Reading Green Park

[whole diary]

[stuving]

Pain in the arse when using a wheelchair.....no one's thought of those!

Presumably that depends on where you are and which way you are going relative to the tactiles. The relevant provisions are in the NTSN: Persons with Reduced Mobility (PRM^▸ (Persons with Reduced Mobility)):

4.2.1.4.   Floor surfaces
(1)   All floor coverings, ground surfaces and stair tread surfaces shall be slip resistant.
(2)   Within the station buildings there shall be no irregularities in excess of 0,5 cm at any given point in floor walking surface areas, except for thresholds, drainage channels and tactile walking surface indicators

The provisions about danger area marking that the exemption was granted for say:

4.2.1.12.   Platform width and edge of platform
(6)   The boundary of the danger area, furthest from the rail side edge of the platform, shall have a visual marking and tactile walking surface indicators.
(7)   The visual marking shall be a contrasting, slip resistant, warning line with a minimum width of 10 cm.
(8)   Tactile walking surface indicators can be one of the two types:
      -   an attention pattern indicating a hazard at the boundary of the danger area
      -   a guiding pattern indicating a path of travel at the safe side of the platform

As I read that one it's not saying the wayfinding tactiles are required. There are, however, a lot of complicated bits about obstacle-free routes that may, taken together, require one along a platform (though so far I think that's slipped past not-quite-specified).

The NTSNs are based on the TSIs, rather than previous UK^▸ (United Kingdom) rail standards. They were put together mainly by RSSB^▸ (Rail Safety and Standards Board), but this one appears to have been written by consultants (specifically someone from Ricardo with previous experience at the EC and ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about). RSSB are providing guidance about impmenting bits of them even in upgrade works where it's not a requirement, in which case these NTSNs might result on more compliance with the TSIs than would have happened otherwise (i.e. without Brexit).

This is the page with the NTSNs in it (filed under Brexit, not DfT^» (Department for Transport - about)).

[Bmblbzzz]

Those wayfinding groove tactiles look extremely similar to the warning grooved tactiles used for cycle-on-the-pavement lanes, but the other way round. In that situation, the cycle lane grooves run parallel to direction to travel (which is annoying to downright dangerous for cyclists, depending on factors such as tyre width – I'm not sure how they affect wheelchairs) and the pedestrian side run perpendicular to travel.

Possibly these grooves are actually different, in a way that is detectable by a cane user – but there are at least two types used for cycle lanes and it seems inevitable that, unless this type is only available to NR^» (Network Rail - home page), they will be misplaced.

[BBM]

Transport YouTuber JenOnTheMove has posted a video of this morning's public opening and the first train:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9I6E7os8GRA

At 1:31 in the video I spotted another YouTuber called Bryn Buck (aka Roadsign Reporter) who has posted a short video of the first train on his channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuCQ8asY5GM

[IndustryInsider]

Brilliant news that it’s now open.

Rather less brilliant that it’s taken 14 years from the first ‘cleared for opening’ post on this thread!

[TaplowGreen]

Brilliant news that it’s now open.

Rather less brilliant that it’s taken 14 years from the first ‘cleared for opening’ post on this thread!

It is good news to see it's open at last - and be fair - that's only 1 year longer than it took to construct the whole of Crossrail - albeit that was delayed too!!! 

[bobm]

Took a trip to see Reading Green Park finally open yesterday.  I wasn't there for the first service but, taking advantage of the brighter mornings, I was there soon after

As you would expect the screens both on the platform and onboard have been updated to include the new station.  The audio announcements have also been revised.  The same onboard voice has been used to say "Reading Green Park" however it has been recorded at a much lower level to give the effect that she is whispering the name.  The platform announcements don't have that problem.

Arriving at Reading Green Park there were a number who were also there to see the station in operation for the first time.  The station is sited on a long straight piece of track between Southcote Junction and Mortimer - such that you can see an arriving train from quite a distance.









As you'd expect from a modern station it has lifts between the two platforms which are summoned remotely when the station is unstaffed.  There is a gateline and self service ticket machines both inside and by the night gate.  With perhaps a look to the future there is no ticket office but a "retail desk" where presumably tickets could be sold from a mobile machine.



The front of the station has a bus turning circle.  The posters suggest Reading Buses Greenwave 50 service calls there but I haven't found any evidence that the company has adjusted its timetables yet.

My visit was slightly extended after one of the units running the Reading - Basingstoke service developed a fault

However it was rather relaxing hearing the birds singing in the morning sunshine - and the odd plane banking in the skies as they queued to land at Heathrow.

Earlier in this thread we have discussed the various types of tactile paving.   As mentioned it changes as you reach places where routes diverge.



Trains heading to Basingstoke stop in the middle of the platform but those going to Reading stop at the very end of the platform beyond the covered area.  I assume this is because of the signal just past the platform.



The station will serve the nearby business parks and Reading Football Club.  The opening day saw Reading playing Chelsea in the Women's Super League.  I haven't seen what the attendance was - Reading's average crowd is just below 2,000 - but with Chelsea in town that may have been greater yesterday.  I wonder how many used rhe train?

[infoman]

Shame that Championship league clubs won't get the chance to use the station in season 2023/24,

unless Reading draw a Championship club in one of the Cup competitions.

[TaplowGreen]

Shame that Championship league clubs won't get the chance to use the station in season 2023/24,

unless Reading draw a Championship club in one of the Cup competitions.

I was indeed looking forward to watching the mighty Plymouth Argyle there however we passed Reading on the way up as they came down!

[BBM]

Geoff Marshall has just uploaded a video about the station:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4Q3JrdMdGs

[CyclingSid]

Are GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) ashamed of their new station? They have added Reading Green Park to their on train announcements, but have got the sound balance so far out that you can hardly hear Reading Green Park.

Coming back about 18:00 on Saturday five people got on.

[IndustryInsider]

Are GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) ashamed of their new station? They have added Reading Green Park to their on train announcements, but have got the sound balance so far out that you can hardly hear Reading Green Park.

At least they’ve managed to record it with a female voice unlike  Worcestershire Parkway. 

[eightonedee]

I wondered whether to post here or in the thread on Gloucestershire's proposed cricket ground move!
Having watched the progress on construction for an extended time, I used the station (at last) for the first time today.

It was my first visit in a very long time to the "Select Car Leasing Stadium", which shall always be the Mad Stad for us, to see Reading play. The club has being doing badly off and on the field for a while, as anyone who takes a passing interest in the game will know. An old school friend and I decided it was time to show some support, and I thought I would try the new station as a way of getting there - a very reasonable £3-55 return from Goring and Streatley now I have a senior railcard.

On the way out everything went smoothly. Sadly the Turbo out from Reading had been vandalised with paint (or tagged as foolish people who should know better call it), as had an Electrostar in the depot and most of the ex-Viva Rail Marston Vale stock that has replaced the 769s in the area reserved for rebuilt oddities. GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) thoughtfully put on 3 car units. I went early to meet up for a pre-match drink, but there were already a number of supporters on the train.

One thing that struck me was the absence of signage on the convenient direct pedestrian route form the station to the stadium. Perhaps it was understandable as it pre-dated the station, but I would have thought that both destinations would have been added.

On the way back things were not quite so good. The middle coach of the Reading-bound train had been locked out of use as someone had been sick over one of the seats, and it was held awaiting a fast train at Southcote Junction, so I missed the connection to Goring I hoped to get. Memories of commuting days - I got down to the platform just as doors closed..... Never mind, I used the half hour to do some supplemental Christmas shopping at Hotel Chocolat - one of the highlights of the "new" Reading Station!

There were about 100 who got on the train back to Reading, possibly a few more. On the opposite platform there were rather fewer, but still possibly 70-80 waiting for the next Basingstoke-bound train. I guess there may have been more later, as quite a few supporters have a post match drink at the stadium hotel bar. The long queues to leave the car-park are an incentive to stay for one. I'd guess the crowd was about 10,000.

A thought for those commercially minded folk at GWR - perhaps sell tickets with a discount via the football club, and invest in a few signs between the station and the stadium? There looks to be a possible source of revenue that could be better exploited here.

Oh - and the station was as others have already described. The only negative point was the presence of wet-floor warning signs on the footbridge indicating possible a roof problem there. And the reception desk affair near the entrance is no more "getting the staff closer to passengers" than had it been an enclosed ticket office. It's somewhere for staff you walk past when you enter the building.

[grahame]

I wondered whether to post here or in the thread on Gloucestershire's proposed cricket ground move!
Having watched the progress on construction for an extended time, I used the station (at last) for the first time today.

A fascinating report, thank you so much.  But I am going to pick you up on the tail of it:

The only negative point was the presence of wet-floor warning signs on the footbridge indicating possible a roof problem there. And the reception desk affair near the entrance is no more "getting the staff closer to passengers" than had it been an enclosed ticket office. It's somewhere for staff you walk past when you enter the building.

Fair enough on the wet floors.  But, yet, a fixed desk in public might actually work for human ticket issuing in future. Why do we put ticket office staff behind a screen?  To provide security for the cash they handle and the stock of tickets which also have value. With fewer cash transactions, and tickets printed dynamically, how much of a rethink can we make?

[CyclingSid]

One thing that struck me was the absence of signage on the convenient direct pedestrian route form the station to the stadium.

I believe that the road to Green Park station is a Restricted Local Access Street (presumably unadopted) the council, Reading Buses and GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) are limited to what they can do on/with it in terms of signage etc.

[BBM]

Reading Buses has announced that from January 2nd route 9 ('buzz 9') will be extended from Whitley Wood to Green Park Station via Imperial Way and will run Mondays to Saturdays:

https://www.reading-buses.co.uk/timetable-changes-tuesday-2-january