My CrossCountry Idea V2

[freetoview33]

So three years ago I came up with the following idea, since then I have refined it more.

Replace the current network with the following hourly routes.

Service 1: Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Central

(Partly replacing the CrossCountry service from Cardiff - Birmingham and the London Northwestern Railway service from Birmingham - Liverpool, would link in with other changes to fill gaps.)

Service 2: Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Sandy - Cambridge

(Using a new line between Northampton and Bedford, providing a new Cambridge Link)

Service 3: Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids (With 2hrly extensions to Plymouth Via Dawlish - Newton Abbot, Totnes and Ivybridge [every 4 hours only].)

Service 4: Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Reading - Basingstoke - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central (With 2hrly extensions to Bournemouth Via Brockhurst and Christchurch)

Service 5: Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Leeds - Meadowhall - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids (With 2hrly extensions to Paignton Via Dawlish, Newton Abbot and Torquay Central [Renamed from Torre].)

Service 6: Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Sandy - Cambridge

Service 7: Lincoln Central - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Wilnecote - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Central (Providing a much improved service to Lincoln and a new link to/from Birmingham and a new station at Castle Donington.

Service 8: Lincoln Central - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Wilnecote - Birmingham New Street - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Reading - Basingstoke - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central (With 2hrly extensions to Bournemouth Via Brockhurst and Christchurch)

New idea, with reasoning on services, with an hourly service on all routes.

Service 1: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Reintroducing a faster service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street to replace the former London Northwestern Railway service.
Replacing the service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.
Replacing the fast GWR service from Reading to Gatwick Airport with less stops.

Service 2: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Paignton
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Torquay - Paignton

Providing an additional fast service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street, to replace the current London Northwestern Railway service to be replaced by a Liverpool Lime Street to Crewe stopping service and a Birmingham New Street to Manchester Airport semi fast service.
Replacing the current CrossCountry service from Birmingham New Street to Exteter St Davids
Two hourly extension from Exeter St Davids to Paignton.

Service 3: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Birmingham New Street service.
Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cambridge service which would be replaced by a Birmingham Moor Street to Peterborough stopping service and a Stanstead to Peterborough service, with options to extend.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.

Service 4: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Southampton and Bournemouth service.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.

Service 5: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central service.
Replacing the current Leeds to Birmingham New Street service.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 6: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Leeds.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 7: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Plymouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Totnes - Ivybridge - Plymouth

Replacing the current Newcastle Central to Exeter St Davids Service.
Two hourly extensions from Exeter St Davids to Plymouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 8: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Newcastle Central and Birmingham New Street.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 9: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Providing an additional hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central.
Also a new Gloucester - Worcester Shrub Hill - Birmingham Moor Street service.

Service 10: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Reintroducing a secondly hourly service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.

 

[Brubulus]

These are all really good ideas. However EWR is pretty unlikely to get built past bedford in at least the next ten years. What's more important on my view, at least in the short term, would be to improve the bottleneck around ely to improve both and reduce journey times on the Stansted to Birmingham and Norwich to Liverpool routes. Maybe giving Ipswich a direct link to the Midlands would not go amiss, especially with double tracking of the line through Newmarket.

 

[cactustwirly]

So three years ago I came up with the following idea, since then I have refined it more.

New idea, with reasoning on services, with an hourly service on all routes.

Service 1: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Reintroducing a faster service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street to replace the former London Northwestern Railway service.
Replacing the service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.
Replacing the fast GWR service from Reading to Gatwick Airport with less stops.

Service 2: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Paignton
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Torquay - Paignton

Providing an additional fast service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street, to replace the current London Northwestern Railway service to be replaced by a Liverpool Lime Street to Crewe stopping service and a Birmingham New Street to Manchester Airport semi fast service.
Replacing the current CrossCountry service from Birmingham New Street to Exteter St Davids
Two hourly extension from Exeter St Davids to Paignton.

Service 3: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Birmingham New Street service.
Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cambridge service which would be replaced by a Birmingham Moor Street to Peterborough stopping service and a Stanstead to Peterborough service, with options to extend.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.

Service 4: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Southampton and Bournemouth service.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.

Service 5: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central service.
Replacing the current Leeds to Birmingham New Street service.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 6: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Leeds.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 7: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Plymouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Totnes - Ivybridge - Plymouth

Replacing the current Newcastle Central to Exeter St Davids Service.
Two hourly extensions from Exeter St Davids to Plymouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 8: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Newcastle Central and Birmingham New Street.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 9: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Providing an additional hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central.
Also a new Gloucester - Worcester Shrub Hill - Birmingham Moor Street service.

Service 10: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Reintroducing a secondly hourly service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.

I think all of those ideas are crackpot and not in the real world.
I doubt there is the line capacity for all of this.
And avoiding Reading on the Manchester to Bournemouth services is purely insane.

Same with Leicester and the Birmingham to Cambridge services

 

[The Planner]

Where are all the paths coming from, as well as the infrastruture? Why have you removed any link from Birmingham International and Coventry to the south of Reading? Looks like most of the services becoms slower as well with all the extra stops too.

 

[jackot]

So three years ago I came up with the following idea, since then I have refined it more.

New idea, with reasoning on services, with an hourly service on all routes.

Service 1: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Reintroducing a faster service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street to replace the former London Northwestern Railway service.
Replacing the service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.
Replacing the fast GWR service from Reading to Gatwick Airport with less stops.

Service 2: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Paignton
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Torquay - Paignton

Providing an additional fast service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street, to replace the current London Northwestern Railway service to be replaced by a Liverpool Lime Street to Crewe stopping service and a Birmingham New Street to Manchester Airport semi fast service.
Replacing the current CrossCountry service from Birmingham New Street to Exteter St Davids
Two hourly extension from Exeter St Davids to Paignton.

Service 3: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Birmingham New Street service.
Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cambridge service which would be replaced by a Birmingham Moor Street to Peterborough stopping service and a Stanstead to Peterborough service, with options to extend.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.

Service 4: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Southampton and Bournemouth service.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.

Service 5: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central service.
Replacing the current Leeds to Birmingham New Street service.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 6: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Leeds.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 7: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Plymouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Totnes - Ivybridge - Plymouth

Replacing the current Newcastle Central to Exeter St Davids Service.
Two hourly extensions from Exeter St Davids to Plymouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 8: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Newcastle Central and Birmingham New Street.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 9: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Providing an additional hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central.
Also a new Gloucester - Worcester Shrub Hill - Birmingham Moor Street service.

Service 10: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Reintroducing a secondly hourly service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.

Wow, some very very interesting proposals.

Service 1 and Service 10 would cause some horrendous issues with pathing on the North Downs I would imagine, especially when clashing with the GWR stoppers. It also seems odd to have a Cross Country service calling at the likes of Farnborough North, which doesn't even get served by GWRs 'fast' service. If you really wanted this route to work, I would run nonstop between Reading at Guildford, and nonstop between Guildford and Gatwick, or maybe extend it to Brighton. I still doubt how well this route would work, adding extra complexities to already busy lines, which haven't seen Cross-country service since 2008 for good reason.

As cactustwirly said, bypassing Reading on Services 4 and 8 and going via Whitchurch of all places seems ludicrous, surely that would mean doing one huge loop from Newbury, round to Westbury (without stopping), then to Salisbury (again, not stopping), then to Whitchurch, then back on the SWML, somehow avoiding the need to reverse at either Reading or Basingstoke? This would probably add in excess of 45 minutes to the journey whilst serving absolutely no purpose. Not to mention the idea of avoiding Reading, a major interchange for passengers. Again, adding ridiculous complexities for no gain in my opinion.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

I don't like to be too prescriptive in this forum as the point is to be speculative, but these plans would leave numerous stations with a dramatic reduction in services calling per hour, for the benefit of odd connections like Lincoln to Gatwick and Harrogate to Cardiff, which would be plagued horrendously by any signal failure or other disruption at each end.

 

[Segedunum]

You'd really want to send one of the Newcastle services via Leeds.

Via Doncaster may well be quicker (and I very much miss our hourly service that way!) but Leeds is a big driver of traffic - 1tph direct on TPE (which barely runs half the time) isn't good enough.

 

[D365]

What's the deal with trimming back the EMR (Liverpool-Norwich) to Manchester-Cambridge, whilst simultaneously breaking the Birmingham-Stansted at Peterborough?

 

[freetoview33]

Wow, some very very interesting proposals.

Service 1 and Service 10 would cause some horrendous issues with pathing on the North Downs I would imagine, especially when clashing with the GWR stoppers. It also seems odd to have a Cross Country service calling at the likes of Farnborough North, which doesn't even get served by GWRs 'fast' service. If you really wanted this route to work, I would run nonstop between Reading at Guildford, and nonstop between Guildford and Gatwick, or maybe extend it to Brighton. I still doubt how well this route would work, adding extra complexities to already busy lines, which haven't seen Cross-country service since 2008 for good reason.

As cactustwirly said, bypassing Reading on Services 4 and 8 and going via Whitchurch of all places seems ludicrous, surely that would mean doing one huge loop from Newbury, round to Westbury (without stopping), then to Salisbury (again, not stopping), then to Whitchurch, then back on the SWML, somehow avoiding the need to reverse at either Reading or Basingstoke? This would probably add in excess of 45 minutes to the journey whilst serving absolutely no purpose. Not to mention the idea of avoiding Reading, a major interchange for passengers. Again, adding ridiculous complexities for no gain in my opinion.

Would run via a reinstated line from Didcot to Winchester as Reading couldn't take 2 additional cross country services per hour and would allow for freight to avoid Reading heading from Southampton to Midlands.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 24 Oct 2022 ==

You'd really want to send one of the Newcastle services via Leeds.

Via Doncaster may well be quicker (and I very much miss our hourly service that way!) but Leeds is a big driver of traffic - 1tph direct on TPE (which barely runs half the time) isn't good enough.

I would have an additional tpe service running from at least Leeds to Edinburgh per hour.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 24 Oct 2022 ==

What's the deal with trimming back the EMR (Liverpool-Norwich) to Manchester-Cambridge, whilst simultaneously breaking the Birmingham-Stansted at Peterborough?

Never said trimming back the Emr service. Replacing the current CrossCountry service.

 

[D365]

Never said trimming back the Emr service. Replacing the current CrossCountry service.

What's the point in modifying Birmingham-Stansted? All it needs is a four car bi-mode every hour.

 

[The Planner]

Would run via a reinstated line from Didcot to Winchester as Reading couldn't take 2 additional cross country services per hour and would allow for freight to avoid Reading heading from Southampton to Midlands.

That line is never coming back. Take a look at GoogleMaps

 

[Bald Rick]

There’s so much to ask about this, that I can’t be bothered to spend half an hour of my life doing so!

 

[tbtc]

I’m fine with crayon based ideas that are clearly labelled as such, so fair enough (I’m not going to quibble with the overall “doubling various frequencies through New Street, building new lines and NSA stations, putting a lot of new/small places on the XC map, I’ll take the overall suggestions in the spirit which they were presumably intended) but I think it’d be Better to explain which local trains you’d be scrapping , if any, e.g. the Lincoln to Birmingham services presumably would still need the existing XC stoppers to run from the East Midlands to Birmingham, otherwise Derby loses its local trains on the Burton corridor… same with GWR’s Reading to Redhill trains… and the XC service to Cardiff given that your Cardiff trains would run via Bristol parkway instead?

Personally I wouldn’t get too worked up about cross-Birmingham links, I’d focus more on providing the various places to the north/south with an appropriate service to New Street without it really mattering whether places hundreds of miles apart get a direct train, e.g. if my train from Sheffield goes to Southampton or Plymouth after passing through the West Midlands is fairly unimportant as long as Sheffield gets the right level of service into Birmingham itself (it’s a bit like worrying whether a District Line service from Upminster should go to Ealing Broadway or Wimbledon, a minor thing as long as Upminster gets the right service into central London)

Talking of Sheffield… you like your avoiding routes don’t you… you’ve drawn attention to the fact that some south coast trains would omit Reading but less so with the Nottingham trains skipping Derby on their way to Birmingham, and no mention of the fact that Sheffield loses it’s only trains to York/ Newcastle, because the half hourly train from Tyneside runs non-stop from Doncaster to Derby, presumably via the Old Road therefore missing Sheffield? Fair enough if that’s your plan but (given that you’ve taken your time to carefully list all of the minor stops like Castle Donnington/ Worcestershire Parkway/Tempsford) I think I’d highlight these kind of major changes since that’s going to have a huge impact upon Sheffield (effectively losing trains to anywhere north of Leeds)

I can see the logic in XC no longer running to Scotland, but in terms of “if they scaled back to Newcastle then they’d have extra Voyagers to provide more seats through the core” than “because it’s important that Harrogate and Bedford are on the XC map instead of Edinburgh”

 

[freetoview33]

CrossCountry going to Scotland really only benefits people living between Birmingham and Leeds, if you live in Birmingham or the South it's faster to change in Birmingham then from Leeds onwards you have TPE and LNER.

 

[RobShipway]

So three years ago I came up with the following idea, since then I have refined it more.

New idea, with reasoning on services, with an hourly service on all routes.

Service 1: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Reintroducing a faster service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street to replace the former London Northwestern Railway service.
Replacing the service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.
Replacing the fast GWR service from Reading to Gatwick Airport with less stops.

Service 2: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Paignton
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Torquay - Paignton

Providing an additional fast service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street, to replace the current London Northwestern Railway service to be replaced by a Liverpool Lime Street to Crewe stopping service and a Birmingham New Street to Manchester Airport semi fast service.
Replacing the current CrossCountry service from Birmingham New Street to Exteter St Davids
Two hourly extension from Exeter St Davids to Paignton.

Service 3: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Birmingham New Street service.
Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cambridge service which would be replaced by a Birmingham Moor Street to Peterborough stopping service and a Stanstead to Peterborough service, with options to extend.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.

Service 4: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Southampton and Bournemouth service.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.

Service 5: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central service.
Replacing the current Leeds to Birmingham New Street service.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 6: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Leeds.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 7: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Plymouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Totnes - Ivybridge - Plymouth

Replacing the current Newcastle Central to Exeter St Davids Service.
Two hourly extensions from Exeter St Davids to Plymouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 8: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Newcastle Central and Birmingham New Street.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 9: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Providing an additional hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central.
Also a new Gloucester - Worcester Shrub Hill - Birmingham Moor Street service.

Service 10: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Reintroducing a secondly hourly service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.

I cannot see there being the paths for any of these services and this would need the class 221 units being moved from Avanti West Coast to Cross Country as you would not be able to run these services with existing stock. Plus you would also need the new staff to be trained on the incoming class 221 units. For Service 1 to be a fast service I would miss out both Farnborough and Dorking as station stops. But if there was capacity still retain the GWR fast services, but as semi - fast services.

Personally I cannot see the need for direct services between Liverpool or Lincoln to Gatwick Airport. If you are going to have services to/from Gatwick Airport, the services I believe should stop/start from a more central point in the UK and be either Sheffield or Birmingham New Street.

 

[Falcon1200]

While as a regular user of the route I would love to see it, 4 trains per hour on the Oxford/ Birmingham corridor is overkill, not to mention undeliverable in capacity terms. And as already mentioned there is no prospect whatsoever of the Didcot, Newbury and Southampton line being rebuilt.

 

[freetoview33]

In the Midland rail hub plan, there i due to be 5 trains an hour from Worcestershire Parkway to Birmingham on the CrossCountry route.

 

[skyhigh]

Given there's 2-hourly Northern and additional LNER services from Leeds onto Harrogate, what point is there in sending XC services up there as well?

 

[The Planner]

In the Midland rail hub plan, there i due to be 5 trains an hour from Worcestershire Parkway to Birmingham on the CrossCountry route.

Plan being the operative word, there is an awful amount of unfunded infrastructure needed to deliver that.

 

[Class172]

Plan being the operative word, there is an awful amount of unfunded infrastructure needed to deliver that.

Grade separation of Kings Norton, Barnt Green and Stoke Works junctions one would hazard a guess; none of which are going to be cheap or easy jobs to be undertaken any time soon.

 

[The Planner]

Grade separation of Kings Norton, Barnt Green and Stoke Works junctions one would hazard a guess; none of which are going to be cheap or easy jobs to be undertaken any time soon.

Nope, none of those are grade separated. Lots of modification, but no flyovers.

 

[Manutd1999]

Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge

Could this work on current infrastructure, as a combination of the second (currently missing) Manchester - Birmingham and Birmingham-Leicester-Cambridge services? It would be quite a slow routing but journey times from Manchester to Leicester and Cambridge would be competitive vs the current options.

 

[The Planner]

Could this work on current infrastructure, as a combination of the second (currently missing) Manchester - Birmingham and Birmingham-Leicester-Cambridge services? It would be quite a slow routing but journey times from Manchester to Leicester and Cambridge would be competitive vs the current options.

Yes, but the second one is coming back.

 

[philosopher]

Service 9: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Providing an additional hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central.
Also a new Gloucester - Worcester Shrub Hill - Birmingham Moor Street service.

Service 10: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Reintroducing a secondly hourly service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.

I do like the idea of at least some Nottingham to Birmingham services bypassing Derby and going via Castle Donnington. I used the service between Nottingham and Birmingham quite a bit in the past and the reverse at Derby always seemed a bit faff and I guess it must have added 10 to 15 minutes onto the journey.

I assume the Castle Donnington line would need quite a bit of upgrading for this to work if it is going to be used for regular passenger use.

 

[Bald Rick]

I assume the Castle Donnington line would need quite a bit of upgrading for this to work if it is going to be used for regular passenger use.

it’s capable of regular passenger use now.

However the line has low speed limits (50mph, with a 40mph for curvature near Swarkestone), plus a 15mph Junction at the Stenson Jn end, which means that using it in passenger service saves only 3-4 minutes over going via Derby and calling at both of Derby and Long Eaton. Missing these stops out is a big deal, Derby drives a lot of intermediate traffic.

Of course the line could be sped up, but only by a few minutes at best. The line is also effectively used as a holding point for freight heading between Nottingham, Toton and the West Mids, and alternative facilities for that would have to be provided.

 

[dciuk]

So three years ago I came up with the following idea, since then I have refined it more.

New idea, with reasoning on services, with an hourly service on all routes.

Service 1: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Reintroducing a faster service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street to replace the former London Northwestern Railway service.
Replacing the service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.
Replacing the fast GWR service from Reading to Gatwick Airport with less stops.

Service 2: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Paignton
Liverpool Lime Street - Liverpool South Parkway - Runcorn - Crewe - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Smethwick Galton Bridge - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Torquay - Paignton

Providing an additional fast service between Liverpool Lime Street and Birmingham New Street, to replace the current London Northwestern Railway service to be replaced by a Liverpool Lime Street to Crewe stopping service and a Birmingham New Street to Manchester Airport semi fast service.
Replacing the current CrossCountry service from Birmingham New Street to Exteter St Davids
Two hourly extension from Exeter St Davids to Paignton.

Service 3: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Birmingham New Street service.
Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cambridge service which would be replaced by a Birmingham Moor Street to Peterborough stopping service and a Stanstead to Peterborough service, with options to extend.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.

Service 4: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Manchester Piccadilly - Stockport - Macclesfield - Stoke-on-Trent - Stafford - Wolverhampton - Sandwell & Dudley - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Replacing the current Manchester Piccadilly to Southampton and Bournemouth service.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.

Service 5: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central service.
Replacing the current Leeds to Birmingham New Street service.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 6: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
Harrogate - Leeds Bradford Airport - Leeds - Wakefield Westgate - Sheffield - Chesterfield - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Lichfield Trent Valley - Birmingham New Street - - Birmingham International - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - Northampton - Bedford - Tempsford - Cambridge

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Leeds.
Providing a new link from Northampton to Bedford and onwards to Cambridge for links to Stanstead, Norwich and Ipswich.
Two hourly extension from Leeds to Harrogate to replace the current bus service to Leeds Bradford Airport.
Services onwards to York, Newcastle and Scotland provided by Trans Pennine Express.

Service 7: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Exeter St Davids - Plymouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Bristol Temple Meads - Taunton - Tiverton Parkway - Exeter St Davids - Dawlish - Newton Abbot - Totnes - Ivybridge - Plymouth

Replacing the current Newcastle Central to Exeter St Davids Service.
Two hourly extensions from Exeter St Davids to Plymouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 8: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
Newcastle Central - Durham - Darlington - York - Doncaster - Derby - Burton-on-Trent - Birmingham New Street - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Newbury - Whitchurch - Winchester - Southampton Airport - Southampton Central - Brockenhurst - Christchurch - Bournemouth

Reintroducing a second hourly service from Newcastle Central and Birmingham New Street.
Providing a new link from Didcot to Winchester avoiding Reading.
Two hourly extension from Southampton to Bournemouth.
Services onwards to Scotland provided by LNER and Trans Pennine Express.

Service 9: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Cardiff Central
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Bromsgrove - Worcestershire Parkway - Cheltenham Spa - Bristol Parkway - Newport - Cardiff Parkway - Cardiff Central

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Providing an additional hourly service from Birmingham New Street to Cardiff Central.
Also a new Gloucester - Worcester Shrub Hill - Birmingham Moor Street service.

Service 10: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Replacing the current service from Birmingham New Street to Nottingham.
Reintroducing a secondly hourly service between Birmingham New Street and Reading.

I will focus on the south west sections as that is my area of the country. It seams strange that both the Paignton and Plymouth routes would serve Dawlish, but neither would serve Teignmouth. Generally these have a similar stopping pattern. By making both the Paignton and Plymouth portions 2 hourly it would give an uneven 30/90 minute split at Dawlish and Newton Abbot (although for Dawlish that would be a much better cross country service than now). Does Ivybridge really need to be served by Cross Country services? I think it would be better to serve Totnes/Plymouth hourly as there is likely to be a larger customer base from those stations than Paignton/Torquay which now have a regulary approx half hourly local service that can be used to connect into CrossCountry at either Newton Abbot or Exeter. If it is deamed that Dawlish (and Teignmouth) should be served regulary by CrossCountry then perhaps 1 train per 2 hours at each (alternating between Dawlish and Teignmouth to keep the clockface times between at Plymouth/Totnes/Newton Abbot). It would be good to have 2 trains per hour to Exeter, which was the plan a few years ago that for some reason never happened.

 

[Energy]

Service 4: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
[...] - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - [...]

Service 8: Newcastle Central - Birmingham New Street - Southampton Central - Bournemouth
[...] - Solihull - Warwick Parkway - Leamington Spa - [...]

I wouldn't bother serving both Leamington Spa and Warwick Parkway, the stations are fairly close to each other. Out of the 2 I'd keep Leamington Spa so you can connect onto your proposed services 1 and 10 (despite Leamington station's terrible parking!). Solihull I'm not sure on.

Service 3: Manchester Piccadilly - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
[...] - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - [...]

Service 6: Harrogate - Leeds - Birmingham New Street - Cambridge
[...] - Coventry - Rugby - Rugby Parkway - [...]

Assuming Rugby Parkway is built then I don't think XC should stop 2tph there as well as the LNWR Northampton services. I'm doubtful you'd get 2tph paths from Coventry to Rugby, at least until HS2.

Service 1: Liverpool Lime Street - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
[...] - Coventry - Leamington Spa - [...]

Service 10: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
[...] - Coventry - Leamington Spa - [...]

Coventry to Leamington Spa is only single track, I don't think it has any more paths.

Service 10: Lincoln - Birmingham New Street - Gatwick Airport
Lincoln - Newark Castle - Nottingham - Castle Donington - Burton-on-Trent - Tamworth - Birmingham New Street - Birmingham International - Coventry - Leamington Spa - Banbury - Oxford - Didcot Parkway - Reading - Wokingham - Farnborough - Guildford - Dorking - Gatwick Airport

Interesting service, Reading to Gatwick is a pretty slow journey with the GWR service taking 1h24. Apart from Birmingham New Street to Reading this service won't be particularly quick.

 

[swt_passenger]

Interesting service, Reading to Gatwick is a pretty slow journey with the GWR service taking 1h24. Apart from Birmingham New Street to Reading this service won't be particularly quick.

Remember though that there is a rule that every fantasy XC thread MUST ALWAYS include at least a Liverpool to Gatwick via Reading service, simply because it has run before.

 

[jackot]

Remember though that there is a rule that every fantasy XC thread MUST ALWAYS include at least a Liverpool to Gatwick via Reading service, simply because it has run before.

I’m surprised Brighton or Portsmouth hasn’t been thrown in there too!

 

[swt_passenger]

I’m surprised Brighton or Portsmouth hasn’t been thrown in there too!

Well yes, they usually are by now, as are Poole and Weymouth.