No leniency at Slough - 22/11

[whole diary]

[Btline]

I bet petrol trains waste a lot of money 

Whoops!

Well, petrol or diesel, it was still a waste.

Oh dear, I ranted quite a lot yesterday!

But does anyone agree that the train SHOULD have been held?

And I would like to say that it is great how we are seeing the matter from the perspective of staff and passengers.

[Ollie]

I bet petrol trains waste a lot of money 

Whoops!

Well, petrol or diesel, it was still a waste.

Oh dear, I ranted quite a lot yesterday!

But does anyone agree that the train SHOULD have been held?

And I would like to say that it is great how we are seeing the matter from the perspective of staff and passengers.

In your case it should have been, as you were told in good faith that it would be.

[gwr2006]

I appreciate that the Didcot staff didn't (and couldn't have) known that they were letting the last connection of the day go. But I have to ask SDA if he's really suggesting that a final service should be sent off on time, even if people are running for it from a delayed connection?

No, in that situation of course that service should be held (within a couple of minutes). 

Remember a hold on the last service of the night is not going to have a massive knock-on effect to other services, whereas a 2 minute hold on a service at 8am is a different kettle of fish.

I have to disagree. The 1812 train from Didcot is not the last train of the day, and is in the middle of the evening peak, with its mix of non-stop, fast and stopping trains. In this instance the 1812 is being caught up by the 1745 Paddington to Carmarthen train which runs non-stop through Didcot at 100mph and arrives in Swindon just 9 minutes behind the 1812. Any station delay to the 1812 means the preceeding train is signal checked making it lose time whilst it decelerates and then accelerates back to line speed. Any delay en-route can have knock on effects further down the line, for example passing through Newport or Cardiff.

How could the station staff know that people would need to travel on the 1812 and then makle a further connection later on in their journey. They can't. They would have decided the train should leave on time because there are other trains at 1833, 1842, 1856 etc. to get people to Swindon and beyond. People can't really expect station staff to know about every conceivable connection that may be possible after the train has left their station.

None of the Oxford to Didcot trains have guaranteed connections into mainline service, or vice versa, as they both have their own operating constraints. Perhaps the Melksham train (as it uses a line that is not so busy) should be a guranteeed connection at Swindoin so FGW^▸ (First Great Western) is obliged to make alternative arrangements if it fails to be made.

[Zoe]

In this instance the 1812 is being caught up by the 1745 Paddington to Carmarthen train which runs non-stop through Didcot at 100mph and arrives in Swindon just 9 minutes behind the 1812.

Why does it only run through Didcot at 100 mph when the line speed is 125 mph?

[devon_metro]

It doesn't, although on an interesting note, Reading - Swindon is only timed to run at 110 mph afaik.

[Zoe]

It doesn't, although on an interesting note, Reading - Swindon is only timed to run at 110 mph afaik.

So do the trains only run at 110 mph from Reading to Swindon and not at line speed or do they run at 125 mph and then wait at Swindon?

[devon_metro]

Depends on how late a train is or the driver.

[John R]

It doesn't, although on an interesting note, Reading - Swindon is only timed to run at 110 mph afaik.

So do the trains only run at 110 mph from Reading to Swindon and not at line speed or do they run at 125 mph and then wait at Swindon?

My observation is that if they are on time then they stick to around 110, but go faster if running late. Which is pretty frequent in the down direction given congestion at Reading.

[Zoe]

Is there any reason for this?  Are the drivers under orders not to go faster than 110 mph?  Is it to save fuel?

[devon_metro]

It saves waiting around at Swindon and does save fuel/ does less damage to track.

[John R]

And it gives a couple of additional minutes recovery time in the event of delays between Paddington and Reading. As mentioned before, until Reading is rebuilt, it probably isn't a bad thing. 

[IndustryInsider]

My observation is that if they are on time then they stick to around 110, but go faster if running late. Which is pretty frequent in the down direction given congestion at Reading.

Is there any reason for this?  Are the drivers under orders not to go faster than 110 mph?  Is it to save fuel?

I though we'd put this one to bed a while ago! 99% of drivers will drive to the linespeed of 125mph if they are running under green aspects. If they've had a nice clear run from Reading and are approaching Swindon in good time, they might let it coast the final few miles, but accelerating from Reading they will be at 125mph between Goring and Cholsey.

The service is timed for 125mph running with the usual leeway for any temporary speed restrictions or other unforeseen delay. The time allowed of 29 minutes for the nearly 41 miles equates to an average speed of 85mph, but that of course includes acceleration and deceleration for the stations as well as the leeway I've mentioned. If the train has no hold-ups then it would arrive about 5 minutes early, but I can't remember a time when there has been no speed restrictions in the last few years as quite extensive embankment stabilisation between Didcot and Swindon has been taking place.

[eightf48544]

I seem to recall when the HST^▸ (High Speed Train) service first came out there was an afternoon train from Bath next stop Reading in 40 minutes. Now as Bath Reading is aproximately 71 miles I make that an average of around 106 mph. I caught it once in late 70s early 80s it seemd to keep time.

Are there any  start stop average speeds like that now.

[devon_metro]

In the days of BR^▸ (British Rail(ways))

In 1985 a high speed run from Padd - Ply did it in 2hrs 21 mins compare that to 3 hours minimum these days!!

Cardiff - Paddington in 1h 46 mins

London - Bristol in 1h 36 seconds. 112 MPH average! (high speed run admittedly)

Sonme of those times are simply astonishing (IMO^▸ (in my opinion)!)

[John R]

Used to be booked services from Padd to Chippenham in 59 minutes, and Padd to Parkway in 65 minutes. Ah, those were the days! Though Chippenham only had 1 train every 2 hours, so it wasn't all better.