A big Eye welcome to Stoke-on-Trene!

Pointless signs - Worcester Shrub Hill

This from the Rover...

This is the station departure poster at Worcester Shrub Hill.


The one train a day stopping at Combe and Finstock is duly listed, along with some others.

But of the nearby hamlets of Great Malvern (2-4 an hour), Hereford (one an hour), Birmingham (2 an hour), Cheltenham (every other hour) or even the through services to the other side of Birmingham (Solihull/Dorridge, one an hour) there is not a mention.

Now you might think this a First Great Western conspiracy that only destinations on the FGW route to London and connections are listed. But the poster is in London Midland colours.

UPDATE: This from Grandadgeoff...

You can't always accuse posters of not being comprehensive enough.

The First Group Onward Travel poster at Looe helpfully provides details of bus services to a number of places, including Barcelona!


Ok it's not the Spanish one but a small village nearby - but it made me do a double take!

Eureka!!!!!!!!! Don't panic, don't panic!

This from Archimedes...

It all looks as if the preparation for Eureka!!!!!! are going swimmingly.

East Coast has belatedly realised that, with just three months to go, it has to plan and prepare for the introduction of a major timetable change - with all the fleet and crew rostering to sort out etc....

As it took Virgin 18 months to do the same for its "VHF" timetable change (and they only just achieved it in time) East Coast is reported to be imploring the industry for help, particularly from "anyone with experience of bringing in a major timetable change".

At a recent meeting one senior EC chap sniffily told an assembled gathering of industry bigwigs "we're doing this without any offers of help from any of you"

To which the response was "That's because you haven't asked us!".

Readers may care to avoid the ECML on the 22nd May.

Eureka!!!! emerges into the light of day!

This from Albatross...

The much awaited EUREKA East Coast time table is now available in all its “GORY” on the East Coast website.

For the down trodden commuters of Retford, Newark and Grantham, and those who wish to travel to nearby stations to visit relatives and friends make sure you complete your journeys before 23rd May.

The timetable is dreadful and offers little benefit to the long suffering passengers of R, N or G:- less trains, less frequent connections, three hour gaps in service, and no doubt less passenger and revenue for East Coast.

Any finally, welcome the new McGhost Train!

The 05.40 Edinburgh to London with one stop, and most likely one passenger! What an utter waste of scarce paths, trainsets and crew.

UPDATE: This from Taffeta Girl...

Albatross is being just a little unfair.

I believe that this will be the most luxurious, comfortable and gorgeous timetable that the East Coast has ever seen!

Judging by the amount of padding...

UPDATE: This, rather wittily, from You Reeker...

Try getting from Newark to Retford on a Saturday.

UPDATE: This, allegedly, from Angus MacKiltup...

Shurely MacGhost Train?

UPDATE: This from the Wicked Weaver...

Currently there is a 07:00 and a 07:20 from Newcastle arriving KX 09:55, 10:11 respectively.

From May the 07:00 leaves 5 minutes earlier (and starts from Berwick !!!)

But anyone wishing to reach London from stations between Berwick and Newcastle will transfer to the McGhost service, which departs Newcastle at 07:03.

Why?

Because it arrives KX 09:40, the earlier departure is overtaken, not arriving until 10:06.

And the next option from Newcastle, the 07:28, (which must leave Waverley empty at 05:45) does not arrive KX until 10:45: a massive difference.

So. The timetable has been 'cooked' but the McGhost Train will be busy as it passes through England.

TransPennine refuses to lift the peg

Finally Scarborough joins the 21st Century as its semaphore gantry is replaced by state of the art LED signals.

Local operator TransPennine has decided to celebrated the route upgrade with a suitable image on their temporary timetable (with a bowler tip to The Sleeper):


Marvelous, all that NR investment and still the TOC uses 19th Century imagery.

What a compelling argument for vertical integration!

UPDATE: This from Inspector Blakey...

Top marks to TPEx for impressive attention to detail.

The glass in the unlit signal arm, lower down the post, is correctly shown as blue in colour whereas the illuminated aspect is green.

I wonder if there's a signal gricer working in their publicity department...

UPDATE: This from Pendolino Warrior...

And just what are these semaphores supposed to mean?

Mixed messages there.

Two home signals vertically aligned should be showing the same indication.

Nice graphics, more research needed.

UPDATE: This from The Major...

Perhaps Pendolino Warrior had best stick to his plastic trains on the West Coast for there is nothing wrong with two stop signals vertically aligned.

It is an example of a stacked splitting signal, that is, the top arm reads to the left road and the lower arm to the road on the right.

There is a fine example of such a signal on the gantry at Falsgrave, Scarborough.

Or at least there was until earlier this month!

Train services return on Christmas day!

This from George Bradshaw...

Oh dear, oh dear. Network Rail has recently been bolloxed by the ORR for getting the May timetables wrong.

Now full timetables have been uploaded for Christmas Day, when a lot of trains seem to be running -- just like the early 1960s!


Can this be right?

More NR timetabling woes

This from The Street of Shame...

Yesterday Network Rail sent an e-mail to the trade press hacks headed:

INVITATION: Network Rail preliminary results media dinner June 8, 2010

It contained details of the venue for the event, invitations for which had been sent out some time ago

It said:

The dinner will be held on the evening of June 8, from 7pm

Sadly the original invitation stated the do was on Thursday 10 June.

Perhaps relying on the Integrated Train Planning System for media events was a touch over-optimistic?

UPDATE: This from The Archer...

Perhaps the dinner tonight is the preliminary results dinner and Thursday is the dinner for the preliminary results?

NR timetabling - a tale of woe

Evidently the introduction of Network Rail's much vaunted Integrated Train Planning System has not gone well.

A stinging letter to Messrs Plummer and Gisby from the the Office of Rail Regulation (sadly not on the ORR's website yet) dated 20th May states:

Your introduction of the new integrated train planning system for the May timetable change has not gone well...

We understand that the problems encountered have included trains disappearing from the base timetable, an inability to handle portion working, operators unable to impost bids electronically and delays to the publication of the national rail timetable. This has affected data quality in downstream systems such as LENNON and ORCATS and TOC reservation systems, with knock-on effects on passenger and freight customers...

We are therefore investigating your management of the introduction of ITPS and its impact on operators and their customers...

There are three strands to our investigation:

A. to investigate the circumstances leading uo to the recent timetable problems, including the planning, testing, risk assesment and "go-live" decisions you took around ITPS;

B. to establish the direct impact of the introduction of ITPS on train operators and their passenger and freight customers; and

C. to review your plans for meeting your obligations in the short term and for ensuring these problems are not repeated in the long term (including at the December timetable change).

We hope to finish our investigation by the end of June...

Oh dear.

Producing a working timetable is pretty much the day job for Network Rail.

But at least one piece of good news.

Presumably the agenda for July's Annual Meeting will be too busy to allow similar scrutiny of the ITPS debacle by NR's plastic-shareholder 'members'.

Eureka consultation - East Coast begs the question

More exciting news on the proposed East Coast "Eureka" timetable.

Regular readers will recollect that the new SLC2 timetable has provoked howls of indignation from other operators on the route, whose passengers will suffer extended journey times and piss-poor connections so that nationalised operator East Coast can get the timetable Lord Adonis wants.

But never let it be said that the Department doesn't listen to rail users.

DafT has instructed East Coast to undertake the consultation on the proposed timetable for the whole industry - a move, which in the words of one peeved operator, is akin to "giving your squiffy uncle the keys to the drinks cabinet".

No matter.

Obviously entrusting such a task to Passenger Focus, the body which has a statutory responsibility to represent all rail users, is just too risky.

After all they might come up with the wrong answer.

Eureka - a timetable with no clothes!

A word on today's exciting announcement that the new, improved, East Coast main line timetable will not now be introduced until May 2011.

Yawn!

Remember, you read it all here and here first!

UPDATE: This from our man at 222 Marylebone Road...

A Network Rail spokesman said: "We have been measuring punctuality in the same way since 1996 and no matter how you slice it we are more punctual than ever. There are now more trains on the network. We are certainly better than British Rail ever was."

Today's NR press release says: "The DfT has also asked us to look into the possibility of running a sub-four hour service each weekday from London to Edinburgh and back. We understand the benefits to passengers of reducing journey times, especially on a long-distance route such as the East Coast Main Line, and will always try to make the best use of the capacity available on such a busy route. Over the coming months we will consult with the eight passenger and freight train operators that use the East Coast Main Line to understand what is involved in attempting to introduce sub-four hour services and come to a decision that delivers the most benefits.”

So we'll take that as a 'no' then.

1991 ECML summer timetable, the first after electrification the 06.30 from Edinburgh arrived in London at 10.33, an end-to-end average speed of 97 mph including stops at Newcastle and York.

There was a Northbound 15.00 train from Kings Cross running a minute faster.

Subsequently the headline time came down to 3hr 59 min.

"Better than BR ever was"?

Prove it.

UPDATE: This from Lobby Fodder...

It would appear that the open access lot aren't happy with the Noble Lord's shiny new timetable.

Apparently Grand Central are already consulting My Learned friends!

UPDATE: This from Leo Pink...

And Network Rail were not exactly amused to find that the agreed wording had changed overnight and that the noble lord had unilaterally committed them to 'facilitate' the sub 4hr London-Edinburgh journey time which is nigh on impossible in a clock-face timetable which assumes all trains run to the same timings.

And as for Adonis' pledge to reinstate the Flying Scotsman, doesn't he know it left Kings Cross at 10.00?

UPDATE: This from Sir Humphrey Beeching...

People are getting a little over excited about this election winning pork-barrel timetable.

If everyone just calmed down they would realise it will all be forgotten after the 6th May...

The Fat Controller brings out the SLC2 big guns!

Regular Eye readers will recollect that the proposed new timetable for the East Coast route has run into a spot of bother.

Known as SLC2 it was due to be introduced, to great fanfare, at the December 2010 timetable change.

And for this date to be achieved it needed to be set in stone, with all parties agreeing to it, by the 8th of January 2010.

All was going swimmingly until, alas, the Noble Lord himself took an interest.

For some inexplicable reason it now appears that there has been a degree of slippage.

Sources close to the Department indicate that SLC2 is now more likely to be implemented at the May 2011 timetable change rather than at the December 2010 target date.

No matter.

Even May 2011 is looking highly optimistic, judging by this letter from the 'independent' Office of Rail Regulation to Network Rail requesting a review, and if necessary amendment, of the East Coast RUS.


As any fule kno a Route Utilisation Strategy (RUS) seek(s) to balance capacity, passenger & freight demand, operational performance and cost, to address the requirements of funders and stakeholders".

As the timetable is the physical embodiment of the balance achieved by the RUS, presumably the former must follow the latter?

So is anyone now brave enough to suggest when SLC2 might actually be implemented?

UPDATE: This from a Mr Pat Bell...

Mr. Lee wants an answer by 8 January 1010?

Railways won't have been invented for another 815 years.

You have to applaud ORR for being ahead of the curve!

UPDATE: This, surprisingly, from the late Sir Arthur Bryant...

But if the railways had been invented King Harold could have taken his army on the LNER to Stamford Bridge, duffed up Harald Hardrada, then returned (taking refreshments on route) and caught the Southern electric to Hastings, arriving in good time to repulse William the Bastard as he tried to land.

Whitsun engineering works

This from the Northants Evening Telegraph....

The route proposed by East Midlands Trains ticket website:

Set off from Kettering Rail Station at 1.35pm on Saturday

Arrive at Derby Station at 2.50pm and leave at 3.42pm

Arrive at Blythe Bridge at 4.21pm and leave at 4.26pm on a bus

Arrive at Crewe at 5.51pm and leave at 6.02pm on a bus

Arrive at Stafford at 7.26pm and leave at 7.37pm on a bus

Arrive at Rugby at 10.03pm and leave at 10.10pm on a bus

Arrive at Milton Keynes at 11.20pm and leave at 4.53am on Sunday

Arrive at London Euston station at 7.41am

Take the tube from Euston station to St Pancras and arrive at 8.01am.

That's an 18 hour journey to cover approximately 70 miles. Good effort.

Cancelled due to lack of interest?

How fairs the new, improved, DafT specified, Arriva CrossCountry network?

All is much the same except that it is nigh on impossible to travel North to South with ease.

No matter - Marsham Street knows best!

In the matter of timetables however, Arriva certainly doesn't.

Awaiting a train at York a reader was shocked to see a CrossCountry train departing at 18:24 for Guildford!

Believing these to be extinct he quickly consulted the lurid orange CrossCountry pocket timetable to see if this was indeed the case.

Alas.

Despite a pretty map showing Guildford as a destination on the cover, not one mention of that station could be found on any of the timetable pages within.

Courtesy of NRES it emerges that this is the only train of the day that links the North East with Guildford.

But with potential passengers unable to find this solitary train in CrossCountry's own timetable how long can this rump service survive?

UPDATE: An 'Anonymous' reader writes...

"There are a number of calls missing from the main parts of this timetable, but shown as notes in the back, it was always done this way by XC previously. For instance look up some of the minor stations in Cornwall or Scotland.

"However the Green SE/NE/NW timetable, with less stations to show, clearly shows the Guildford times in the main timetable."

The Fact Compiler still can't understand why Guildford is shown on the timetable's cover map, but the station isn't listed inside.

Mind you, if it was good enough for BeardieRail...