2019 - TransWilts cancellation and amendments log

[whole diary]

[grahame]

Train Cancellations
11:47 Westbury to Swindon due 12:32
12:20 Westbury to Swindon due 13:02
13:29 Swindon to Westbury due 14:10
13:29 Swindon to Westbury due 14:10 will be cancelled.
This is due to a points failure.

[grahame]

Cancellations to services between Trowbridge and Chippenham
Due to a points failure between Trowbridge and Chippenham all lines are blocked.
Train services running through these stations may be cancelled. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
Customer Advice
Due to a points failure, the Great Western Railway service between Westbury to Swindon is suspended until further notice.
Road transport will be operating to/from Melksham. Customers not travelling to/from Melksham are requested to please use train services via Bath Spa. Tickets routed 'Via Melksham' are accepted via Bath Spa during this disruption.
Further Information
An update will follow within the next 2 hours.

[grahame]

11:20 Weymouth to Swindon due 13:34
11:20 Weymouth to Swindon due 13:34 has been delayed at Weymouth and is now 14 minutes late.
This is due to a safety inspection of the track earlier today.

[grahame]

09:46 Westbury to Swindon due 10:32
Facilities on the 09:46 Westbury to Swindon due 10:32.
This is due to a fault on this train.
Will be formed of 2 coaches instead of 3.

My heart missed a beat when a great fat sponge just came up on our map at the top of these pages between Westbury and Swindon a few minutes ago ... however, the day's shuttle train at 2 cars rather than 3 is fine for this year.

Traffic is growing again and a 153 (1 car) turning up (as was regular this time last year) when it had just, supposedly, been replaced would be an issue on 4 of the services. Talking of which ... the first train was replaced by a bus in Sunday - engineering pre-planned - and I understand the bus was full and standing. Shows the importance of the Sunday morning train.

[grahame]

Whole "Melksham Flyer" diagram today (all dozen journeys, I think)

07:33 Westbury to Swindon due 08:15
Facilities on the 07:33 Westbury to Swindon due 08:15.
This is due to a fault on this train.
Will be formed of 2 coaches instead of 3.

Needs two carriages on this diagram in 2019 - so this is much more of a technical / reporting issue than a problem on the line.

[phile]

Whole "Melksham Flyer" diagram today (all dozen journeys, I think)

07:33 Westbury to Swindon due 08:15
Facilities on the 07:33 Westbury to Swindon due 08:15.
This is due to a fault on this train.
Will be formed of 2 coaches instead of 3.

Needs two carriages on this diagram in 2019 - so this is much more of a technical / reporting issue than a problem on the line.

Well, the 153s are going soon.

[SandTEngineer]

Lots of disruption this evening.  PHBT at Theale so B&H^▸ (Berks and Hants - railway line from Reading to Taunton via Westbury) shut since about 1740 and West Country services diverted via Melksham.  Oh for that double track or Dynamic Loop......

As I write four down services qued up at Chippenham.

[rogerw]

PHBT??

[grahame]

PHBT??

Expanded in this evening's Melksham calling log

20:33   Westbury   20:53   --
19:47   Gloucester   20:17   --
19:15   Southampton Central   1937   a person being hit by a train
18:48   Swindon   19:11   --
18:02   Westbury   On time   -
16:37   Swindon   16:42   --
15:45   Westbury   On time   -

[grahame]

20:33   Westbury   20:53   --

Above log line was a forecast ... now modified to

20:33   Westbury   21:18   --

And on journey check

20:08 Swindon to Westbury due 20:49
20:08 Swindon to Westbury due 20:49 has been delayed at Chippenham and is now 38 minutes late.
This is due to a person being hit by a train earlier.

[grahame]

Heart-stopping moment when I saw a thick blue line on our cancellation map - HOWEVER - turnout to be a load of these which we can cope with

14:35 Westbury to Swindon due 15:19
Facilities on the 14:35 Westbury to Swindon due 15:19.
This is due to a fault on this train.
Will be formed of 2 coaches instead of 3.

Having said which,  the first train last Sunday was replaced by a bus (planed ahead) and was reported FULL AND STANDING.   With the Melksham Rail User Group ( http://www.mrug.org.uk ) increasing its marketing this year, and with TransWilts upping its paid CRO position by 50% this year too, and with much more reliable trains ... we probably will have to start worrying about 2 car v 3 car in the foreseeable future.

[grahame]

17:41 Cheltenham Spa to Southampton Central due 20:44
Facilities on the 17:41 Cheltenham Spa to Southampton Central due 20:44.
This is due to a fault on this train.

Will be formed of 2 coaches instead of 3.

No problem south of Swindon .. as a peak service from Cheltenham Spa / Gloucester up the Stroud Valley, it's likely to be bursting for the first half hour to hour of it's journey.

[grahame]

Lots like this ...

17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:17
Facilities on the 17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:17.
This is due to a fault on this train.
Will be formed of 2 coaches instead of 3.
Last Updated:28/02/2019 14:26

Even the 17:36 will cope for a few months ... just a year ago it was still a 153 from time to time and whilst traffic has grown we won't burst a 2 car turbo until the autumn 

[Trowres]

Today the 17:36 was a class 158.

[grahame]

Today the 17:36 was a class 158.

There was a 3 car 158 on Tuesday on the 10:02 from Melksham ... and another 3 car 158 in the bay when we got to Swindon on the Cheltenham Spa layovers.   To run 5 cars on Cardiff / Portsmouth, you can't mix 15x and 16x - so I suspect that as 2 car 165s have become available to bolster those services, the 3 car 166s have had to join them and the 158s displaced onto TransWilts, Stroud Valley, etc