amahy
Member
Since the Welsh government took over the Wales and Borders franchise, I have noticed that the operation has been getting increasingly more biased towards the "Wales" element, and that the "Borders" element is becoming more and more neglected. Here are a few reasons for my theory.
1. Welsh language provision
I'd like to start this by saying, that there is absolutely zero reason why any train service that is entirely in England should have Welsh train announcements first. On TfW, these services include Crewe to Chester, Crewe to Shrewsbury, and Liverpool to Chester. Yet, some services that do go into Wales, but are ran by other TOCs, have no Welsh announcements at all, such as GWR and Cross Country's services to Cardiff. A good alternative policy could be that, when in Wales, such services have Welsh announcements first, and when in England, such services have English announcements first.
In my opinion, this is an issue for various reasons. Firstly, it could be confusing for none Welsh speakers that don't speak English as their first language. Secondly, some announcements for the next station are at the last minute, so sometimes, the English announcement only plays when the train is pulling into the platform. For someone unfamiliar with the route, this could cause unneccessary panic when getting off the train. A third, very obvious reason, is that most people using TfW's services either speak both English and Welsh, or only English. A tiny minority only speak Welsh.
2. Priority of investment
The biggest upgrades as part of the TfW franchise have all been concentrated in Wales. These projects include South Wales Metro, and the North Wales timetable upgrade. Additionally, in their "Today, Tomorrow, Together" report, published earlier this year, most of their priority projects are in Wales, such as North Wales Metro, and North Wales electrification. Routes outside of Wales seem to be merely an afterthought, with no substantial upgrades to the Marches for decades.
Additionally, the new trains operating outside of Wales, are in my opinion inferior to those inside Wales. The 231s and 756s were more expensive than the 197s, and it really shows. The 231s and 756s have good reliability, and have impressive passenger comfort, considering the short distance routes they operate. Apart from the seats, the 197s are a direct downgrade in almost every way, with inferior reliability, unreliable air-con and toilets, poor ride quality, and harsh interior lighting. The Mk4s are much better for passengers, but are also unreliable, and are ultimately hand-me-down trains, rather than brand new.
3. Politics
I am all in favour of rail nationalisation, and that the railway should be controlled by the government, rather than private business. However, I do not think any services that are substantially outside of Wales should be ran by the Welsh government. The problem with this, is that TfW ran stations/services outside of Wales are placed “in limbo”, without representation by the English government, but the Welsh government have little reason to care, as the operation isn’t in their governing area.
Scotrail has a grand total of 1 station it serves outside Scotland, that being Carlisle. I know that TfW operates so far outside of Wales for historical franchising reasons, but in my opinion, this needs reconsidering, now that TfW is run by the Welsh government. I am also concerned, that said TfW stations/services outside Wales will “miss out” on Great British Railways, when/if that launches.
1. Welsh language provision
I'd like to start this by saying, that there is absolutely zero reason why any train service that is entirely in England should have Welsh train announcements first. On TfW, these services include Crewe to Chester, Crewe to Shrewsbury, and Liverpool to Chester. Yet, some services that do go into Wales, but are ran by other TOCs, have no Welsh announcements at all, such as GWR and Cross Country's services to Cardiff. A good alternative policy could be that, when in Wales, such services have Welsh announcements first, and when in England, such services have English announcements first.
In my opinion, this is an issue for various reasons. Firstly, it could be confusing for none Welsh speakers that don't speak English as their first language. Secondly, some announcements for the next station are at the last minute, so sometimes, the English announcement only plays when the train is pulling into the platform. For someone unfamiliar with the route, this could cause unneccessary panic when getting off the train. A third, very obvious reason, is that most people using TfW's services either speak both English and Welsh, or only English. A tiny minority only speak Welsh.
2. Priority of investment
The biggest upgrades as part of the TfW franchise have all been concentrated in Wales. These projects include South Wales Metro, and the North Wales timetable upgrade. Additionally, in their "Today, Tomorrow, Together" report, published earlier this year, most of their priority projects are in Wales, such as North Wales Metro, and North Wales electrification. Routes outside of Wales seem to be merely an afterthought, with no substantial upgrades to the Marches for decades.
Additionally, the new trains operating outside of Wales, are in my opinion inferior to those inside Wales. The 231s and 756s were more expensive than the 197s, and it really shows. The 231s and 756s have good reliability, and have impressive passenger comfort, considering the short distance routes they operate. Apart from the seats, the 197s are a direct downgrade in almost every way, with inferior reliability, unreliable air-con and toilets, poor ride quality, and harsh interior lighting. The Mk4s are much better for passengers, but are also unreliable, and are ultimately hand-me-down trains, rather than brand new.
3. Politics
I am all in favour of rail nationalisation, and that the railway should be controlled by the government, rather than private business. However, I do not think any services that are substantially outside of Wales should be ran by the Welsh government. The problem with this, is that TfW ran stations/services outside of Wales are placed “in limbo”, without representation by the English government, but the Welsh government have little reason to care, as the operation isn’t in their governing area.
Scotrail has a grand total of 1 station it serves outside Scotland, that being Carlisle. I know that TfW operates so far outside of Wales for historical franchising reasons, but in my opinion, this needs reconsidering, now that TfW is run by the Welsh government. I am also concerned, that said TfW stations/services outside Wales will “miss out” on Great British Railways, when/if that launches.
