Cotswold Line journeys operated by Turbos - planned and HST substitutions

[whole diary]

[IanL]

Short formed, rather than 8 car HST^▸ (High Speed Train) it was a 3 car turbo, type unknown since I couldnt get far enough into the vestibule to see if the carriages had (non functional) AC.

This is a busy train at the best of times and friday afternoon in summer it is heaving. Today there were cycles propped up against the doors as it entered Oxford.

[eightf48544]

Wow it must have been packed I caught the same train last week to Slough where I changed in to non A/C 166.

It was still full and standing on leaving Slough which it did at 16:10. The best bit was arriving at Paddington by boat.

This was my return journey my outward journey was Datchet Teddington.

[willc]

And is normally full and standing beyond Oxford too.

How anyone in FGW^▸ (First Great Western) control thinks that using a Turbo on this train is acceptable has always escaped me. It is:

1. The first train from London to Worcestershire for two-and-a-half hours (the 14.21 only runs to Moreton-in-Marsh) and the only through train from London to Worcester in a four-hour period.
2. The last Cotswold Line train that off-peak tickets are valid on from London and Reading until the 19.21.
3. The first practical going home from work/school train out of Oxford and if you miss it there's a 45-minute wait until the halts train, so people tend to make damn sure they don't miss it.

Which all adds up to a very large number of people wanting to travel on this train, for most of its journey, well beyond Oxford. It is clearly a case where the argument that something, in the shape of a Turbo, is better than nothing is of extremely dubious merit. If a Turbo appears, it is guaranteed a place in that day's list of most overcrowded trains anywhere on the network, never mind the potential safety issues. It might upset people going to Cardiff or Bristol to nick their HST^▸ (High Speed Train) for a change but they have another train in 30 minutes (and Bristol passengers also have the option of going to Parkway and changing there).

Even redoubling offers only a modest prospect of relief, with the 14.21 likely to run out to Worcester, but that will still leave a 90-minute gap to the 15.51 so this change is unlikely to to actually do much, if anything, to relieve the pressure on that service. Would that there were the odd Turbo spare to slot in another working out of Oxford at 16.20-ish, even if only to Moreton-in-Marsh, which would certainly help, but as accounts elsewhere on this board of the overcrowding on peak Thames Valley services illustrate, that's just not going to happen

[IanL]

And again tonight....22/7/2010

15:51 London Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill due 18:07
This train has been revised.This train will be formed of 3 coaches instead of 8.This is due to an earlier train fault.
Last Updated: 22/07/2010 14:47

[JayMac]

Anyone out there now for definite that these are 'due to an earlier train fault'? Or is it possible that the turbostitution is down to the lack of serviceable HST^▸ (High Speed Train) power cars caused by recent arguments with pointwork and trees?

[inspector_blakey]

Well, with my pedant's hat on, those are train faults that happened (a lot) earlier   

[willc]

It's not a planned substitution, eg the booked HST^▸ (High Speed Train) was on this turn yesterday, but with the 125 fleet stretched to the limit due to recent events, there's unlikely to be a 'hot spare' at Old Oak, provision of which was the reason FGW^▸ (First Great Western) acquired its 53rd HST some time after the rest of the fleet.

Any in-service failure at the moment is likely to mean it's Turbo time and since they don't go west of Didcot, it's going to be an Oxford/Cotswold diagram that loses the HST so that Bristol/Cardiff/Cheltenham gets its train as booked. While the 15.51 was an HST yesterday, I think a couple of other workings between London and Oxford were cancelled and others short-formed, so it's just the luck of the draw and when/where the failures happen, eg the 18.33 from London was Turbo-ised the other day.

[inspector_blakey]

And as irksome as it may be for Cotswold line passengers to have trains substituted by Turbos, I think if there is a shortage of HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) is it the only sensible option available to FGW^▸ (First Great Western) control since as you said they do not work west of Didcot. It's either that or cancel a Bristol/Cardiff/Cheltenham etc service outright to provide a Cotswold HST.

[IndustryInsider]

And as irksome as it may be for Cotswold line passengers to have trains substituted by Turbos, I think if there is a shortage of HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) is it the only sensible option available to FGW^▸ (First Great Western) control since as you said they do not work west of Didcot. It's either that or cancel a Bristol/Cardiff/Cheltenham etc service outright to provide a Cotswold HST.

There is another option (which was used tonight I think) which is to put a Turbo(s) on the 1D57 17:33 PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) to OXF^» (Oxford - next trains) and return 1P75 19:31 OXF to PAD.  Then you have time to rustle up a HST for that diagrams (IW028) last working, 1C31 20:45 PAD to BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains).  Much preferable in my opinion as the 17:33ex PAD is of course a busy train but for a far less length of time in that most people pile off at Maidenhead.

There is of course other factors to consider; fuel, crew and so on, and you can jiggle things about too much on occasions, but I would personally go for that option given the choice.

[willc]

And as irksome as it may be for Cotswold line passengers to have trains substituted by Turbos, I think if there is a shortage of HSTs^▸ (High Speed Train) is it the only sensible option available to FGW^▸ (First Great Western) control since as you said they do not work west of Didcot. It's either that or cancel a Bristol/Cardiff/Cheltenham etc service outright to provide a Cotswold HST.

But as I said above, there are a number of specific issues with putting a Turbo on the 15.51. It's a rather different matter from the 17.50, where Maidenhead, Reading and Oxford passengers have a number of other options, and where the Cotswold Line passengers have another HST in 30 minutes' time (and one has left 30 minutes before it, bit different from a two-hours-plus gap) - looking at numbers on board Turbo-ised 17.50s past Oxford, I would say many not in a hurry do indeed opt for the 18.22.

With the 15.51, a Turbo isn't up to the job, however convenient it is for the control room. Next time they do this, I would suggest someone from control is sent straight down to Swindon station to catch a train to Reading, where they should (always assuming they can actually squeeze on board in the first place) join the 15.51 and travel at least as far as Moreton-in-Marsh and see how they like it.

[Worcester_Passenger]

I agree with willc's comments above - substituting a Turbo on the 17:50 is much more sensible than on the 15:51.

The earlier comment about this being the last train on which day returns to London are available becomes even more relevant during the school holidays.

[JayMac]

And is normally full and standing beyond Oxford too.

How anyone in FGW^▸ (First Great Western) control thinks that using a Turbo on this train is acceptable has always escaped me. It is:

1. The first train from London to Worcestershire for two-and-a-half hours (the 14.21 only runs to Moreton-in-Marsh) and the only through train from London to Worcester in a four-hour period.
2. The last Cotswold Line train that off-peak tickets are valid on from London and Reading until the 19.21.
3. The first practical going home from work/school train out of Oxford and if you miss it there's a 45-minute wait until the halts train, so people tend to make damn sure they don't miss it.

Off Peak Return (SVR) tickets to Hanborough and beyond are valid on all services from London and Reading. It is the Off Peak Day (CDS^▸ (Off Peak Day Single [ticket type] (formerly 'Cheap Day'))/CDR^▸ (Off Peak Day Return [ticket type] (formerly 'Cheap Day'))) and 1st Class Off Peak Return (FSR^▸ (First Scot Rail)) that are barred between 1600 and 1915.

EDIT: Having said that, regarding the SVR..... yet again NFM^▸ (National Fares Manual) 06 and certain Online Journey Planners disagree. Avantix^▸ (Ticket Issuing System used on board trains) WebTIS based sites (East Coast, London Midland, redspottedhanky.com) bar use of the SVR to Cotswold Line stations on the 1750 and 1822, potentially overcharging passengers by nearly ^20.

[willc]

Oh silly me, what I meant was tickets valid at off-peak times as opposed to the ones that were stupidly and confusingly renamed off-peak.

Ones which, due to Cotswold Line easements, despite having off-peak printed on them, are valid in the peak (on the halts train from the halts plus Hanborough, and all stops on the Cathedrals Express, for travel into London, and all afternoon/evening peak return trains when travelling to stations beyond Oxford). And are also bought by people travelling into London off-peak but returning in the peak.

I'm sure someone, somewhere, will know of other easements, which make just as much of a nonsense of this change of terminology, which most certainly did not simplify matters. Hands up anyone who has ever heard a person ask for an off-peak day single at a booking office. What a pity we don't get Cotswold Line super off-peaks as well, to add to the utter confusion.

The term Saver is still alive and well up here (such naughty staff - and naughty passengers, me included, who will persist in asking for them), because it helps indicate the different conditions that apply between it and actual genuine off-peak tickets, for travel off-peak.

*Edit, after seeing bignosemac's edit - See, even the programmers are confused... I hope you've mailed FGW^▸ (First Great Western) to point this out.

[Worcester_Passenger]

I changed trains at Birmingham New Street yesterday. The platform display for the 09:50 departure to London had a warning that "off-peak tickets are not valid on this service". It's due into Euston at 11:14.

If any other industry tried to get away with such an absurdity, they'd be reported, quite rightly, to the Advertising Standards Authority.

Oh, and the train itself was a 5-coach Voyager.

[JayMac]

I didn't email FGW^▸ (First Great Western), willc, as it appears to be an issue with those retailers using Avantix^▸ (Ticket Issuing System used on board trains) WebTIS.

I called East Coast web support after finding an 01 number for them. They agreed it was an error.... but only after my prompting them to look at the ticket restriction code in The Manual. Said they would looked to get it fixed, soon as.

Also e-mailed ATOS Origin (no way was I calling redspottedhanky.com's Customer Support at ^1 a minute!) as they provide Avantix WebTIS.

Isn't it a bit strange that two pieces of related software provided by the same company (Avantix Traveller NFM^▸ (National Fares Manual) and Avantix WebTIS) can disagree?