I'm scratching my head ....

[whole diary]

[grahame]

20080119   11:30   Cardiff Central   14:51   Portsmouth Harbour   

Full report: "This train will be terminated at Westbury and restarted from Warminster.This is due to a member of train crew being unavailable. "

Err I can understand one end or another being cut to make a short working, but I'm having trouble working out how chucking everyone off at Westbury only to take on fresh passengers at Warminster ...

Can one of you railway experts tell me?

[Ptolemy]

Perhaps by "terminated" they meant it was to be dramatically and terminally taken out of service and they didn't want to risk injury to the public 

It would certainly explain the ever increasing incidence of "shortages of rolling stock". Or have I been watching too much Doctor Who?!

[smokey]

Can't say that it makes sense at all.

My best bet is that Conductor from Cardiff had to leave service at Westbury, and that the relieving conductor was working towards Westbury (on cushions as a Passenger) from Salisbury or Point futher west and was ordered to alight at Warminster to prevent delay to Cardiff-Portsmouth train which would run DOO^▸ (Driver-Only Operation (that is, trains which operate without carrying a guard)) Westbury to Warminster.

Case of Sod the passengers, train will run to time!

Could be some other strange reason!

[Jim]

Can't say that it makes sense at all.

My best bet is that Conductor from Cardiff had to leave service at Westbury, and that the relieving conductor was working towards Westbury (on cushions as a Passenger) from Salisbury or Point futher west and was ordered to alight at Warminster to prevent delay to Cardiff-Portsmouth train which would run DOO^▸ (Driver-Only Operation (that is, trains which operate without carrying a guard)) Westbury to Warminster.

Case of Sod the passengers, train will run to time!

Could be some other strange reason!

That theory wouldn't suprise me!

[grahame]

Thanks folks - here's another from last night in the same vein

20080119   19:10   Worcester Shrub Hill   22:59   Weymouth   

Full report: "This train will be terminated at Bristol Parkway and restarted from Bristol Temple Meads.It will no longer call at: Filton Abbey Wood, Stapleton Road and Lawrence Hill.This is due to a member of train crew being unavailable. "

Pity anyone travelling from North of Temple Meads to South-West of Westbury. I wonder if they tell the people they're detraining that it will be restarted just down the line! 

[Conner]

I've actually always understood this as the only reason a train can run but not with passengers is ECS^▸ (Empty Coaching Stock) without a guard.

[smokey]

Trains with automatic doors may have to detrain passengers and then work forward with just Train crew if the Door Safety interlock fails.
But in these cases it would be unlikely for the Service to restart elsewhere.

[vacman]

Trains with automatic doors may have to detrain passengers and then work forward with just Train crew if the Door Safety interlock fails.
But in these cases it would be unlikely for the Service to restart elsewhere.

However, if this happens then passengers are carried forwards to the next STAFFED station and then de-trained, the guard has to announce for everyone to remain seated and to stay away from the doors, it's happened to me before!

[smokey]

Westbury is a staffed station, but if the Doors had failed the Service WOULD NOT restart at Warminster