ECML major disruption (26/07)

[ValleyLines142]

Safe to say the platform for the delayed 11.11 XC service via Sheffield is very busy!

Also only a 4 car Voyager. Not XC's fault, but still fun I imagine!

 

[DanNCL]

Plus crews will be all to pot now. Leeds crews may now be covering for KGx crews and helping the services to Peterborough, hence why Leeds serviced all binned.

There will be a method in the madness somewhere.

I would love all the armchair experts to go to a control room and run a service in disruption whilst also dealing with stranded and failed trains.

I would have thought running a limited service to Leeds would actually have helped matters crew wise as without it Leeds crews will have to travel passenger to/from York/Doncaster.

I’m sure there is method behind the madness, I was just enquiring as to what may have caused what seems at first like a bizarre decision!

 

[philjo]

I see VST 1234 Hitchin to Kings Cross stopping service has now made it to Potters Bar. So hopefully some northbound ones from Kings Cross will also run soon.

Realtime Trains | 2Z31 1234 Hitchin to London Kings Cross | 26/07/2022

Real-time train running information for 2Z31 1234 departure from Hitchin to London Kings Cross on 26/07/2022. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

 

[800001]

South from Edinburgh

Starting at 13:30 we aim to operate two services an hour with the potential these trains will run to London Kings Cross depending on when the line is handed back.

South from Leeds

Starting at 13:45 operating services at XX:45 towards London Kings Cross with potential these trains will run to London Kings Cross depending on when the line is handed back.

North from London

Plans for operations from London Kings Cross will be communicated when we have further details on the line been handed back.

 

[westv]

It just seems like the ECML has this sort of issue every week to some extent.

 

[Twingo37175]

South from Edinburgh

Starting at 13:30 we aim to operate two services an hour with the potential these trains will run to London Kings Cross depending on when the line is handed back.

South from Leeds

Starting at 13:45 operating services at XX:45 towards London Kings Cross with potential these trains will run to London Kings Cross depending on when the line is handed back.

North from London

Plans for operations from London Kings Cross will be communicated when we have further details on the line been handed back.

Invaluable clear information as ever, thanks!
If you were in London now (heading to Doncaster), would you stick with alternatives (Euston to Manchester, then TPE to Doncaster) or is it too early to try and second guess a KGX train direct?

 

[800001]

Invaluable clear information as ever, thanks!
If you were in London now (heading to Doncaster), would you stick with alternatives (Euston to Manchester, then TPE to Doncaster) or is it too early to try and second guess a KGX train direct?

Depends if you want a ride out on alternative route

Must be a very clear indication they expecting route back soon.

Expect train from Kings Cross to be rammed though.

 

[Twingo37175]

Depends if you want a ride out on alternative route

Must be a very clear indication they expecting route back soon.

Expect train from Kings Cross to be rammed though.

Thanks! Will leave with them....

 

[800001]

Thanks! Will leave with them....

1W20 should described in platform now at Kings Cross, so looks likely starting from 1400 runnning…..

Update: confirmed 1W20 on down and 1E10 on up first LNER trains to run through

 

[Ze Random One]

While Stevenage to Cambridge now appears to have reopened, I can't see any signs of movement between Hitchin and Peterborough. Open Train Times still shows the up fast as blocked at Biggleswade

 

[Twingo37175]

1W20 should described in platform now at Kings Cross, so looks likely starting from 1400 runnning…..

Update: confirmed 1W20 on down and 1E10 on up first LNER trains to run through

Thanks, much appreciated!

 

[800001]

While Stevenage to Cambridge now appears to have reopened, I can't see any signs of movement between Hitchin and Peterborough. Open Train Times still shows the up fast as blocked at Biggleswade

They are checking up slow if all good line reopens.

As posted above 1W20 and 1E10 first lners through.

 

[bramling]

Still pretty thin on the ground in terms of GTR through the affected area.

None of this is good for the railway, unfortunately. Take myself - three cancellations on the bounce yesterday morning so an hour late into London (granted this was bad luck, as the rest of the day seemed to perform okay to be fair), today a total write-off for anyone wanting to get into London, strike-related disruption Wednesday & Thursday. Not sure why anyone would want to take the train at the moment, sadly.

 

[MikeWM]

Still pretty thin on the ground in terms of GTR through the affected area.

None of this is good for the railway, unfortunately. Take myself - three cancellations on the bounce yesterday morning so an hour late into London (granted this was bad luck, as the rest of the day seemed to perform okay to be fair), today a total write-off for anyone wanting to get into London, strike-related disruption Wednesday & Thursday. Not sure why anyone would want to take the train at the moment, sadly.

I'm feeling the same

Last Monday : couldn't go to the office, nothing running, too hot.
Tuesday : couldn't go to the office, nothing running, too hot.
Wednesday : couldn't go the office, aftermath of being too hot.

Saturday : couldn't go where I wanted to go, strikes on GA, masses of cancellations on GN ('shortage of drivers', like most other Saturdays for the last 8 years).

Today : no GN trains from Ely to Cambridge, despite the problem being a long way away. As I really needed to go to the office today, I managed to walk swiftly to the station this morning in order to squeeze onto a *very* overcrowded GA service, that then ran slow due to some other overhead line issue.

Tomorrow : can't go to the office, strike.
Thursday : my regular trains won't be running as recovery from strike.

Saturday : can't go where I want to go, strike.


Really not feeling a lot of affection for the railway right now.

 

[LAX54]

Looks like it covers 10 headspans, so quite a distance, and the parts of the pantograph still caught up in it (or was)

 

[jon0844]

Could someone refresh my memory, Cambridge - London can't run because it is on the same power section as Biggleswade?

Hopefully this can be altered at some point (in the future of course as it won't be easy) - As it may have helped if they could have kept London - Cambridge open for the sake of diverting some LNER services

The key issue for the Cambridge services came down to another, seemingly unrelated, ADD activation on the Cambridge line and trains occupying platforms because they couldn't go north via PBO so no Cambridge trains could run north either, with many terminating at WGC (and some very late notice reinstatements from WGC to KGX when drivers could be found). As ever, even with Cambridge and Peterborough services separated they still frequently impact each other.

 

[Magdalia]

Today : no GN trains from Ely to Cambridge, despite the problem being a long way away.

RTT shows an hourly Cambridge-Kings Lynn service has been running.

There was a separate problem, at about the same time as the Biggleswade incident. 0641 KLN-KGX sat for nearly an hour somewhere south of Ely and was eventually terminated at Waterbeach.

 

[Magdalen Road]

I got to King's Cross just after 1500. No northbound Cambridge/ Ely trains on the board until gone 1700.
So went to Tottenham Hale for GA alternative. If I'm lucky I'll be home only an hour late. As with MikeWM commuting is a right pain currently. I've had to take Thursday off, as a train leaving at least 3 hours later than usual really doesn't work for my job.

 

[Magdalia]

Could someone refresh my memory, Cambridge - London can't run because it is on the same power section as Biggleswade?

Hopefully this can be altered at some point (in the future of course as it won't be easy) - As it may have helped if they could have kept London - Cambridge open for the sake of diverting some LNER services

I was following this on the OTT map. 2C11 0657 Cambridge-Kings Cross was in the up platform at Hitchin, with 5 other trains stacked up behind on the branch. On the down road 2C02 0652 Kings Cross-Cambridge and 1T08 0712 Kings Cross-Ely were both stood just south of Hitchin. I'm guessing both of these had no power when they came out of the Wymondley neutral section. Together they blocked access to the branch in the down direction.

 

[FuzzyDuck]

So it appears both fast lines are still blocked between Biggleswade and Hitchen, all up traffic is on the slow line until the crossover after Hitchen. Seems to very little down traffic apart from Cambridge bound services.

 

[notverydeep]

I got to King's Cross just after 1500. No northbound Cambridge/ Ely trains on the board until gone 1700.
So went to Tottenham Hale for GA alternative. If I'm lucky I'll be home only an hour late. As with MikeWM commuting is a right pain currently. I've had to take Thursday off, as a train leaving at least 3 hours later than usual really doesn't work for my job.

Not sure why it wasn't shown but 2C36 1522 King's Cross to Cambridge has run and is on time at Hitchin. A train also appears to be in position to operate 2C40 1622 King's Cross to Cambridge (2C38 in between seems to be starting at Welwyn Garden City). No sign of any fast Kings Cross to Cambridge or Brighton to Cambridge services though...

 

[MikeWM]

RTT shows an hourly Cambridge-Kings Lynn service has been running.

Nothing GN south from Ely between 0917 and 1055, however. Given my commuting train is the 0947 that wasn't terribly useful! With the other various issues last week and the strikes this week, I really wanted to get to the office 'on time' today.

I'm not saying they could necessarily do a great deal about it in this particular case, though their service whenever anything goes wrong does go very wrong indeed even away from the trouble areas, and recovery is invariably terrible.

 

[800001]

So it appears both fast lines are still blocked between Biggleswade and Hitchen, all up traffic is on the slow line until the crossover after Hitchen. Seems to very little down traffic apart from Cambridge bound services.

Correct as the OHL is damaged following by his mornings incident.

 

[Failed Unit]

The key issue for the Cambridge services came down to another, seemingly unrelated, ADD activation on the Cambridge line and trains occupying platforms because they couldn't go north via PBO so no Cambridge trains could run north either, with many terminating at WGC (and some very late notice reinstatements from WGC to KGX when drivers could be found). As ever, even with Cambridge and Peterborough services separated they still frequently impact each other.

Thanks, I had planned to catch 2C11 (0657 Cambridge - London) - which got stuck at Hitchin this morning. I took the Sevenoaks service instead. I didn't realise that other issues came into play as well. The terminated the 0728 London - Cambridge service at WGC. I say a 12 Car heading to Cambridge terminated at Hatfield and the 0742 Kings Cross - Kings Lynn at Potters Bar. But no other trains in the Section south of WGC.

Sounds like it doesn't rain but it pours. (Although gardeners will hate me using that phase at the moment.)

 

[Magdalen Road]

Not sure why it wasn't shown but 2C36 1522 King's Cross to Cambridge has run and is on time at Hitchin. A train also appears to be in position to operate 2C40 1622 King's Cross to Cambridge (2C38 in between seems to be starting at Welwyn Garden City). No sign of any fast Kings Cross to Cambridge or Brighton to Cambridge services though...

Oh, well there wasn't any info about that in the station. National rail now shows all King's Cross - Ely trains cancelled to the close of service. I've given up asking at the gateline as most of the time the reply is they don't know / not being told anything/ just come on shift. Which I appreciate it is difficult but I want to know whether have an extra hour (minimum) journey via Tottenham Hale or gamble to stay at Kings Cross.
And the displays actually said to go to Liverpool St for once.

 

[notverydeep]

Oh, well there wasn't any info about that in the station. National rail now shows all King's Cross - Ely trains cancelled to the close of service. I've given up asking at the gateline as most of the time the reply is they don't know / not being told anything/ just come on shift. Which I appreciate it is difficult but I want to know whether have an extra hour (minimum) journey via Tottenham Hale or gamble to stay at Kings Cross.
And the displays actually said to go to Liverpool St for once.

I would advise having a look at Open Train Times Maps maps together with Real Time Trains as these can often give you some information about what is moving and what isn't in a way that gate line staff may not be able to access. Neither are perfect, but they are a good help. From this I have been able to ascertain that GN have basically been running one or two trains per hour Kings Cross - Cambridge slow trains from earlier in the afternoon, (though with a few hiccups not related to the major OLE issue) and Thameslink have just started up some Peterborough - Horsham services. No North-bound Thameslink services have yet reached the GN area, though there does appear to be a Brighton to Cambridge service (9S42 1542 Brighton to Cambridge is first) and some Sevenoaks to WGC trains en-route...

 

[Silver Cobra]

I would advise having a look at Open Train Times Maps maps together with Real Time Trains as these can often give you some information about what is moving and what isn't in a way that gate line staff may not be able to access. Neither are perfect, but they are a good help. From this I have been able to ascertain that GN have basically been running one or two trains per hour Kings Cross - Cambridge slow trains from earlier in the afternoon, (though with a few hiccups not related to the major OLE issue) and Thameslink have just started up some Peterborough - Horsham services. No North-bound Thameslink services have yet reached the GN area, though there does appear to be a Brighton to Cambridge service (9S42 1542 Brighton to Cambridge is first) and some Sevenoaks to WGC trains en-route...

From what I can see, they're running an hourly Peterborough - Kings Cross shuttle service for the time being; all Thameslink services originating from Horsham are terminating at Redhill currently.

 

[notverydeep]

From what I can see, they're running an hourly Peterborough - Kings Cross shuttle service for the time being; all Thameslink services originating from Horsham are terminating at Redhill currently.

Sorry, yes you are right. I was watching 9J41 earlier and it disappeared in a way that suggested it had gone into the Thameslink core (which RTT had indicated) but clearly not. Similarly 9S42 has not gone beyond London Bridge. This illustrating that my suggestions (as I noted), though often a bit more information than just asking at a gate line are not perfect! At least the Sevenoaks WGC trains are coming through the core - my train home from Blackfriars ...

 

[Magdalen Road]

I would advise having a look at Open Train Times Maps maps together with Real Time Trains as these can often give you some information about what is moving and what isn't in a way that gate line staff may not be able to access. Neither are perfect, but they are a good help. From this I have been able to ascertain that GN have basically been running one or two trains per hour Kings Cross - Cambridge slow trains from earlier in the afternoon, (though with a few hiccups not related to the major OLE issue) and Thameslink have just started up some Peterborough - Horsham services. No North-bound Thameslink services have yet reached the GN area, though there does appear to be a Brighton to Cambridge service (9S42 1542 Brighton to Cambridge is first) and some Sevenoaks to WGC trains en-route...

Yes I do usually look at RTT, in fact the GA train got to Cambridge before the 1522 stopper.
So frequently the trains do not run as predicted, as per the Stevenage disruption a few Fridays ago. RTT wasn't much help then.
Unfortunately I've usually got a couple of minutes to guess what the least worst option is as the Tottenham Hale trains are half hourly and the tube generally takes around 20-25 mins (KGX concourse to TH platform).

The King's Lynn - Cambridge shuttles are having problems. The 1635 arrived 18 minutes late, was cancelled to form the 1737.

 

[notverydeep]

As it's a stopper, the 1528 GA liv

Yes I do usually look at RTT, in fact the GA train got to Cambridge before the 1522 stopper.

It managed 16:52 at Cambridge, but you got the better deal at the Junction - you made the right choice for sure!