2020 - TransWilts cancellation and amendment log

[whole diary]

[bobm]

07:37 Westbury to Swindon due 08:20
08:45 Swindon to Westbury due 09:26

07:37 Westbury to Swindon due 08:20 will be cancelled.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.

Both now reinstated.

[grahame]

 

17:50 Gloucester to Southampton Central due 20:36 will be terminated at Westbury.
It will no longer call at Dilton Marsh, Warminster, Salisbury, Romsey and Southampton Central.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.

[bobm]

Helpful new poster been put up in the waiting room by Platform 2 at Swindon.

[grahame]

Chaos!

Main line from Westbury to Bath and Bristol blocked by flooding at Bradford-on-Avon.  Cardiff - Portsmouth trains diverted via TransWilts and Melksham which, of course, means that "our" trains have been withdrawn ... glad to see one stop (at least) added into the trains that are going through.    And glad to see that the Melksham RUG^» (Rail User Group - about) tracker is coping reasonably:

from http://www.mrug.org.uk/mkm.html


and from http://melksh.am/trains

which on a phone looks like:


And the TransWilts Real Time product also reflect the issues at https://transwilts.org/app/#/home


This first JourneyCheck report is incorrect.  The flooding is NOT between Swindon and Westbury ...

Cancellations to services between Swindon and Westbury
Due to heavy rain flooding the railway between Swindon and Westbury fewer trains are able to run.
Train services running through these stations may be cancelled. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.

16:25 Westbury to Swindon due 17:08
16:25 Westbury to Swindon due 17:08 will be cancelled.
This is due to heavy rain flooding the railway.

17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:17
17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:17 will be cancelled.
This is due to heavy rain flooding the railway.

18:39 Westbury to Swindon due 19:21
18:39 Westbury to Swindon due 19:21 will be cancelled.
This is due to heavy rain flooding the railway.

20:45 Swindon to Westbury due 21:26
20:45 Swindon to Westbury due 21:26 will be cancelled.
This is due to heavy rain flooding the railway.

14:23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central due 17:47
14:23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central due 17:47 will be diverted between Trowbridge and Bath Spa.
It will no longer call at Bradford-On-Avon but will call additionally at Chippenham.
It will be delayed at Trowbridge.
This is due to heavy rain flooding the railway.

13:23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central due 16:44
13:23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central due 16:44 will be diverted between Trowbridge and Bath Spa.
It will no longer call at Bradford-On-Avon.
It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 20 minutes late.
This is due to heavy rain flooding the railway.

16:27 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 19:52
16:27 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 19:52 will be started from Bristol Temple Meads and diverted between Bath Spa and Trowbridge.
It will no longer call at Cardiff Central, Newport South Wales, Severn Tunnel Junction, Filton Abbey Wood and Bradford-On-Avon but will call additionally at Chippenham and Melksham.
It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 10 minutes late.
This is due to heavy rain flooding the railway.

etc

[IndustryInsider]

Chaos!

Yes.  It would be much less chaotic if the line was doubled between Thingley Junction and Bradford Junction as you point out.  And even less if the third part of the triangle still existed at Thingley Junction.

But...at least the signalling at Thingley/Chippenham is quite flexible.  Bi-directional signalling and reversals possible on both lines at and between both locations.  Without that, there would be no sensible diversionary route at all for the longer distance trains, and it would have been a case of calling up the bus companies again and far worse chaos!

[grahame]

Yes.  It would be much less chaotic if the line was doubled between Thingley Junction and Bradford Junction as you point out.  And even less if the third part of the triangle still existed at Thingley Junction.

But...at least the signalling at Thingley/Chippenham is quite flexible. 

Indeed - and one of the reasons the line survived and in good shape though single after 1966 was its use for diversions.  So we smile and say "you are welcome" to all sorts of trains.   Just get even so slightly possessive and peeved when cancellations are blamed on flooding on "our" line when in reality our line is the saviour of the piece.

I have edited my post to include screen captures of our live feeds - this is an excellent test of them.  Far too may such feeds work well when the system is running perfectly or close to it, but then fall apart as the service falls apart which is the very time they need to work well.  So you will find me at times like this pulling up all the screens and checking our (MRUG^» (Melksham Rail User Group - site)) data interpretation.

Nothing has been built on the south to west curve trackbed at Thingley ... which was a major connection in the Second World War. Re-instatement would certainly be useful today (28/12/2020) but I'm not sure how much so in normal service unless you look way ahead to the Bristol Metro Westbury service at via B-o-A with a further 1 or 2 via Corsham and Melksham; it would certainly a catchment of 45k at those two stations rather than the 15k or so who are at B-o-A.

[grahame]

29.12.2020, 03:50 - almost all TransWilts services cancelled to make the line available for diverted longer distance trains from the line through Bradford-on-Avon, which is closed.  As I write, passengers are told they can get their money back if they were planning to travel on one of the cancelled trains. Good data is provided on alternatives for stations on the line though Bradford on Avon, but nothing on alternative provision  (yet?) for passengers on the line through Melksham.

Cancellations to services between Trowbridge and Bath Spa
Due to flooding between Trowbridge and Bath Spa all lines are closed.
Train services running through these stations may be cancelled, delayed by up to 45 minutes or diverted between Trowbridge and Bath Spa. Bradford-On-Avon, Avoncliff and Freshford will not be served. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
Customer Advice
Journey times will be extended by up to 20 minutes due to the diversion.

Passengers for travelling to Freshford, Avoncliff and Bradford on Avon from Bristol and Bath should alight at Bath Spa where onward road transport will be arranged.
First Bus route D1: Bath (Bus Station) - Bradford on Avon - Trowbridge - Westbury - Warminster - Salisbury, First Bus route D1x: Bath (Bus Station) - Bradford on Avon (Railway Bridge/United Church) - Trowbridge (Trinity Church), First Bus route D2: Bath (Bus Station) - Frome (Market Place) and First Bus routes 39 / X39: Bath, Bus Station - Keynsham (Church) - Bristol Temple Meads (Temple Gate) are conveying passengers via any reasonable route until further notice. Arrangements have been made for Great Western Railway rail tickets to be accepted for these journeys.
Further Information
An update will follow within the next 2 hours.
Customers travelling from unstaffed stations are requested to make use of the Customer Help Point systems available, or contact National Rail Enquiries on 03457 484 950 detailing the total number of passengers travelling, and their intended destinations. This will enable us to get suitable road replacement transport to customers as quickly as possible.
If you hold a valid single, return, or weekly ticket, you will be able to claim compensation for delays of 15 minutes or more. Please keep your ticket and visit GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway).com/DelayRepay
Last Updated:29/12/2020 02:14

Line from Westbury to Swindon appears OPEN but the following cancellations are listed:

07:37 Westbury to Swindon due 08:20
08:45 Swindon to Westbury due 09:26
09:45 Westbury to Swindon due 10:34
11:06 Swindon to Westbury due 11:47
12:16 Westbury to Swindon due 13:01
13:15 Swindon to Westbury due 13:56
14:16 Westbury to Swindon due 15:01
15:14 Swindon to Westbury due 15:55
16:25 Westbury to Swindon due 17:08
17:36 Swindon to Westbury due 18:17
18:39 Westbury to Swindon due 19:21
20:45 Swindon to Westbury due 21:26

Although good replacement data is provided for Bradford-on-Avon, Avoncliff and Freshford (see above in this post), no data is provided concerning replacement alternatives at Melksham or on TransWilts journeys.  Here's an example.

07:37 Westbury to Swindon due 08:20
07:37 Westbury to Swindon due 08:20 will be cancelled.
This is due to heavy rain flooding the railway.
Further Information

If you hold a valid single, return, or weekly ticket, you will be able to claim compensation for delays of 15 minutes or more. Please keep your ticket and visit GWR.com/DelayRepay
Last Updated:29/12/2020 02:46

Noting no cross-availability on (for example) bus x34 (Trowbridge - Melksham - Chippenham), nor on 271,272,273 Melksham to Bath routes. 

Not seeing any extra stops reported on diverted trains (yet?)

Hopefully further updates to follow.

[grahame]

Noting that the 05:33, 06:36, 07:20 and 19:15 (all Melksham times) aren't even shown on Real Time Trains - looks as if they may have been taken off to a plan for the Christmas / New Year, even though we are back to a "Normal Working day".   Only call that appears intact at Melksham out of 17 is the 20:21 - the Westbury to Cheltenham Spa via Swindon train.

Snapshot from map at http://new.passenger.chat/map/_CAACAAEAAA.jpg


The decision to cancel the TransWilts service is understandable.  The failure to offer any alternative at the same time - such as extra stops on diverted trains which are the whole reason for the cancellations, and cross acceptance of tickets on buses, could be seen as an abdication of responsibility at this time for the service and passengers.

[grahame]

Four hours later, @GWRHelp have not given any advice for passengers to or from Melksham. Tweets asking have been read but not answered. It appears that trains are being run through the station but none calling.  Plenty of advice for passengers at Bradford-on-Avon, Avoncliff and Freshford. Departure boards just say "Cancelled" and point to refunds and compensation, with no suggestion of how key workers should travel.  Sadly, GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) have surpassed themselves - not even a "sorry - we have abandoned you". The promise of improvements in immediate information after the fiasco in October appear to have been just words. 

[TaplowGreen]

Four hours later, @GWRHelp have not given any advice for passengers to or from Melksham. Tweets asking have been read but not answered. It appears that trains are being run through the station but none calling.  Plenty of advice for passengers at Bradford-on-Avon, Avoncliff and Freshford. Departure boards just say "Cancelled" and point to refunds and compensation, with no suggestion of how key workers should travel.  Sadly, GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) have surpassed themselves - not even a "sorry - we have abandoned you". The promise of improvements in immediate information after the fiasco in October appear to have been just words. 

GWR website re: Swindon - Westbury: "We are struggling to source rail replacement transport at this time. Customers travelling from unstaffed stations are requested to make use of the Customer Help Point systems available, or contact National Rail Enquiries on 03457 484 950 detailing the total number of passengers travelling".

[bobm]

08:55 Swindon to Westbury due 09:36

An additional train service has been planned to operate as shown 08:55 Swindon to Westbury due 09:36.

[Timmer]

According to Journeycheck the 06.10 Salisbury to Gloucester was down to stop at Melksham at 06.56.

Also showing the 06.42Weymouth to Bristol diverted to Swindon calling at Melksham at 08.34

So it looks like thinking is to stop some services at Melksham.

[grahame]

Four hours later, @GWRHelp have not given any advice for passengers to or from Melksham. Tweets asking have been read but not answered. It appears that trains are being run through the station but none calling.  Plenty of advice for passengers at Bradford-on-Avon, Avoncliff and Freshford. Departure boards just say "Cancelled" and point to refunds and compensation, with no suggestion of how key workers should travel.  Sadly, GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) have surpassed themselves - not even a "sorry - we have abandoned you". The promise of improvements in immediate information after the fiasco in October appear to have been just words. 

GWR website re: Swindon - Westbury: "We are struggling to source rail replacement transport at this time. Customers travelling from unstaffed stations are requested to make use of the Customer Help Point systems available, or contact National Rail Enquiries on 03457 484 950 detailing the total number of passengers travelling".

Ah - thank you.  And looks like information systems are just starting to change ... a couple of extra train stops added in too on the services diverted through Melksham. Makes sense.

[bobm]

Noting that the 05:33, 06:36, 07:20 and 19:15 (all Melksham times) aren't even shown on Real Time Trains - looks as if they may have been taken off to a plan for the Christmas / New Year, even though we are back to a "Normal Working day".   Only call that appears intact at Melksham out of 17 is the 20:21 - the Westbury to Cheltenham Spa via Swindon train.

From the December TransWilts Newsletter

Then between the 28th and 1st January there will be a near normal service except some early morning journeys will not run.  Full details are now available from on line journey planners.

[bobm]

08:55 Swindon to Westbury due 09:36

An additional train service has been planned to operate as shown 08:55 Swindon to Westbury due 09:36.

Service yet to leave Swindon because the incoming stock - the aforementioned 06:42 from Weymouth has yet to arrive.  Looks like it will be around 20 minutes late leaving.