Cotswold Line journeys operated by Turbos - planned and HST substitutions

[whole diary]

[Oxman]

FGW^▸ (First Great Western) event planners were well aware of the Big Chill and planned additional and strengthened services on both the North Cotswolds and Worcester - Bristol routes, including an HST^▸ (High Speed Train) special from Great Malvern to Padd via Cheltenham on Monday lunchtime. Of course, the Friday plans were frustrated by the cable theft at Tilehurst. Nonetheless, some festival goers were redirected via Bristol Parkway and others routed via Oxford where there was capacity. Coaches were also provided at Oxford. At least one fully laden 100-seater coach left Oxford and went directly to the festival site.

Having said that, most people I have talked to have said that there were more festival goers travelling by rail this year than in previous years.

[willc]

You evidently have...

I don't think it's entirely fair to assume that FGW^▸ (First Great Western)'s operations staff weren't expecting additional passengers due to the festival just on the basis of a talking head from the press office getting a case of foot-in-mouth.

I was deploying a tad of sarcasm there - because they can't get the story straight. Nor do they seem able to tell the travelling public - who might like to know - what they're doing about things like Big Chill. So they put on an HST^▸ (High Speed Train) for the 13.21, they put on an extra from Malvern on the Monday. Did they promote either? Not that I'm aware of. Search for Big Chill on the website and the only reference to this month's event that comes up is the list of destinations to which Groupsaves are banned when such events are happening. And if you're off to Reading with friends this weekend, you can't get Groupsave to Reading or Reading West from Thursday to Sunday, nor home from Reading on the Monday. The website homepage is currently urging me to travel by FGW trains to an event at Henley last weekend...

It's fine and dandy to put on extras, or put on an HST for such occasions, but what people up here would like is to see HSTs appear on the services they are actually booked for, day in, day out, which seems to be much harder to arrange - and getting worse almost by the day.

The 17.50 was a Turbo yet again yesterday. I don't think a bookie would give me good odds on an HST appearing at some point the rest of this week, when the 17.50 has been a Turbo three times running, with the 15.51 clocking up two Turbos out of three as well. And I see the 11.22/14.34 also putting in an appearance in yesterday's list, so assume that was Turbo-ised too. And no buffet service on the 20.20.

It's starting to feel like the 2004 timetable again.

[willc]

No sign of stand-in turbos today - well done.

Animals of some sort messed up the morning services, with delays to several trains and the ecs to Moreton for the 09.29 stuck at Oxford due to the delay to the Cathedrals Express, leaving too little time for the Turbo to reach Moreton and turn round, so it was the A44 for me.

[willc]

Animal on the line the other morning was a deer apparently.

Another Turbo tonight on the 17.50, though, being charitable, might have been due to the problems caused by the failed freight earlier.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From FGW^▸ (First Great Western) live updates:

15:51 London Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill due 18:07
This train has been revised. It will call additionally at: Ascott-Under-Wychwood. This is due to earlier signalling problems.
Last Updated: 27/08/2010 17:19

CfN

[JayMac]

What? All those signalling problems earlier today and they managed to keep the 1551 as a HST^▸ (High Speed Train)? And add an additional stop? FGW^▸ (First Great Western) are losing their touch! 

EDIT: Oh dear, spoke too soon, it is 68 mins down at Ascott.

[devon_metro]

Has to be an HST^▸ (High Speed Train) to call at said station!

[JayMac]

Eh? The only two timetabled services that call at Ascott-under-Wychwood are Turbos.

[devon_metro]

Eh? The only two timetabled services that call at Ascott-under-Wychwood are Turbos.

2 car turbos & HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) then

[Oxman]

The 1551 (an HST^▸ (High Speed Train)!) from Padd was very late leaving because of the signalling problem. It followed the 162? Padd - Oxford, which conveys passengers for the 1731 Oxford to WOF, the all stations two car turbo. There was clearly going to be a clash - can't put two services down the single line at the same time! So, the decision was made to run the 1551 in the path of the 1731, and have it call additionally at Ascott. For some reason, it was decided not to call it at Coombe, Finstock and Shipton - road transport provided.

Swindon B was instructed not to allow the 1551 to overtake the 162? at Didcot, so the two trains arrived in Oxford in the right order. The 162? was also late, which further delayed the 1551, but at least the North Cots passengers had an HST!

[willc]

HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) can call at any of the stations, Combe and Finstock included, thanks to SDO^▸ (Selective Door Opening) and have done so running in place of the halts train previously. Taxi-ing passengers to Combe and Finstock is more sensible, though seems a bit bizarre to serve Ascott but not Shipton, if that website post was correct.

They even managed to run an HST on the 17.50 but it was started from Oxford at 18.54. Very nice for the two dozen or so of us boarding there but not a lot of help easing the bank holiday pressure on the Herefords either side of it. I suspect the 18.22 was pretty busy as a result.

[JayMac]

I would suspect that the HST^▸ (High Speed Train) that ran from Oxford at 1854 was a positioning move for that particular set to get it back on diagram for later/tomorrow.

[Steve Bray]

I travelled on the 1822 from Paddington to Great Malvern last night, blissfully unaware of all the problems that had blighted services earlier, although I noted there were a few delays/cancellations. It was full and standing between Padd and Reading, but thereafter I don't think anyone was standing, at least inside the carriages. It was around 15 late at Great Malvern with signal stops on the single track just beyond Wolvercote Jcn, also outside Moreton and at Newland. The only service I recall passing on the Costwold Line was an HST^▸ (High Speed Train) at Evesham  @2030. No ticket check at all, although the train manager made regular announcements, apologised for the earlier delays and wished everyone a pleasant Bank Holiday weekend.

[willc]

I would suspect that the HST^▸ (High Speed Train) that ran from Oxford at 1854 was a positioning move for that particular set to get it back on diagram for later/tomorrow.

Definitely. As operating it only added to knock-on delays on the line, as we were just leaving the loop north of Oxford station about the time the 18.22 was due in platform 2 (hence the delay on the 18.22 at Wolvercot). We had to wait for the 17.00 from Worcester to come off the single line, presumably due to waiting along the way for the HST running in the halts path and perhaps the 17.22 as well.

I think it was run from Oxford purely to avoid lack of services from Worcester towards London the rest of the day that would have resulted from the 17.50 being cancelled after the halts train had been subsumed into the 15.51.

The HST from the 15.51 worked back in the path of the halts train at 19.27, with the 18.49 cancelled. Lose the 21.00 as well and there would have been just that one rather slow train from Worcester at 19.27 as far as Oxford (due to pathing problems it has 29 timetabled minutes sat at Evesham) between the 17.20 (assuming it ran vaguely to time) and the 22.34 (21.51 from Hereford).

[IanL]

Back after a week away from the trains....

17:50 London Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill due 20:23
This train will be formed of 3 coaches instead of 8.
Last Updated: 31/08/2010 16:30