"Shortage of train crew" 28th August

[whole diary]

[TaplowGreen]

Services across the region seem to be being decimated today due to "shortage of train crew" -widespread alterations and cancellations - it's one of the busiest weekends of the year, how can this be allowed to happen? Are rosters not prepared well in advance?

[LiskeardRich]

They would of probably known weeks in advance, hoping to rely on rest day working/overtime perhaps, that's not forthcoming on a bank holiday weekend?

[Billhere]

There is a difference between rosters, and rostering.

Rosters are prepared months in advance as a means of covering the required service. It doesn't take into account the manpower available to cover those turns which is where rostering comes in, which is subject to change on a daily, if not hourly, basis.

As has been explained on here before you can have a depot with fifty rostered turns per day (which would include spare drivers with no booked driving), but then take into account staff shortages, leave, sickness, courses, last minute problems and suddenly your potential fifty drivers for fifty turns could become forty men, or less. The Train Crew Supervisor is then under the cosh to get existing Drivers to work overtime, call in somebody on a rest day, or call on other depots to try and cover the work.

What is it this weekend? - bank holiday. Weather? - excellent. Incentive to work overtime, or a day off?  - virtually nil.

No true railway professional willingly cancels trains but having had the experience of having to do it it is not a decision taken lightly, and, in my day, was taken by sacrificing local journeys to run long distance ones where possible.

[IndustryInsider]

The same issues apply on Sundays as applied last year - i.e. Drivers at some depots don't have to work if they don't want to.  Perhaps connected with the diversions via Gloucester and the number of drivers with that route knowledge, I'm not sure?  I'm surprised it hasn't happened more often this year (if you remember last year, there were quite a few cancellations on many of the summer Sundays, especially in Cornwall). 

It's not much of a consolation for those that are travelling, but fortunately it isn't actually that busy today compared with other Sundays, on the longer distance services at least, as many people away for the weekend aren't returning until tomorrow.

[TaplowGreen]

The same issues apply on Sundays as applied last year - i.e. Drivers at some depots don't have to work if they don't want to.  Perhaps connected with the diversions via Gloucester and the number of drivers with that route knowledge, I'm not sure?  I'm surprised it hasn't happened more often this year (if you remember last year, there were quite a few cancellations on many of the summer Sundays, especially in Cornwall). 

It's not much of a consolation for those that are travelling, but fortunately it isn't actually that busy today compared with other Sundays, on the longer distance services at least, as many people away for the weekend aren't returning until tomorrow.

There is an awful lot going on today (end of the Reading Festival etc) which will make it busy but let's hope that the planning has been better for tomorrow and that the same situation as today doesn't arise.

[grahame]

I'm noticing a lot of the cancellations today being London to Cheltenham Spa, with more of the blue lines on our map being due to the London to Swansea services making extra stops at Kemble, Stroud, Stonehouse and Gloucester.  Without any knowledge of the loading expected on the middle of 3 days of a bank holiday weekend, there does seem a case for the South Wales services making these extra calls ... as a plan, rather than as a fix on the day.  

And there are Swindon to Cheltenham Spa direct expressed today, which are rather quicker than the normal trains end to end.  The 11:09 is due Cheltenham Spa at 12:09 (today's direct train).  The 11:39 was due at 12:44 (all stops; reversal at Gloucester) and is cancelled.

[IndustryInsider]

There is an awful lot going on today (end of the Reading Festival etc) which will make it busy but let's hope that the planning has been better for tomorrow and that the same situation as today doesn't arise.

I'd be surprised if there are many problems tomorrow as all drivers can't just make themselves 'unavailable' like they can on Sundays.  Indeed, there may well be a surplus as less trains are running due to the engineering works, so I would expect the only possible problems to arise should the diversionary route via Gloucester not be 'signed' be enough drivers.  I certainly hope there aren't problems as tomorrow will be extremely busy!

As for Reading festival, the vast majority return home tomorrow morning apart from those just going for the evening who tend to be making shorter journeys which aren't really affected today.  Likewise the majority of the carnival traffic is local journeys.  Looking at the reservations lists (a good indication of how busy a train is going to be), the 10:21, 11:21 and 12:21 Swansea to Paddington trains all have only around 100 seats reserved today.  They'll be far from empty, but that's exceptionally quiet for a Sunday!

[TaplowGreen]

There is an awful lot going on today (end of the Reading Festival etc) which will make it busy but let's hope that the planning has been better for tomorrow and that the same situation as today doesn't arise.

the 10:21, 11:21 and 12:21 Swansea to Paddington trains all have only around 100 seats reserved today.  They'll be far from empty, but that's exceptionally quiet for a Sunday!

...........rather fortunate that there aren't too many reservations as some of those trains will have to pick up the extra load of customers between Gloucester and Kemble stranded by other cancellations !

[Adelante_CCT]

Weather? - excellent

Really? It's p*****g down here! I'd much rather be driving a train.

[IndustryInsider]

Yes indeed, and also rather fortunate that the diversions are taking place and extra trains are routed via Gloucester.  In effect it means only a 10-20 minute delay to those who have been 'stranded' as the diverted trains were booked to follow close behind the cancelled ones.  That impact is something I'm sure that Control would have considered when they realised some trains would have to be cancelled today.

[LiskeardRich]

Weather? - excellent

Really? It's p*****g down here! I'd much rather be driving a train.

It's just stopped here and the sun is out.

[Billhere]

Weather? - excellent

Really? It's p*****g down here! I'd much rather be driving a train.

Quite. I would have been driving my loco up at Cutteslowe Park on the raised track of  the Oxford Society of Model Engineers track this afternoon if it hadn't been doing likewise in West Berks. Shortages occur all over. Last week there were only two locos at Cutteslowe on Wednesday afternoon and my battery loco and one lone steam engine took a flogging all afternoon. Never cancelled one, and had many hundreds of happy passengers! Mind you the drivers were feeling the strain!

[phile]

I'm noticing a lot of the cancellations today being London to Cheltenham Spa, with more of the blue lines on our map being due to the London to Swansea services making extra stops at Kemble, Stroud, Stonehouse and Gloucester.  Without any knowledge of the loading expected on the middle of 3 days of a bank holiday weekend, there does seem a case for the South Wales services making these extra calls ... as a plan, rather than as a fix on the day.  

And there are Swindon to Cheltenham Spa direct expressed today, which are rather quicker than the normal trains end to end.  The 11:09 is due Cheltenham Spa at 12:09 (today's direct train).  The 11:39 was due at 12:44 (all stops; reversal at Gloucester) and is cancelled.

Paddington to Cheltenham services have been vulnerable  on Sundays for several weeks now.

[TaplowGreen]

..............so is there a plan to address these ongoing Sunday issues? Is it a case of the RMT^▸ (National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers) playing funny buggers, GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) failing to deal with it, or a combination of the two?

Is there a resolution in sight or is it just two sides taking positions and beating their chests whilst the customers who finance them suffer in the middle?

I note that there are reports today regarding the RMT sabre rattling and balloting for strike action over catering arrangements on the new trains, it seems that any excuse to cause trouble anywhere on the railway is being seized upon by the RMT at the moment.

[IndustryInsider]

No immediate sign of an end of the ability of Paddington drivers to be entitled to say they're not available for work on Sunday's that I'm aware of.  Sunday's are not part of the 'working week' and until they are the issue will continue to rear it's head. Not just GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) affected - I see Chiltern cancelled several trains today due to driver shortages.

The best chance of changing agreements is when a training deal is struck for the new IEP^▸ (Intercity Express Program / Project. This will offer more capacity on routes, save money, give a consistent and safe service and meet customer requirements. Intended to replace HSTs.) trains.