Weymouth Wizard via TransWilts

[whole diary]

[TaplowGreen]

Not sure what the capacity of an HST^▸ (High Speed Train) is but those passenger numbers seem really low - does this service justify a full HST or would it be better served with a smaller train and the HST utilised elsewhere where there is more demand for the capacity?

[bobm]

It isn't just the passengers - although they would have made for a very cosy trip on a unit at times.  The HST^▸ (High Speed Train) has greater luggage carrying capacity which comes in very useful with the picnic baskets, pushchairs and prams which accompany a family day out.

[John R]

Not sure what the capacity of an HST^▸ (High Speed Train) is but those passenger numbers seem really low - does this service justify a full HST or would it be better served with a smaller train and the HST utilised elsewhere where there is more demand for the capacity?

Don't forget this service isn't on it's usual route, not serving Bath and taking around an hour longer from Bristol. Hence (as borne out by the loadings from Bristol) much less attractive from those points than usual. Capacity is around 550 so over half full, and as noted yesterday was down on previous weeks. 

[grahame]

Not sure what the capacity of an HST^▸ (High Speed Train) is but those passenger numbers seem really low - does this service justify a full HST or would it be better served with a smaller train and the HST utilised elsewhere where there is more demand for the capacity?

HST seating capacity is around 520 (we had a full buffet)

Initial common sense suggests running the HST in the earlier slot and the unit train in the slot the HST takes; the unit is always overcrowded.  Problem is that the HST has longer station dwells and slower acceleration and can't like for like replace ... and would also have to turn around at Weymouth on other services where again it couldn't keep time.  As it is there are a couple of "funnies" to make it work at all - I suspect that the Bruton stop in the evening but not the morning is to ensure that the franchise SLC^▸ (Service Level Commitment) is maintained.

In terms of numbers ... yes - it would be good to be around 400 - 450 at peak but it's blooming hard to predict. Much more that that with an HST and you'll be in serious trouble with the number of prams, wheelchairs, buggies, zimmer frames and luggage with people going for the week - there's already messages in the middle carriages of "if you want to sit together, there's space in coach A".

From a marketing in Swindon / Chippenham basis, this has been a great opportunity to bring people who are new to rail travel in to rail - I've walked through the train and spoken with these people who were encouraged by non-rail publicity.  Many will be coming on other trains in the future - and those WILL be HSTs as well as units - and to give them a great day rather than shoehorning them in has been a great help.   Others who travelled on TransWits to Weymouth trips in previous years remind me to this day of the overcrowding issues,  and there are very many people telling me too about the lack of publicity this year.   Secondary problem - with tickets for sale on the day, how on earth of you judge how you're going to load ... it's much easier to do a Santa special!

[Timmer]

Services between Westbury and Weymouth, not running today due to industrial action, won't be missed as much today as it's far from ideal beach weather.

[TonyK]

Don't forget this service isn't on it's usual route, not serving Bath and taking around an hour longer from Bristol. Hence (as borne out by the loadings from Bristol) much less attractive from those points than usual. Capacity is around 550 so over half full, and as noted yesterday was down on previous weeks. 

I would rather be on a half-full HST^▸ (High Speed Train) for a 3-hour journey than one of the same number of passengers on a 3-car 158.

[grahame]

Services between Westbury and Weymouth, not running today due to industrial action, won't be missed as much today as it's far from ideal beach weather.

Indeed ... even yesterday there were a couple of short sharp showers that drenched some people in the late afternoon. T shirts than had been decent a few minutes prior leaving little to the imagination!

On the loading business, it's very instructive to take passenger loads over a line (for a year) and divide by the number of seats on that line over the year.  You get to realise just what an issue peak loading is, and how the best way to deal with it is sometimes to do apparently inefficient things with resources at that peak time.

20 carriage transits seating 75 people per carriage over a line per day (slightly fewer on Sunday) - 500,000 seats;
passengers carried - 230,000 - so only 46% loading.   Expect I say "only" when actually those are surprisingly positive figures.   I took another example (not FGW^▸ (First Great Western), but try it for your own line) - 16 carriage transits, very few Sundays -  384,000 seats; passengers carried just under 100,000 - 26% loading.

[Adelante_CCT]

does this service justify a full HST^▸ (High Speed Train) or would it be better served with a smaller train and the HST utilised elsewhere where there is more demand for the capacity?

Don't forget that not all the HSTs are utilised on Saturdays, no rush hour only services and no hourly Cardiff runs etc, therefore if utilisation is required elsewhere there would be other sets that could take care of it.

[Southernman]

How long before HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) are not available to operate this service? What happens then? Back to units?

[ChrisB]

Back on the usual route with 166s I guess

[TaplowGreen]

does this service justify a full HST^▸ (High Speed Train) or would it be better served with a smaller train and the HST utilised elsewhere where there is more demand for the capacity?

Don't forget that not all the HSTs are utilised on Saturdays, no rush hour only services and no hourly Cardiff runs etc, therefore if utilisation is required elsewhere there would be other sets that could take care of it.

...... that's an interesting point and I will bear it in mind the next time that there's a major weekend sporting event in London or elsewhere and we get told that extra services can't be run because all trains are fully utilised or in maintenance! 

[didcotdean]

If it is a weekend especially Sunday it might come back to the staff rather than stock availability 

[bobm]

Having travelled on the Wizard for at least part of the journey on three occasions it seems the staff often use it as a day out with the crew booked to work the return journey travelling down with their families and spending some time on the beach rather than be taxied down later.

The driver has often been accompanied by a pilotman south of Westbury - the driver knows the traction (obviously) but doesn't sign the route.

[grahame]

How long before HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) are not available to operate this service? What happens then? Back to units?

Back on the usual route with 166s I guess

Well ... we may never see another direct HST from Swindon to Weymouth.  Scheduled next Saturday, but I wouldn't like to bet either way. Following Saturday via Bath Spa (I understand we're not in for an engineering overrun   ) ... and engineering works Bath to Bristol are Christmas and Easter, so other Heart of Wessex relief is naturally via Heart of Wessex.   The TransWilts has been happy to help them out this summer.

And yet.  Summer relief to Weymouth was what kept the TransWilts open to passenger traffic through the 1970s and this picture - my thanks to Michael Crook.   And these summer reliefs have a long history of innovative solutions to changing times.   So I say "we may never see another like this year", but somehow I'm thinking that we may see something ... else and perhaps something different.   Who knows - but we do have rather good data from the 2015 season!

[The Grecian]

I commented last year a 3 car 158 forming the 0839 (or equivalent) from Bristol was standing room only by Trowbridge and absolutely wedged from Yeovil. Despite repeated announcements about the following HST^▸ (High Speed Train) no-one seemed willing to wait for it. It seems not much has changed...

It would make more sense to run the HST earlier as people want to catch the 0839 to maximise time at the seaside, but it would probably require a significant re-write to the timetable. Apart from the problems identified above, it's restricted to 40mph between Dorchester and Yeovil, despite the fact the only speed differential sign is for a short section south of Maiden Newton of 60mph for MUs^▸ (Multiple Unit) and 35mph for everything else. I think this is due to the track in many places still being bullhead rail.

I went on the Weymouth Seaside Express in 2011 and I'm sure we were running at linespeed on that section (45mph Yeovil-Yetminster, mostly 75mph Yetminster-Dorchester). If a steam engine can run at 75 I'm not sure why an HST can't, but there's probably a good reason for it. It's noticeable the WSS is still timed slightly faster than the HST between Dorchester and Yeovil in either direction, except for Yeovil - Maiden Newton southbound, presumably due to the 1 in 51 climb to Evershot Tunnel.

I digress somewhat, but even if the 'all stations' became the 0909 it would appear difficult to change the timetable to allow an HST to run the earlier service. At least it runs the 'right' service out of Weymouth in the evening.