Train GraphicClick on the map to explore geographics
 
I need help
FAQ
Emergency
About .
Travel & transport from BBC stories as at 11:15 28 Mar 2024
- Man suffers life-threatening injuries after train stabbing
- How do I renew my UK passport and what is the 10-year rule?
* Easter travel warning as millions set to hit roads
Read about the forum [here].
Register [here] - it's free.
What do I gain from registering? [here]
 02/06/24 - Summer Timetable starts
17/08/24 - Bus to Imber
27/09/25 - 200 years of passenger trains

On this day
28th Mar (1992)
MOD Kineton tour, branch line society (*)

Train RunningCancelled
09:29 Weston-Super-Mare to London Paddington
10:15 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
10:30 London Paddington to Weston-Super-Mare
10:41 Cardiff Central to London Paddington
11:00 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington
11:05 Swindon to Westbury
11:16 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
11:23 Weston-Super-Mare to London Paddington
11:30 London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads
11:50 Cardiff Central to London Paddington
12:15 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
12:17 Westbury to Swindon
12:30 London Paddington to Weston-Super-Mare
13:15 Swindon to Westbury
14:19 Westbury to Swindon
15:14 Swindon to Westbury
Short Run
06:00 London Paddington to Penzance
06:05 Penzance to London Paddington
07:33 Weymouth to Gloucester
09:50 Cardiff Central to London Paddington
10:35 London Paddington to Exeter St Davids
10:55 Paignton to London Paddington
11:12 Salisbury to Bristol Temple Meads
11:23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central
12:03 London Paddington to Penzance
Delayed
06:37 Plymouth to London Paddington
07:10 Penzance to London Paddington
08:03 London Paddington to Penzance
08:23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central
08:35 Plymouth to London Paddington
08:48 London Paddington to Swansea
09:04 London Paddington to Plymouth
09:30 Weymouth to Gloucester
09:37 London Paddington to Paignton
09:51 Warminster to Gloucester
10:04 London Paddington to Penzance
10:23 London Paddington to Oxford
11:03 London Paddington to Plymouth
13:03 London Paddington to Plymouth
PollsOpen and recent polls
Closed 2024-03-25 Easter Escape - to where?
Abbreviation pageAcronymns and abbreviations
Stn ComparatorStation Comparator
Rail newsNews Now - live rail news feed
Site Style 1 2 3 4
Next departures • Bristol Temple MeadsBath SpaChippenhamSwindonDidcot ParkwayReadingLondon PaddingtonMelksham
Exeter St DavidsTauntonWestburyTrowbridgeBristol ParkwayCardiff CentralOxfordCheltenham SpaBirmingham New Street
March 28, 2024, 11:25:50 *
Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Forgotten your username or password? - get a reminder
Most recently liked subjects
[161] West Wiltshire Bus Changes April 2024
[91] would you like your own LIVE train station departure board?
[62] Return of the BRUTE?
[53] If not HS2 to Manchester, how will traffic be carried?
[49] Infrastructure problems in Thames Valley causing disruption el...
[38] Reversing Beeching - bring heritage and freight lines into the...
 
News: the Great Western Coffee Shop ... keeping you up to date with travel around the South West
 
   Home   Help Search Calendar Login Register  
Pages: 1 ... 11 12 [13] 14 15 ... 23
  Print  
Author Topic: East - West Rail update (Oxford to Bedford) - ongoing discussion  (Read 145842 times)
Lee
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 7519


GBR - The Emperor's New Rail Network


View Profile WWW
« Reply #180 on: November 22, 2018, 08:32:00 »

Buckinghamshire County Council has 'holding objections' to East West Rail - https://www.mix96.co.uk/news/local/2742492/council-holding-objections-to-east-west-rail/
Logged

Vous devez être impitoyable, parce que ces gens sont des salauds - https://looka.com/s/78722877
Lee
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 7519


GBR - The Emperor's New Rail Network


View Profile WWW
« Reply #181 on: January 21, 2019, 10:55:46 »

Award East West Rail contract to existing operator, forum urges government - http://www.businessmk.co.uk/news/art/3356/Award-East-West-Rail-contract-to-existing-operator-forum-urges-government.html

East West Rail seeks partners to develop Cambridge link - https://www.railnews.co.uk/news/2019/01/21-east-west-rail-seeks-partners.html
Logged

Vous devez être impitoyable, parce que ces gens sont des salauds - https://looka.com/s/78722877
ChrisB
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 12334


View Profile Email
« Reply #182 on: January 21, 2019, 11:16:40 »

It's also been descoped to terminating at Aylesbury, rather than further into Chiltern territory. No money to upgrade AYS-PRR (Princes Risborough).
Logged
IndustryInsider
Data Manager
Hero Member
******
Posts: 10095


View Profile
« Reply #183 on: January 21, 2019, 12:55:44 »

An existing operator, or operators, would be a better option in my opinion.
Logged

To view my GWML (Great Western Main Line) Electrification cab video 'before and after' video comparison, as well as other videos of the new layout at Reading and 'before and after' comparisons of the Cotswold Line Redoubling scheme, see: http://www.dailymotion.com/user/IndustryInsider/
didcotdean
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 1424


View Profile
« Reply #184 on: January 21, 2019, 17:02:36 »

Some clarity in the potential service patterns might be welcome. It seems from reading the minutes on the East-West Rail site that they favour extending the service from Oxford to start back from Didcot (thus replacing the current Didcot-Oxford shuttles, albeit silent on the ones that go on to Banbury), rather than the Cowley schemes. Nothing about services beyond Didcot in either direction along the GWML (Great Western Main Line).

There is also mention of the complexity of fitting a sensible E-W timetable around that of the current Chiltern and WCML (West Coast Main Line) ones, where a change in one would affect the other two in a new coupling and that creating a clockface timetable would be impossible without alterations to existing service.
Logged
paul7575
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 5316


View Profile
« Reply #185 on: January 21, 2019, 17:57:44 »

Electrification extension to Oxford would potentially wreck plans to extend EWR to Didcot.  It made sense in the early iterations of EWR service planning, a good few years ago, but surely the present day Didcot - Oxford shuttle should be seen as a temporary stopgap?

Paul
Logged
IndustryInsider
Data Manager
Hero Member
******
Posts: 10095


View Profile
« Reply #186 on: January 21, 2019, 18:30:45 »

Electrification extension to Oxford would potentially wreck plans to extend EWR to Didcot.  It made sense in the early iterations of EWR service planning, a good few years ago, but surely the present day Didcot - Oxford shuttle should be seen as a temporary stopgap?

It should be seen as a stop-gap, but I guess if it is going to continue then it makes more sense as part of a Didcot-Oxford-Milton Keynes/Bedford service than it does now as a little shuttle service with the odd extension to Banbury.

I've said many times that extending it to Reading is a bit barmy IMHO (in my humble opinion) and the powers that be should be looking at westwards from Didcot towards Bristol.

Let's just get the thing built - who knows how many hurdles are still to overcome.
Logged

To view my GWML (Great Western Main Line) Electrification cab video 'before and after' video comparison, as well as other videos of the new layout at Reading and 'before and after' comparisons of the Cotswold Line Redoubling scheme, see: http://www.dailymotion.com/user/IndustryInsider/
didcotdean
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 1424


View Profile
« Reply #187 on: January 21, 2019, 19:00:00 »

Oxfordshire County Council - a member of the consortium - has expressed a desire for Oxford-Didcot to be four trains an hour in the past. Whether their aspirations really count for anything or could be accommodated is another matter.

Logged
paul7575
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 5316


View Profile
« Reply #188 on: January 21, 2019, 19:50:32 »

Oxfordshire County Council - a member of the consortium - has expressed a desire for Oxford-Didcot to be four trains an hour in the past. Whether their aspirations really count for anything or could be accommodated is another matter.
That would probably be OK, if four local services can be fitted in, (presume they wouldn’t all stop everywhere), but if there was a limit of only two I’m not sure if EWR would be the preferred service to extend.

Paul
Logged
eightonedee
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 1532



View Profile
« Reply #189 on: January 21, 2019, 22:13:10 »

Quote
It should be seen as a stop-gap, but I guess if it is going to continue then it makes more sense as part of a Didcot-Oxford-Milton Keynes/Bedford service than it does now as a little shuttle service with the odd extension to Banbury.

I've said many times that extending it to Reading is a bit barmy IMHO (in my humble opinion) and the powers that be should be looking at westwards from Didcot towards Bristol.

Couple of points here-

1 - I sincerely hope that the Didcot/Oxford shuttle is only temporary. Indeed I understood the rationale of the bi-mode/trimode was to restore a proper full stopping service all the way between Reading and Oxford, mitigating the adverse impact of the dreadful decision to cut the electrification to Oxford short at Didcot.

For those of us on the Reading/Didcot stretch, our three main destinations are (in order) Reading, London and Oxford. The service to Oxford has been severely degraded. Even though I find it difficult to look forward to rebuilt 30 year old trains, I hope that at least we can get back to regular and convenient trains to Oxford soon.

2 - I am not so sure that the case for trains beyond Oxford all going west to Swindon/Bristol etc is strong. The potential passenger traffic from the Reading/Basingstoke/Winchester/Southampton/Bournemouth axis surely justifies a substantial part of any southward traffic going east. Reading alone generates considerable volume, and more capacity might encourage more to take the train not the car. I have over the years had a number of regular meeting commitments in Norfolk and Cambridgeshire and used the car to avoid the hassle of crossing London by tube at peak times.

If money was no object, four tracks between Didcot and Oxford would help! 
Logged
IndustryInsider
Data Manager
Hero Member
******
Posts: 10095


View Profile
« Reply #190 on: January 21, 2019, 22:34:02 »

1 - I sincerely hope that the Didcot/Oxford shuttle is only temporary. Indeed I understood the rationale of the bi-mode/trimode was to restore a proper full stopping service all the way between Reading and Oxford, mitigating the adverse impact of the dreadful decision to cut the electrification to Oxford short at Didcot.

2 - I am not so sure that the case for trains beyond Oxford all going west to Swindon/Bristol etc is strong. The potential passenger traffic from the Reading/Basingstoke/Winchester/Southampton/Bournemouth axis surely justifies a substantial part of any southward traffic going east. Reading alone generates considerable volume, and more capacity might encourage more to take the train not the car. I have over the years had a number of regular meeting commitments in Norfolk and Cambridgeshire and used the car to avoid the hassle of crossing London by tube at peak times.

1 - From what I’ve so far heard, the Tri-mode 769s will not be used on services to Oxford.  They will be used on Reading to Gatwick trains as well as covering for the loss of 387s to Heathrow Express on the Paddington to Didcot services, as well as possibly some of the Thames Valley branches.  That of course may not be the current plan, or it may be the current plan but will change.  I’ll see if I can find out.

2 - For me, the problem with Reading as a destination is that it is either a new service calling at Didcot and Reading, or it somehow absorbs the current stopping services between Oxford and Didcot and Didcot and Reading.  You will have problems finding paths for the former, and journey times will be badly compromised to/from Reading if the latter - don’t forget Crossrail will make certain cross London transfers easier, though not Milton Keynes admittedly. 

Also if you send a train to Reading to terminate then it takes up valuable platform time until it heads back again.  Send it onwards from Reading somewhere might work, but nowhere immediately springs to mind.

Send them west to Bristol and you open up all sorts of new through train markets.

The best compromise in terms of being a little more adventurous might be to run a Reading/Didcot to Milton Keynes train each hour and a Bristol to Bedford one each hour (not necessarily calling at Didcot).

Plenty of options on the table, let’s hope there’s a bit of imaginative thinking.
Logged

To view my GWML (Great Western Main Line) Electrification cab video 'before and after' video comparison, as well as other videos of the new layout at Reading and 'before and after' comparisons of the Cotswold Line Redoubling scheme, see: http://www.dailymotion.com/user/IndustryInsider/
ellendune
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 4452


View Profile
« Reply #191 on: January 22, 2019, 07:41:02 »

The best compromise in terms of being a little more adventurous might be to run a Reading/Didcot to Milton Keynes train each hour and a Bristol to Bedford one each hour (not necessarily calling at Didcot).

If you don't call at Didcot then it is not a compromise since you make connections from the west very difficult, they either have to double back at Reading or involve a double change at Didcot and Oxford. 
Logged
IndustryInsider
Data Manager
Hero Member
******
Posts: 10095


View Profile
« Reply #192 on: January 22, 2019, 09:04:07 »

I don’t follow, Ellendune.  The train will have come from the west and called at Bristol, Bath, Chippenham and Swindon so it would be direct from those stations. Anyone from elsewhere could change onto it at Swindon.  There would be no change to the existing planned IET (Intercity Express Train) service pattern.

You would save 5-10 minutes on through journeys if it didn’t call at Didcot.
Logged

To view my GWML (Great Western Main Line) Electrification cab video 'before and after' video comparison, as well as other videos of the new layout at Reading and 'before and after' comparisons of the Cotswold Line Redoubling scheme, see: http://www.dailymotion.com/user/IndustryInsider/
ChrisB
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 12334


View Profile Email
« Reply #193 on: January 22, 2019, 09:11:49 »

Some clarity in the potential service patterns might be welcome.

A decade before services start on the whole Oxford-Cambridsge line?

Electrification extension to Oxford would potentially wreck plans to extend EWR to Didcot.

Why? 2tph electric slow & 2tph diesel EWR (fast) shouldn't be a problem. If electrified, signalling headways should be shorter too.

Also if you send a train to Reading to terminate then it takes up valuable platform time until it heads back again.  Send it onwards from Reading somewhere might work, but nowhere immediately springs to mind.

Try Heathrow on the Western Access Link. Oh yes.
Logged
IndustryInsider
Data Manager
Hero Member
******
Posts: 10095


View Profile
« Reply #194 on: January 22, 2019, 09:48:55 »

Also if you send a train to Reading to terminate then it takes up valuable platform time until it heads back again.  Send it onwards from Reading somewhere might work, but nowhere immediately springs to mind.

Try Heathrow on the Western Access Link. Oh yes.

That has been suggested before, though personally I’m not sure it would be a very good fit.  Would trains with Diesel engines fitted be allowed to use the Heathrow tunnels anyway, even if not in use as part of a bi-mode train?
Logged

To view my GWML (Great Western Main Line) Electrification cab video 'before and after' video comparison, as well as other videos of the new layout at Reading and 'before and after' comparisons of the Cotswold Line Redoubling scheme, see: http://www.dailymotion.com/user/IndustryInsider/
Do you have something you would like to add to this thread, or would you like to raise a new question at the Coffee Shop? Please [register] (it is free) if you have not done so before, or login (at the top of this page) if you already have an account - we would love to read what you have to say!

You can find out more about how this forum works [here] - that will link you to a copy of the forum agreement that you can read before you join, and tell you very much more about how we operate. We are an independent forum, provided and run by customers of Great Western Railway, for customers of Great Western Railway and we welcome railway professionals as members too, in either a personal or official capacity. Views expressed in posts are not necessarily the views of the operators of the forum.

As well as posting messages onto existing threads, and starting new subjects, members can communicate with each other through personal messages if they wish. And once members have made a certain number of posts, they will automatically be admitted to the "frequent posters club", where subjects not-for-public-domain are discussed; anything from the occasional rant to meetups we may be having ...

 
Pages: 1 ... 11 12 [13] 14 15 ... 23
  Print  
 
Jump to:  

Powered by MySQL Powered by PHP Powered by SMF 1.1.2 | SMF © 2006-2007, Simple Machines LLC Valid XHTML 1.0! Valid CSS!
This forum is provided by customers of Great Western Railway (formerly First Great Western), and the views expressed are those of the individual posters concerned. Visit www.gwr.com for the official Great Western Railway website. Please contact the administrators of this site if you feel that the content provided by one of our posters contravenes our posting rules (email link to report). Forum hosted by Well House Consultants

Jump to top of pageJump to Forum Home Page