Not just GWR...

[whole diary]

[JayMac]

[TaplowGreen]

Has there ever been a time when the railways have been more of a national embarrassment?

[ellendune]

Has there ever been a time when the railways have been more of a national embarrassment?

Yes when Railtrack shut much of the network down to check for cracks after the Hatfield Crash

[TaplowGreen]

Has there ever been a time when the railways have been more of a national embarrassment?

Yes when Railtrack shut much of the network down to check for cracks after the Hatfield Crash

I'm tempted to say that was more about tragic incompetence than embarrassment, but in this current context the latter two go hand in hand.....thankfully without the tragedy.

[eightonedee]

Has anyone spotted this on the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) website, a "Reality Check" on the current Northern Rail problems -- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-44356993?

There seems to be many similarities to the position in January on GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) when the new electrified timetable came in between Didcot and Paddington. Problems blamed on changes to electrification schemes, staff training and shortage difficulties.

Is the problem that too many changes are being introduced at the same time? Should new trains be introduced, and drivers trained up, before major timetable changes take place? Are there any industry insiders out there in the coffee shop able to help?

[TaplowGreen]

Has anyone spotted this on the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) website, a "Reality Check" on the current Northern Rail problems -- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-44356993?

There seems to be many similarities to the position in January on GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) when the new electrified timetable came in between Didcot and Paddington. Problems blamed on changes to electrification schemes, staff training and shortage difficulties.

Is the problem that too many changes are being introduced at the same time? Should new trains be introduced, and drivers trained up, before major timetable changes take place? Are there any industry insiders out there in the coffee shop able to help?

I suspect Hopwood & his team are down on their knees in the Boardroom on a daily basis thanking the Lord that the chaos elsewhere is keeping the spotlight off GWRs wretched performance  (for the time being)

[grahame]

Has there ever been a time when the railways have been more of a national embarrassment?

Yes when Railtrack shut much of the network down to check for cracks after the Hatfield Crash

I recall a bit of a problem with "Operation Princess" too (Wikipedia)

In September 2002 Virgin Trains launched Operation Princess. This involved introducing a new clockface timetable with shorter trains running more frequently. However the new fleet suffered from a number of technical faults which coupled with infrastructure and capacity issues led to many problems. Between September 2002 and January 2003 punctuality fell to 54.1%, it was therefore agreed with the Strategic Rail Authority that certain services would be cut to improve reliability and robustness on the core network.

I don't think this sort of problem is new.  What is new is the strength of the social media which has the latest news on everyone's services - not just yours - being blasted at you all the time.  No longer is the commuter just reading the morning paper with yesterday's news - he / she is now following it on his / her mobile device as it develops.

[TaplowGreen]

Has there ever been a time when the railways have been more of a national embarrassment?

Yes when Railtrack shut much of the network down to check for cracks after the Hatfield Crash

I recall a bit of a problem with "Operation Princess" too (Wikipedia)

In September 2002 Virgin Trains launched Operation Princess. This involved introducing a new clockface timetable with shorter trains running more frequently. However the new fleet suffered from a number of technical faults which coupled with infrastructure and capacity issues led to many problems. Between September 2002 and January 2003 punctuality fell to 54.1%, it was therefore agreed with the Strategic Rail Authority that certain services would be cut to improve reliability and robustness on the core network.

I don't think this sort of problem is new.  What is new is the strength of the social media which has the latest news on everyone's services - not just yours - being blasted at you all the time.  No longer is the commuter just reading the morning paper with yesterday's news - he / she is now following it on his / her mobile device as it develops.

......which means that the railways and those responsible for their management are being held to account more speedily & rigorously for their frequent & often spectacular failings, which can only be a good thing.

[IndustryInsider]

......which means that the railways and those responsible for their management are being held to account more speedily & rigorously for their frequent & often spectacular failings, which can only be a good thing.

Absolutely, but it does make comparisons with the past more difficult to make, which was Graham's point.

Has anyone spotted this on the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) website, a "Reality Check" on the current Northern Rail problems -- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-44356993?

There seems to be many similarities to the position in January on GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) when the new electrified timetable came in between Didcot and Paddington. Problems blamed on changes to electrification schemes, staff training and shortage difficulties.

Is the problem that too many changes are being introduced at the same time? Should new trains be introduced, and drivers trained up, before major timetable changes take place? Are there any industry insiders out there in the coffee shop able to help?

I suspect Hopwood & his team are down on their knees in the Boardroom on a daily basis thanking the Lord that the chaos elsewhere is keeping the spotlight off GWRs wretched performance  (for the time being)

One wonders whether Mark Hopwood and his team, along with the planners at NR^» (Network Rail - home page), will now consider throttling down on GWR's own 'big-bang' timetable next January, and introduce changes in a more measured and achievable way?  Given the effect the far smaller GWR 'bang' from January has had on crewing and train availability, it might be a wise thing to do, otherwise we may be witnessing a Northern Rail scenario on GWR routes in six months.

[JayMac]

Well, the rumours and jungle drums are already suggesting that GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)'s major timetable change will slip to May 2019 for full implementation, with a possible staggered introduction from January 2019.

[Timmer]

Inevitable the new timetable will delayed or staggered. The whole electrification project is so far behind the original planned completion dates what’s another six months.

[stuving]

Inevitable the new timetable will delayed or staggered. The whole electrification project is so far behind the original planned completion dates what’s another six months.

But December 2019 is already a year later than the original "new" IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train) timetable, SLC3a.

[CMRail]

The proposed timetable was Dec 17, so surely it would still run on time?

[a-driver]

There’s a difference between what’s happening on GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) and what’s happening at GTR and Northen.

GWR have over 50 drivers who have completed the IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train) classroom and simulator training courses..... those 50 drivers need practical driving experience which is where the problem starts.  Not enough units. Once they’ve completed their classroom and simulator training Hitachi stipulate those drivers need to start practical driving within 10 days. Failure to do so means starting the classroom based training all over again.
Those who have already passed out on the IETs also need to practical driving turns to keep their competence up so those drivers can sometimes can not be taken off.
West Country drivers have now started IET training.  That’s Exeter, Penzance and Plymouth crews.  They have one, sometimes two IET units to train on between all three depots.  That’s, in the region of, 200 drivers.
The commencement of the IETs to Devon and Cornwall is likely to be put back a month.

In an ideal world, electrification would have been completed on time, units would have been delivered on time, properly tested, by Hitachi and the HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) kept for as long as necessary.  The testing of the units should have been carried out by GWR drivers, they can replicate the requirements better than a freight driver. Unfortunately, as we know, the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) had already decided the future for GWR’s HST and obviously the leasing companies don’t want to be in situation where they’ve got a train not earning any income.  

The DfT have not and will not question or take action against GWR because GWR can easily turn round and provide facts and figures which will highlight the current situation is out of GWR’s control

[chuffed]

GTR have announced that they will be laying on buses and taxis where students are due to sit A level and GCSE exams so that they get there on time for the exam start. The last thing ANY of these young people needed is added stress caused by the railway companies inability to get their act together. Time for Northern and dare I say it, GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) to make similar contingency plans with schools and then send the final tabs to the Dft and Network Rail ?