The fixed timings on other routes are a big problem. If the S.Wales-Manchester workings and Birmingham-Wrexham both remain at the same times it is not possible to provide a half-hourly service between Cardiff and Shrewsbury which alternates between Manchester and Wrexham services. The attached shows how I think you could even run a 20-minute interval service between Chester and Shrewsbury (via Wrexham) if it were a standalone shuttle (although the single-line occupancy is a little tight). It also shows my attempt at timetabling roughly half-hourly services on the whole of the marches route; I was forced to send some Cardiff/Shrewsbury-Chester services via Crewe (rather than giving Crewe-Shrewsbury local calls entirely to LM), and I failed to allow for a decent Heart Of Wales service in between Craven Arms and Shrewsbury. I hope the new TOC can come up with a way of removing some of the constraints to make a better timetable than I've been able to produce.
I can't see how it can be, unless it runs via Crewe every two hours northbound, kills off the Birmingham-Wrexham through services or doesn't make a neat pattern with the Manchesters south of Shrewsbury.
Because end-door stock can provide a better interior and dwell times are much less of a problem on fast services. Where you have frequent stops is where you need to sacrifice comfort a bit to keep the dwell times down (using 'doors at thirds'); but hopefully because it's a stopper passengers won't be making particularly long journeys on it. Journey length (despite frequent stops) is why the Heart Of Wales and similar routes should be at least regional stock (eg. 156s) rather than something with 'doors at thirds'.
The turnround time at Chester for the Birmingham-Wrexham-Chester services would only be 16 minutes at most if you stopped them running to Holyhead. Therefore, you cannot really run beyond Chester without using more ETCS 158s away from the Cambrian. I THINK an hourly Birmingham-Aberystwyth with a portion for Pwllheli every two hours and for Chester in the others can be done with 16 diagrams. That's every service 4-car between Shrewsbury and Birmingham (and as far as Machynlleth every two hours), but there are comments that it needs to be 6-car at times, so I'm not sure extra units can be spared to run the current Birmingham-Wrexham services beyond Chester (I would say that they should terminate at Wrexham if it would save any units, but it wouldn't).
It all reminds me of going shopping with my ex. She'd have no idea what she wanted and visit every shop in town until she saw something she liked. Even then we'd often have to go back the following week and change it for something else. I would know what I needed to buy and where I could get it at a good price.
Either the Cambrian services or the Birmingham-Wrexham-Liverpool ones would have to be the stopper between Shrewsbury and Birmingham in that case though, whereas Wrexham and Aberystwyth can both have fast through trains to Birmingham if they use ETCS 158s and join/split at Shrewsbury.
No, the debate should be 707, 458 or 379; there's enough reasonably-new EMUs being cascaded in the next 5 years or so that new build probably isn't needed.
The only question that needs to be asked is whether Coryton, Cardiff Bay and maybe Penarth should be converted to light-rail. If so, then a choice needs to be made regarding how (or if) it integrates with the rest of the network. There's no way of doing that without either tram-train or a central street-running tram section.
Guess it makes a difference from decisions affecting Wales being made in England
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