Train GraphicClick on the map to explore geographics
 
I need help
FAQ
Emergency
About .
Travel & transport from BBC stories as at 15:15 28 Mar 2024
- Man held over stabbing in front of train passengers
- How do I renew my UK passport and what is the 10-year rule?
- Jet2 launches first flight from Liverpool airport
* 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
13:26 Weston-Super-Mare to London Paddington
13:28 Weymouth to Gloucester
15:10 Newquay to Par
15:14 Swindon to Westbury
15:16 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
15:30 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington
16:04 Bristol Temple Meads to Filton Abbey Wood
16:51 Filton Abbey Wood to Bristol Temple Meads
17:04 Bristol Temple Meads to Filton Abbey Wood
17:51 Filton Abbey Wood to Bristol Temple Meads
17:54 Cardiff Central to London Paddington
17:57 London Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street
19:33 London Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill
20:56 Worcester Foregate Street to London Paddington
Short Run
11:23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central
11:48 London Paddington to Carmarthen
12:03 London Paddington to Penzance
13:03 London Paddington to Plymouth
13:10 Gloucester to Weymouth
14:05 Salisbury to Bristol Temple Meads
15:10 Gloucester to Weymouth
15:23 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central
15:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour
16:19 Carmarthen to London Paddington
16:54 Cardiff Central to London Paddington
Delayed
10:04 London Paddington to Penzance
12:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour
13:57 Exmouth to Paignton
14:30 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour
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, 15:17:28 *
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
[142] West Wiltshire Bus Changes April 2024
[80] would you like your own LIVE train station departure board?
[56] Return of the BRUTE?
[46] If not HS2 to Manchester, how will traffic be carried?
[43] Infrastructure problems in Thames Valley causing disruption el...
[34] Reversing Beeching - bring heritage and freight lines into the...
 
News: A forum for passengers ... with input from rail professionals welcomed too
 
   Home   Help Search Calendar Login Register  
Pages: 1 [2]
  Print  
Author Topic: GWR boss out of touch with its problems, says Labour MP  (Read 14828 times)
Reginald25
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 301


View Profile
« Reply #15 on: February 18, 2019, 10:02:23 »

My own view is that it is always more helpful, and has more impact, to make a statement in calm words and certainly not to use doubtfall words. It may seem funny but it detracts from the point being made.
Logged
TonyK
Global Moderator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 6435


The artist formerly known as Four Track, Now!


View Profile
« Reply #16 on: February 18, 2019, 10:14:02 »

A Labour MP (Member of Parliament) complaining about a leadership being out of touch with the organisation's problems is just asking for trouble. Glass houses and stones spring to mind.

As for GWR (Great Western Railway), yes, there have been many variations from the plan sprung upon them at short notice. The "pause" in the electrification programme with the consequent requirement for extra diesel engines in the 9-car trains,  turned the introduction of the IETs (Intercity Express Train) from a carefully planned roll-out to chaos. Then the introduction of the new timetable last year didn't go well, although GWR's troubles there were much less than other TOCs (Train Operating Company). We know that a railway is subject to the butterfly / hurricane effect as well as political interference, and maybe one day someone impartial will sit down and write an account of what went wrong, why, and because of whom. On past experience, though, I doubt that lessons would be learned fully.

In the meantime, there is one small change that I would like to see - the removal of the words "Thank you for your patience" in announcements and posters when things go bosoms skywards. I have some virtues, but patience isn't one of them.
Logged

Now, please!
theabsentmindedprofessor
Newbie
*
Posts: 5


View Profile Email
« Reply #17 on: February 27, 2019, 23:17:55 »

Count the number of times the head of Scots Rail has come out and publicly apologised for the issues that they are facing under the same circumstances. Then compare that to the number of times Mr Hopwood has done the same thing.

I fully appreciate the circumstances that GWR (Great Western Railway) are under from the engineering difficulties faced by NR» (Network Rail - home page) and the strategic decisions made by the DFT (Department for Transport). However, GWR's responsibility lies in its communications of the issues and mitigation of the issues. In those areas over the last few years, I believe it has been found wanting.

So all the investment GWR has put in to its stakeholder relationships, including regular meetings, or offers of meetings with MPs (Member of Parliament), and local authorities, not to mention the public communications - especially around the planned disruption is evidence of being found wanting?

in my experience many MPs, and others have unknowingly some level of unconsious bias regarding the railway.  They have theories and views that no amount of information will sway them from.  Perhaps it goes with the territory of being an MP, general reluctance safe for a few notable exceptions, to accept a contrary view to the position you stand by
Logged
grahame
Administrator
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 40690



View Profile WWW Email
« Reply #18 on: February 27, 2019, 23:57:48 »

So all the investment GWR (Great Western Railway) has put in to its stakeholder relationships, including regular meetings, or offers of meetings with MPs (Member of Parliament), and local authorities, not to mention the public communications - especially around the planned disruption is evidence of being found wanting?

in my experience many MPs, and others have unknowingly some level of unconsious bias regarding the railway.  They have theories and views that no amount of information will sway them from.  Perhaps it goes with the territory of being an MP, general reluctance safe for a few notable exceptions, to accept a contrary view to the position you stand by

Perhaps the question to ask might be "what motivates the MP(s)".  For those in parties who support denationalisation, it rather sticks in their throats to congratulate a private company on doing something right - even if it's doing a superb job. For any MP who has a group of constituents poorly served, even if most are happy, what an excellent opportunity to win the poorly served votes, and the votes of those who never use the train but will see the good local press (s)he gets for working for and perhaps sorting out the group.
Logged

Coffee Shop Admin, Acting Chair of Melksham Rail User Group, Option 24/7 Melksham Rep
TaplowGreen
Transport Scholar
Hero Member
******
Posts: 7743



View Profile
« Reply #19 on: February 28, 2019, 07:40:18 »

Count the number of times the head of Scots Rail has come out and publicly apologised for the issues that they are facing under the same circumstances. Then compare that to the number of times Mr Hopwood has done the same thing.

I fully appreciate the circumstances that GWR (Great Western Railway) are under from the engineering difficulties faced by NR» (Network Rail - home page) and the strategic decisions made by the DFT (Department for Transport). However, GWR's responsibility lies in its communications of the issues and mitigation of the issues. In those areas over the last few years, I believe it has been found wanting.

So all the investment GWR has put in to its stakeholder relationships, including regular meetings, or offers of meetings with MPs (Member of Parliament), and local authorities, not to mention the public communications - especially around the planned disruption is evidence of being found wanting?



I appreciate that the bar was set pretty low before, but these activities are expected as part of BAU, it isn't "investment" it's just normal operational expenditure. Customer Service, which includes a large part of communication, is still pretty appalling, and the "Boss" seems hopelessly out of touch with this and his customers expectations, unless you/he feel that taking weeks/months to close down pretty straightforward correspondence is acceptable? (a scenario that has now been going on for well over 18 months)
Logged
theabsentmindedprofessor
Newbie
*
Posts: 5


View Profile Email
« Reply #20 on: February 28, 2019, 20:27:13 »

Count the number of times the head of Scots Rail has come out and publicly apologised for the issues that they are facing under the same circumstances. Then compare that to the number of times Mr Hopwood has done the same thing.

I fully appreciate the circumstances that GWR (Great Western Railway) are under from the engineering difficulties faced by NR» (Network Rail - home page) and the strategic decisions made by the DFT (Department for Transport). However, GWR's responsibility lies in its communications of the issues and mitigation of the issues. In those areas over the last few years, I believe it has been found wanting.

So all the investment GWR has put in to its stakeholder relationships, including regular meetings, or offers of meetings with MPs (Member of Parliament), and local authorities, not to mention the public communications - especially around the planned disruption is evidence of being found wanting?



I appreciate that the bar was set pretty low before, but these activities are expected as part of BAU, it isn't "investment" it's just normal operational expenditure. Customer Service, which includes a large part of communication, is still pretty appalling, and the "Boss" seems hopelessly out of touch with this and his customers expectations, unless you/he feel that taking weeks/months to close down pretty straightforward correspondence is acceptable? (a scenario that has now been going on for well over 18 months)

Don't know about your particular experience, but in my experience GWR do invest, more than some other train operating companies, quite a bit in communications including offers to meet, regularly with MPs, such as Mr Doughty.  Throughout a long career in various bits of the transport industry, public, private, bus, rail, i've had the pleasure of sitting in many a meeting with MPs, and councillors and the level of understanding, and perhaps importantly willingness to understand is truly frightening.

Mr Doughty has form in not wanting to accept a contrary point of view.



He, and many conservative MPs are set a low bar when it com
Logged
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 [2]
  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