Snow/Wintry conditions

[whole diary]

[James Vertigan]

It's one of the first services to go - perhaps understandably. If you're short of drivers because they can't get in to work, then if you're running an all stations shuttle from Reading to Paddington that would mop up Hanwell, West Ealing and Acton ML. Greenford itself is largely covered by the Central Line, and so that leaves just Castle Bar Park and Drayton Green both of which are on bus routes or within walking distance from West Ealing.

If I remember last February when London was hit by significant snow we had no buses as councils failed to grit roads that bus garages were on, nearly the whole tube system was suspended... meanwhile the Greenford branch was out of action for nearly the whole week - I can't remember if there were services going to Reading or somewhere that stopped at Acton Main Line, but certainly the Greenfords weren't.

I have heard all sorts of stories today saying stuff like the snow is coming down from the Midlands, there has even been snow in Devon today, but there seems to be certainty of the snow hitting Oxfordshire and Berkshire so I can see services from Oxford and Reading being hit tomorrow, and the first two trains of the day at AML come from Oxford and Reading, so I could be in for a day or two at home!

Incidentally, I must just say well done to the person(s) responsible for gritting at AML - it seemed very well covered on the platforms and footbridge tonight.

[TheLastMinute]

Amended timetable now posted at http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=4624

Some lowlights:

Bristol to Avonmouth and Severn Beach services
Train services on this route will be suspended in both directions.

Westbury and Melksham to Swindon services
Train services on this route will be suspended in both directions.

High speed services
We anticipate that all High Speed services will operate with the following exceptions: 

The 05:53 Cheltenham to London Paddington service is cancelled
The 06:30 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington service is cancelled

The following Cardiff Central trains to London Paddington will be cancelled:
0715
0815
0915
1015
1115
1215
1315
1415
1515

The following London Paddington to Cardiff Central trains will be cancelled:
0955
1055
1155
1255
1355
1455
1555
1655
1755

[Mookiemoo]

Amended timetable now posted at http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=4624

Some lowlights:

Westbury and Melksham to Swindon services
Train services on this route will be suspended in both directions.

From what I can gather - isnt that just normal service?

[Phil]

I was just thinking their usage of the plural of "service" was a little disingenuous

[willc]

And unfortunately, they seem to have got the departure times of the cancelled services from London and Cardiff the wrong way round... should be 15 past from Paddington, 55 past from Cardiff.

[Jez]

The 55 minutes past the hour service to London is always the first to be cancelled from Cardiff, I guess because people can make do with the 25 minutes past the hour service.

[inspector_blakey]

Also because the xx25 services start back in Swansea at xx29 the previous hour, so cancelling the xx55 CDF^» (Cardiff - next trains)-PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) inconveniences fewer people than the xx25.

[IndustryInsider]

I'll stick my neck out here, and say that the amended timetable might not go far enough come the morning - especially regarding the Cotswold Line, Oxfordshire and Berkshire services - as the white stuff really is starting to come down in hefty amounts.

[The Grecian]

I believe (anecdotally) the Cardiff services are a fair bit quieter than the Swansea services. In the same way trains from Exeter to London or the North are usually much busier if they started at Penzance than at Plymouth. People like their direct trains.

[Ollie]

Snow coming down nicely where I am to, which Fallen Angel knows so good luck if she is coming in to work tomorrow.

[Mookiemoo]

Snow coming down nicely where I am to, which Fallen Angel knows so good luck if she is coming in to work tomorrow.

Nope

I exited Reading on the 1348 this afternoon and plan to work from home in my jammies tomorrow!

Especially since some knob knocked me over in Reading station this morning and I can now barely walk!  It didnt seem too bad at the time.

[Ollie]

Snow coming down nicely where I am to, which Fallen Angel knows so good luck if she is coming in to work tomorrow.

Nope

I exited Reading on the 1348 this afternoon and plan to work from home in my jammies tomorrow!

From looking out the window I'd say that will probably be a good choice

[Brucey]

I've cancelled all my plans for tomorrow.

I can't even get to the end of my road in the car, let alone make it to the station.  The nearest main road (which has a bus route) is completely impassible.

In addition, all services on the SVB line are cancelled and I assume most 8/9 buses will be cancelled so I don't really have any way of getting home once at BTM^▸ (Bristol Temple Meads (strictly, it should be BRI)).

I'm assuming that as my connection to Redland is cancelled, I would be able to get a full refund on my advance ticket (which is from Portsmouth) as I'm not going to make any of the journey?

[paul7575]

DB^» (Deutsche Bahn - German State Railway - about) Schenker (EWS^▸ (English Welsh & Scottish Railway Ltd, now known as DB Schenker Rail (UK^▸ (United Kingdom)))) - and apparently it is only their first few days of the contract.

Stobart Rail Blue is really just an advertising livery, they might by now be thinking EWS or DB would have been less embarrassing...

Paul

[hornbeam]

Well in Reading, the buses stopped running at 7pm. As for 'good old BR^▸ (British Rail(ways))' the problem is, as they found, the damage caused to units (like traction motor blowers sucking snow in) means that it can take days/ weeks to repair them all meaning a large knock on effect. i'm sure DMU^▸ (Diesel Multiple Unit)'s also suffer (frozen doors for example) as well.