Recent content by G_for_Gnome

On a bit of tangent…the animal on board without an owner… I once had a driver radio in to inform us that a budgie had boarded the bus. He had been waiting at the terminus for the next journey. So they waited with all the doors, windows and emergency exits open and just hoped it would fly away...

There is often a point made “I’ve paid for a train ticket, yet I’m on a bus…how is that fair?” In fact, this point was recently made in a stand up comedy routine I watched. I have seen in the past passengers travelling for free on rail replacement buses because the TOC doesn’t prioritise...

The assumptions made here are correct if you have boarded at the journey’s origin point, and there were no stops between there and your destination. These days with the pared down National Express network that is probably a very feasible scenario (that your journey and the coach’s full journey...

Please can someone advise what is the thing that looks like a very giant toaster? Above nearside front wheel. Thanks.

Ag Agreed. I’ve seen on some of the newer trains, there is a move away from using T-keys for access to cabs - instead they use keys that are solely for the task of accessing cabs, with a much stricter control of issuing of these keys. I suspect similar across other TOCs. Still, even on newer...

I’d guess one of 2 things, and it depends whether the factory that manufactures these things in China is either complicit or not. They could be running an off-the-books additional shift making exactly the same stuff they’re contracted to, and then sell it illicitly. But I suspect that’s more...

Who holds TFW accountable for failing to run a partial service if they are able to? Which body examines the legitimacy of the reasons they’ve given to not run anything? They may be legitimate but I see some posters have suggested it may be otherwise. Traincrew rostering - a crew would be going...

There is some news West Midlands Railway to run Birmingham to Shifnal, from next week by the looks of it Transport for Wales say Shrewsbury to Wellington isn’t possible…...

I assume that would mean TFW running the Shrewsbury Wellington bit - even if WMT have 196s on the Shrewsbury side, have they got anywhere to fuel them? Similar reasons mean the service Bham to Telford would need to be operated by WMT I suppose it all comes down to signalling and where trains...

Surprised to see no thread on this yet - if I’ve missed one somewhere I apologise. Yesterday the Birmingham to Shrewsbury services were suspended in the morning due to a landslip near Wellington. National Rail advise no trains now until 31st March. Journey planner for next week still showing...

Yea I’ve just had a look at the Team Pennine website - I see the 301/302, 319, 324 all gone. All these were routes that duplicated First routes. Does this mean that they can now operate what they are left with? Are they doing it well, or not so much? Genuinely interested to hear news / opinion etc

Can anyone give a snapshot on how Team Pennine has been performing recently? Are the days of buses being missing from routes around Huddersfield for large parts of the day largely history? Are TP still operating legacy K-Line routes competing with First, or have things changed? I’ve been a...

The name “Tettenhall” is a bit of a misnomer for any station that could be built between Wolverhampton and Bilbrook, as the railway goes nowhere near Tettenhall Village itself. Something like Aldersley or Pendeford might be more appropriate. Less frequent bus service from this area (assuming you...

Mon-Sat Wolverhampton earliest book on Mon-Sat is around 0430am, latest book off between 0100 and 0130am Sundays 0715 earliest book on / 0100 book off but depends on engineering work. Sundays - unless it is your long weekend or your switch from late week to early week, you are likely to have a...

My understanding is that if your journey takes longer than normal because there is a preplanned rail replacement bus involved, and the journey goes to plan as advertised, no delay repay is due. Even though the service is altered, it has been delivered as advertised. If something goes wrong...