Reading Station improvements

[whole diary]

[paul7575]

I am quite concerned that the trains aren't going to be back to normal next week now.. I guess it will just be a case of wait and see on Monday morning?

The currently uploaded timetable suggests they should be very near to normal on Monday morning, but with a full blockade on Sunday getting the rolling stock to the normal 'start positions' on Monday morning is the key. 

If you look at this:  www.realtimetrains.co.uk

...it shows up mostly in red in the middle of the night, which is because everything is changed to sort out the stock following the blockade on Sunday.  But it is back to black by around the time normal people get up!

Well that's the theory anyway...

Paul

[johoare]

From the NR^» (Network Rail - home page) disruption page:

"There is currently no firm estimate for when a normal service will resume. It is anticipated that this disruption will continue until at least 8 April" (bold added by me)..

I'm quite concerned about Monday now.. And the trouble is.. No one will know for sure until they get to the station and find it's either ok (hopefully) or chaos (most likely)

And my season ticket needs renewing.. It's almost worth not doing it incase it's not possible to actually get on a train in the peak..

[eightf48544]

You can always have look before leaving home on Maidenehad Live departures
http://www.livedepartureboards.co.uk/fgw/summary.aspx?T=MAI^▸ (Maidenhead station)&x=27&y=9

You at least get a feel for how things are going, but it won't tell you how crowded the trains are though.

[NickB]

From the NR^» (Network Rail - home page) disruption page:

"There is currently no firm estimate for when a normal service will resume. It is anticipated that this disruption will continue until at least 8 April" (bold added by me)..

I'm quite concerned about Monday now.. And the trouble is.. No one will know for sure until they get to the station and find it's either ok (hopefully) or chaos (most likely)

On Tuesday I gave up and went home again   

[paul7575]

If I was a Maidenhead commuter I'd be tempted to use that realtimes trains site in advanced mode, because as I suggested earlier the key issue is the ECS^▸ (Empty Coaching Stock) moves before the passenger service starts.  National Rail's LDBs obviously won't display ECS, or indeed any backdated info on earlier passenger services.

But I'd be cautiously optimistic, because as seen from the station it looks like the mainline side track works to/from P7/8/9/10 are rapidly approaching physical completion, with over three days left. As I understand from posts elsewhere the main aim of Sunday's closure is to demolish the remaining part of the footbridge, so if they've any sensible sort of overall plan the trackwork should be proven beforehand.

Paul

[insider]

The very disrupted service this morning was caused by a failed train on Reading Depot at around 0100-0200 which prevented the last 3 or 4 trains arriving on time, they were all around 60 mins late.

This in turn delayed morning departures, with only the back exit from the depot in use, with 2 reversals (one at Reading West and other at Tilehurst) chaos and big delays were all over the place. I believe some departures were nearly 90 mins late.

The current depot is not designed for the large number of trains (and formations) to enter/exit via the West, This is because where the trains are stabled (roads 6-22), you have to shunt 1 unit at a time towards a neck then shunt back towards the West end, then go and get the other unit and repeat then couple them. Only one train can be formed at a time, and this takes time. Bearing in mind that every set of points have to be pulled by a person........Oh if only there was a new depot with more capacity and power points?? (8 weeks to go I believe?)

I think a similar startup may reoccur tonight / tomorrow, but hopefully not quite as late!! (Too many trains not enough tracks)

[johoare]

You can always have look before leaving home on Maidenehad Live departures
http://www.livedepartureboards.co.uk/fgw/summary.aspx?T=MAI^▸ (Maidenhead station)&x=27&y=9

You at least get a feel for how things are going, but it won't tell you how crowded the trains are though.

I always do..every day..and JourneyCheck. You'd be amazed at how things can change during the 25 minute walk.. or how sometimes Journeycheck is wrong..

Still doesn't help my dilemma re renewing my season ticket. If I go an do that Sunday I feel I'm going to be jinxing the Monday service.. but I imagine the ticket queues on Monday will be very long if there are trains..

[johoare]

From the NR^» (Network Rail - home page) disruption page:

"There is currently no firm estimate for when a normal service will resume. It is anticipated that this disruption will continue until at least 8 April" (bold added by me)..

I'm quite concerned about Monday now.. And the trouble is.. No one will know for sure until they get to the station and find it's either ok (hopefully) or chaos (most likely)

On Tuesday I gave up and went home again   

it's good that they take (lots of our money) for our Season tickets but I bet you won't get a refund even though you couldn't travel...

[IndustryInsider]

The crewing issues I refer to is what caused a lot of disruption on Tuesday. Because of these crewing issues the 180s are not in use. To cover the 180s Turbos are being used instead which has meant some diagrams are now short formed.

Sadly the decision to take the 180s out yesterday backfired somewhat on the Cotswold Line in the afternoon, as after the 12:21 PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains)-GMV departed (formed with a 2-car Turbo vice 180), the following train, the 13:21 PAD-MIM was cancelled and the train after the 14:21 PAD-WOF (also formed of a 2-car Turbo) only got as far as Oxford after those in charge realised, after it had arrived at Oxford, that the HSS^▸ (High Speed Services) Train Manager rostered to take it forward didn't sign Turbos - nobody had thought to check in advance!   

Then fate dealt another dud card (as it often does) as the following train, 15:51 PAD-WOS^» (Worcester Shrub Hill - next trains), activated a hot axle box detector near Didcot and limped into Oxford to terminate.  A 3-car Turbo was summoned from the yard and left (totally crammed) at around 17:20 and was closely followed by the halts train.  That meant that only one 2-car Turbo left Oxford towards the Cotswolds in five hours!

Presumably the 14:21 PAD-WOF was only a 2-car due to its call at Shipton on the return journey, and if so presents another staggering example of the needs of the few outweighing the needs of the many.  How full that, and the 12:21ex Paddington, were when they left London I dread to think!

[johoare]

If I was a Maidenhead commuter I'd be tempted to use that realtimes trains site in advanced mode, because as I suggested earlier the key issue is the ECS^▸ (Empty Coaching Stock) moves before the passenger service starts.  National Rail's LDBs obviously won't display ECS, or indeed any backdated info on earlier passenger services.

But I'd be cautiously optimistic, because as seen from the station it looks like the mainline side track works to/from P7/8/9/10 are rapidly approaching physical completion, with over three days left. As I understand from posts elsewhere the main aim of Sunday's closure is to demolish the remaining part of the footbridge, so if they've any sensible sort of overall plan the trackwork should be proven beforehand.

Paul

Thanks paul7755.. That link does look very useful... I've saved it as a favourite.. Not sure I will totally understand all the trains on it but should give me some idea in advance if Monday morning is going to be good or bad

[BBM]

The crewing issues I refer to is what caused a lot of disruption on Tuesday. Because of these crewing issues the 180s are not in use. To cover the 180s Turbos are being used instead which has meant some diagrams are now short formed.

I saw another 180 heading west this morning, I'm guessing it was the 06:48 Paddington-Great Malvern? The 06:53 from Twyford was again indicated as having only 3 cars but I didn't get it this morning as it ran about 13 minutes late and the 06:44 did actually turn up for the first time this week, albeit 18 minutes late but just ahead of the 06:53 and with plenty of room inside.

[lordgoata]

A 180 was leaving Goring at 17:47ish last night as well, just in the interests of completeness :-)

FGW^▸ (First Great Western) seem to have improved as the weeks gone by - on Wednesday the 0731 8-car HST^▸ (High Speed Train) from Goring stopped at Reading, Twyford and Maidenhead, and was crammed when it left. On Thursday and Friday it was set down only at Reading (looked like another HST was due at Reading around the same time, so I assume that was why), so when it arrived at Twyford and Maidenhead there was plenty of space for all the passengers.

[Jason]

Things were quite slow again this morning @ 06:50. There was something of a procession of trains all waiting for P15 towards Paddington and running around 10-15 minutes late.

I had a look around whilst I waited for a fast service - the transfer deck does feel nice and airy and has great potential. It does feel cold and very exposed near the platform exits as previously noted.

There always seems to be one of the escalators in the south entrance out of action.

I wasn't overly impressed with the summary train displays - only a single screen the size of my TV on each pier. It would be nice to have larger and more displays available. With many departures having a subtext line (eg, calls at Slough) there isn't much room for that many services to be shown, even when it is flipping over two pages.

There are the 5 groups of screens at the NW and SE sides of the deck but I had to look at them a while to work out whether they were related to a single platform(s) or all the upcoming departures.

What looks like a Starbucks booth (judging by the logo half hidden under cladding) was being erected in the centre.

[Gordon the Blue Engine]

But I'd be cautiously optimistic, because as seen from the station it looks like the mainline side track works to/from P7/8/9/10 are rapidly approaching physical completion, with over three days left. As I understand from posts elsewhere the main aim of Sunday's closure is to demolish the remaining part of the footbridge, so if they've any sensible sort of overall plan the trackwork should be proven beforehand.

Paul

They may be making progress on the east side of the station, but I think they've some way to go at "Whitehouse Junction"  (ie Scours Lane East).  When I went past on Tuesday it looked like some track slewing was still to be done, and some crossovers to put in place.  Maybe that's planned for Sunday as well, if it hasn't been done since Tuesday.

[paul7575]

But I'd be cautiously optimistic, because as seen from the station it looks like the mainline side track works to/from P7/8/9/10 are rapidly approaching physical completion, with over three days left. As I understand from posts elsewhere the main aim of Sunday's closure is to demolish the remaining part of the footbridge, so if they've any sensible sort of overall plan the trackwork should be proven beforehand.

Paul

They may be making progress on the east side of the station, but I think they've some way to go at "Whitehouse Junction"  (ie Scours Lane East).  When I went past on Tuesday it looked like some track slewing was still to be done, and some crossovers to put in place.  Maybe that's planned for Sunday as well, if it hasn't been done since Tuesday.

That's a fair point - that area is definitely a bit 'out of sight and out of mind', and presumably there may also be changes at Reading West Jn?  However the complexity can't be any greater than what's going on at the east end, so in terms of overall timescales should be just as achievable before Monday.  There's no station buildings and footbridge demolition going on in parallel after all...

Paul