We're told that several units are undergoing modifications, including to the PIS/Reservation system, and are therefore the reason for the short forms which will be a temporary measure until all units are modified and accepted back into service.  For once I share Broadgage's scepticism about such claims! 

Two, sometimes three, HSTs sit all night at Worcester with one of their engines running and that’s every night of the week!  Not for too much longer of course, but whether Hitachi will permit 800/2s to stable there is currently a bit of a sticking point!

I have my doubts, too!  I’ve expressed doubts before over getting terminating trains from the east emptied and sent to Royal Oak turnback sidings efficiently enough to maintain the timetable frequency, so I guess the more that head west of Paddington in service the better. 

But, the flakiness of the infrastructure over the past year or two, doesn’t install me with much confidence, and the reliability of the trains is also a concern when this December comes and, presumably, trains start running through the core.

He should be reasonably proficient over a tannoy, given his hobby of being a DJ.

I can see a rebuilt station at Oxford being at least five years away.  Hopefully they can construct Platform 5, electrify, and then do the main station rebuild.

I won't mention that they will also see extensive use on the London to Oxford/Cotswolds route as well... 

Welcome to the forum, Fladpass

TyrellCheck has it down to 'no set'.  Whether that's down to a 'mishap' or just general IET train unavailability I don't know, though the latter is more likely.  This train has been much more reliable of late than in the first few months of the year when it was often cancelled a couple of times a week.

Axel counter failure, the first I’ve heard about since the signalling was commissioned.  Repairs hampered by traffic on the Botley Road delaying technicians!

Very poor again from GWR/Hitachi.  At least it's holiday time I suppose, so there will be fewer commuters.

As has been said before, it's largely due to the large number of retail outlets available at stations which are generally selling better quality produce at cheaper prices than can be offered on the train.

Back in the 70s you were lucky if you had a Travellers Fare and a John Menzies at your local large station.  Now they all have M&S Foodhall's, Upper Crusts etc. and several quality coffee outlets, and many of the smaller stations now have coffee stalls.  If you buy before you board you won't get let down when you are on the train and have no other option when they don't have what you want.

That being said, I remain disappointed that a buffet has not been chosen for the long distance route down to Penzance as I believe that should still have them.  Other routes?  Swansea perhaps, but otherwise I can see why the trolley has been chosen.

Here's the latest official stats from GWR as they continue to plod along slowly getting worse in terms of punctuality and cancellations with all MAA categories falling across the whole franchise with the exception of Devon reliability which stayed the same.

Of special note was the appalling 74.4% punctuality recorded on the South Wales/South Coast charter group, which caused the MAA to drop by a whole percent and is 20% below what were excellent figures being typically achieved a couple of years ago.  Bristol punctuality was also very poor at just 67% again well below the results in the 90% mark regularly being achieved just over a year ago.

In terms of charter discounts, Plymouth/Cornwall reliability, which has dropped 0.5% since the turn of the year in terms of the MAA, only needs to drop a further 0.2% to trigger 5% season ticket renewals.

Usual graphs attached...

Did the Boardmasters event pass without major incident this year?  If so, well done GWR for providing a suitable enhanced service.

A bit of background to this one in that it wasn't the engine that failed but an air leak on one of the wagons.  Whether that should immobile a train for so long is a different matter, but it wasn't just a case of finding a replacement loco.

Fitters were sent from Southampton and once on site it took less than 30 minutes to effect repairs.  The fact a fitter had to come from so far away meant the repair time was around three times what it might have been had there been a fitter stationed at Basingstoke.  You can't have fitters at every station of course, though until the turn of the century most large stations had a 'Carriage & Wagon' fitter.  That was when there were more traditional freight and passenger trains running around, and many of them didn't exactly have a busy day most of the time. 

Yes, it's far from urgent, just might make sense to up it to 40mph as and when that crossing becomes due for renewal given there is plenty of space.  Phase 2 (especially the Platform 5 element) will improve things further so hopefully won't get too bogged down in delays. 

Next on my shopping list would be a remodelled Wolvercote Junction redoubled as far as Handborough, with the Oxford Down Relief extended all the way to it to reduce conflicts further.

'Leave it on show, expect it to go.'