Tfw 158’s

[Lurcheroo]

If this is right, I genuinely don’t understand it. In my job I get lots of instructions from my managers and I carry them out. In this case are the instructions not given?

We are taught how to check if the Aircon is working, how to set it to high cooling and what to do in order to help manage the train environment.
The train environment is rather dynamic so a one size fits all instruction won’t work.
The aircon could be working but if it’s really hot and you’re working a service that you know will become full and standing (and therefore very stuffy) then guards will often do a walk through to isolate the vestibule doors and open the windows.
That guard then hands over to another before the overcrowding ends and the new guard will likely assume that the windows have been opened because the temperature inside was too hot.

We’re also issued warm weather guidance.

In warm weather I always used to do an aircon check in each coach to see if I could do anything.

Obviously, some guards won’t do this.

Other times there’s no time to piss around with the aircon as there’s quite a number of priorities that come above this.

 

[slowroad]

We are taught how to check if the Aircon is working, how to set it to high cooling and what to do in order to help manage the train environment.
The train environment is rather dynamic so a one size fits all instruction won’t work.
The aircon could be working but if it’s really hot and you’re working a service that you know will become full and standing (and therefore very stuffy) then guards will often do a walk through to isolate the vestibule doors and open the windows.
That guard then hands over to another before the overcrowding ends and the new guard will likely assume that the windows have been opened because the temperature inside was too hot.

We’re also issued warm weather guidance.

In warm weather I always used to do an aircon check in each coach to see if I could do anything.

Obviously, some guards won’t do this.

Other times there’s no time to piss around with the aircon as there’s quite a number of priorities that come above this.

Ok - all fair enough! Thanks for the full reply.

 

[D7672]

Make the most of the 158s,as next year they are due c6 and as new class 197s that are cambrian sets enter service.advance notice for those who want to capture them,as their future is unknown for now.

 

[simonmpoulton]

Make the most of the 158s,as next year they are due c6 and as new class 197s that are cambrian sets enter service.advance notice for those who want to capture them,as their future is unknown for now.

Wouldn't surprise me if the 158's end up at GWR as well!

 

[Western 52]

Wouldn't surprise me if the 158's end up at GWR as well!

Overall they are still pretty good units so probably still useful for another TOC. I find them comfortable for longer distances and they ride smoothly. Just the aircon to fix....

 

[Lurcheroo]

Make the most of the 158s,as next year they are due c6

Just curious, where did you get that info ?

Wouldn't surprise me if the 158's end up at GWR as well!

Overall they are still pretty good units so probably still useful for another TOC. I find them comfortable for longer distances and they ride smoothly. Just the aircon to fix....

I do wonder if the ROSCO will bother putting them through a C6 overhaul due to the cost of it.

They’re not in great shape, let me tell you!

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

It’s not all sunshine and roses I can totally appreciate (as I have often been stood on platforms or on trains with very unhappy passengers for what ever reason) but There’s probably even more great stuff I’ve not mentioned but I hope you get the point, being nationalised is doing great things for the railways of wales and I certainly don’t think they would be in as good a spot as they are now, or have the even greater improvements on the horizon if it was controlled by the Westminster government as many other TOC’s are.

All those things you mention were put in place with the Keolis-Amey franchise of 2018 (which WG procured rather than DfT).
I can't think of anything that the new regime (ie directly WG/TfW run) has done to change that.
I know K-A left the scene with Covid, but they are still involved with new train introduction and the CVL upgrade.
So I don't really know what improvements "nationalisation" has specifically brought, except maybe the pay deal.
WG has also had to bail out TfW Rail because of higher costs/lower revenue (at a cost to other WG budgets), so not doing too well financially.

 

[craigybagel]

They’re not in great shape, let me tell you!

Indeed. As far as things the casual passenger will see, they're still holding up ok. But mechanically they're knackered.

 

[Lurcheroo]

All those things you mention were put in place with the Keolis-Amey franchise of 2018 (which WG procured rather than DfT).
I can't think of anything that the new regime (ie directly WG/TfW run) has done to change that.
I know K-A left the scene with Covid, but they are still involved with new train introduction and the CVL upgrade.
So I don't really know what improvements "nationalisation" has specifically brought, except maybe the pay deal.
WG has also had to bail out TfW Rail because of higher costs/lower revenue (at a cost to other WG budgets), so not doing too well financially.

Yeah so that’s my point, the fleet renewal and valleys electrification and all that was commuted to before nationalised TFW. They’ve said, it was planned in too short a time frame but again, nothing they could do about that.

Nationalised TFW have acquired the extra MK4 sets, agreed a pay deal, avoiding any industrial action and agreed Sundays into the working week, giving a much more robust sunday service. Also to accommodate that they’ve trained hundreds and hundreds of new staff, providing quality and well paid employment.

Them ‘bailing them out’ would have happens regardless. Covid destroyed revenue and I didn’t not increase enough again to cover the costs above what is usually given in subsidy.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Sep 2024 ==

Indeed. As far as things the casual passenger will see, they're still holding up ok. But mechanically they're knackered.

Yeah absolutely.
I see and move the broken ones on the depot at Mach. Poor things are struggling these days.

 

[williamn]

Continuing my unbroken run, currently on a sweltering TfW 158 from Brum to Chirk.

 

[Wyrleybart]

Yeah so that’s my point, the fleet renewal and valleys electrification and all that was commuted to before nationalised TFW. They’ve said, it was planned in too short a time frame but again, nothing they could do about that.

Nationalised TFW have acquired the extra MK4 sets, agreed a pay deal, avoiding any industrial action and agreed Sundays into the working week, giving a much more robust sunday service. Also to accommodate that they’ve trained hundreds and hundreds of new staff, providing quality and well paid employment.

Them ‘bailing them out’ would have happens regardless. Covid destroyed revenue and I didn’t not increase enough again to cover the costs above what is usually given in subsidy.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Sep 2024 ==


Yeah absolutely.
I see and move the broken ones on the depot at Mach. Poor things are struggling these days.

A very good post "Lurcheroo"
We all know with the benefit of hindsight what problems there are, but none of us have the funds to fix what is broken. The transition from old to new fleets was always going to bring problems and perhaps they shouldn't have bothered sending tbe 170s to TfW, and instead sent them straight from Anglia to EMR, would have saved some traction training detachment that would.

The only bit I am unsure about is whether the ERTMS 197s are being stored prior to intruction, liek some rumours suggest.

 

[Lurcheroo]

A very good post "Lurcheroo"

Thanks! Although reading it back now does make me wonder if I was having a stroke whilst writing it

The only bit I am unsure about is whether the ERTMS 197s are being stored prior to intruction, liek some rumours suggest.

My understanding (as a Cambrian driver waiting on the ERTMS units) is that they’re not going to be used in passengers service until the Cambrian switches over, and this mostly comes down to maintenance capacity as Chester is full so the depot at Machynlleth is needed for their introduction.