2024 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury

[whole diary]

[grahame]

Now this is a curious one ...

11:42 Swindon to Weymouth due 14:01

11:42 Swindon to Weymouth due 14:01 will be diverted between Chippenham and Trowbridge.
It will no longer call at Melksham but will call additionally at Bath Spa.
It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 12 minutes late.
This is due to overcrowding.

... overcrowding where?? Diverted trains normally reverse at Bathampton - the fact this is going on into Bath Spa suggests to me that the diversion might be to relieve crowding to / from Bath - I hope I am wrong in that because it seems (err) rather naughty to pull a Melksham service for the purpose of providing an extra (relief) train on another line.

I note that JourneyCheck doesn't / didn't at the time I read it offer any advice for customers about alternative provision to and from Melksham.

[grahame]

Now this is a curious one ...

11:42 Swindon to Weymouth due 14:01

11:42 Swindon to Weymouth due 14:01 will be diverted between Chippenham and Trowbridge.
It will no longer call at Melksham but will call additionally at Bath Spa.
It will be delayed due to the diversion and is expected to be 12 minutes late.
This is due to overcrowding.

... overcrowding where?? Diverted trains normally reverse at Bathampton - the fact this is going on into Bath Spa suggests to me that the diversion might be to relieve crowding to / from Bath - I hope I am wrong in that because it seems (err) rather naughty to pull a Melksham service for the purpose of providing an extra (relief) train on another line.

I note that JourneyCheck doesn't / didn't at the time I read it offer any advice for customers about alternative provision to and from Melksham.

Not overcrowding - but I notice that trains from London via Swindon and Chippenham to Bath and Bristol have been seriously delayed by some sort of blockage near London.  So I suspect that running the train that should have served Melksham via Bath allowed passenger who had accumulated at Swindon and Chippenham to get there, and with a change of trains to Bristol.

If that is what happened - silly question - why could passengers at Swindon and Chippenham headed for Bath and Bristol simply not have been asked to change at Trowbridge?

[TaplowGreen]

12:17 Westbury to Swindon due 12:59
12:17 Westbury to Swindon due 12:59 will be cancelled.

This is due to a road vehicle colliding with a bridge

13:15 Swindon to Westbury due 13:57
13:15 Swindon to Westbury due 13:57 will be cancelled.

This is due to a road vehicle colliding with a bridge.

[grahame]

12:17 Westbury to Swindon due 12:59
12:17 Westbury to Swindon due 12:59 will be cancelled.

This is due to a road vehicle colliding with a bridge

13:15 Swindon to Westbury due 13:57
13:15 Swindon to Westbury due 13:57 will be cancelled.

This is due to a road vehicle colliding with a bridge.

Err ...

Cancellations to services between Bath Spa and Westbury

Following a road vehicle colliding with a bridge earlier today between Bath Spa and Freshford all lines have now reopened. Disruption is expected until 14:00 22/04.

Train services between Bath Spa and Westbury are returning to normal but some services may still be cancelled or delayed.

.... trains between Swindon and Westbury don't even go to Bath Spa or Freshford nor share any on the line between !!

[ChrisB]

Prevented an ecs movement prior to service?

[grahame]

Prevented an ecs movement prior to service?

Maybe - or marooned crew? - or other trains being diverted up the single line and reversed at Chippenham? - or a "copycat" bridge strike by another vehicle on another bridge?

[rogerw]

11:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour due 14:52 was diverted between Bath Spa and Trowbridge and will be terminated at Fratton.
It will no longer call at Bradford-On-Avon, Portsmouth & Southsea and Portsmouth Harbour but will call additionally at Chippenham and Melksham.
It has been previously delayed and is now 41 minutes late from Westbury.
This is due to a road vehicle colliding with a bridge.

[grahame]

16:23 Westbury to Swindon due 17:08

16:23 Westbury to Swindon due 17:08 will no longer call at Melksham.
It is being delayed between Trowbridge and Chippenham.
This is due to a road vehicle colliding with a bridge.

Second day running.

Second day that the bridge was on a different line but disrupted the service though Melksham!

[grahame]

I was answering a question on an online forum, asking about the connection as Zidani Most off the train from Budapest for passengers headed for Zagreb, which I used recently.   On that occasion, the train from Budapest was running a few minutes late and I was concerned at whether the connection (10 minutes scheduled) would actually "make".  It was very clear from the train manager that we should not worry, and I can understand that the staff at Zidani Most would not want to be landed with a load of disgruntled passenger there waiting for the next train.   Yeah, we were a bit late ... but the Zagreb train had not left - it did so a couple of minutes after we arrived from Budapest.



This afternoon, the 15:14 from Swindon to Westbury left Melksham 13 minutes late (delayed by a diverted train due to a bridge hit on the Berks and Hants) ... and it arrived into Westbury at 16:06.     Any chance or the 16:03 Portsmouth train waiting for the connection?   You must be joking - it left just 2 and a bit minutes before the train from Swindon arrived and I note from Real Time Trains it was 2 minutes ahead of itself at Wylye ... nice one!

[grahame]

18:37 Westbury to Swindon due 19:21
20:13 Swindon to Westbury due 20:58

20:13 Swindon to Westbury due 20:58 will be cancelled.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.

[grahame]

11:32 Weymouth to Chippenham due 13:40
13:57 Chippenham to Weymouth due 15:57

Facilities on the 13:57 Chippenham to Weymouth due 15:57.
This is due to a fault on this train.
Will be formed of 2 coaches instead of 3.