Swindon to Westbury via Melksham - Train timetables for February 2023

[whole diary]

[grahame]

GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) have asked me to share these timetables with my contacts.  I will be posting links to this thread on social media, etc.

These are Monday to Friday timetables - Weekends to follow

Trains 1st and 3rd February (restricted due to rail strike)

Westbury	07:37	16:25
Trowbridge	07:43	16:31
Melksham	07:53	16:41
Chippenham	08:03	16:51
Swindon	08:19	17:08

Swindon	08:45	17:36
Chippenham	09:00	17:52
Melksham	09:10	18:03
Trowbridge	09:19	18:12
Westbury	09:26	18:20

Buses route x34 run on from Chippenham BUS station via Melksham Market Place to Trowbridge Town Centre about every half hour until late afternoon.  A handful of services also call at Chippenham railway station and most services extend from Trowbridge Town Hall to Trinity Church for the station.  Bus fare this month - maximum £2 for any single journey.

Trains on weekdays (February 2nd, 6th to 10th and 13th to 17th) - published December 2022 to May 2023 TT

Westbury	05:17	07:05	07:37	09:46	12:17	14:16	16:25	18:34	20:06
Trowbridge	05:23	07:11	07:43	09:52	12:23	14:22	16:31	18:40	20:12
Melksham	05:33	07:21	07:53	10:02	12:33	14:32	16:41	18:50	20:22
Chippenham	05:43	07:31	08:03	10:14	12:43	14:44	16:51	19:04	20:32
Swindon	05:59	07:47	08:19	10:34	12:59	15:01	17:08	19:21	20:54

Swindon	06:11	08:45	11:05	13:15	15:14	17:36	18:52	20:45
Chippenham	06:27	09:00	11:21	13:30	15:30	17:52	19:07	21:00
Melksham	06:36	09:10	11:31	13:40	15:39	18:03	19:17	21:10
Trowbridge	06:46	09:19	11:40	13:49	15:49	18:12	19:27	21:19
Westbury	06:53	09:26	11:47	13:56	15:58	18:20	19:38	21:26

Trains on weekdays (February 20th to 24th, 26th, 27th 28th) - engineering works decimate our trains

Westbury	04:51	06:50	07:53	08:50	10:50	12:50	14:50	16:51	18:51	21:04
Trowbridge	04:47	-	07:59	-	-	-	-	-	18:57	-
Melksham	05:06	-	08:08	-	-	-	-	-	19:07	-
Chippenham	05:16	07:12	08:19	-	-	-	-	-	19:17	-
Swindon	05:35	07:25	08:35	09:34	11:34	13:34	15:34	17:34	10:33	21:35

Also bus services from Westbury to Chippenham at 07:02, 09:55, 12:33, 14:29, 16:52 and 20:08
Calling at Trowbridge and Melksham, bus takes 53 minutes Westbury to Chippenham

Swindon	05:45	09:50	11:50	13:50	15:50	17:46	19:50	21:50
Chippenham	06:04	-	-	-	-	18:02	-
Melksham	06:13	-	-	-	-	18:12	-
Trowbridge	06:23	-	-	-	-	18:21	-
Westbury	06:30	10:24	12:24	14:24	16:24	18:29	20:24	22:24

Also buses from Chippenham to Westbury at 08:52, 11:20, 13:26, 15:32, 19:05 and 21:17
Calling at Melksham and Trowbridge, bus takes 53 minutes Chippenham to Westbury


My proposal to GWR from May 2023 to run 7 days a week
Done with a single train to improve reliability.  This is a draft and your comments would be welcome.

Westbury	05:17	07:17	09:17	11:47	14:17	16:47	19:22	21:47
Trowbridge	05:23	07:23	09:23	11:53	14:23	16:53	19:28	21:53
Melksham	05:33	07:33	09:33	12:03	14:33	17:03	19:38	22:03
Chippenham	05:43	07:42	09:42	12:13	14:42	17:13	19:48	22:12
Swindon	06:00	08:00	10:00	12:30	15:00	17:30	20:05	22:30

Swindon	06:07	08:14	10:14	12:44	15:14	17:44	20:14	22:44
Chippenham	06:24	08:33	10:33	13:03	15:33	18:03	20:32	22:52
Melksham	06:34	08:43	10:43	13:13	15:43	18:13	20:42	23:02
Trowbridge	06:44	08:53	10:53	13:23	15:53	18:23	20:52	23:23
Westbury	06:50	08:59	10:59	13:29	15:59	18:29	20:59	23:30

[bobm]

The first two trips might be a problem on a Sunday.  I think there is an engineering window which would preclude them.  With the problems sorting replacement road transport I doubt GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) would want to commit to that on a regular basis.

There is also the suggestion that some of the current extensions to and from Cheltenham/Gloucester provide a way of moving stock about without resorting to ECS^▸ (Empty Coaching Stock) paths.

[ChrisB]

There’szero way you’ll persuade them to operate a service as early as the first service you are requesting on a Sunday!

[grahame]

The first two trips might be a problem on a Sunday.  I think there is an engineering window which would preclude them.  With the problems sorting replacement road transport I doubt GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) would want to commit to that on a regular basis.

There is also the suggestion that some of the current extensions to and from Cheltenham/Gloucester provide a way of moving stock about without resorting to ECS^▸ (Empty Coaching Stock) paths.

There’szero way you’ll persuade them to operate a service as early as the first service you are requesting on a Sunday!

Both understood. I have lots of footnotes and explanation on the "May forward" timetable, which is somewhere between concept and draft.  Some of that relates to Sunday morning, other elements to changes to GWR services from Bristol to Gloucester and Westbury to Weymouth - both corridors have extra trains from May and as there is interaction at present with those services (continuing / interworked diagrams).  And because of that, there may be other considerations and even an extra morning train northbound and early evening train southbound.

[ChrisB]

You areaware that the May timetable bidding has finished pretty much, and the first bids for December timetable change go in to NR^» (Network Rail - home page) un just a couple of weeks or so?

[grahame]

You are aware that the May timetable bidding has finished pretty much, and the first bids for December timetable change go in to NR^» (Network Rail - home page) un just a couple of weeks or so?

Yes.   And I am also aware that the rail industry, if it wants to (or is ordered to), can make changes at very much shorter notice  . 

I am getting very much less sympathetic than I used to be to promises of reliability improvement, but then seeing things remain awful. 576 trains in the timetable for the first five weeks of the new timetable, and only 299 ran.  That's 57.6% ran against a minimum target of 98%. I want to see actual improvements - fed up with promises that consistently do not deliver significant long term gains, but keep the passenger groups quiet for a while.

[ChrisB]

Now that the ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about) has informed TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company) that overnight cancellations can't be excluded from their performance stats on reliability, I think these may well start to dry up as their performance fees will be affected from now on.

[grahame]

Now that the ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about) has informed TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company) that overnight cancellations can't be excluded from their performance stats on reliability, I think these may well start to dry up as their performance fees will be affected from now on.

Is that actually a good thing though?   Imagine that GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) know ahead there's a strong possibility of them not having enough working staff or working trains to run a timetabled train.
Until now - they have cancelled it the night before and given passengers a good heads up by doing so
In the future - will they leave such trains in the timetable in case they can run, and cancel them late on, springing the cancellation on passengers very late on?

If the effect is to change things so that more trains actually run, a good element is there. And I suppose there is a chance of that as it just might close the evening before loophole that saved GWR being penalised.  Instead, they may be more tempted to have enough staff and trains in service as that may be better for their bottom line that the increased penalty. Does anyone know the maths

[ChrisB]

If either affects their management fee in the same way (by reducing it), either way will get the same reaction from the TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company). L
So hopefully, run where they possibly can, but cancel the night before & take the hit *if they absolutely* have to. Which I suspect is what the ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about) expect too.

Those maths will be in confidentiality agreements, no doubt.

[grahame]

Green – as per published winter timetable (17 trains calling - 8 one way and 9 the other, less on Sunday)
Lime – near normal timetable (but check)
Orange – only a handful of local trains (5 calling - 2 one way adnd 3 the other) , replacement buses running
Red – 4 trains calling - 2 each way, no rail replacement buses
Magenta – No trains ar all - but there will be buses
Blue – trains, but only Westbury to Chippenham

[froome]

Well done for putting it all together. You have an incredibly complicated month to look forward to, but at least it looks pretty!

[Phil]

The irony is that as an attempted regular commuter on this line, I'm actually looking forward to the days when buses replace the rail service as they tend to be less liable to short-notice cancellation. Every day I set out, it's a lottery not knowing whether I'll be able to get home to Melksham again. At least with a bus there's a much better chance that there'll be a driver to drive it.

[grahame]

From the news feedat the top of our pages ... National News we should NOT be having to make


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