Last night took me almost 4 hours to get home from Manchester to Leyland. Arrived at 17:05 for the 17:34 service from Oxford Road. That was showing as cancelled, then reinstated then cancelled. Only the :34 services were still in the system, with everything else cancelled, so staff told us to wait for the 18:34, which was cancelled 10 minutes before departure. They then sent us to Victoria for the 19:05, despite it showing as cancelled. Oxford Road speak to control who are adamant that it will be running and reinstated. Get to Victoria and it is cancelled. Staff there are shaking their heads and bemoaning the fact that Oxford Road are fobbing people off to get them off their station. Victoria staff warn us that that the 20:05 was likely to be cancelled and tell us to head back to Oxford Road for the 19:34. They check with control as we push back on this and yes say control, that is definitely running.
19:34 was cancelled when we arrived a few minutes before departure. Oxford Road had ordered a coach that could take some of us north, but it wasn't due to arrive until 8pm and was going to take a lot longer than a service if one every comes. Tempers are getting a bit short on the station as a number of passengers are fed up of the shuffle between stations and still no trains. Control are consulted and they absolutely, positively, definitely will be running the 20:05 from Victoria. Oxford Road staff promise to keep the coach on-site if by any chance anything happens to that service. We are told to hop on a TPE York service round to Victoria. Fortunately the 20:05 does indeed run and I get to Leyland around 9pm.
Everything was shambolic at the stations. No forward planning, just finger crossing that the train in an hour will come. No plan B (the coach request was at my instigation when the 18:34 was cancelled) and control either having no real clue what is going to happen, or staff being economical with the truth. I believe that control were telling them what they were relaying to us though. Clearly no support or thought given to anyone at an unstaffed station, as the only attempts to help or do anything proactive were driven by complaints to staff.
This morning the first few trains were cancelled that I went for, so I decided to call it a day and head home to do some work as I am fortunate enough to do that. Talking to passengers yesterday struggling to get home, you understand the real impact this on-going shambles is having. A scaffolder from Blackpool having to leave at 6am to have a chance of being at work in Manchester at 9am and then not getting home regularly after 9pm, despite finishing work at 5pm. The lady who is having to take next week off to take her child out of nursery as she won't have any cover and can't guarantee to get to the nursery before it closes. Finally there was a nurse who has already missed the start of early shifts multiple times last week and this week, causing colleagues to have to stay on and cover her. As a result, she has had to change to later shifts, which has had a knock-on to childcare, increasing her costs, causing the hospital problems and meaning she sees less of her family.
I wasn't a fan of the idea of an emergency timetable when it was first pushed last week, but after living through the on-going problems and seeing things get worse, not better, I can't see much else of an option any time soon.
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