YorkshireBear
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Good move this one in my opinion, reduces the unit layover wastage and has a huge impact on increasing regional journey opportunities.
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Virgin Trains London-West Midlands route/timetime changes from December?
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callum112233
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I think that maybe a stop at Rugby would have made it a little bit more flexible.
Call me slow, but, Sandwell & Dudley? Is this a station that was previously served by virgin?
I have never heard of it
Call me slow, but, Sandwell & Dudley? Is this a station that was previously served by virgin?
I have never heard of itswt_passenger
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Call me slow, but, Sandwell & Dudley? Is this a station that was previously served by virgin?
Sandwell and Dudley was a normal call in the hourly Euston to Wolverhampton service. Now that the services are linked it becomes an hourly call in the Euston to Scotland via New St services.
It may reduce layover at Wolverhampton, but means there's now a Pendo sat in New Street for 45 minutes (rather than a Pendo sat for 25 minutes and a Voyager for 30 minutes), which I'm not convinced will help congestion when there's a platform out.
It also doesn't do much for "regional journey opportunities" - from Milton Keynes it's still faster to change at Crewe than to sit on the 9Sxx via Birmingham. As a resident of Coventry, I can't say I'm fussed about direct trains to Crewe, Warrington and so on - I'd much rather have a direct train to Leicester...
Plus, the insistence that the up 9Mxx call at MK and not Watford has, effectively, used up an extra path on the Up Fast south of Rugby, and there is now only one "blank" path rather than two. I give it a week before the WCML punctuality goes noticeably downhill compared to the old timetable. :roll:
swt_passenger
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Well no they won't actually, as 43074 explained in the previous post to yours, they are combinations of existing services. And because there are no longer 'overlapping' Virgin services on the stretch between New St and Wolverhampton, as far as Virgin are concerned their route is less busy!
Yes, another reason why this TT change is a bad move - the 1650, 1750 and 1850 from New St to Wolverhampton were all pretty much full of commuters before the TT change, and with the xx50 gone everyone will either end up on the xx38 all-stops, or the xx57 CrossCountry (which is all too often late).
callum112233
Member
I was referring more towards the TPE services which will make the line busier between Euxton Jnc and Golbourne Jnc. The stretch is only about 15 miles though so I don't suppose it will make congestion go through the roof
The Planner
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Plus the xx.36 or xx.01 Liverpool's or the xx.05 Shrewsbury, people will adapt.
Eagle
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It's only a 10% reduction in frequency between Birmingham and Wolverhampton off-peak.
dvboy
Established Member
You've clearly not taken one of these trains in a while, the Shrewsbury trains especially are often full to bursting, and (with the exception an additional 1746 to Shrewsbury) this reduction leaves a 19 minute gap between trains to Wolverhampton and 24 minute gap to Sandwell & Dudley.
It might be 10% in terms of numbers of trains, but that withdrawn train is over twice the length of any of the others, and the reduction's in peak time as well as off peak.
Eagle
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Actually no, the train you're losing is a Voyager (most of the time). The terminating Pendolino is gone, but the service to Scotland is now more likely to be a Pendolino than it was.
Philip Elliott
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What diagram would that be, all I can see is a schedule...
dvboy
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The 1705 having been cancelled today too.
Failed Unit
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Sorry if this is elsewhere on the thread, but are all 221 workings now double voyagers. I see the 0652 is now a voyager 
- that was the one I used the most. When Virgin do have double voyagers do they only have catering in one set?
- that was the one I used the most. When Virgin do have double voyagers do they only have catering in one set?Sorry if this is elsewhere on the thread, but are all 221 workings now double voyagers. I see the 0652 is now a voyager
I was going to ask a similar question - which services are Pendolinos/ which double Voyagers/ are any still single Voyagers?
I was at Oxenholme & Carlisle this morning. 2 of the southbound Euston via Birmingham services I saw were single 5-coach voyagers - the one I saw at Carlisle was full and standing.
The 10:18 northbound service I used from Oxenholme to Carlisle (running 12 minutes late) was an 11 coach Pendolino - coach F was almost empty.
callum112233
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Trainfan344
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A diagram is the work load for a certain train on a certain day, a schedule is just one service I believe...
For example:
Train A is Diagrammed to work
12:01 Sidings to station a 12:20
12:30 Station a to station b 15:30
16:00 station b to station a 19:00
19:10 station a to sidings 1
Where as a schedule would be the timings at all the locations between Station a and Station b on the diagram I believe.
For example:
Train A is Diagrammed to work
12:01 Sidings to station a 12:20
12:30 Station a to station b 15:30
16:00 station b to station a 19:00
19:10 station a to sidings 1
Where as a schedule would be the timings at all the locations between Station a and Station b on the diagram I believe.
tractakid
Member
Am I right in thinking Virgin have now ceased calling at Carstairs?
Eagle
Established Member
Yes, but there was only one call a day, on a Glasgow to Crewe service, to connect with a terminating TPE service from Edinburgh (which was the only TPE passenger service over the north curve). Think it might have been a remnant of an old VXC service that joined there.
Since TPE's timetable has been rejigged, the Edinburgh to Carstairs service no longer exists, negating the reason for Virgin calling there. Thankfully Scotrail's service via Carstairs is better than it was before, being approximately 1tp2h between Edinburgh and Glasgow, plus extensions of various Argyle line services.
Since TPE's timetable has been rejigged, the Edinburgh to Carstairs service no longer exists, negating the reason for Virgin calling there. Thankfully Scotrail's service via Carstairs is better than it was before, being approximately 1tp2h between Edinburgh and Glasgow, plus extensions of various Argyle line services.
dk1
Veteran Member
With the number of daily through workings from Edinburgh to Euston increasing from 1 to 6 does this increase the fare box income to Virgin Trains on the open tickets to London Terminals? Not sure how ORCATS worked this but seem to remember direct trains (such as the Highland Chieftan from Inverness) helped to raid the pot.
SprinterMan
Established Member
Is peak hour in Birmingham as hellish as poeple thought it would be with the new joined up XC/WC trains?
IanD
Established Member
xc/wc?
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Is this a new name for the XC voyagers due to the smell?
SprinterMan
Established Member
I just mean the old Scotland to Birmingham services that were XC until 2008 have been joined with the WC Wolvo-Euston trains. I actually had an XC Voyager the other day, I must say the new air fresheners work pretty well, as good as Virgin bleaching all the pipes.
Adam
dvboy
Established Member
Hard to tell really as its busier in December anyway with shoppers and christmas market visitors, you could argue the regular peak is more spread out than normal. Ive only travelled in it last night and tonight and it seems no different to usual. Yesterday's 1857 was fine, today it was late anyway and the 1901 is fine tonight.
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