Recent Public Posts - [guest]
| Re: Staff benefits lost with nationalisation In "Fare's Fair" [361740/30299/4] Posted by Surrey 455 at 21:14, 25th May 2025 |      |
Annual season ticket holders lost a nice perk when SWT became SWR. Six free all day tickets anywhere on the SWT network per year. I can't see that returning with a change of ownership.
I seem to recall GWR used to do something similar in the mid 2000s, although that may have been linked to not meeting the punctuality targets in the Passenger Charter.
I had some nice long day trips with both operators which I wouldn't have otherwise made due to the normal cost.
| Re: Taking Train Operation into public ownership - Govt planning from 4.12.2024 In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [361739/29571/51] Posted by TaplowGreen at 21:14, 25th May 2025 | |
Was the branding designed by Reform?
| Re: Taking Train Operation into public ownership - Govt planning from 4.12.2024 In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [361738/29571/51] Posted by stuving at 19:17, 25th May 2025 | |
There's an update (or restatement) of government policy published today:
Great British Railways is coming soon
Publicly owned Great British Railways (GBR) will be created around 12 months after legislation is passed. It will be the single ‘directing mind’ bringing track and train together, putting passengers and customers first, rebuilding trust in the railway and operating the majority of passenger services under public ownership and control.
GBR will end years of fragmentation and will have a relentless focus on driving up standards for passengers, including simpler fares and ticketing. It will have the independence and tools it needs to deliver improvements to rail services, and plan and run the railway on a long-term basis in the interest of its passenger and freight customers and taxpayers.
Instead of having to navigate 14 separate train operators, passengers will once again simply be able to use ‘the railway’. They will travel on GBR trains, running on GBR tracks, and working to a GBR timetable – all run by a single body focused on their interests. That will mean fewer delays, a better experience, and a timetable that better serves their needs.
Establishing Great British Railways
In February 2025, the government’s consultation on the Railways Bill outlined plans to set up GBR as a new arm’s length body, responsible for rail services and infrastructure.
The Railways Bill is due to go before Parliament this parliamentary session. GBR is expected to be operational around 12 months after the bill receives Royal Assent.
Before the bill becomes law, leaders of Network Rail, DfT Operator Limited (DFTO), and the Department for Transport’s (DfT’s) Rail Services Group are working together, as Shadow Great British Railways (SGBR). SGBR will start to realise the benefits of rail reform to passengers and freight ahead of the formal creation of GBR.
Public ownership programme
On 4 December 2024, the government launched the rail public ownership programme and announced the first services to transfer into public ownership. South Western Railway’s services are the first under new legislation to transfer into public ownership (on 25 May 2025), followed by c2c’s services on 20 July 2025. Greater Anglia’s services will then transfer on 12 October 2025.
Following the transfer of Greater Anglia’s services, DfT expects the programme will continue with one operator’s services transferring roughly every 3 months. The transfer of passenger services operated under contracts with DfT is expected to complete by the end of 2027.
Ahead of the establishment of GBR, services will transfer to a new publicly-owned operating company which will be a subsidiary of DFTO.
The Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024 makes provision for rail passenger services to be provided by public sector operators, instead of by means of franchises. This act enables the government to deliver its manifesto commitment to bring passenger services into public ownership as a first step towards wider rail reform. The legislation applies to England, Scotland and Wales.
Publicly owned Great British Railways (GBR) will be created around 12 months after legislation is passed. It will be the single ‘directing mind’ bringing track and train together, putting passengers and customers first, rebuilding trust in the railway and operating the majority of passenger services under public ownership and control.
GBR will end years of fragmentation and will have a relentless focus on driving up standards for passengers, including simpler fares and ticketing. It will have the independence and tools it needs to deliver improvements to rail services, and plan and run the railway on a long-term basis in the interest of its passenger and freight customers and taxpayers.
Instead of having to navigate 14 separate train operators, passengers will once again simply be able to use ‘the railway’. They will travel on GBR trains, running on GBR tracks, and working to a GBR timetable – all run by a single body focused on their interests. That will mean fewer delays, a better experience, and a timetable that better serves their needs.
Establishing Great British Railways
In February 2025, the government’s consultation on the Railways Bill outlined plans to set up GBR as a new arm’s length body, responsible for rail services and infrastructure.
The Railways Bill is due to go before Parliament this parliamentary session. GBR is expected to be operational around 12 months after the bill receives Royal Assent.
Before the bill becomes law, leaders of Network Rail, DfT Operator Limited (DFTO), and the Department for Transport’s (DfT’s) Rail Services Group are working together, as Shadow Great British Railways (SGBR). SGBR will start to realise the benefits of rail reform to passengers and freight ahead of the formal creation of GBR.
Public ownership programme
On 4 December 2024, the government launched the rail public ownership programme and announced the first services to transfer into public ownership. South Western Railway’s services are the first under new legislation to transfer into public ownership (on 25 May 2025), followed by c2c’s services on 20 July 2025. Greater Anglia’s services will then transfer on 12 October 2025.
Following the transfer of Greater Anglia’s services, DfT expects the programme will continue with one operator’s services transferring roughly every 3 months. The transfer of passenger services operated under contracts with DfT is expected to complete by the end of 2027.
Ahead of the establishment of GBR, services will transfer to a new publicly-owned operating company which will be a subsidiary of DFTO.
The Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Act 2024 makes provision for rail passenger services to be provided by public sector operators, instead of by means of franchises. This act enables the government to deliver its manifesto commitment to bring passenger services into public ownership as a first step towards wider rail reform. The legislation applies to England, Scotland and Wales.
There was also a graphic within the text:
It's probably best to resist the temptation to call that branding to be applied to trains - it's not referred to in the text as such or anything else.
| Re: North Cotswold line delays and cancellations - 2025 In "London to the Cotswolds" [361737/29711/14] Posted by Worcester_Passenger at 18:56, 25th May 2025 | |
Well, we've made it onto a new section of the GWR leaderboard:
Due to a shortage of train crew between Great Malvern and Worcester Shrub Hill the line towards Worcester Shrub Hill is closed.
Train services running through these stations will be cancelled. Disruption is expected until 21:00 25/05.
Customer Advice
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20.46 train Great Malvern to London Paddington will start at Worcester Shrub Hill due to staff shortages.
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A taxi has been booked to leave Great Malvern at 20.30 and will call at Malvern Link and Worcester Shrub Hill.
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The taxi has to run earlier than the train times due to road transport takes longer.
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We're sorry for the delay to your journey.
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We will update this message with more information when we have it.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 18:31
Train services running through these stations will be cancelled. Disruption is expected until 21:00 25/05.
Customer Advice
-
20.46 train Great Malvern to London Paddington will start at Worcester Shrub Hill due to staff shortages.
-
A taxi has been booked to leave Great Malvern at 20.30 and will call at Malvern Link and Worcester Shrub Hill.
-
The taxi has to run earlier than the train times due to road transport takes longer.
-
We're sorry for the delay to your journey.
-
We will update this message with more information when we have it.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 18:31
Good to know that a taxi will suffice.
Meanwhile,
18:45 London Paddington to Hereford due 21:54 will be terminated at Oxford.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 13:24
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 13:24
And the 17:30 from Hereford to Paddington, reported above as being started from Reading, now looks to have been cancelled throughoput.
The revised workings are quite interesting. According to RTT,
1W03 12:45 London Paddington to Hereford was cancelled after arriving Worcester Shrub Hill at 15:20 (+20).
The stock ran empty to Hereford as 5W03 15:01 Worcester Shrub Hill to Hereford (16:04).
The stock then ran empty back again as 5P77 17:30 Hereford to London Paddington (20:29).
| Some thoughts and questions on the high finances of nationslisation In "Fare's Fair" [361736/30300/4] Posted by grahame at 16:13, 25th May 2025 | |
https://www.statista.com/statistics/305021/national-rail-revenue-passenger-fares-in-the-united-kingdom/
Annual Rail fare income back up to £10.3 billion last year. Heidi Alaexander looks forward to the £150 million that she expects to be saved by Nationalisation in the press this morning. That's around 1.4%. Whilst every penny counts, I can't help wondering if this is a lot of hype about a relatively small saving when fares have gone up - officially - by 4.6% this year and tweaks to things like advance fare allocations have, I would suspect, resulted in a somewhat greater increase.
On the other side, has anyone quantified the one off costs of Nationalisation and setting up GBR, and how do they compare to the £150 million which is - however - an annual figure? How much will the Nationalised GBR and TOCs be paying to private companies to hire rolling stock next year?
| Re: Staff benefits lost with nationalisation In "Fare's Fair" [361735/30299/4] Posted by ChrisB at 16:03, 25th May 2025 Already liked by Mark A | |
My understanding is that SWT(R) staff retain benefits over SWT metals but have lost them over First Group metals.
The DfTO TOCs have agreed a replacement arrangement over their routes, but of course needs DfT agreement. They are still waiting…
| Staff benefits lost with nationalisation In "Fare's Fair" [361734/30299/4] Posted by grahame at 15:57, 25th May 2025 | |
From Railway World
Spare a thought for those of us who will this weekend (25 May 2025) lose a major rail travel benefit as a result of South Western Railway (SWR) becoming the first rail operator to be nationalised by the Labour Government.
Over the past five years a major benefit for me of working part-time for a FirstGroup company has been an annual allocation of cheap day rover tickets that are valid on any of the First rail operations and, importantly for me, SWR.
But the change of ownership at SWR means losing that valuable perk that comes with role as a Rail Replacement Coordinator, although it will continue to be available on First’s two other franchises, GWR and Avanti, until they too are taken into the public sector.
Not so lucky are the many thousands of SWR staff, who will lose their entitlement to all of these Rover tickets as they have now become part of the public sector, and are no longer be employees of FirstGroup.
[snip]
After five years, I will bitterly miss the SWR Rovers that allowed me to begin longer distance trips with a cheap early morning journey to Waterloo, and it seems all the more regrettable when I realise that I will be back working for SWR next weekend (31 May 2025) on bus replacement duty!
Over the past five years a major benefit for me of working part-time for a FirstGroup company has been an annual allocation of cheap day rover tickets that are valid on any of the First rail operations and, importantly for me, SWR.
But the change of ownership at SWR means losing that valuable perk that comes with role as a Rail Replacement Coordinator, although it will continue to be available on First’s two other franchises, GWR and Avanti, until they too are taken into the public sector.
Not so lucky are the many thousands of SWR staff, who will lose their entitlement to all of these Rover tickets as they have now become part of the public sector, and are no longer be employees of FirstGroup.
[snip]
After five years, I will bitterly miss the SWR Rovers that allowed me to begin longer distance trips with a cheap early morning journey to Waterloo, and it seems all the more regrettable when I realise that I will be back working for SWR next weekend (31 May 2025) on bus replacement duty!
| Re: Shortage of train crews on Great Western Railway - ongoing discussion In "Across the West" [361733/18719/26] Posted by grahame at 15:44, 25th May 2025 | |
I wonder how all those half-term travellers with their luggage felt about being crammed on a 2 car unit. Better than nothing but not a good journey for the leisure travellers we want to encourage!
27 late from Swansea, 27 late into Carmarthen. Hope the road transport waited. The Paddington train was due in at 12:24, the Milford Haven at 12:37 and actually got there at 13:04.
| Re: South Western Railways Waterloo - Bristol services axed In "South Western services" [361732/25368/42] Posted by bradshaw at 14:18, 25th May 2025 | |
If we could get a return to the NSE sub-divisions and give them some autonomy then there may be a chance. The WoE would look after the main line and perhaps Reading Basingstoke, along with Salisbury to Southampton. Their brief would be to develop the business, looking at other opportunities such as Bath and Bristol.
The Portsmouth Direct and Weymouth lines would return to Solent and Wessex.
| Re: Shortage of train crews on Great Western Railway - ongoing discussion In "Across the West" [361731/18719/26] Posted by Hafren at 13:48, 25th May 2025 | |
Not a great start for the first weekend of the Pembroke Coast Express. At least an onward coach is being provided.
08:48 London Paddington to Pembroke Dock due 13:50 will be terminated at Swansea.
It will no longer call at Llanelli, Pembrey & Burry Port, Carmarthen, Whitland, Saundersfoot, Tenby, Manorbier, Pembroke and Pembroke Dock.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Additional Information
Road transport is in place from Carmarthen. Please travel on the 11:49 from Swansea and change for a coach.
Operated by Davies Coaches.
It will no longer call at Llanelli, Pembrey & Burry Port, Carmarthen, Whitland, Saundersfoot, Tenby, Manorbier, Pembroke and Pembroke Dock.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Additional Information
Road transport is in place from Carmarthen. Please travel on the 11:49 from Swansea and change for a coach.
Operated by Davies Coaches.
I wonder how all those half-term travellers with their luggage felt about being crammed on a 2 car unit. Better than nothing but not a good journey for the leisure travellers we want to encourage!
| Re: Security - plane v train In "Buses and other ways to travel" [361730/30278/5] Posted by Clan Line at 12:54, 25th May 2025 | |
I seem to recall the Spanish doing security checks on high-speed rail passengers due to terrorist fears ...............
I got caught up in a security "scare" in Valencia after the Madrid train bombing (2004 ?). This was the ultimate example of "we must be seen to be doing something" - no matter how pointless !! There was full airline style security for all the long distance trains (to Madrid, Barcelona etc), with queues stretching across the station and down the roads outside.
But.........my local train back out to Xeraco didn't even have a ticket check................and it was the local commuter trains that were bombed in Madrid !
If terrorists were looking for a target they couldn't have asked for anything better than the queues in and around Valencia Station.
| Re: Taking Train Operation into public ownership - Govt planning from 4.12.2024 In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [361729/29571/51] Posted by Mark A at 12:13, 25th May 2025 Already liked by eightonedee | |
Thanks for this, good observations and he's totally right about the branding...
Mark
| Re: Shortage of train crews on Great Western Railway - ongoing discussion In "Across the West" [361728/18719/26] Posted by TaplowGreen at 11:48, 25th May 2025 | |
From National Rail
Route(s) affected
Across the Great Western Railway network
Description
A shortage of train crew means fewer trains are able to run on some lines. As a result, trains may be cancelled or revised.
Disruption is expected until the end of the day.
The following routes are currently affected:
Reading and Gatwick Airport
Gloucester and Bristol Temple Meads
Exeter St Davids / Exeter Central and Okehampton (with no trains between 16:30-20:00)
| Re: Taking Train Operation into public ownership - Govt planning from 4.12.2024 In "The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom" [361727/29571/51] Posted by GBM at 11:10, 25th May 2025 Already liked by Mark A, eightonedee | |
Interesting blog by Roger French
https://busandtrainuser.com/2025/05/24/drop-the-great-from-gbr/
Drop the ‘Great’ from GBR
Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander reckons tomorrow’s high profile ownership change of South Western Railway from First Group/MTR Corporation over to DfT Operator Limited (DFTO) is “a watershed moment” marking the start of the much heralded re-nationalisation of Britain’s Railways.
..................continues................
Expect an overdose of hype as the first train – the 06:14 to Shepperton – leaves Waterloo’s platform 1 complete with a tease of a new Great British Railways logo on the side of the train and a pledge of better services to come.
A few lines caught my eye-
"It’s the lack of information, reassurance and explanations of alternatives which comes to the fore when using the rail network at times of disruption.
I've lost count of the number of times research has shown rail passengers very much value being kept informed during disruption. But it still fails; all the more so when staff are less informed than passengers as they don't seem to have access to the same sources of electronic information which passengers now enjoy."
| Re: Security - plane v train In "Buses and other ways to travel" [361726/30278/5] Posted by Noggin at 10:52, 25th May 2025 | |
It's an odd one - at a guess the ground staff checked her in against the wrong name, but I can't figure out how it wasn't picked up at the gate. Normally it's super strict and any deviation from your passport name e.g. Matt vs Matthew can result in a no-fly or require a ticket re-issue. Perhaps BA's gate staff don't check business class tickets as carefully, but perhaps also because of the gender mismatch, the employee thought the passenger might be transgender and that any questions could get them into trouble? Also, once she got to Madrid, why on earth didn't she just go straight to a BA desk? That would have proven beyond doubt that she was in Madrid and indeed she's have the tags on her bags to prove it.
As for the difference in the levels of checks between air and rail. I suppose it's down to two things, 1) security of the flight, 2) immigration obligations, 3) anti-smuggling, 4) treaty obligations
1) An air passenger with a weapon or bomb can (generally) do a lot more damage than their rail equivalent. Air travel is perceived to be a higher risk/profile target.
2) Airlines are delegated with the task of verifying passenger identity, right to enter the destination country and relaying that info to the security/immigration services of both.
3) Airports are built to try and minimise smuggling, primarily of drugs
4) Countries are obliged to meet international conventions on passenger security etc
When it comes to rail, a train between Amsterdam and Berlin is practically little more than domestic anyway due to the Schengen area, Eurostar being a very different due to immigration and security agreements. I seem to recall the Spanish doing security checks on high-speed rail passengers due to terrorist fears and the Swedes/Danes re-instating border checks for a while for immigration purposes.
You are right though that it does seem odd how the two are so different and how often high profile railway stations do not feel like they have been designed with security in mind. When you take the Eurostar in Paris there's a long mezzanine before the ticket barriers. I've always felt like in the event of an incident I'd be a complete sitting duck up there.
| Re: Go-Op Cooperative - proposals for additional rail services In "TransWilts line" [361725/11010/18] Posted by Marlburian at 10:43, 25th May 2025 | |
There's an article in today's Sunday Times "Home" supplement, "Just the ticket or a curse for locals", quoting the promoter as saying they're now targeting high-net-worth individuals and rail industry bodies, promising high returns and economic prosperity". The reporter observes that "the line between Frome, Bruton and Castle Cary could become one of the poshest commuter routes in England". The plan is to buy 50-year-old rolling stock.
I incline towards pessimism about the viability of the proposal. I'm reminded of the bid, what, 20 years ago, by an individual to run a couple of extra trains (using "old" carriages) a day from Pewsey into Paddington and a couple more on return journeys. One cynical observation was that during delays the existing operator might give route preferences to its own trains.
| Re: South Western Railways Waterloo - Bristol services axed In "South Western services" [361724/25368/42] Posted by Mark A at 10:30, 25th May 2025 | |
That'll need a return to the likes of the pre-2018 SWR culture - in those times it was meeting people's travel needs, had a healthy set of destinations, passenger numbers on the service were trending upwards, with encouragement from the TOC and plans to grow the service.
Industrial relation woes, plus a change of franchise with a new MD with their heart in mass transit for big cities has left the SWR services west of Basingstoke in a curious situation and I wonder how (or if) they will be pulled together.
The road network isn't good, rail has plenty of potential and particularly to the South West there's a lot of suppressed demand, but without political pressure, will we just see the likes of 'Until the service improves we're not going to give you any breathing space to develop'? This at a time that Covid caused the service to contract along with the revenue - and at that time some of the seed corn went in the bin.
So, is there a mechanism up and running behind the scenes that takes a rail system that's essentially been nationalised for years albeit with a very curious model, can it quickly turn that into a system that's quick on its feet, hungry for growth and better able to serve people's need to travel? We'll soon find out.
Mark
| Re: Cotswold line fares - risen in practical terms far more than inflation?? In "London to the Cotswolds" [361723/30294/14] Posted by Mark A at 10:05, 25th May 2025 | |
When I checked those fares, the system gave me the impression that with a railcard added, there was suddenly more availability of advance fares, but I suppose that's quotas for you. Also, the advance fares in GWR-land (and I think TfW-land) now tend to be at the top end of the discount range and therefore tend to be undercut by superadvance returns so your point is a good one.
Mark
| Re: 25th May 2025 - SWR Franchise expires and services Nationalised In "South Western services" [361722/29993/42] Posted by ChrisB at 09:03, 25th May 2025 | |
Sure.ly that is a separate vinyl that can simply be peeled off at the time?
| Re: 25th May 2025 - SWR Franchise expires and services Nationalised In "South Western services" [361720/29993/42] Posted by Bob_Blakey at 08:26, 25th May 2025 Already liked by GBM | |
Q. How many more carriages are going to be adorned with 'Great British Railways Coming Soon' vinyls only for them to require replacement when GBR actually arrives - is there a Delay Attribution Code for government incompetence? - and at what financial cost to the taxpayer?
| Re: South Western Railways Waterloo - Bristol services axed In "South Western services" [361719/25368/42] Posted by TaplowGreen at 08:17, 25th May 2025 | |
I think the message for this and all aspects of "renationalisation" should be "manage your expectations".
https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/great-british-railways-south-western-london-waterloo-b2756798.html
| Re: South Western Railways Waterloo - Bristol services axed In "South Western services" [361718/25368/42] Posted by IndustryInsider at 08:00, 25th May 2025 Already liked by Mark A | |
GBR isn’t responsible for SWR. The DfT are. And wasn’t it them that mandated their removal in the first place?
| Re: North Cotswold line delays and cancellations - 2025 In "London to the Cotswolds" [361717/29711/14] Posted by Worcester_Passenger at 05:29, 25th May 2025 | |
Sunday May 25
25/05/25 12:45 London Paddington to Hereford due 16:04 will be terminated at Worcester Shrub Hill.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:24/05/2025 21:22
25/05/25 17:45 London Paddington to Great Malvern due 20:15 will be terminated at Worcester Shrub Hill.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:24/05/2025 21:18
25/05/25 17:30 Hereford to London Paddington due 20:29 will be started from Reading.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:24/05/2025 21:25
25/05/25 20:46 Great Malvern to London Paddington due 23:41 will be started from Worcester Shrub Hill.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:24/05/2025 21:21
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:24/05/2025 21:22
25/05/25 17:45 London Paddington to Great Malvern due 20:15 will be terminated at Worcester Shrub Hill.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:24/05/2025 21:18
25/05/25 17:30 Hereford to London Paddington due 20:29 will be started from Reading.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:24/05/2025 21:25
25/05/25 20:46 Great Malvern to London Paddington due 23:41 will be started from Worcester Shrub Hill.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:24/05/2025 21:21
Plus:
07:36 London Paddington to Great Malvern due 10:15 will be terminated at Worcester Shrub Hill.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 07:46
10:58 Great Malvern to London Paddington due 13:30 will be started from Worcester Shrub Hill.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 07:46
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 07:46
10:58 Great Malvern to London Paddington due 13:30 will be started from Worcester Shrub Hill.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 07:46
13:11 Worcester Foregate Street to London Paddington due 15:30 will be cancelled.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 12:07
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 12:07
21:45 London Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill due 23:59 will be cancelled.
This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 16:58
This is the last train.This is due to a shortage of train crew.
Last Updated:25/05/2025 16:58
| Re: Cotswold line fares - risen in practical terms far more than inflation?? In "London to the Cotswolds" [361716/30294/14] Posted by grahame at 05:23, 25th May 2025 Already liked by Mark A, TaplowGreen | |
Advance fares sort-of do-not-count as they're here today gone tomorrow prices and changes to the allocations can be wildly inflationary for the individual - for fares, the floor for passengers is the buy-at-the-time-of-travel - as that's the one you'll need when life throws something at you.
And they sort-of DO count is people have been habitually using them and find them unavailable.
Withdrawing / reducing substantially the availability of advance fares that have been offered for long enough for them to be come part of people's routine is an easy and perhaps sneaky way of putting up the average fare you expect people to pay over and above other fare rises, without it being straightforward to hang a headline on what might be a substantial rise in the average amount paid.
Yes, it is possible to find a Wednesday to Wednesday round trip, probably at some time of day when few people want to travel, and hail that as "low fares still available" with a hurt look at anyone who suggests such fares are not available. But that's not the point - the point is that potentially that for most people, the cheaper options may no longer be practically available.
| Re: South Western Railways Waterloo - Bristol services axed In "South Western services" [361715/25368/42] Posted by grahame at 05:01, 25th May 2025 | |
Now that GBR is responsible for the former franchise of SW[TR], is it time for them to be Great British and consider restoring the through services from London via the County Town of Wiltshire - the nearest county town to London without a through train from the capital.
| Re: 25th May 2025 - SWR Franchise expires and services Nationalised In "South Western services" [361714/29993/42] Posted by grahame at 04:58, 25th May 2025 | |
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqg73znzzeo
South Western Railway (SWR) has been renationalised, making it the first train company to transfer to public ownership under Labour.
The first nationalised service will leave at 05:36 from Woking to Surbiton though it will be partially covered by a rail replacement bus service.
The government has hailed the move as a "new dawn for rail" but it held back from promising lower fares, focusing more on plans to improve services and use profits to reinvest in infrastructure.
Unions have expressed concerns over outsourcing to private companies, while the opposition Conservatives said Labour must "deliver on their promises".
SWR trains are now the responsibility of DfT (Department for Transport) Operator and will be integrated into Great British Railways (GBR), which will oversee all railway infrastructure.
The first nationalised service will leave at 05:36 from Woking to Surbiton though it will be partially covered by a rail replacement bus service.
The government has hailed the move as a "new dawn for rail" but it held back from promising lower fares, focusing more on plans to improve services and use profits to reinvest in infrastructure.
Unions have expressed concerns over outsourcing to private companies, while the opposition Conservatives said Labour must "deliver on their promises".
SWR trains are now the responsibility of DfT (Department for Transport) Operator and will be integrated into Great British Railways (GBR), which will oversee all railway infrastructure.
The article goes on to summarise the plans for each TOC, though I question whether the 2027 date is certain as I understood at least one may carry on to 2028
Two more rail firms, C2C and Greater Anglia, will be brought into public ownership later this year.
Four major operators have already been brought under public ownership under previous Conservative governments - East Coast Mainline, TransPennine, Northern and South Eastern (LNER).
Seven more companies will be renationalised by 2027 as each of their contracts end – or sooner if their performance is judged to be unacceptable.
These are:
West Midlands Trains
East Midlands Railway
Avanti West Coast
CrossCountry
Chiltern Railways
Govia Thameslink Railway
Great Western
Current government plans are to renationalise nearly all passenger rail services across England, Wales and Scotland by 2030, proposals which have been attacked the Conservatives.
Four major operators have already been brought under public ownership under previous Conservative governments - East Coast Mainline, TransPennine, Northern and South Eastern (LNER).
Seven more companies will be renationalised by 2027 as each of their contracts end – or sooner if their performance is judged to be unacceptable.
These are:
West Midlands Trains
East Midlands Railway
Avanti West Coast
CrossCountry
Chiltern Railways
Govia Thameslink Railway
Great Western
Current government plans are to renationalise nearly all passenger rail services across England, Wales and Scotland by 2030, proposals which have been attacked the Conservatives.
The article continues with discussions over ticket prices - which the government has refrained from saying will come down with woolly words that suggest to me that they will not (and "if GBR can find a way" which I'm sure they could with the right goverment environment). It also talks of union concerns for services to the operator subcontracted out, which means that union members "not reaping the benefits of nationalisation".
Alexander is expected to travel on the first fully rail-operated route from London Waterloo to Shepperton in Surrey at 06:14.
It will be the first service with the new GBR livery. The words "Great British Railways" and "coming soon" are painted in white against a royal blue background decorated with part of a union flag.
It will be the first service with the new GBR livery. The words "Great British Railways" and "coming soon" are painted in white against a royal blue background decorated with part of a union flag.
I'll bet the journaislsts covering that will love the early start. The cynical element of me questions the use of very light and very dark colours which may take a lot of keeping clean - though it has been done before - and the potential symbolic use of just part of a flag
| Re: Interrail, summer 2025 - daily diary thread of our travels In "Introductions and chat" [361713/30276/1] Posted by grahame at 04:32, 25th May 2025 | |
That "island" is not an island, it is the Corunian spit, which at its southern end runs over the Russian border, being in the Kaliningrad oblast, the separate area of land, formerly part of East Prussia in Germany until taken by the USSR at the end of the Second World War.
Yes - it's a peninsula in the form of a long spit, with the land entry being via Kaliningrad - so the only way to it within Lithuania is by boat.
There is a very pretty village on the eastern side called Nida, that is the former home of the German writer Thomas Mann. Just inside the Lithuanian border there is a low hill with a decorative sundial laid out on the summit from which you can look out over the Russian border.
Klaipeda itself has an interesting history. It was also ceded to the USSR at the end of the war, but ended up in the Lithuanian SSR. It was formerly known as Memel, and was the northern most city in pre-war Germany, and previously a Hanseatic city. You can see all those influences in the city, even if it's not the prettiest Baltic city. As you say, worth a visit, but you'll probably need to hire a car to make the most of the Corunian spit. Good for birding too!
Klaipeda itself has an interesting history. It was also ceded to the USSR at the end of the war, but ended up in the Lithuanian SSR. It was formerly known as Memel, and was the northern most city in pre-war Germany, and previously a Hanseatic city. You can see all those influences in the city, even if it's not the prettiest Baltic city. As you say, worth a visit, but you'll probably need to hire a car to make the most of the Corunian spit. Good for birding too!
There is a bus service from the passenger ferry (connects off at least alternate ferries all way down to Nida) and I understand there's also a bus from central bus station that takes the vehicle ferry that's about 5kms down but, agreed, a car for a short stop at spots along the way would be useful.
The forest and outer beach, even walking into them from the foot passenger terminal with its hordes of children in school parties, was an oasis of quiet and beauty - tranquil - and, yes, I could have walked for miles. Ahead of me on the path I saw a deer - no discernible photo (the technology of the eye is better at seeing these things than the technology of a phone camera to this day).
I could have spent another 2 days in Klaipeda ... but then I could have spent longer in Amsterdam, in Rostock, and in the other placates along the way. Two full days in Vilnius now and we are booked on one of the two international trains from here on Tuesday.
| Re: The only floating train line (in the UK) under the Sun In "South Western services" [361712/30298/42] Posted by stuving at 22:01, 24th May 2025 | |
Not even original nonsense - "borrowed" from Metro which had this originally in March (but reissued just before the Sun's one on 17th May):
The UK’s ‘much needed’ only floating train line reopens after eight months
An island known for its beaches has just reopened the UK’s only floating railway station.
An island known for its beaches has just reopened the UK’s only floating railway station.
| Re: First nationalised train will be replacement bus In "South Western services" [361711/30295/42] Posted by ChrisB at 20:50, 24th May 2025 | |
Aaah...ok, thanks.
