenham. ...

Thanks for that clarification.

I can understand rather better with a medical emergency ... when your told (and not the first, second, third, fourth time ...) that there's a train fault, you tend to believe there's train fault !!

[JayMac]

Sending your bus ticket to GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) as a consequential loss claim I presume?

[RA]

The 19:15 Frome to Cheltenham Spa service was diverted via Bathampton (not calling at Melksham), with congestion on the single line cited. Not a good evening for Melksham services.

With the line an important secondary route and invaluable during diversions, the singling and reduction of the route between Bradford and Thingley junctions to effectively one signalling block section is a major constraint to capacity if trains are not running exactly to schedule.

[RA]

Further to my previous post, I have been monitoring the Melksham single line occupancy for this evening. Between 18:30 and 21:30, the line has been pretty much running beyond capacity with multiple delays caused by late running. The trains are listed in the order that they actually ran, with the times the Melksham single line was effectively occupied. I have included Thingley East Jn as this is the location of the crossover for trains coming off of the single line, meaning a down train can't go beyond there if there is a train coming up from Bradford Junction.

1C91 17:03 Paddington to Penzance.
Thingley East Jn 18:30
Thingley Jn 18:32
Bradford Jn 18:42

7C66 17:50 Wootton Bassett to Merehead
Thingley East Jn 18:44
Thingley Jn 18:46
Bradford Jn 19:03

2O00 17:41 Cheltenham to Southampton
Thingley East Jn 19:13
Thingley Jn 19:14
Bradford Jn 19:25

7A15 17:05 Merehead to Acton
Bradford Jn 19:33
Thingley Jn 19:48
Thingley East Jn 19:49

7C64 14:39 Acton to Merehead
Thingley East Jn 19:51
Thingley Jn 19:53
Bradford Jn 20:07

6C48 17:11 Appleford to Whatley
Thingley East Junction 19:57
Thingley Jn 20:10
Bradford Jn 20:24

1C94 18:57 Paddington to Plymouth
Thingley East Junction 20:26
Thingley Jn 20:28
Bradford Jn 20:37

1A97 16:00 Penzance to Paddington
Bradford Jn 20:38
Thingley Jn 20:49
Thingley East Jn 20:49

6A21 18:25 Whatley to Acton
Bradford Jn 20:55
Thingley Jn 21:11
Thingley East Jn 21:13

1C96 19:44 Paddington to Plymouth
Thingley East Jn 21:16
Thingley Jn 21:18
Bradford Jn 21:27

1A98 20:26 Taunton to Paddington
Bradford Jn 21:28
Thingley Jn 21:39
Thingley East Jn 21:41.

This is without the 2M18 19:15 Frome to Cheltenham service, which was diverted via Bathampton because of the congestion. It should have occupied the single line as follows:
Bradford Jn 19:40
Thingley Jn 19:56
Thingley East Jn 19:58

For details of the delays to the services listed, please see Real Time Trains. Bear in mind that the above list doesn't include the delays caused to other services at Thingley and Bradford junctions as a consequence of being stuck behind those trains waiting for the single line. The bottleneck the single line causes is clearly shown.

[grahame]

Further to my previous post, I have been monitoring the Melksham single line occupancy for this evening. Between 18:30 and 21:30, the line has been pretty much running beyond capacity ...

That is an immensely useful log, thank you.  In general, not helped by the lack of lay-bys for trains waiting for the single line (or waiting to get off it) at either end, which knock on to delaying trains on the London - Bristol or Cardiff - Portsmouth main lines. In particular tonight, there were the very unusual goings on a Chippenham, (mis?)reported initially as a train fault which meant that the evening started on the wrong footing.   From Royal Wootton Bassett to Bathampton, the two running lines are bi-directionally signalled and I've heard of "wrong line running" to clear traffic around an obstructed platform at Chippenham - even wrong line running through Box tunnel f I have read right!

Noting that a train that was due to call at Melksham actually reversed at Bathampton ... that's not all that rare.  Is is possible for other trains to reverse at Bathampton - HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) and 800s.  Even freights, though I guess they would take a long time to run round on the loop if signalling could cope!

[phile]

There were also problems caused by a passenger being taken ill at Chippenham and waiting for an ambulance