New Oxford - Bristol direct service, ongoing developments and discussion

[whole diary]

[IndustryInsider]

Presumably they're IETs^▸ (Intercity Express Train - replacement for HSTs (manufactured by Hitachi in Kobe, Japan)) as the National Rail site lists 1st class fares against them.

For Bath to Oxford:

Anytime standard day return £77.20
Anytime standard return £169.40
Anytime 1st return £202.20
Anytime 1st return £278.60 (allows travel via Reading but not via London terminals - for comparison, a Bath Spa to London Paddington anytime return is £380.60.)

Yes, 5-car IET’s.  Though no reason why Turbos^▸ (Class 165 and 166 trains used on Thames Valley services) can’t be used in case of shortages (other than the relative lack of performance).

The anytime ticket prices will be the same as currently (routed ‘Not Reading’), surely?  There will of course be the possibility of more/cheaper advance fares than now.

[Mark A]

Indeed, outside the peak, fares drop to levels that to which many more people can relate. Also, for the moment there's ample availability of advance fares and at useful times of day too (the availability granted at the discretion of the rail company of course).

Checking the annual season ticket Swindon - Oxford, that comes out as £4276, or £16.46 per day. I've no idea if the annual season ticket holder from Swindon to Oxford qualifies for any additional benefits: rail commuters outside London have reason to look ruefully at people holding annual season tickets for travel within London, as these unlock unlimited travel on some or all of London's rail network.

Mark

[Oxonhutch]

... I've no idea if the annual season ticket holder from Swindon to Oxford qualifies for any additional benefits: rail commuters outside London have reason to look ruefully at people holding annual season tickets for travel within London, as these unlock unlimited travel on some or all of London's rail network.

Should do, as the destination is within the Network Card area.

[ray951]

Yes, 5-car IET^▸ (Intercity Express Train - replacement for HSTs (manufactured by Hitachi in Kobe, Japan))’s.  Though no reason why Turbos^▸ (Class 165 and 166 trains used on Thames Valley services) can’t be used in case of shortages (other than the relative lack of performance).

The anytime ticket prices will be the same as currently (routed ‘Not Reading’), surely?  There will of course be the possibility of more/cheaper advance fares than now.

And the lack of spare Turbos.

[IndustryInsider]

Indeed, outside the peak, fares drop to levels that to which many more people can relate. Also, for the moment there's ample availability of advance fares and at useful times of day too (the availability granted at the discretion of the rail company of course).

You’re not wrong there. 

“Advance single Wednesday coming on the 07:29 from Bath to Oxford, sir?  That’ll be a tenner please!”

“Back home on the 17:04 or 19:00? Yep, you’ve guessed it…another tenner. Or for an extra £15 you can travel back in 1st Class if you like?”

[grahame]

Indeed, outside the peak, fares drop to levels that to which many more people can relate. Also, for the moment there's ample availability of advance fares and at useful times of day too (the availability granted at the discretion of the rail company of course).

You’re not wrong there. 

“Advance single Wednesday coming on the 07:29 from Bath to Oxford, sir?  That’ll be a tenner please!”

“Back home on the 17:04 or 19:00? Yep, you’ve guessed it…another tenner. Or for an extra £15 you can travel back in 1st Class if you like?”

Fares are "all over the place" when you head east from Swindon, and adding extra service is a wonderful thing (four cheers!) but does not sort out the quirks, overcharges, occasional bargains, and rule changes.  It's an example of where Network South East meets premium priced high speed long distance fares and the regional fares of the Bristol and Bath (Western Gateway) economic area.

[grahame]

Mailing list from heads of GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) and Network Rail area (signed Mark and Marcus) including reference to the introductory lower cost fares some members have noted

We promised to keep you updated on changes to our timetable, and we're very pleased to confirm that from Monday 17 May, we'll be running direct services from Bristol to Oxford every two hours. This follows initial safety measures being put in place along the route ahead of services starting, and further safety improvements in the months to come, as discussed with our regulator, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road, formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about)).

This builds on our trial of running a limited number of these services on Saturdays. The new services will run Monday-Saturday. Online journey planners have been updated, and tickets are available for purchase including special introductory fares from £10 between Bath Spa to Oxford and £6 from Swindon to Oxford.

The services will call at Bristol Temple Meads, Bath Spa, Chippenham, Swindon, and Oxford – providing direct links between these communities and Oxford for the first time in more than 20 years.

We know this is something customers and partners have been campaigning for over recent years, and we’re very grateful to those who have supported our case to make this happen, following upgrades that Network Rail has completed in the last few years providing much needed additional rail capacity at and around Oxford station.

The economic and social benefits are clear, and we're confident that these new services demonstrate the value of rail in driving economic growth, environmental benefits, and creating education and employment opportunities which previously were not possible – as well as directly linking two of the key leisure markets in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom).

Thank you again for your support and do let us know of any questions you may have.

[froome]

Why is Sunday running not included in these services? Demand to travel between major tourist centres (Oxford, Bath and Bristol) is likely to be at least as high on a Sunday as any other day.

[IndustryInsider]

Why is Sunday running not included in these services? Demand to travel between major tourist centres (Oxford, Bath and Bristol) is likely to be at least as high on a Sunday as any other day.

It wasn't in the Section 22A application to the (ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road, formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about)) either for the 2-hourly service from tomorrow, or the hourly service from next May.

The two most likely reasons:

1)  Availability of paths on a Sunday due to engineering works.
2)  Availability of staff on a Sunday due to historic reasons.

Agreed it would be nice, and appropriate, to provide a Sunday service as well.  Perhaps when Sunday's are in the working week?

[TaplowGreen]

Why is Sunday running not included in these services? Demand to travel between major tourist centres (Oxford, Bath and Bristol) is likely to be at least as high on a Sunday as any other day.

It wasn't in the Section 22A application to the (ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road, formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about)) either for the 2-hourly service from tomorrow, or the hourly service from next May.

The two most likely reasons:

1)  Availability of paths on a Sunday due to engineering works.
2)  Availability of staff on a Sunday due to historic reasons.

Agreed it would be nice, and appropriate, to provide a Sunday service as well.  Perhaps when Sunday's are in the working week?

"When" doing the heavy lifting there! 

[Chris from Nailsea]

Why is Sunday running not included in these services? Demand to travel between major tourist centres (Oxford, Bath and Bristol) is likely to be at least as high on a Sunday as any other day.

It wasn't in the Section 22A application to the (ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road, formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about)) either for the 2-hourly service from tomorrow, or the hourly service from next May.
The two most likely reasons:
1)  Availability of paths on a Sunday due to engineering works.
2)  Availability of staff on a Sunday due to historic reasons.
Agreed it would be nice, and appropriate, to provide a Sunday service as well.  Perhaps when Sunday's are in the working week?

"When" doing the heavy lifting there! 

'When' the civil servants at GBR^▸ (Great British Railways) actually grapple / deal with that issue. While they are working on an occasional Sunday, perhaps?

By the way:

2) Availability of staff on a Sunday due to historic reasons.

Barbeques, mostly, with credit to member Taplow Green for that source.

[bobm]

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Among those at Swindon to join the first Oxford bound train were Swindon South MP^▸ (Member of Parliament, or Mile Post (a method of measuring the railway in miles and chains from a starting point - usually London), depending on context) and Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander, Mark Hopwood MD of GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) and Will Stone Swindon North MP.

[TaplowGreen]

The people of Chippenham greeting the arrival of the inaugural service to Oxford with wild enthusiasm this morning! (from elsewhere on social media) 

[rowan roaming]

Hello. I am someone who has been commuting from Oxford to Bristol twice a week for the past 13 years. I have got to know the route and Didcot waiting room well over the years. I am sole carer of a little girl and the frustrations and failures of the Didcot Dance have left me in tears on Didcot platform countless times, begging train managers to try to hold the train on platform 5, and, once, resorting to taking a taxi back to Oxford. I also became friends with a nice GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) worker called Spencer a few years back, who suggested that he thought one day the direct trains would come back. Another time, I was given Mark Hopwood's Didcot address by a sympathetic train manager, though I never did find the time to write. One of the most frustrating things has been to see how daft the timetables are (either the long wait on the cold platform at Didcot or the ludicrous and dangerous run from one platform to the other) and to experience this country's obsession with London when, on several occasions, those of us due to come off the train from Bristol at Didcot were told it would not be stopping there, presumably lest it inconvenience London commuters.

The expertise and insider info of this forum has kept my hope alive. So thank you! The irony being, however, that the week the direct train arrived I do not in fact need to travel in. I am wondering whether to travel in one day anyway, just for the sheer novelty of it.

[Chris from Nailsea]

Thank you for joining us on the Coffee Shop forum, rowan roaming, and for your first post.

Please do continue to read our topics, and take hope from them.

Best wishes, Chris from Nailsea.