Train punctuality figures, from Network Rail

[whole diary]

[Phil]

Without wishing to sound churlish, I have to say that when a company only bothers to run two trains in any 24 hour period from one end of Wiltshire to the other, it's not exactly difficult to be punctual...

[Mookiemoo]

And after the cock up this morning, doesnt make me feel any better!

[6 OF 2 redundant adjunct of unimatrix 01]

sunday was the first time in over a year that i was on a late fgw service and it managed to make up time and still be in early at exeter, i guess the okehampton service is well padded

[willc]

And after the cock up this morning, doesnt make me feel any better!

and this cock-up would be what exactly?

Things do go wrong elsewhere too, including on btline's favorite operator - currently showing on Chiltern's website:

11:40 Stratford-Upon-Avon to London Marylebone due 13:56
This train is being delayed between Stratford-Upon-Avon and London Marylebone.
This train has been cancelled.
This is due to animals on the line.

May not be their fault, but not great when the next train isn't for two hours

[Mookiemoo]

And after the cock up this morning, doesnt make me feel any better!

and this cock-up would be what exactly?

Things do go wrong elsewhere too, including on btline's favorite operator - currently showing on Chiltern's website:

11:40 Stratford-Upon-Avon to London Marylebone due 13:56
This train is being delayed between Stratford-Upon-Avon and London Marylebone.
This train has been cancelled.
This is due to animals on the line.

May not be their fault, but not great when the next train isn't for two hours

Laying bed debating whether or not to get the 0535 as I had a training course I wa delivering at 0930.  Decided against it since I get to slough at 0855ish and its only five minutes in a cab.  Get the0624

Just at Morton and the TM^‡(resolve) starts hammering at the door panel.  Goes on for a good ten minutes - something to do with the key being stuck.  We continue and get to Oxford on time (there's the padding again!) only to have the hammering resume.  15 minutes of this, several calls to control and G and H are evacuated into F and SC (anticipating this I had one of the few seats in F by this time) and we continue.

Get into Reading at 0833 - two minutes after the 0831 has left.  Everything else now running 15-20 minutes late.   The 0847 (?) which stops at maidenhead and not slough leaves at 0905 - this I get and finish my journey with a taxi from maidenhead to slough (at a cost of 30 quid) and get to work only 10 minutes after my delegates have started contemplating their navel.  I did this, because the 0903 was going to run from reading none stop to west drayton and the next train to stop at slough was the 0916 which was going to call all stations and resemble a sardine can and I know from experience would not get me into the office until nearly 10 anyway.

So -

Taxi = 30 quid
Hotel tonight = unknown as yet since im going to be stuck here late doing prep I could have done in that half hour from 0900 to 0930 and i will is the 1922!

Thanks FGW^▸ (First Great Western)

I know - **** happens - im just understandably hacked off (especially since I left my bag of tricks at home which had my season ticket and modem in it!)

[devon_metro]

Had two excellent journeys today, on time and a seat. Even if it was an Anytime fare 

[Wolvercote Wanderer]

Well done to the FGW^▸ (First Great Western) troops who run the operation!  Hopefully, the operator will start to shake off its bad reputation it picked up a few years ago.

I often travel from Oxford to the west or South Wales so I always need to change at Didcot... most of my trains run like clockwork (not literally).  And whilst the connections aren't perfect (you can watch the Oxford train leave Didcot as you arrive from Bristol!), at least the trains are usually on time.  Although sometimes a slight delay on the xx:25 off Didcot to Oxford would be appreciated.

There are many things I could moan about FGW but I suppose they do deserve some praise from time-to-time.

[Ollie]

And after the cock up this morning, doesnt make me feel any better!

and this cock-up would be what exactly?

Things do go wrong elsewhere too, including on btline's favorite operator - currently showing on Chiltern's website:

11:40 Stratford-Upon-Avon to London Marylebone due 13:56
This train is being delayed between Stratford-Upon-Avon and London Marylebone.
This train has been cancelled.
This is due to animals on the line.

May not be their fault, but not great when the next train isn't for two hours

Laying bed debating whether or not to get the 0535 as I had a training course I wa delivering at 0930.  Decided against it since I get to slough at 0855ish and its only five minutes in a cab.  Get the0624

Just at Morton and the TM^‡(resolve) starts hammering at the door panel.  Goes on for a good ten minutes - something to do with the key being stuck.  We continue and get to Oxford on time (there's the padding again!) only to have the hammering resume.  15 minutes of this, several calls to control and G and H are evacuated into F and SC (anticipating this I had one of the few seats in F by this time) and we continue.

Get into Reading at 0833 - two minutes after the 0831 has left.  Everything else now running 15-20 minutes late.   The 0847 (?) which stops at maidenhead and not slough leaves at 0905 - this I get and finish my journey with a taxi from maidenhead to slough (at a cost of 30 quid) and get to work only 10 minutes after my delegates have started contemplating their navel.  I did this, because the 0903 was going to run from reading none stop to west drayton and the next train to stop at slough was the 0916 which was going to call all stations and resemble a sardine can and I know from experience would not get me into the office until nearly 10 anyway.

So -

Taxi = 30 quid
Hotel tonight = unknown as yet since im going to be stuck here late doing prep I could have done in that half hour from 0900 to 0930 and i will is the 1922!

Thanks FGW^▸ (First Great Western)

I know - **** happens - im just understandably hacked off (especially since I left my bag of tricks at home which had my season ticket and modem in it!)

Bit off topic but as you left the train at Reading I joined it

[inspector_blakey]

Given the complexity of the network that FGW^▸ (First Great Western) operates by comparison with the much more self-contained networks of smaller operators that are often vaunted as examples of punctuality (I'm thinking c2c, Merseyrail and the sainted Chiltern...) 94.6% is a remarkable achievement. Well done to everyone at FGW!

[JayMac]

Praise where praise is due. Well done to all at FGW^▸ (First Great Western)! And begrudging thanks to the part(s) of Network Rail responsible for areas where FGW run.

Interesting to see that the bottom two performers are yet again VT^▸ (Virgin Trains - former franchises) and LM^▸ (London Midland - recent franchise). And they're running on an 'upgrade completed' (Dec 2008) WCML^▸ (West Coast Main Line). Here's a tip Mr Coucher - Don't spend ^9 billion, then pose proudly next to a 125mph sign, when the project is anything but complete. Oh, and spend a bit more than tuppence ha'penny of that ^9 billion on signalling. Well done to VT and LM for improving punctuality despite NR^» (Network Rail - home page)'s best efforts!

I'm dreading the Reading 'remodelling' and other upcoming large infrastructure projects. Here's hoping NR have learned from the WCML debacle. I'm an optomist, but I'm still crossing my fingers!

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Train punctuality across Britain has improved compared with the same time last year but is worse on a main line in public hands, figures show.
Network Rail (NR^» (Network Rail - home page)) said the number of trains on time last month was up from 92.7% to 93.5% on the national network.
The worst showing was by government-run company East Coast, between London and Scotland, down 4.9% points to 87.0%.
East Coast said it had been affected by major disruptions due to severe weather conditions during the period involved.
The best performing company was c2C on the London to Tilbury and Southend route with 97.5% of its trains on time.
The biggest improvement in performance was by Virgin Trains on the West Coast Main Line with a rise of 7.6% points to 91.0%.
CrossCountry services saw a large fall in punctuality of 4.1% points to 89.2%.
Robin Gisby, NR's director of operations and customer services, said: "Passengers continue to enjoy a high-performing, punctual railway. We, and the train operators, continue to invest in the railway to make it even better by providing more capacity, better stations and fewer buses. The immediate threat of a national rail strike is behind us and talks to resolve the situation with our trades unions continue. We believe an amicable settlement, without the need for further ballots or threats of strike action, is possible."
The East Coast Main Line franchise was taken over by the Department for Transport in November 2009.
Falling revenue and rising costs had left previous operator National Express unable to meet a commitment to pay ^1.4bn for the business until 2015.
East Coast said it was working closely with Network Rail to "deliver robust joint action plans" to improve punctuality.
A spokesman said: "Unfortunately, during this period, performance was affected by severe weather conditions, including landslips and flooding, which at two locations blocked our route for two days. We also had to contend with an increased number of fatalities, train fleet reliability issues and major engineering work over nine weekends at one of the busiest locations on the East Coast Main Line at Hitchin. We continued to operate trains through the Hitchin area on each weekend, at reduced speed, rather than having to transfer customers to replacement buses."

[Chris from Nailsea]

For those interested in the actual figures, see the Network Rail press release 

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Network Rail press release:

The railway in Great Western has one of the highest number of trains arriving on time, according to the latest train performance records released by Network Rail today.

First Great Western continues to outperform target, with an annual average of 92.4% of trains arriving on time by the end of April - the first month of the operating year.   

Chris Rayner, director of operations and customer services, said: "Today^s records mark a positive start for the year.  Train punctuality continues to go from strength to strength and just in March, we ended the year with performance results in Great Western at its highest in 13 years.  Delivering an even better service for our customers and for passengers remains our primary focus as high levels of investment to beat bottlenecks and overcrowding continue."

First Great Western^s Managing Director, Mark Hopwood, said: ^We work closely together with Network Rail to deliver the best possible service to our customers and are very pleased with how far we^ve come. However, there is still more to do and we look forward to conitiuing to work side by side to improve our performance even further.^

Across the country, 94.0% of services arrived on time between 1 April ^ 1 May.  This compares to 93.6% in same period, period 1, last year.   In all, 11 of the 19 operators saw their performance improve, or stay at record high levels, compared to the same period last year.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

The UK^▸ (United Kingdom)'s only public sector train firm had the poorest punctuality last month, figures have shown.

The London to Scotland East Coast line had 85.2% of trains on time - the only passenger train company not to achieve a punctuality figure of at least 91%.

The figures from Network Rail, which owns and operates the rail network, cover 22 August to 18 September.

The UK operator said the East Coast delays were mainly caused by factors out of its control such as cable theft.

The theft at Newark in Nottinghamshire on 10 September brought the East Coast line to a halt for many hours, Network Rail said.

Problems with overhead lines on 31 August south of Peterborough also affected East Coast services, it added.

East Coast services are operated on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Overall, the train companies averaged 93.5% punctuality during the four-week period - down slightly on the same period last year.

Chiltern trains were the most punctual in September, with 97.3% running on time, and 13 of the 19 companies had improved their performance compared to last September.

Virgin Trains, which operates the West Coast Main Line, was the most improved, up from 89% to 91.3%.

Network Rail director Robin Gisby said September had been a good month for delivering a high-quality, punctual service to millions of passengers and freight users.

An East Coast spokesman said it would have hit its punctuality target had it not been for continued factors outside its control.

"For the second consecutive four-week period, the top three causes of delay were due to infrastructure and other external factors including cable theft, damage to overhead power lines and breakdowns involving other operators' trains," he said.

The Association of Train Operating Companies said the rail industry was committed to improving services, as demonstrated by the "consistently high levels of punctuality".

[Chris from Nailsea]

Latest figures, from the Network Rail press release:

TRAIN PERFORMANCE DIPS IN OCTOBER

Train performance in October saw a marked dip for Britain's train services. Network Rail today released the latest train performance results which saw 86.3% of trains arriving on time compared with 90.3% for the same period last year.

Period eight (17 October to 13 November) is the first full month of the difficult autumn period that historically sees train performance fall. Average train punctuality for period eight over the last ten years has been 77.6%.

Robin Gisby, director of operations and customer services, said: ^The railway has made great strides in reducing the impact of the autumn weather over the past decade, but the start of this year's has been difficult resulting in disappointing train punctuality.

"The industry has invested heavily, some ^30m, in technology and techniques targeted at lessening the impact of autumn. We aim to deliver much better performance in the weeks ahead."

18 of the 19 operators saw their performance drop compared to the same period last year. London Overground was the most punctual operator during the period with 94.0% of trains on time. 10 operators saw significant movement in their performance (over three percentage points)