This week
Services seem to be falling apart again this week with delays Monday and Tuesday so far this week. The 07:31 was 30 minutes late yet again.
posted by www.loial.co.uk at 12:38 AM
Oldfield Park Train Blog
The experience of a rail traveller attempting to commute between Oldfield Park and Bristol Temple Meads using the service provided by First Great Western
3 Comments:
That's disappointing news. I'm on the late shift this week so I can't tell you what's happening to it. All I can tell you is that since the much trumpeted 'timetable improvement', the train for this service (0647 Frome - Cardiff) is no longer stabled overnight at Westbury. It spends the night at St Phillips Marsh depot in Bristol and is brought out 'empty stock' by a Bristol driver to Westbury. A Westbury crew then take over and run it empty to Frome to start the service.
There are obviously a lot of opportunities for delays here. Bristol driver availability, a taxi to take him from Temple Meads to the depot, the train being prepared for service, the train being serviceable, congestion on the depot, empty trains having a lower priority than passenger services for track access and slots, likewise access to Westbury station at a busy time, Westbury crew having to find the train when it does arrive (it's not always on a platform).
These are not excuses, just an attempt to illustrate the infinite number of opportunities for 'something to go wrong' on the railway network, which as you already know runs like a pyramid of cards. It all falls down with a single puff of breeze. And it's not just things going wrong - it's time slipping away while people find and get to trains and waiting for signals. A minute here and a minute there and you're 30 minutes late before the train gets to it's starting point.
Sometimes it feels like walking through treacle just to get a service started. And if you ask, "Why are we late this morning?" The reply "Where do you want me to start?" is not intentional sarcasm - it's actually a valid response! :O)
I hope that giving you some of the background to these situations helps you understand better the difficulties we sometimes face in getting your train to you. They are not excuses. It doesn't excuse the fact that FGW should be providing the advertised service on more occasions than we do.
My comments, of course, are the personal POV of a "FGW worker" and are not that of the Company, altough it IS pretty representative of my colleagues.
Hi - Just found your blog, was thinking of starting one myself to let off a bit of steam.
I've stopped going to Oldfield Park, and have instead been cycling to Bath to get the earlier 06:56. After a farcical week last week this has been a lot better, and even this morning when it was 10 min late they actually turned it around fast at Bristol to get it out in front of the slow 07:33 to Cardiff. Maybe someone (whistleblower?) is actually listening to us?
I was tempted to start going back to OP to get the 07:31 to Cardiff, but it seems the problems are still evident later on, so I'll continue for now going to Bath and travel oblivious to the chaos behind.
Keep up the good work.
P.S. What experience have people had with complaints? - I've currently got 4 unanswered forms with FGW, and only one letter back since New Year saying I was entitled to no compensation despite a 40 min delay out and a 40 min delay back in the same day. The concept that the only pay out for a delay of an hour is farcical. Other train operators pay out for 30 min delays.
For those who didn't see this in the Chronicle, more cuts on the way....
http://www.thisisbath.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=163038&command=displayContent&sourceNode=227209&contentPK=16635050&folderPk=106757&pNodeId=227220
Post a Comment
<< Home