New Street + XC + set swap = chaos

[LilLoaf]

I was down in Birmingham last week doing some travelling on the trains. All was going ok until i was due to catch a train from Derby to New Street, the 14.57 Plymouth service, Yes the HST not the referbished one thought. It came in 20 mins late but arrived New Street around the same. But that wasn't the main problem.

I wanted to catch the 17.03 to Newcastle due in New street 16.45 as it comes in off Bounemouth. Expected platform 9A 1708. Slightly late but never mind. At around 17.05 an annoucement was made its now going off 11A. So off we all went onto the concourse and over to 11A. A voyager was already in. Having seen the 17.10 Plymouth arrive on 11 just a few minutes early i decided to ask if it was the right train. The train manager didn't know where it was going and said "i think their taking it off Plymouth and putting it on 17.03".

Then a voice shouts "no this ones Plymouth the 17.03 Newcastle still at International" so it would be be around 15 mins late leaving.

5 mins later another change of plan. It is going to Newcastle so off came all the Plymouth passengers and on went Newcastle ones. 4 announcments were made onboard saying they had swapped the train around. Then a rumour went around that the 14.05 Paignton - Scotland was to finish at New Street due to engine problem so we would have 2 train load of passengers on a 4 car voyager.

So overall passengers on the following train were inconvienced.
14.05 Paignton - Scotland , finished Birmingham crammed onto late 17.03 service North.

13.45 Bounemouth - Newcastle, not sure if that even got to New Street before 17.35 when the 17.03 eventually left.

14.30 York - Plymouth, swapped train around i think it was cancelled and they all went onto Plymouth on the 18.10 service as there was no spare voyager set to make the 17.10 service.

17.03 Newcastle, after set swap and 2 passenger loads left 17.35.

I not sure if this was a one off but it was total chaos at New Street that afternoon.

Anyone else had problems like this ?

 

[jv3531]

Doesn't suprise me. Only five trains? Have seen more in my time. One of XCs problems, particualrily when it was VT has been tight diagramming in the past, you only needed one or two running late and the knock on effect can be hidious! Everything seems to revolve round the birmingham hub, trains can arrive from all directions on time, reach birmingham and everything goes out the window. Even with the reduced stop/increased layover standard clock face timetables it didn't seem to help that much! Ok more trains do run on time than before ( or so they claim anyway) but when things start to go wrong....

 

[P156KWJ]

Got to remember that BHM is handling about 200% of the trains it was designed for, and as said, with the timings, if that goes a little bit wrong it can nacker the whole lot

 

[LilLoaf]

I really don't see why they don't just divert Bristols, Plymouth, trains into Snow hill and out via Stourbridge, they can still get to Cheltenham ok. It would be so much easier.

Seem with the Birmingham - Manchester services. Oh but some bright spark came up with the idea of starting them back at International. Who knows why ?

 

[87015]

Seem with the Birmingham - Manchester services. Oh but some bright spark came up with the idea of starting them back at International. Who knows why ?

What is the rant about that?

Avoids airport passengers changing at New St, provides additional capacity to Int'l without wedging out long distance services, frees New St platform capacity and as the units were previously doing some nonsense ECS run round the houses, generally eases capacity in the area.

Of course, if Virgin hadn't decided everything BR/Intercity had been doing was wrong, they might have never withdrawn them from International in the first place.

Snow Hill lines are pretty wedged up with staggering all shacks 150s and pretty slow to boot before all the complications of how your proposed services would actually get into Snow Hill from any other direction.

 

[LilLoaf]

Starting the Manchester service from International is a total waste of time. i used the 16.18 service from International to New Street i was the only one in the couch, and it stands for 20 mins at New Street before heading out anyway. Also the train that does this service comes off the XX.18 arrival from Reading into New Street. It has to run ECS to international taking up important track space.

It would be fare easier to take the XX.18 arrival off Reading and put it into one of the middle tacks at New Street then back into the platform track to send it off the Manchester. What could be easier ?

 

[87015]

Aah, had presumed they had re-started Manchester-Internationals and vice versa. Obviously that is far too sensible and have just come up with some other nonsense!!

 

[AlexS]

It would be fare easier to take the XX.18 arrival off Reading and put it into one of the middle tacks at New Street then back into the platform track to send it off the Manchester. What could be easier ?

Shunting a unit at New Street is a big no no where it can be avoided, particularly longer formations, because your train is at a stand at the station throat blocking everything up, while the driver has to change ends, which has to be booked to take several minutes.

 

[LilLoaf]

There is no shunting involved, The train comes in throught the East tunnels, stops at the A end of the platfoms, then put in the middle track.

Most platforms at New St have middle tracks through them. 5-6, 7-8, 9-10 all have middle tracks through them

 

[AlexS]

Yes, they do - but the entrance to most if not all the middle roads is sufficiently far up the platform that you probably wouldn't fit a Voyager inside the shunt signal.

 

[Aureol]

Yes, they do - but the entrance to most if not all the middle roads is sufficiently far up the platform that you probably wouldn't fit a Voyager inside the shunt signal.

Let alone a Pendolino

 

[LilLoaf]

Yes, they do - but the entrance to most if not all the middle roads is sufficiently far up the platform that you probably wouldn't fit a Voyager inside the shunt signal.

I've seen it done before with a 4 car set.