Train GraphicClick on the map to explore geographics
 
I need help
FAQ
Emergency
About .
Travel & transport from BBC stories as at 20:35 28 Mar 2024
* Bus plunges off South Africa bridge, killing 45
- Easter getaways hit by travel disruption
- Where Baltimore bridge investigation goes now
- How do I renew my UK passport and what is the 10-year rule?
- Passengers pleaded with knifeman during attack
- Family anger at sentence on fatal crash driver, 19
- 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 (1988)
Formal end to carrying coffins by BR (link)

Train RunningCancelled
18:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour
18:36 London Paddington to Plymouth
19:23 Reading to Gatwick Airport
19:33 London Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill
19:35 Exeter St Davids to London Paddington
19:59 Gatwick Airport to Reading
20:13 Swindon to Westbury
20:16 Frome to Westbury
20:20 Reading to Shalford
20:49 Newbury to Bedwyn
20:54 Reading to Gatwick Airport
20:56 Worcester Foregate Street to London Paddington
21:16 Bedwyn to Newbury
21:16 Westbury to Swindon
21:30 Shalford to Reading
21:53 Newbury to Bedwyn
22:25 Bedwyn to Newbury
22:30 Gatwick Airport to Reading
22:30 Swindon to Westbury
22:47 Newbury to Bedwyn
Short Run
16:03 London Paddington to Penzance
16:35 London Paddington to Plymouth
17:03 London Paddington to Penzance
17:30 London Paddington to Taunton
17:36 London Paddington to Plymouth
18:03 London Paddington to Penzance
18:54 Reading to Gatwick Airport
18:59 Gatwick Airport to Reading
19:04 Paignton to London Paddington
19:13 Salisbury to Bristol Temple Meads
19:29 Gatwick Airport to Reading
20:03 London Paddington to Plymouth
20:11 Salisbury to Bristol Temple Meads
20:42 Bedwyn to London Paddington
21:04 London Paddington to Plymouth
Delayed
16:15 Penzance to London Paddington
Additional 17:17 Exeter St Davids to Penzance
Additional 17:26 Castle Cary to Penzance
19:04 London Paddington to Plymouth
An additional train service has been planned to operate as shown 19:40 Redhill to Reading
19:54 Reading to Gatwick Airport
23:04 Reading to Bedwyn
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, 20:36:32 *
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
[118] West Wiltshire Bus Changes April 2024
[116] would you like your own LIVE train station departure board?
[89] Infrastructure problems in Thames Valley causing disruption el...
[46] Return of the BRUTE?
[38] If not HS2 to Manchester, how will traffic be carried?
[28] 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]
  Print  
Author Topic: Readability of rail information  (Read 7305 times)
grahame
Administrator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 40690



View Profile WWW Email
« on: May 24, 2018, 08:49:04 »

I opened a rail-related document (data collected from a survey of community engagement in railway buildings) a few minutes ago and struggled to understand the foreword - so put it through some readability tests

http://www.readabilityformulas.com/freetests/six-readability-formulas.php

Result:



Oops.

Or is it "oops"?  It could be argued that the document concerned was a technical piece intended only for those with a high level of education and ability to understand, and so was correctly pitched.  That suggestion is somewhat given lie to by the next section (the introduction) being much easier to understand, and the included data having some real gems in it - worth a read (and probably comment in another thread).

QUESTION for members - do you have examples of good and bad writing in transport industry documents?
Logged

Coffee Shop Admin, Acting Chair of Melksham Rail User Group, Option 24/7 Melksham Rep
grahame
Administrator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 40690



View Profile WWW Email
« Reply #1 on: May 24, 2018, 08:53:07 »

QUESTION for members - do you have examples of good and bad writing in transport industry documents?

P.S. Yes - I am aware that some of my posts are a bit [British Understatement] hard to read ...
Logged

Coffee Shop Admin, Acting Chair of Melksham Rail User Group, Option 24/7 Melksham Rep
CJB666
Sr. Member
****
Posts: 210


View Profile
« Reply #2 on: May 24, 2018, 21:17:13 »

Bad - VERY BAD - PhD level ... the GRW / NR» (Network Rail - home page) engineering works maps and descriptions on display at local stations such as Hayes, Southall, West Drayton, etc. They are the most obscure I've ever seen - with weird colour coding and shading on maps, use of obscure meaningless symbols, and references to short statements of outages such a 2a, 2b, 2c, etc., all referring to different days or date ranges. I've spent ages just trying to work out iif they have trains to / from Reading and Hayes during the next May Bank Holiday.
« Last Edit: May 25, 2018, 07:41:04 by CJB666 » Logged
eightonedee
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 1532



View Profile
« Reply #3 on: May 27, 2018, 22:11:59 »

Can I add three nominations? It's not just the clarity of language that is a problem.

The first are two sections of the current timetable T10 covering evening trains from London out to Didcot, and morning trains in from Didcot on weekdays. The problem is firstly that some **** at GWR (Great Western Railway) has to run together what should sensibly be two pocket timetables - one for stopping trains from Reading to Didcot, another for stopping trains east of Reading. Secondly is the confusing mix of stopping patterns on the current electric services between Didcot and Paddington, with trains passing one another between Reading and Paddington. This results in trains flitting between columns and pages, making it difficult to follow which train will arrive first at Paddington (in the morning) or back home (in the evening).

Dear GWR - just because the nice new Electrostars can only run as far as Didcot does not mean that it is sensible to produce timetables covering all their routes. Instead please recognise that the Didcot to Tilehurst passengers primarily travel to Reading and London - a separate timetable for us (or perhaps just adding any missing services to T8, and removing the "Oxford Canal Line" marketing tag) would be much more useful.

Secondly, a special prize for the old FGW (First Great Western) website, and its enigmatic tab "Your Journey" - what on earth did that mean? Although the current GWR one is a little better, it is still not easy to find (for example) the timetables.

Thirdly the appalling signage at the new Reading station - here the problems are manifold - poor positioning, lighting and inadequate signs at key points. However I think the worst are the signs stuck on the side of each staircase with a lift symbol and an arrow pointing upwards, which results in most strangers with luggage struggling up escalators rather then going behind the escalator to find the lifts.
Logged
grahame
Administrator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 40690



View Profile WWW Email
« Reply #4 on: May 31, 2018, 08:14:47 »

Can I add three nominations? It's not just the clarity of language that is a problem.

Timetable production for all flows is a massive problem ... and timetable production and checking is a long process that's not as easy to automate as you might think.  As we move to a more on-line system, steps have been taken to reduce the production cost of printed and pre formatted material and (?) move some of (?) the savings into dynamic online stuff such as personalised timetables where, I am told, you will see more availability in the future.
Logged

Coffee Shop Admin, Acting Chair of Melksham Rail User Group, Option 24/7 Melksham Rep
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]
  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