The Salisbury-Worcester service now showing as running (on National Rail app), due Melksham 07:23
(started from Westbury I think)
In summary ...
the 06:32 call didn't happen at Melksham and a taxi at 06:35 from Chippenham was added at some point. Useful for those headed towards Southampton though it would have arrived at Trowbridge / Westbury well after the diverted train had passed there, so passengers for Salisbury who joined at Melksham and normally carry on at 06:55 would drop back to the 07:40 as far as Salisbury, or the 08:01 if headed for Southampton (yes, there is a commuter flow)
Personally I was trying my luck with a sub-5-minute change at Westbury onto the Weymouth train which runs every 2 hours and of course that would have failed. With the taxi added, I would have left Westbury 2 hours after plan, and without the taxi (on the 09:10 from Melksham) 4 hours late. For a day trip, a 4 hours delay kills the day and I didn't try it once the cancellation came up (decision made before the taxi got added). Had I been required to travel, I could have caught a bus to Frome and picked up the train there 2 hours after my plan.
For Bristol, the 06:32 connects into Bristol with an arrival at 07:28. That would have failed this morning as taxis are slower. Arrivals into Bristol at 07:48 or (more likely) 08:11 depending on how long the taxi too.
The
07:21/07:23 did call in the end, and the quick connection into Bristol that sometimes worked appears to have done so ... not sure how many people got put off and looked at other alternatives such as the bus or waiting (with fingers crossed) for the 08:02.
There are some slight but noticeable improvements in how issues are handled, but the rail industry seems to be intensely unreliable, with shortages of crew, trains breaking down, signalling failures. Short term cancellation rates are 5% at present and that's 3 times what "Which?" described as "dreadful" for an airline - it means that if you commute from Melksham Station for a fortnight, 5 days a week, you can expect one journey to be cancelled. For passengers on the 07:21 to Chippenham or Swindon, that's "just" a 40 minute delay - with almost all other trains, especially with connections, it's far worse. With a proper (every 30 minutes or better) service, a 5% cancellation rate could perhaps be shrugged off, but with a 120 minute frequency, every one hurts and damages the public confidence.
There IS a "thank you" due to the people who fixed the line, to the people who arranged the taxis. But [they/you] should not be put into a position of having to do that so often, and they should have tools to give better feedback to the customers. To some extent, they are victims of a skimping on maintenance and a reduction of available staff below sensible limits, just as the passengers are. Here's looking to you - management and controllers ...
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