They aren't enforceable, as far as I'm aware.
Believe me, some TL Revenue staff will try.
Odd that up until early December that service starts from Littlehampton via Arun Valley and now its starting from Horsham.
Littlehampton to Horsham section is no longer run nor is there a replacement train.
That sounds very curious indeed. I believe the "all stations" service from Littlehampton was introduced in its current guise quite recently - can anyone confirm? I wonder if it is a franchise requirement.
Alternatively, perhaps this is a bit of an oversight, and it could (or will) run as a 700 (the argument they can't actually stop at stations seems spurious to me, as they have done test runs down the Arun Valley, and they'd need to be able to stop in platforms in emergencies). That would also act as route retention for diverting via Arundel vice Hove.
Should they really, really not be able to stop at stations, I guess the stock could come ECS from Littlehampton to Horsham anyway.
Apparently they are to receive training for 700s but we'll see...
It's all gone a touch quiet over the last week or two. The least sinister explanation which I have heard is that a few rostering issues have delayed training, which is obviously by no means unheard of with such matters.
I have, however, not heard anything to contradict the concept that these services need either full-time station staffing or onboard crew for at least those parts of their timetables where they replace trains which were once fully staffed 377s.
Whether this is just when the 700s leave the main BML route, or alternatively south of the London terminal equivalent to London Bridge / Victoria (which would presumably be Blackfriars or City TL), also remains to be seen.
Previously, if I remember correctly, TL 319s used to briefly operate on some routes with conductors when running south of Farringdon, before all routes went DOO(P), or the routes changed. When they ran to Guildford, for example, they definitely had conductors for at least a portion of the journey. Those conductors effectively then started to work the Southern 455s and 377s on part of the same route, which provide peak-time services from the Guildford-Effingham Jn-Bookham corridor up to London Bridge and Victoria, and vice versa.
The irony is that some of the staff who once worked the 319s will probably end up training OBSs to work 700s, if the plans go ahead.
