Brighton services to finish in May

[whole diary]

[IndustryInsider]

XC^▸ (Cross Country Trains (franchise)) will need to get back to the 2tph service before Bristol get direct trains to Manchester - just as Oxford getting their Newcastle services back will do. Can’t see it anytime soon unfortunately. The DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) seems to see nothing wrong with changing trains

There's been a 2-hour gap in anything heading from Reading/Oxford to Birmingham between 06:15 and 08:15 (Reading timings) for a while now.  There would traditionally be three trains in between that gap.  Looks like an 07:15 is returning in the middle of next month.

There's a strange token additional from Banbury to Newcastle at 12:28 which has been busy providing a service of little use for most of the pandemic timetable - a great shame that can't run through from Reading via Oxford so at least one direct train a day is provided.

XC are offering up the worst timetable of all the operators IMHO^▸ (in my humble opinion).  I appreciate that a large percentage are double length (though less than there were) and that they are just operating what the DfT are authorising...but still, it's pretty rubbish.

[ChrisB]

Confirmatiopn this afternoon that GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) will be running nothing east of Portsmouth after the new timetable.

[grahame]

Confirmatiopn this afternoon that GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) will be running nothing east of Portsmouth after the new timetable.

So are you announcing the end of
... services calling at Fratton and Cosham
... Reading to Guildford, Redhill and Gatwick
... Reading to Paddington
... Twyford to Henley-on-Thames
... Maidenhead to Marlow
... Slough to Windsor
... West Ealing to Greenford
... Theale, Pangborne and Bramey to Reading

[ChrisB]

Ha ha….

[Bmblbzzz]

Thanks to the poster here who have flagged Megabus (Direct with a stop at Birmingham - 1st of the day from Bristol being 07:00, arriving only ten minutes later than the first train connection of the day and currently selling at £17:20)

Mark

It's a direct service Bristol to Leeds IIRC^▸ (if I recall/remember/read correctly), via Manchester with no stop at Birmingham. There is another service via both Birmingham and Cheltenham. It's still about four hours sitting on a coach but then again it's only £20-ish... I'd rather go by train though.

[paul7575]

Confirmatiopn this afternoon that GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) will be running nothing east of Portsmouth after the new timetable.

Was their or DFT^▸ (Department for Transport)’s reasoning given?
Did they explain if SN will be required fill the peak capacity gaps?

IIRC^▸ (if I recall/remember/read correctly) with the SWR^» (South Western Railway - about) Bristol withdrawal they did attempt to explain what GWR would provide instead…

In fact is it online anywhere yet?

Paul

[ChrisB]

No, unfortunately not.

These National Rail contracts provide a budget that TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company) have to stick too, or they get penalised. These are set lower than current spend - note the ‘reduce costs by 10%’ that is regularly in the news.

So what’s best to cut? Costs that don’t leave anywhere without a service, hence these removals of ‘duplicated’ services. Also promo costs like Nectar are going. The operator left can make cases for additional trains IF they can back up the request with positive budget figures to cover the cost of that service (including serious overcrowding dissuading passengers from travelling)

We’ve got to get used to this simply because the current cost to the taxpayer is astronomical & can’t continue. Life has changed, commuters aren’t travelling daily & income has gone through the floor. Savongs have to be made

[IndustryInsider]

Indeed they do, which is why the 'easy targets' such as contracted out catering are going.

[ChrisB]

Yep, the ancillary, nice-to-have, but not strictly necessary, things that don’t prevent the current, or even ‘normal’ train service offering.”

So Nectar ooints, contracted out catering, duplicate services. To maintain other services wherever possible.

[paul7575]

I’ve always had my doubts about the importance of the Brightons, as I’ve posted quite some years ago the 2007ish introduction of the hourly SN Brighton - Southampton (7/7 in the normal timetable), was probably when it should have been first reviewed.  I’m pretty sure DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) first proposed removal in a franchise consultation maybe ten years ago.

Paul

[Mark A]

Fast forward a year, perhaps a moment's reflection for the one Southampton and three Warminster to Great Malvern weekdays-only through services which (is it next Friday?) will run for the last time.

More services Bristol to Worcester of course, but a change at Bristol... I've not checked if there will also be antics involving connections that would involve a sprint between Shrub Hill and Foregate - Worcester's not unknown for those. On the plus side, at least the possibility of finding a connection via Worcestershire Parkway.

Was Great Malvern always an odd direction in which to take the trains from Brighton? Were these trains formerly Cardiff to Brighton?

It's put me in mind of this memorable sign from Bath Spa. Cheltenham Spa - Great Malvern - The North ...

Mark

[grahame]

Fast forward a year, perhaps a moment's reflection for the one Southampton and three Warminster to Great Malvern weekdays-only through services which (is it next Friday?) will run for the last time.

[snip]

Was Great Malvern always an odd direction in which to take the trains from Brighton? Were these trains formerly Cardiff to Brighton?

Yes, it was

Through local trains across Bristol Temple Meads from Westbury to Gloucester came about, I understand, to avoid long layovers rather than because of through traffic.  I remember hearing of Arriva when they bid for the franchise spending time at Bristol Temple Meads observing through traffic and being approached for suspicious behaviour.

Similarly, the extension from Worcester to Great Malvern was because the train was there and rather than lay over for a long time, it ran the local run to save Central Trains a diagram - or so I am told.

Brighton ... yes, better to Cardiff and also perhaps to Exeter. But of course that latter is far better with a class 33 and carriages, or a pair of Hastings units.