Great Western Coffee Shop

Boarded 1C96 (2003 PAD>PLY) last evening at RDG - on our way home from Twickenham ( :'( ) - and departed on time at 2030. Somewhere near Theale the Train Manager announced that we would be delayed because 'a signaller had let a late running local train go in front of us'. Realtime Trains indicates this was 2K86 which left RDG 11 minutes late at 2021. Not the first time this has happened by any means. So much for the railway companies working together and not blaming each other! (Not that I have a problem with such behaviour if the evidence is conclusive).

However I have a question for the relevant forum experts; would it not have been possible for 2K86 to be 'looped' at either Theale or Ufton to allow 1C96 to pass or does the signalling configuration / infrastructure not permit this?

And 'Yes', I do think it would have been unreasonable, and possibly operationally very inconvenient, to double the delay on 2K86 by holding it at RDG.

I would think that with IETs currently running schedules they can easily beat, the reckoning was that the delays would reduce quite soon. In fact 2K86 was back to 7L at Bedwyn, with 1C96 10L behind it but back to 3L at Westbury (though lost a few minutes there, made up by Taunton). So not a bad outcome.

I agree, as is well known I don't think much of the IETs for reasons already given.
However it must be said that they have ample power and a proven record of making up lost time, when working correctly.