TravelWatch SouthWest, Taunton, 8th October

[whole diary]

[JayMac]

Yes, you & I have read that at the same place, but there's no confirmation anywhere. Removing 2 5car voyagers will cause serious overcrowding on those services that use them currently.

What if those single 5 car diagrams are replaced by a HST^▸ (High Speed Train) or 2x 4 car running together?

In all the years I've travelled CrossCountry I've only ever stood during disruption, when with a buggy, and once on 27th December when I gave up my seat to an elderly lady.

[LiskeardRich]

Other than item 2, which I'd very much like to hear (can someone take detailed notes on the increase in number of seats *and* how they are going to find them!

For the XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) direct award, I believe the 'additional' seats are coming from utilising the HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) more, currently only 2/3 are used on a weekday out of the 5 sets they have, and possibly getting hold of the two spare voyager driving cars that were split up some years ago.

The number of seats quoted extra is around 1-2 carriages per day, the figures quoted would be greater for a full set.

The two spare driving cars and two carriages are expected to be removed from 5 coach trains are expected to be reformed to make an additional set.

[ChrisB]

Which shows that there'll be just the one additional set, meaning just one extra lengthened set than now. So very little opportunity to run extra 2set trains, while 2 5car sets will be reduced by one car. So only one extra diagram or 2train set per day, while 2 (old) 5car units get reduced sets.

I make that a net loss in terms of reduced seats sets

[trainer]

Yes, you & I have read that at the same place, but there's no confirmation anywhere.

I heard it from his own mouth in the video link above put up by Adelante_CCT.

I don't mind taking credit for Paul's work 

Apologies to both parties.   

[ChrisB]

Can someone attending please follow this up?....

So, from this we get

Worcester Parkway - No commitment, so are the government ignoring it, or assuming it will be late

Confirmation (or not) that they will be stopping there as soon as the station opens for service, or a later date, or not at all in this direct award.

Thanks

[broadgage]

Drifting only slightly off topic, are many of us meeting afterwards at the Plough pub in Taunton ?
I hope to be there from about 15-00.

I expect to be wearing dark shoes, dark trousers and a maroon sweatshirt. Please keep a good look out as I am so small as to be readily overlooked.

(the above is largely a repeat of my posting in the WSR steam gala thread, but no harm in repeating here, IMO^▸ (in my opinion))

[Chris from Nailsea]

To be fair, there was no drifting off topic in your post, broadgage: the original discussion here related to the TravelWatch SouthWest meeting in Taunton on Saturday, and the opportunity it presented for a social meeting in a public house afterwards. 

I have now moved and merged a few posts from another diary entry here, as they originally appeared in the West Somerset Railway steam gala topic but are perhaps better read here, in the interests of continuity.

Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the TravelWatch SouthWest meeting myself, due to my being asked to work on my day off at very short notice, but I did manage to get down to Taunton for the social event (albeit somewhat belatedly). 

I hope to be there, please keep a look out as I am so small and insignificant as to be easily overlooked.
Expect to be wearing black shoes, black trousers and a maroon sweatshirt.
Will probably be with a friend who works in the rail industry.

Hopefully others will be there ?

Well, I did manage to get to The Plough and meet broadgage and his friend, and I am so pleased that I did.  While broadgage is an incredible source of railway information, memories and anecdotes, I thought he was matched this afternoon by his friend.

I won't betray any confidences here by stating only that broadgage's friend is a train driver - he's been in the industry a fair while, and has apparently seen most things that can (but usually shouldn't) happen on the railways.  I encouraged him to join the Coffee Shop forum (apparently, he does read it as a guest), but with absolutely no pressure on him to post if he's not comfortable with that.  (We did have some discussion about the various 'social media guidelines / rules' of various organisations in the railway industry, in that context.) 

My thanks to broadgage and 'broadgage 2' (that's just a working title!) for a most enjoyable discussion this afternoon! 

[grahame]

Yes, you & I have read that at the same place, but there's no confirmation anywhere. Removing 2 5car voyagers will cause serious overcrowding on those services that use them currently.

Confirmation from Richard Gibson of XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) at TravelWatch - my notes and comments at

http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=17489.msg202288#msg202288

and we've been told we'll get a set of the slides ... due to the metrics of the room, the photos I took of one of two of the slides are unreadable.

Richard was wooly about which trains will loose a carriage, and whilst he talked about upgrading the HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) so they can run beyond 2020, no mention was made of any extra HST diagrams.  And it came across clearly that the use of these sets beyond 1.1.2020 when they need the plug doors and captureloos isn't a consideration of the team for the current franchise.

As you'll see from my notes in the other thread - limited opportunity to question, with Ivybridge, adding 2 cars to peak services, and disabled access at times of rail replacement bus operations being the questions that got called in the luck of the draw!

[grahame]

Some presentations from October now available via http://travelwatchsouthwest.org/meetings/

Presentation: ‘Bus Services in Action’ Go South Coast’s Managing Director, Andrew Wickham
Presentation: ‘Total Transport’ Devon County Council’s Head of the Transport Co-ordination Service, Damien Jones
Workshop: PRTF consultation Christopher Irwin, TravelWatch SouthWest

[Chris from Nailsea]

Thank you for posting that link to some of the presentations made at TravelWatch SouthWest in October, grahame.  Some very interesting reading there. 

I look forward to also seeing the slides for Richard Gibson of Cross Country's presentation, as soon as they become available.

Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the actual meeting in Taunton, due to my being called in to work at very short notice. 

[grahame]

Confirmation from Richard Gibson of XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) at TravelWatch - my notes and comments at ....

and we've been told we'll get a set of the slides ...

Thank you for posting that link to some of the presentations made at TravelWatch SouthWest in October, grahame.  Some very interesting reading there. 

I look forward to also seeing the slides for Richard Gibson of Cross Country's presentation, as soon as they become available.

I've gently chased 

[broadgage]

Is refreshment to be taken at the Plough after the next travelwatch meeting ?
I can be there if others will be.

[grahame]

Is refreshment to be taken at the Plough after the next travelwatch meeting ?
I can be there if others will be.

I will if not completely knackered.  But it's being a l-o-n-g week ...

[bobm]

But it's being a l-o-n-g week ...

... and it is only Thursday. 

[broadgage]

I don't think that I will visit the Plough today in view of the limited interest shown by others.
Perhaps some of us could meet in October ?