Great Western Coffee Shop

Well today was my son's first venture onto the line since re-doubling.

The 06.41 arrived at Pershore on time (the early trains usually did)
It arrived at Paddington 15 minutes late (they usually did)

...

So with all that padding & redoubling they're still late.

Just checking - which side of Oxford was the delay?  I presume on the Cotswold line but you didn't say so explicitly.

It would be interesting to know where delays are occurring now.  (Given he left Pershore on time, I presume it was Charlbury?)

THe train comes from the south, so I guess so. It could possibly go off platform 1,

CLPG volunteers and FGW employees are putting a lot of effort into monitoring CL train performance in the last week of September to identify over a week where there are regular problems and also where there is now slack running that could be reduced as a result of the double track improvements.

I'd expect any changes to not happen until next May at the earliest as the December timetable will be already finished, and that is now looking like the likely date for the return of the Class 180's.  I think all we'll see change in December is the 07:31 Oxford to Paddington starting back at Charlbury, and an extra stop at Pershore on the 09:21 Paddington to Worcester service.

Question - How many 2 car turbo trains have a trolley service?!

The reason the 05.18 is allowed 15 minutes between Hanborough and Oxford is probably that there are two north bound trains that depart Oxford at 06.36 and 06.41 thus obstructing the train's exit from the CL at Wolvercote.

MH also confirmed that 4 of the 5 Adelantes would be dedicated to Cotswold Line services so that on weekdays the only Turbo will be that which currently operates the morning Up stopper service. The evening 17.31 stopper will become and Adelante.

Beyond Charlbury, does the evening halts train warrant an Adelante?

the original DfT specification for CL trains omitted most Slough stops in CL trains but the Slough commuters protested strongly as they like the HST and Adelante comforts over the Turbos and the faster run for their 20 minute run into PAD.

On the occasions that I've been on these trains, the Slough commuters don't see much of the HST and Adelante comforts - they're standing.

Steve Bray obviously doesn't travel on it very often as I can rarely get a seat when boarding at Hanborough until it has lost a lot of people at Charlbury.

I don't catch this train, but in fairness to myself, in my earlier post, it was beyond Charlbury that I questioned whether this service merited an Adelante.

Is the Hanborough car park a pre-emptive strike against the new (but delayed) Water Eaton Parkway?

I was interested to read the above 3 comments regarding the substitution of an Adelante for the present 2-car evening CL stopper service from Oxford. First, I would like to know where the complete service timetable from 17 September can be seen.

Absolutely delighted that even more services will be slowed down by a stop at Hanborough!

If the current Turbos running on the fast lines (i.e. the Bedwyns) used 125mph stock, you could add a Maidenhead stop without impacting on journey times or capacity. Hopefully they will after the modernisation.

Bristols and Cardiffs never get pesky extra stops.

Slightly more important locations than Cotswolds villages perhaps?

But the London-Cambridge service doesn't pass through such a busy and important interchange as Reading, do you really suggest skipping Reading on Oxford services, as they get a lot of custom from there as well.

Regarding bikes, I had wondered what regulars might think.  Realistically there's only three solutions; 1) you either have an arrangement to allow bikes in the vestibules, 2) You invest in more/better cycle racks at the stations, or 3) as commuters using several other routes do you force them to buy a fold-up bike if they wish to guarantee its carriage on their chosen train.

I'm sure Jo for one hopes they're not!

I think we should be allowed the odd one or two HST stops at Maidenhead in each peak period.. that is only fair surely?

Which long distance services have room and which services deserve to get slowed down by 10+ mins (due to the transfer to the slow lines).

Presumably the Worcester & Cheltenham services, since they currently stop there...

And please tell me why passengers for Oxford/the Cotswolds need to be stopping at Maidenhead as well as Slough. The Cotswold service has been slowed enough over the last decade.

And I know I'll get flack for this but perhaps those of us that live in the Herefordshire/Worcestershire area could have a couple of fast trains a day.......

Looks like there is some positive news on more possible improvements to the Cotswold Line before the end of CP5 (2019) with the Greater Western Franchise Invitation To Tender mentioning two projects to improve on things:

The first one is fairly modest:

'A scheme to provide a new turn back facility at Hereford station, as presented in the West Midlands & Chiltern RUS, is being reviewed which would utilise the existing platform formations to accommodate the train service levels predicted with future growth. The additional infrastructure would also enable a more efficient and flexible operation of the station area in line with Network Access requirements. This is likely to be implemented as a Network Rail Development Fund scheme before the end of CP4.'

This would mean that services arriving from the north end into platform 1 (and possibly platform 2) could then turnback in those platforms without having to shunt out of the south end of the station and back into platform 3.  New signals would be needed at the north end of platforms 1 and 2, but trackwork is already in place.

First Great Western announce North Cotswolds Line Improvements

First Great Western has announced a package of improvements for customers on the North Cotswolds Line, which will deliver additional train services and faster journey times for services between Hereford and Worcester and London Paddington.
The changes are the first step towards a range of further improvements to be delivered following the introduction of new electric trains in 2017.

Earlier this year, the train operator consulted local customers and stakeholders on a number of key changes to the timetable on the line running from Hereford and Worcester and London Paddington.

Taken as a whole, the package of improvements has been welcomed by passenger groups along the line, and is expected to deliver a range of journey time improvements including:
^        Peak journey time improvement from Hereford and Worcester, with the morning peak service arriving into Paddington at 0830, 21 minutes faster than today
^        Two additional direct services from Worcester to Oxford and Paddington, filling the current gap in service between 1000 and 1200, and creating a more frequent service across the day, with fast journey times to London of 2hr 7 minutes and 2hrs 8 minutes
^        A new morning HST from Moreton-in-Marsh at 0711 would mean that there are two peak train arrivals into Paddington from Moreton (arriving at 0830 and 0851)
^        An extra In the afternoon a service extension through to Worcester would provide another direct connection from Paddington to Worcester, filling a 2-hour gap in the current timetable and providing a 2-hour journey time to Worcester Shrub Hill

This is an evolutionary step towards the longer term timetable solutions that we would like to see established when electrification is complete and new Intercity Express Trains are introduced.

As part of the consultation process First Great Western changed its initial proposals for Pershore services, and the current proposals retain a call there in the 1749 Paddington to Worcester service, and add a stop into our new 1211 Hereford to London Paddington train. There will still be a reduction of two services a day during the week, which allows us to run some of the new, more frequent services.

Rail Minister Claire Perry MP said: ^I am delighted First Great Western has increased capacity and improved the service on the North Cotswold Line after listening to the views of their customers. This shows that the government and the industry are working hard to meet the increasing demand for train services. Getting our railway to work better is an important part of our long-term economic plan and makes a real difference to the daily lives of passengers. That^s why we are investing more than ^38 billion to deliver more trains, more seats and more services.^

First Great Western Managing Director Mark Hopwood said: ^These changes offer real improvements for the vast majority of our customers travelling on this line. Such timetable alterations are always about us striking a balance between providing faster services and providing stopping services, and it is not always easy. Thanks to our consultation process, we have been able to strike that balance to deliver more frequent, faster services for customers with minimum compromise.^

The new timetable has been formally agreed by the Department for Transport, and now needs to be approved by Network Rail before it can be introduced.

But I suppose they are quacking in their boots

(http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/6c/8e/86/6c8e86f51e87e6257cb31797d0f5f572.jpg)

 :P ;) ;D

Often we'd like to go to Oxford for a browse round the shops, a Choral Evensong and something to eat, but 2pm is a little too early and 4pm a little too late.