Turbo refresh started.

[whole diary]

[BerkshireBugsy]

Are the turbos being refreshed by bombardiet out in Essex?

I'm certain I saw an FEW turbo parked in the way through this morning

[ray951]

I have been on 3 class 166 over the last few days and not one had working air-con.
Is it my imagination but does the class 166 have less opening windows than class 165?
What made it worse was the 166 tonight replaced the diagrammed 180. And I notice there were 2 180's berthed in the up carriage sidings in Oxford, I guess one if not both had failed.

[TonyK]

Are the turbos being refreshed by bombardiet out in Essex?

I'm certain I saw an FEW turbo parked in the way through this morning

I am going to offer Bombardiet to Charles Wells Brewery as a name for a new low calorie beer. I-Phone update, perchance?

[IndustryInsider]

I have been on 3 class 166 over the last few days and not one had working air-con.
Is it my imagination but does the class 166 have less opening windows than class 165?

Yes, they have less opening widows - only eight per carriage.

Reliability wise, this prolonged hot spell has seen more and more fail as each day goes on.  I reckon about 15-20% of carriages (note carriages, not complete units) are currently working effectively.  Almost all the rest now have the windows opened.  Again I stress, if it's not working in one carriage, it might well be working OK in another so check to make sure.  If the windows are shut there's a good chance it's working OK in that carriage - if not tell the driver at the first opportunity.

Whilst 20% is not exactly a great percentage, it's far better than the 0% that worked before the system was altered, and this is a once-in-every-ten-years heatwave.  Looking optimistically about the situation, at least it will provide plenty of work for the engineers, who will hopefully be able to correct the outstanding issues in time for next summer.  The other option is to gently forget about the new system and we'll end up where we were with the old one, so let's hope that modifications are possible and will be made.

[IndustryInsider]

Another software update has been applied to the Turbo APIS system.

The good news is that is seems to have made further improvements to the reliability of the system, so hopefully the days of the wrong station being announced are finally over.

It looks like I was being a little optimistic and from observations over the last couple of weeks the system still gets 'lost' just as much as it used to.   

What with that, the as yet unimpressive air-conditioning modifications, and the badly designed toilets (which block too easily and run out of water too quickly), the refresh programme has so far delivered very little other than new seats covers and less grimy interiors.

[Electric train]

What with that, the as yet unimpressive air-conditioning modifications, and the badly designed toilets (which block too easily and run out of water too quickly), the refresh programme has so far delivered very little other than new seats covers and less grimy interiors.

What did you expect from a company that has lost interest in that part of the franchise.  The interiors are getting grubby again which mirrors the other First trains sets in the SE (FCC^▸ (First Capital Connect) Thameslink)

Best answer to the 166's, as I have always said, is turn them into 165's i.e. put in hopper windows through out and remove the air-con

[johoare]

Looking at the comments on FGW^▸ (First Great Western) facebook page again it looks as if they are frying more passengers than they are cooling on these trains.. I just wish they would sort it out before they really make someone ill..

[Fourbee]

Best answer to the 166's, as I have always said, is turn them into 165's i.e. put in hopper windows through out and remove the air-con

I agree, but that is a lot of windows to replace. Would probably cost a fair bit, but then how much has tinkering (and not achieving much) with the air conditioning cost.

In contrast the air conditioning on the SWT^▸ (South West Trains) 444's and 450's works a treat in my opinion (but then there are no opening windows to mess the system up).

[chuffed]

444's 455's 166's 165's? What are those ?

Spare a thought for all those in the Bristol area who have had to put up with 142's 143's 150's 153's and the high density HST^▸ (High Speed Train)'s for so long ! For a treat I always try to catch the 'borrowed' SWT^▸ (South West Trains) 158 wherever it is performing for the light red and airy interior. The FGW^▸ (First Great Western) refurbished 158's used between Cardiff and Portsmouth can get a bit claustrophobic with all that dark blue.

[stuving]

For the last few days I have had a thermometer in my bag (like you do) on short trips from Wokingham to Reading, Oxford, and Swindon. It's a bit slow-reading and it isn't possible to get a truly representative reading, but it gives something to set against subjective observations.

The trains split into the obvious good and bad guys: North Downs Line 166s bad, HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train), 180s, and Waterloo 458s good. The good guys all had temperatures of 23-24 degrees, but the 458s felt much cooler, even a bit chilly if you come in from outside with lots of bare skin. I think that's due to the powerful air blast from the ceiling, compared to the HSTs which feel particularly comfortable. I can see the extra cooling power is needed when a train gets crush-loaded with sweaty commuters at Waterloo, but it should be possible to reduce this (and the power consumption) at other times. Chillers have to run 100% or nothing, and are best not cycled off and on too often, but if there is more than one per carriage a two-level selection ought to be easy to do.

The 166 was sitting at Reading in P5, pretty well shaded, but was only powered up 3 minutes before leaving. Everyone felt it was warmer than outside, but in this one the windows appeared to be held half shut by bolts. The temperature started at 28-29 and was rising all the 10-15 minutes was on it, to about 31, even with with some airflow when we were moving. I was on another with more windows more open, which was better, but impossible to get a reading on. None of the trains was loaded above 75%.

[Fourbee]

With regards to the airflow in the sauna, I mean, class 166's when the windows are open - standing in the rear entrance to the middle saloon can offer some decent airflow.

[Electric train]

Was on a 377 today out of Victoria positively (or is that negativity) freezing    was like hitting a brick wall when I got off 

Return journey was on a 319 ....................... air con on those is the same as the 165's only effective at 30 mph plus 

[TonyK]

What with that, the as yet unimpressive air-conditioning modifications, and the badly designed toilets (which block too easily and run out of water too quickly), the refresh programme has so far delivered very little other than new seats covers and less grimy interiors.

Aircraft air conditioning and toilets are major items that have to work and cost a fortune. For trains, it all seems a bit hit and miss. If some trains have aircon that works, why are trains still built with inferior systems? Or are they supposed to be more advanced, but don't work as designed? It seems that the answer could lie in remembering these things when writing the specifications.

Yes, they have less opening widows - only eight per carriage.

I didn't realise there were so many non-opening widows on trains. I shall look out for them, and maybe ask one out for a Bombardiet. Oh, the joys of predictive text!

[Btline]

It's ridiculous, there is no excuse for poor air con. Chiltern's Turbos are fine and now have NO openable windows - why can't FGW^▸ (First Great Western) do the same?

[Brucey]

It's ridiculous, there is no excuse for poor air con. Chiltern's Turbos are fine and now have NO openable windows - why can't FGW^▸ (First Great Western) do the same?

I travelled on a Chiltern 165 earlier in the week, followed by a FGW 165 later on in the day.  The difference was so noticeable that they hardly felt like the type class of train!  Although the air con was switched on, the FGW was still hot enough that I felt uncomfortable.