Chiltern Evergreen 3 project - ongoing discussion

[whole diary]

[Richard Fairhurst]

Oh, are the 20 pages intentional? I saw that the progress bar wasn't advancing, assumed that it had got stuck in some sort of loop, and gave up...

Interesting to see, though, that despite GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)'s trumpeting of advance fares on the Cotswold Line, the options presented here are solely walk-up fares.

[ChrisB]

I' m informed by GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) that the questionnaire is as designed...make of that what you will, but its no mistake.

The first trains on the Oxford Chiltern route run on Sunday 25th, not the 26th

[eightf48544]

How easy is it to get from Oxford station to Oxford Parkway?

Are bus passes available on Park and Ride buses?

[ChrisB]

Park & Ride to Water Eaton....need to walk into town (Debenhams) to catch it, I believe.

Alternatively, there is still a Rail Replacement Bus from Oxford to Oxford Parkway that can be used with the purchase of a rail ticket valid on or after 25 October - according to Chiltern twitter feed

[IndustryInsider]

Park & Ride to Water Eaton....need to walk into town (Debenhams) to catch it, I believe.

Alternatively, there is still a Rail Replacement Bus from Oxford to Oxford Parkway that can be used with the purchase of a rail ticket valid on or after 25 October - according to Chiltern twitter feed

The Park & Ride 500 service is being extended to run between the two stations, with an big improvement in hours of operation to meet all the new trains including the introduction of a Sunday service - all because of the opening of Oxford Parkway.  Well done to the Oxford Bus Company.

http://www.oxfordbus.co.uk/500/

There are also a plethora of other bus services that stop there linking the city centre.

[ChrisB]

Are you sure? Most are stopping out on the main road with Chiltern due to build a walkway direct from the station at Parkway - at the moment you have to walk out via the P&R^▸ (Park and Ride). The only other bus I know that goes into the P&R/station is the 700 that goes direct to Oxford Hospitals & not via the City Centre.

[IndustryInsider]

Are you sure?

Pretty sure.  As well as the 700s, the existing 500 stops there, as do occasional S5's.  Continuing to stop on the main road will be the various incarnations of the 2 route to/from Kidlington, the S4, the majority of the S5's and a couple of others.  I didn't know a walkway was being built - that will come in very handy for those routes. 

The link I posted says 'Oxford Parkway' in the timetable and says 'From 25th October, our park&ride500 will be extended to run from Oxford Parkway Station to Oxford Rail Station. The operating hours will also be extended to cover Sundays, and will run early and late enough to meet all Chiltern Railways services at the new station.

[ChrisB]

Oh ok, didn't know about the S5s - there's nothing in the timetable for that service that indicates that.

[IndustryInsider]

They're marked on this timetable:

https://www.stagecoachbus.com/pdfs/XOANS05.pdf

Like I said, only occasional stops though - three or four per day in each direction in the peaks to/from Bicester & Glory Farm.  Others all stop on the road outside.  Also, the W10 bus to/from Woodstock stops at the P&R^▸ (Park and Ride) - again there's only a handful a day though.

It'll be interesting to see how the bus routes develop after Oxford Parkway station opens, and when the through route to the main Oxford station is finished.  For example, would the W10 increase in frequency due to new demand, and will the S5 struggle thanks to a fast and frequent train service?

[ChrisB]

Yes, I certainly think the S5 might suffer, if Chiltern keep their BIT-OXF^» (Oxford - next trains) fares pegged.

[IndustryInsider]

Well, the 'preview' service started today, with one local news story ahead of what will no doubt be a day of much more coverage when the official service starts tomorrow morning.  Looks like they got a Silver Train out for the first train today:

http://www.witneygazette.co.uk/news/13894736.Keen_passengers_board_the_first_trains_to_leave_Oxford_Parkway/

Services have been running pretty much perfectly so far, with the longest delay being a 4 minute late arrival at Marylebone on the 10:48 from Oxford Parkway.

[ChrisB]

The first train was a 6car (2x3car) 168.

That silver train pictured left at 1135-ish I think. I didn't see that reporter until well after 10.30 either.

Test day yesterday, launch this morning and a celebratory Drinks & Supper tonight in a huge marquee in the car park. I hope they've got the heaters in!

[IndustryInsider]

Thanks for that.  Quite a mild night forecast for tonight fortunately.  I'm hoping to get out and about to have a good look one day later this week.

[ChrisB]

Parkway is just about complete - Islip & B/Village less so with a couple more weeks of 24/7 work to go.

[Andrew1939 from West Oxon]

I visited Hanborough station this morning wondering if the CL travellers were deserting the CL. No sign at present. As it is school half term I had expected numbers to be down but it seems that for the 08.01 stopper numbers have significantly increased on a few months ago although some of the extras are just going to Oxford probably due to the A40 road works in North Oxford. Chatting to regulars it seems that most are aware that getting from Hanborough and Witney areas to Oxford Parkway at commuting times would take too long due to the ever increasing traffic congestion on the roads.