A new year, but an old story



I am suspecting that return trips from Swindon to Westbury will also be cancelled in due course

 

Yep - just added (or is that subtracted?)

 
Much better [than previous days] in that bus times are on the online journey tracker





Though with the odd unrealistic timing (or a new-fangled warp speed bus!)



From Trowbridge, instruction says that "Customers travelling between Westbury/Trowbridge and Chippenham/Swindon, may travel via Bath Spa. Tickets routed 'Via Melksham' will be honoured via Bath Spa today." but GWR's system still sells you the higher price ticket unless you take the bus ...



MUCH better overall.   

"Three cheers" will be my report when it's the train it's supposed to be ... but at least the times of the buses are now published and (I would hope in a couple of hours) will appear on the online tracker - and that makes the service findable and useable ... we're now better - from a passenger viewpoint - than no cheers - shall we say 1.5. That will rise to 2 cheers if the "you may use the "via Melksham" fare gets amended to an offer to actually sell that fare for journeys at similar times to the cancelled trains.

Noting too "Disruption is expected until 23:59 03/01" so - hopefully - that means that we'll be back to trains on Monday ...

 
Good to see buses appearing alongside replaced trains on the trackers including http://melksh.am/trains . It also appears that the bus leg from Trowbridge to Westbury has had some time added and is now practical.   Probably as good as we'll get today - THANK YOU GWR for putting replacement measures in place; not how we wanted to start 2021, but it is usable.

Computer view:


Phone view:

 
Good to see trains running today ... map overlay showing which stations have ticket machines for a change!

from http://www.mrug.org.uk/newcomer.html :


from http://new.passenger.chat/map/_CAADAACCAA.jpg :

 

 
Not strictly true - but the end result the same.   A unit failed in the sidings at Westbury blocking in the unit for the 05:17.  This was resolved in time for the return working to start at Westbury for Southampton.   

The failed unit has been sent for repairs and a Portsmouth service was split to provide a unit for the 07:05 Westbury to Cheltenham Spa via Melksham and Swindon.

 
The 17:50 Gloucester to Southampton Central service (via Swindon) service will be starting at Westbury as the unit for the service at Gloucester has a fault.

 
Hmmm ... an amendment rather than a cancellation - and perhaps an un-amendment (reversal of a previous amendment we missed?)?

 
They were advertised as unavailable for about ten minutes.

 


Sadly, a none-issue at present passenger volumes. 

 

 

For the absence of doubt, we don't usually have a train on the TransWilts quite that late at night anyway, though we would LOVE one.

I suspect it's that late tonight to allow for a connection from Swindon as our services are cut back to Chippenham to leave capacity at Swindon during engineering works for other ("more important") services.  Don't get me wrong - no problem with the changes that have been publicised ahead of time.

Now ... from Real Time Trains I see at Melksham:
In other words - an empty train headed up to form that 22:04 off Chippenham. It's usual for the 21:36 off Swindon which the 22:04 off Chippenham replaces tonight to be fed by an empty train.  Why on earth does it not take passengers (this and every) Saturday?   A final train in passenger service at about half past six from Westbury on normal Saturdays ruins any day out opportunities to the south - simply have to come back too early!

 

Not this time.  The main line closure this weekend is extended from the last two weeks to run from just west of Didcot to just east of Chippenham.   South Wales services are diverted via Bath and West of England via the Berks & Hants.

The only train services using Swindon are those to and from Cheltenham Spa.

There is a shuttle to Bristol Temple Meads from Chippenham.

 

No great issue for most of the very few passenger around at present.  Would love to have that 19:32 as a regular train at normal times as I suspect it would make a day out in Weymouth possible on a Saturday!

 

 

"If you are travelling to or from Melksham, we are currently sourcing replacement road transport."
Shouldn't be a problem for once ... first train is a bus on Sundays anyway!

Looks like the problem is very localised - here's the GWR map of cancellations and short runs:


Click on map for a current update

Meanwhile, from Melksham, a new Captcha - "click on all the boxes that include a fir tree and snow" ...

 
Railway line closed by a weather forecast - but buses can run on the roads? 

 
Snow the other end of the line too...

 

It's spread a bit:

I wonder what effect this has had on the engineering work (and on the crew working at Wokingham Junction as well) this weekend.

 

Looks very much like this:

 
There has been a meeting....



Seriously though, the issue for the TransWilts is the points at Bradford Junction.  There is a concern should they fail - or stick in the wrong direction - because the Avon Valley line is being used by diverted South Wales services which are travelling via the Berks & Hants route and then to Bath because of the engineering work at Swindon.

Road replacement transport has been organised for Melksham but although now improving, the road conditions are not good either. 

The points will be inspected shortly and it is possible TW train services may resume this afternoon.

 
Update:   TransWilts service will now resume with the 13:56 from Chippenham to Westbury via Melksham.

 

Yes, I suspected so. 

Every cloud has a silver lining though ... and it HAS given me the opportunity to test out the Melksham RUG live train departure system under data stress.



Yes - reasonably happy with that, especially benchmarked again the TransWilts App which fails to give reasons or a clue that there are road alternatives, though I will confess it looks far prettier.  (See edit below - 2.1.21)



EDIT - 2nd Feb 2021 - to add the following:

This post / message has been reported as including "disparaging comments about TransWilts" which I have been asked to remove. I have referred the matter on to the moderator team as I am so closely involved. They have concluded "All you were saying is that the TransWilts app does not give as comprehensive information as the MRUG site. They could always upgrade the app" and not found anything disparaging in what I said. Based on that, the post stays in place. But please let me explain a bit further ...

The comparison between the data provided between the TransWilts App and the MRUG web page highlights a different balance between what they have chosen to include in their feed and what I chose for MRUG. Some people will just want to know "cancelled", others will want to know why and what alternative is on offer. It is my personal view that a reason should be given - my Dad was very wise and I learned from him when "saying no" ...
- express regret
- give reason
- suggest alternative
... and the MRUG page does the 2nd and 3rd of those. Writing the page for MRUG, I have chosen not to add an apology; automated apologies can feel insincere - especially where it might be repeated many times, and it in the case of something designed for viewing on a phone eats up screen space that I judge better used for alternatives and an explanation of the reason. My call; TransWilts have made a different call on what to include. Good to offer customers / passengers a choice.

 
For the record the 13:01 shown as cancelled above is now running but around 15 minutes late. 

 

Indeed - actually starts a train earlier:



or



Edit - 2nd February 2021 - to add

This post / message has been reported as including "disparaging comments about TransWilts" which I have been asked to remove. I have referred the matter on to the moderator team as I am so closely involved. They have concluded "a factual report on your justifiable complaint about their not correcting information on their site/app which was months out of date and causing you harassment and damaging your reputation.  If your complaints were sent to the wrong person they should have passed them on promptly" and not found anything disparaging in what I said.

I am choosing to remove the detail of the hurt and damage caused, for which I have received an apology from a director of TransWilts, from this public post. I am doing so in the interest of ongoing working relationships with the team at TransWilts, and the removal should be taken neither as any indication of incorrect posting on my part in the first place, nor as a precedent for future edits.

 

 
Was then delayed at Westbury and was 16 late.

 

 

 
Looks like the unit from that has now failed at Swindon

 

 

 

 

 
A freight train has failed on the single line.  The rescue loco has just arrived to haul it clear.

 

In the nick of time to allow the 11:06 from Swindon to run... 

 
.

 

 

 
A failed freight train at Hawkeridge Junction was to blame for this morning's problems.  It also delayed the 07:37 from Westbury to Swindon by nearly 40 minutes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NOT a huge issue ... we keep an eye on this service in particular though on School days - let's just say that out of Swindon when the schools were in last Autumn it was the busiest train of the day.  Normally 3 cars, reduced to 2 it becomes the most overcrowded on GWR ...

 

 

Track circuit failure at Thingley Junction been causing intermittent problems all afternoon.

 

Also the following two trains ... I admit to saying "Oh sh*t" out loud when I saw changes flagging up between Westbury and Swindon.  I am somewhat relieved having taken a closer look that my comment was very accurate to the issue, which just a wee one to my mind.

 
Nice choice of colour to represent toilet issues. 

 

 

 

 
Keeping eyes open ... it does not say anything about Westbury to Swindon ...

 

... but of course the disruption extends to there too ...



... and the CUSTOMER information says sod all about alternative arrangements for this line ... "DELAYED" just leaves people hanging.  No advice as to what to do, nor when there will be an update if they don't yet know.

Edit to add ... at 05:45, Real Time Trains is still showing the 05:17 Westbury to Swindon waiting at Platform 2 at Westbury. That's the 05:33 at Melksham.

 
We learn a lot about what could be done at times of disruption.  No reason why Westbury to Bristol services should not serve Melksham and Chippenham rather that Bradford-on-Avon, Avoncliff and Freshford from time to time.   Mind you, the timing from Chippenham to Bath Spa strikes me as optimistic.

 
GWR Journey Check shows that the first two up from Weymouth are diverted through Melksham, calling there on the way.

 

Not a problem but this will be busier later in its journey

 

 

And this looks like the replacement bus cancelled too??

 

Looks like the train has been re-instated?

 
The 09:45 certainly has - it is just leaving the single line at Thingley.

 


Both school trains later in their journeys and if the schools are back, could crowd magnificently.  If schools are still out, no problem!

 

 

 

Updated with more information. Good to have the extra data.

 
For the record ...


... loads of these all day.  No problem at all ...

 

Ironic to think that 15 years ago, we were fighting proposals to cut Portsmouth-Cardiff services from 3 coaches back to 2, and TransWilts services from an then-adequate but could-be-better 5 a day down to 2 at useless timings.

 

Indeed, Lee ...  On Saturday last, we had rail replacement buses and I was alerted to the use of a double deck bus on the route.  Knowing that we still have very low usage because people have been pushed away from public transport by covid, and that rail replacement buses generally put off the sort of leisure / optional travellers we have, I confess to thinking this was going to be a bit wasteful.   Turns out I was wrong and whoever planned it was right ... the double deck bus was needed; a single deck would not have been enough ...



See also http://grahamellis.uk/blog117.html

2 car v 3 car - not an issue at the moment, though (from limited reports) thank goodness we don't have a 153 any longer.   New metrics as to what are quiet and busy bus and train services; Lisa and I made 4 bus journeys yesterday to the far side of Bath.  And on-train capacity may be good for the most parts, but already some local concerns, including here in Wiltshire.

 
I wonder if there's been a general shift to using bigger buses. Last month during an "RRB Sunday" at Wokingham, they were using only double deckers and I counted five waiting around. In the past they would only be used for busier routes, and on Sunday were often not needed at all.

Is this all about extra space for Covid - which would be odd given the lower passenger numbers due to the same cause? Or is there a factor due to the limited number of suitably accessible coaches available?

Why so many at Wokingham wasn't clear at the time, based on the timetable. As you can see, there isn't really room for five big vehicles in the (still pretty new) "road mode" area. They have had to take over half the taxi rank and the entrance to the main car park. And last month I found six there!

 

With the requirement for wheelchair access becoming an insistence, many of the coaches that were used in the past cannot be used any more, and we are seeing fleets of modern buses turning up, from cities where weekend bus services are thinner than weekday ones.

With regard to the specific and surprising heavy loading of the Westbury to Chippenham bus pictured at Melksham, I noted that most of the passengers were travelling through.   On a normal day, a significant part of the Westbury / Trowbridge to Chippenham / Swindon traffic changes trains in Bath - it takes longer, it costs more, but it runs frequently - no waiting two and a half hours for the next service.  But last Saturday, Westbury to Bath and Bath to Chippenham were both replaced by buses too, which will have pushed people who hd to make the journey onto the direct bus - bus into and out of Bath would have been painful!!!

And this evidence and reason rather suggests that if the normal train frequency was increased up to an hourly service, passenger numbers would rocket as you would have taken away the reason so many people make the best of a poor job and dogleg via Bath.

 

 

 

Could do with double track ....

 

And all subsequent trains to the 17:36 ex Swindon.

 
But it is three coaches rather than two.

 

Were it consistently three coaches (and were we at MRUG and the CRP allowed to, and actually working in tandem) we could make a really good job of growing and marketing.  In fact, if that bracketed condition were met, we could be helping make the services a darned sight busier than they are for the benefit of the railway, it's financial position, prospects.  For the benefit of congestion, dirty air and climate (longer term stuff), and for the benefit of the customers - existing and new.

P.S. That's three passenger coaches I'm talking about ... rather than two passenger coaches and a battery car.  Though that would be more sustainable than the current 2 or 3 car diesel.

 

 

Left Swindon on time, and arrived a couple of minutes late at Westbury (following a freight train over the single line).

 

Often hard to know what the alerts really mean.   A couple of minutes late is no problem in there parts provided it does not lead to a missed connection.


I don't there anything at Swindon for that to connect into! 

 
The TransWilts service used the down (reversible) line between Thingley and Wootton Bassett, being shown on TIGER as being platformed at Chippenham concurrently with the Bristol-Swindon IET. Both connected at Swindon with a Swansea-Paddington train.

 

 

 


Missed logging the cancellation of the 07:35 Westbury to Swindon - that was 'replaced' by the extra 08:45 above.   The stock for the cancelled train arrives at Westbury from Bristol just before it heads out for Swindon; tree blocking line at Keynsham this morning clearly put paid to those plans today.

 
07:35 Westbury to Swindon due 08:17
07:35 Westbury to Swindon due 08:17 will be cancelled.
This is due to a fault with barriers at a level crossing.

08:45 Swindon to Westbury due 09:26
08:45 Swindon to Westbury due 09:26 will be cancelled.
This is due to a fault with barriers at a level crossing.

 

But we don't HAVE any level crossings .... oh - wait - our line is working and can be passed to "more important" trains which could (at the least) be polite enough to stop along the way and make up the journey opportunities they have stolen.

Picking up the "freewheeling" comments from yesterday, good ole railway - telling people operationally that the train is cancelled, but not telling them how to travel instead:

 
And four more gone ...

Better now with CUSTOMER information ....

 
Further information published on the line update, but not with the individual train cancellation details

Due to a fault with barriers at a level crossing disruption is expected until the end of the day.
Train services between Westbury and Swindon via Melksham have been cancelled.
Additional Information
Owing to a problem with a level crossing at Kintbury on the line between Westbury and Reading, some long-distance services are being diverted via the line between Westbury, Chippenham and Reading. The single line between Westbury and Chippenham limits the number of trains we can run over this section and we are unable to run the local stopping train services alongside the long-distance train services.

Customers with tickets routed 'via Melksham' may travel on train services via Bath Spa.

Road transport has been arranged to run between Westbury and Chippenham:

Departing Westbury 09:45, departing Trowbridge, 10:03, departing Melksham 10:18.
Departing Westbury 12:17, departing Trowbridge, 12:35, departing Melksham 12:50.
Departing Westbury 14:16, departing Trowbridge, 14:34, departing Melksham 14:49.

Road transport has been arranged to run between Chippenham and Westbury:

Departing Chippenham 09:10, departing Melksham 09:30, departing Trowbridge 09:45.
Departing Chippenham 11:40, departing Melksham 12:00, departing Trowbridge 12:15.
Departing Chippenham 13:40, departing Melksham 14:00, departing Trowbridge 14:15.

Times are subject to traffic conditions. Please see station signage for the location of the rail replacement bus stop.

 
This happens because the company took Bristol to Taunton off a lot of their drivers so Melksham is now there only option.

 

 

 

 

People were complaining on Twitter of waiting up to three hours and of a lack of information.   All GWR were saying they were waiting info as to when they might be on the move instead of providing an estimate

 

 

 
Potential problems.

Points failure at Wootton Bassett junction.

The 14:16 from Westbury to Swindon is in a queue to get through and is already 45 minutes late.  Obviously affects the return working which was due to leave at 15:14.