Skipping stops due to fatility

[whole diary]

[IndustryInsider]

It's about 18-20 minutes - but then you have to add at least 15 minutes for a time consuming ECS^▸ (Empty Coaching Stock) shunt to Malvern Wells. All in all if you have an hourly service you would save one unit having it turn round at Shrub Hill.

[Andy W]

Out of interest why don't they lock the end carriage off and keep it out of use then run as a 2 coach train?

That was discussed in the following thread Andy (from the 4th post onwards)... http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=4309.0

Hi II, thanks for the reference. I understood from that thread that all 3 carriages were in use with the last having the doors locked but still having passengers in it. I was thinking of not having passengers in that carriage at all so the train would run with only two carriages in use. This should satisfy H&S^▸ (Health and Safety) as the doors in the carriages that were in use would be fully operational.

[Btline]

But people don't want the trains to terminate at Shrub Hill, they want to get off at Foregate Street.

However, Foregate Street is congested, so they can't have trains turning around and waiting for hours, so they run them up to Malvern instead.

Sometimes the service coming back from Malvern "terminates" at Worcester Shrub Hill, waits for 30 mins, then goes South!

[Not from Brighton]

Having a run to Malvern and back in the timetable presents an opportunity to make up lost time by stopping short at Worcester.  An option used fairly frequently in years gone by (less so these days for some reason).  I've never understood why this service operates such long distances stopping at almost all stations, it's bound to get delayed somewhere along the route.  I'm sure that it will ultimately be replaced by LM^▸ (London Midland - recent franchise)'s Worcester / Gloucester shuttle as I'd imagine that service is much easier to keep on schedule.

[IndustryInsider]

Out of interest why don't they lock the end carriage off and keep it out of use then run as a 2 coach train?

That was discussed in the following thread Andy (from the 4th post onwards)... http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=4309.0

Hi II, thanks for the reference. I understood from that thread that all 3 carriages were in use with the last having the doors locked but still having passengers in it. I was thinking of not having passengers in that carriage at all so the train would run with only two carriages in use. This should satisfy H&S^▸ (Health and Safety) as the doors in the carriages that were in use would be fully operational.

I see what you mean, but if the rear carriage locked out of use was the one with the emergency equipment in it then passengers would not be able to access that equipment in an emergency. That is enough to prevent it on H&S grounds.

Also, on the Cotswold Line Turbo services, because the driver operates the doors each time after receiving permission from the Conductor, the Conductor has to be positioned in the rear cab of the train to give the buzzer codes, and so every time he/she needed to move into the occupied part of the train, the internal doors would have to be unlocked and then locked again to allow them access. Cumbersome to say the least.

I remain of the opinion that I stated at the beginning of this thread as the best compromise to the problem.

Hopefully any new rolling stock will be designed to be more flexible, with SDO^▸ (Selective Door Opening), or a door de-select feature (as on Chiltern's Clubmans).

[willc]

Hopefully any new rolling stock will be designed to be more flexible, with SDO^▸ (Selective Door Opening), or a door de-select feature (as on Chiltern's Clubmans).

Hear, hear. At least BR^▸ (British Rail(ways))'s 'built to a budget' approach shouldn't apply this time. I assume the view when the Turbos were being ordered was that since there would be two-car sets in the fleet intended to cover the Thames Valley branches and the Cotswold halts train, there was no need to bother spending money on fancy door systems for the three-car sets.