Borders Railway - Now Open

[Altnabreac]

Good thought. Are the platforms long enough to lengthen those trains?

All platforms are i believe 6 car length and services are generally 2 car occasionally strengthened to 4 so there should be capacity for new destinations.

 

[Starmill]

Happy first birthday to the Borders Railway (for yesterday)

 

[snakeeyes]

what are the total passenger numbers for the year?
and what was the expected numbers?

 

[route:oxford]

what are the total passenger numbers for the year?
and what was the expected numbers?

There were a lot of angry commentators in the Scotsman who said that nobody would use it. They are probably the same people who say that they've never seen anybody using Edinburgh trams. Whereas I usually find I have to stand to and from the airport...

I can't find formal figures yet - it's probably too soon.

A rough guide would be double the number of passengers at 6 months (650,000) so that would be 1,300,000 passengers in the first year.

Or double the number of expected passengers in the first year.

 

[asylumxl]

There were a lot of angry commentators in the Scotsman who said that nobody would use it. They are probably the same people who say that they've never seen anybody using Edinburgh trams. Whereas I usually find I have to stand to and from the airport...

I can't find formal figures yet - it's probably too soon.

A rough guide would be double the number of passengers at 6 months (650,000) so that would be 1,300,000 passengers in the first year.

Or double the number of expected passengers in the first year.

There's people now complaining about the reliability of the route, claiming that nearly all trains are late in to Waverley, but using the "right-time" figures. Furthermore they're ignoring the various strikes that occurred. Utter drivel.

 

[PaxVobiscum]

Things seem to have become so much worse since about this time last year - I understand there had been no complaints about late arriving Galashiels – Edinburgh trains for some 46 years.

 

[och aye]

Demand leads to call for extension of Borders Railway

Campaigners are calling for a further extension to the Borders Railway on the first anniversary of its successful reopening.

Read more at: http://www.scotsman.com/news/demand-leads-to-call-for-extension-of-borders-railway-1-4222184

http://www.scotsman.com/news/demand-leads-to-call-for-extension-of-borders-railway-1-4222184

 

[oldman]

Or double the number of expected passengers in the first year.

According to Scottish Enterprise in June:

From opening last September through to the end of March this year, there have been 694,373 trips on Borders Railway, representing an increase of 22 per cent on projected figures prior to opening. It is estimated that passenger trips will be maintained at 21 per cent over expectations through to the end of the first year of operation.

Not quite double!

 

[route:oxford]

There's people now complaining about the reliability of the route, claiming that nearly all trains are late in to Waverley, but using the "right-time" figures. Furthermore they're ignoring the various strikes that occurred. Utter drivel.

"Right-time" figures are important if you are relying on a service to get you to work, a social engagement or to make a connection.

If the industry wants customers to understand the concept of what is considered to be "on-time" then it should formally publish the spread of acceptable arrival times. So a 10:10 arrival in the timetable would be marked as 10:10 (10:00-10:20)

A strike may also prevent a service from running - as a service user, that's still a failure to operate a service.

 

[asylumxl]

According to Scottish Enterprise in June:



Not quite double!

Still considerably higher than was expected mind you.

 

[92002]

what are the total passenger numbers for the year?
and what was the expected numbers?

Been announced today that passenger figures have now topped the 1M mark, a year after opening.

 

[WatcherZero]

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/sep/09/urgent-review-ordered-on-borders-railway

Urgent review ordered on Borders railway

An urgent review has been ordered into dire performance figures on the UK’s newest train line, the Borders railway, a year after it was officially opened by the Queen.

Built at a cost of £10m a mile, the 35-mile line from Edinburgh Waverley to Tweedbank near Galashiels has one of the worst performance records of any on the Scottish network after a spate of breakdowns and delays.

Campaigners say that across the first four days of this week only 36 of the 132 scheduled trains from Edinburgh arrived at Tweedbank on time.

Since October last year it has never had a week where more than 70% of services were on time, and in some weeks the figure has been as low as 30%.

ScotRail Abellio, the line’s Dutch-owned operator, has admitted that the second-hand Class 158 diesel trains used on the line are unable to deal with the steep gradient they have to climb at Falahill, where the line rises 880ft above sea level.

The radiators overheat as the trains struggle uphill, causing engines to cut out. Engineers are now testing more effective cooling systems but ScotRail said it had no date by which they would be fitted.

At the same time, devices called axle counters, which monitor each train’s journey along the 25 miles of single-track line, have suffered repeated faults, causing trains to stop, campaigners say.

Humza Yousaf, the Scottish transport minister, said the line had “breathed new life into the region” but he had ordered a full operational review to investigate the problems.

“The reliability of the service has not been to the standard I expect,” Yousaf said. “I have therefore asked ScotRail to present me with an improvement plan for the line, which will reassure passengers with enhanced reliability as quickly as possible.”

ScotRail and the Scottish government said the line had been far more popular than expected, attracting 1 million passengers this year – well above the original projections. That itself caused delays. Visitor numbers at attractions including Sir Walter Scott’s home at Abbotsford have grown by up to 12%.

ScotRail insisted the line had been an “extraordinary success”.

David Spaven, a rail consultant and Borders railway campaigner, said that optimism was undermined by the data. “The reality has been a mixture of very good and very bad outcomes. Until now the political establishment has been unwilling to confront that. But finally, now they’re admitting there has been a big problem.”

 

[TheKnightWho]

Retain some class 170s and use them on the line instead?

Impressive that usage has been 21% over expectations even with such unreliable performance!

 

[jopsuk]

"second-hand class 158 diesel trains"?

Hang on, aren't most of Scotrail's 158s units that have been operating in Scotland since they were built?

 

[Blindtraveler]

I assume this phrase refers to the 8 from elsewhere which carry a real mishmash of interiors

 

[92002]

"second-hand class 158 diesel trains"?

Hang on, aren't most of Scotrail's 158s units that have been operating in Scotland since they were built?

The best performing 158s on Borders are the hired in Northern ones, which have larger engines, but poor interiors with no bicycle spaces to speak of.

 

[philthetube]

Sounds like a job for the 185's

 

[jopsuk]

It's a pity the numbers didn't stack up to make it a double track electric railway throughout...

 

[Highland37]

There were a lot of angry commentators in the Scotsman who said that nobody would use it. They are probably the same people who say that they've never seen anybody using Edinburgh trams. Whereas I usually find I have to stand to and from the airport...

I can't find formal figures yet - it's probably too soon.

A rough guide would be double the number of passengers at 6 months (650,000) so that would be 1,300,000 passengers in the first year.

Or double the number of expected passengers in the first year.

The Scotsman complains about anything which can be used as a proxy to bash the SNP with. Angry commentators are a feature of this considerably conservative paper which probably sells less nationally than travel on the line each week.

 

[asylumxl]

The Scotsman complains about anything which can be used as a proxy to bash the SNP with. Angry commentators are a feature of this considerably conservative paper which probably sells less nationally than travel on the line each week.

All the time I've spent in Scotland throughout my life, I've rarely seen anyone reading it in public.

 

[Carntyne]

The Scotsman love bashing ScotRail at any opportunity. Constant non-stories. Funny if nothing else watching them dig out a bad angle to even good news.

 

[Chrism20]

The Scotsman complains about anything which can be used as a proxy to bash the SNP with. Angry commentators are a feature of this considerably conservative paper which probably sells less nationally than travel on the line each week.

If Wikipedia is to be believed they were selling 27208 copies a day a few years ago, looking at the drops in the two years before that it's possible that it's down to around 20,000 now.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scotsman

They do seem very anti-rail though, ScotRail in particular and certainly appear to hate the SNP with a passion at times.

 

[Bald Rick]

It's a pity the numbers didn't stack up to make it a double track electric railway throughout...

The numbers didn't stack up to build the railway in the first place! And that was before the costs increased.

 

[najaB]

The numbers didn't stack up to build the railway in the first place! And that was before the costs increased.

That, of course, depends on the chosen definition of 'stacking up'. While a project might not make sense on a purely financial basis, there can be other non-financial benefits that make it worth pursuing.

 

[Kendalian]

It's been said plenty of times, but at least there is a Borders Railway to moan about

Not surprised the 158's are struggling with repeated runs over Falahill; it's a murderous climb. 9 miles at 1 in 70 from memory (anyone confirm?)

I filmed this run on a 158 in April leaving Gorebridge and going over the summit. See how quickly it picks up speed after the summit!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tBhkExDHok&feature=youtu.be

 

[Mordac]

If Wikipedia is to be believed they were selling 27208 copies a day a few years ago, looking at the drops in the two years before that it's possible that it's down to around 20,000 now.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scotsman

They do seem very anti-rail though, ScotRail in particular and certainly appear to hate the SNP with a passion at times.

According to the Press Gazette, 20,304 for the six months to the end of June, compared with 30,402 for the Herald, and of course 166,591 for the Daily Record.

Scotsman is fairly popular in Edinburgh as far as these things go, maybe it's less popular in the West Coast (and of course they have the Press and Journal up in Aberdeen..., which at 54,270 sells more than the Scotsman and the Herald combined...)

 

[Clansman]

I assume this phrase refers to the 8 from elsewhere which carry a real mishmash of interiors

867 and 871 are the worst.

867 especially has the most operators (6) evidently present within an interior I think.

No wonder them clunkers are struggling down the Borders!

 

[PHILIPE]

It's been said plenty of times, but at least there is a Borders Railway to moan about

Not surprised the 158's are struggling with repeated runs over Falahill; it's a murderous climb. 9 miles at 1 in 70 from memory (anyone confirm?)

I filmed this run on a 158 in April leaving Gorebridge and going over the summit. See how quickly it picks up speed after the summit!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5tBhkExDHok&feature=youtu.be

158s are climbing Talerding Bank on the Cambrian day in and day out. The climb from Machynlleth is 13-14 miles and the last 3/4 is 1/52. Overall no problems. Also 38 miles climb from Carlisle to Sis Gill.

 

[Bald Rick]

That, of course, depends on the chosen definition of 'stacking up'. While a project might not make sense on a purely financial basis, there can be other non-financial benefits that make it worth pursuing.

It didn't stack up even with all the non-financial benefits. Unless you include party politics as a non-financial benefit!

 

[asylumxl]

It didn't stack up even with all the non-financial benefits. Unless you include party politics as a non-financial benefit!

Do tell.