Peterborough - Lincoln

[CockneySparrow]

Went on this route a couple of days ago down the Red Wing Line, with all the upgrades done I am still surprised by a few things

There is still no service in the morning all the way through and in the evening, think the last direct is 4pm back to Peterborough

It seems there is still a problem between Spalding and Sleaford with no trains running before or after 9 & 5, not to mention the line I still closed on a Sunday

I do find it odd that the timings are now wrong, we arrived at Sleaford some 6 minutes early so had to wait after the train thrashed between Spalding and Sleaford, and also arrived some 5 minutes early in Lincoln, the whole situation is bizarre

 

[LowLevel]

It requires money and units to improve the service give it s year or two and something may happen I guess!

 

[Starmill]

This part of the country always makes me wonder if anyone there knows what the big long metal things that roll along on wheels even are...

 

[berneyarms]

You will often find a time lapse between works being completed and timetables being updated to reflect the revised running times.

This can be to allow for bedding in and for potential project overruns.

Hopefully perhaps the May timetable will see revised running times?

 

[trentside]

Hopefully perhaps the May timetable will see revised running times?

That is the intention. I'd estimate that you can cut between 10-15 minutes off the current journey times with the higher line-speeds. There has been talk of service improvements, but I'm not sure those will arrive as quickly.

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

This part of the country always makes me wonder if anyone there knows what the big long metal things that roll along on wheels even are...

Most of the time that's a lorry or a freight train.
Passenger trains are always Sprinters on all non East Coast services through Lincolnshire except Pacers in Gainsborough and the odd Midland mainline train to Lincoln.
So most aren't long.

 

[Starmill]

Most of the time that's a lorry or a freight train.
Passenger trains are always Sprinters on all non East Coast services through Lincolnshire except Pacers in Gainsborough and the odd Midland mainline train to Lincoln.
So most aren't long.

Indeed. And we think we have it bad...

 

[Lincoln]

It will certainly be interesting to see the new timetable. Most of the savings will be on the Sleaford to Peterborough stretch, and Gainsborough to Doncaster for the northbound services.

I imagine the biggest headache will be getting new paths between Werrington and Peterborough. Assuming the departure times from Lincoln are similar to now, then the return from Peterborough will probably break most of the connections from Skegness/Boston to Lincoln without having an extended dwell at Peterborough.

Maybe it will be left as present and then dealt with in the future when a more holistic recast for Lincolnshire can be done where decent connections can be provided at Sleaford and also at Lincoln for Grimsby trains?

The impetus for change could potentially come if Virgin East Coast indeed serve Lincoln every couple of hours, potentially enabling the Grimsby service to stop short at Lincoln or be incorporated into the Peterborough or Doncaster services. With the draft timetable published for May 2015 both Hykeham and Collingham appear get a decent service and the routing guide contains easements allowing a double back at Lincoln too, allowing connections into these services if they run.

Or it could all be pie in the sky, and the current Lincolnshire timetable continues to be hard wired into the current and future franchises by DfT.

I think quite a few people will be keenly looking at Real Time Trains around February time (including me!).

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

It will certainly be interesting to see the new timetable. Most of the savings will be on the Sleaford to Peterborough stretch, and Gainsborough to Doncaster for the northbound services.

I imagine the biggest headache will be getting new paths between Werrington and Peterborough. Assuming the departure times from Lincoln are similar to now, then the return from Peterborough will probably break most of the connections from Skegness/Boston to Lincoln without having an extended dwell at Peterborough.

Maybe it will be left as present and then dealt with in the future when a more holistic recast for Lincolnshire can be done where decent connections can be provided at Sleaford and also at Lincoln for Grimsby trains?

The impetus for change could potentially come if Virgin East Coast indeed serve Lincoln every couple of hours, potentially enabling the Grimsby service to stop short at Lincoln or be incorporated into the Peterborough or Doncaster services. With the draft timetable published for May 2015 both Hykeham and Collingham appear get a decent service and the routing guide contains easements allowing a double back at Lincoln too, allowing connections into these services if they run.

Or it could all be pie in the sky, and the current Lincolnshire timetable continues to be hard wired into the current and future franchises by DfT.

I think quite a few people will be keenly looking at Real Time Trains around February time (including me!).

I hope the Grimsby train doesn't get added to the Lincoln to Doncaster line. It would mean the loss of direct trains to Newatk, I've gone shopping there sometimes and others do that aswell.
I'm sure a Grimsby working to Leicester and a Doncaster to Peterborough will be a better route.

I have wondered, would a Doncaster to Lincoln to Sleaford to Boston service be well used? Lincoln to Peterborough users will have a better option in a few years so maybe Boston can get another service instead?

 

[Lincoln]

I hope the Grimsby train doesn't get added to the Lincoln to Doncaster line. It would mean the loss of direct trains to Newatk, I've gone shopping there sometimes and others do that aswell.
I'm sure a Grimsby working to Leicester and a Doncaster to Peterborough will be a better route.

I have wondered, would a Doncaster to Lincoln to Sleaford to Boston service be well used? Lincoln to Peterborough users will have a better option in a few years so maybe Boston can get another service instead?

Actually in a similar way to how Nottingham to Skegness to considered as one route, it would be ideal for the same to happen between Leicester/Nottingham and Grimsby. An hourly service would be great and should be well used as even the fairly basic service provided at present is often full during the day. It would provide excellent new services (as well as getting people closer to the centre of Newark through the Castle station).

The people who will lose out would be those from Market Rasen as they would no longer have direct services to North Gate, with the single change onto East Coast. However again if VTEC goes ahead in the future with 2 hourly to Lincoln then the single change could simply move to Lincoln.

Lots and lots of possibilities

 

[sheff'd victoria]

That is the intention. I'd estimate that you can cut between 10-15 minutes off the current journey times with the higher line-speeds. There has been talk of service improvements, but I'm not sure those will arrive as quickly.

Further up the line between Gainsborough Lea Road and Lincoln Central you will find that the Northern Rail services heading towards Lincoln have actually got slower despite the quicker track speed !

 

[bunnahabhain]

Actually in a similar way to how Nottingham to Skegness to considered as one route, it would be ideal for the same to happen between Leicester/Nottingham and Grimsby. An hourly service would be great and should be well used as even the fairly basic service provided at present is often full during the day. It would provide excellent new services (as well as getting people closer to the centre of Newark through the Castle station).

The people who will lose out would be those from Market Rasen as they would no longer have direct services to North Gate, with the single change onto East Coast. However again if VTEC goes ahead in the future with 2 hourly to Lincoln then the single change could simply move to Lincoln.

Lots and lots of possibilities

Ideally I think the services should become a sort of semi S-Bahn for the area.

Matlock-Grantham, Nottingham-Skegness, Crewe-Cleethorpes, Leicester-Lincoln, and Newark North Gate - Boston via Lincoln. It adds in a lot of journeys that are otherwise pretty difficult to make and would enable certain services, such as Nottingham-Skegness, to run fast to Grantham with a more regular local service provided by a stopper.

Whatever happens, nothing will occur without funding, and Lincolnshire, like Leicestershire, doesn't seem to give two hoots about railway travel.

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

Ideally I think the services should become a sort of semi S-Bahn for the area.

Matlock-Grantham, Nottingham-Skegness, Crewe-Cleethorpes, Leicester-Lincoln, and Newark North Gate - Boston via Lincoln. It adds in a lot of journeys that are otherwise pretty difficult to make and would enable certain services, such as Nottingham-Skegness, to run fast to Grantham with a more regular local service provided by a stopper.

Whatever happens, nothing will occur without funding, and Lincolnshire, like Leicestershire, doesn't seem to give two hoots about railway travel.

Personally I think Matlock to Newark and Mansfield Woodhouse to Grantham would be better. Mansfield is huge compared to Matlock has has only 2 places to go to.
Other than that this would be perfect.

 

[Sharpie]

morning all

freightlocate has the may-december timetable on and it does appear that there will still be no late service past Spalding and still no sunday service

quite disappointing really

 

[LowLevel]

Mansfield has a significant lack of long distance custom for economic reasons though - off peak no one goes anywhere except Nottingham and the other stations in the Mansfield line with the odd traveller elsewhere because many local residents can't afford it - having through trains to Grantham won't change that. It also runs quite economically unit wise at present with short turnarounds either end.

 

[Lincoln]

It also looks like the enhanced service between Newark and Nottingham is a weekday only thing, as the Saturday and Sunday timings look like the normal summer affair.

 

[bunnahabhain]

Personally I think Matlock to Newark and Mansfield Woodhouse to Grantham would be better. Mansfield is huge compared to Matlock has has only 2 places to go to.
Other than that this would be perfect.

The Robin Hood line is unlikely ever to have regular through services other than the two present morning Worksop-Lincoln via Nottingham and Mansfield Woodhouse-Norwich services, both of which are more for convenience rather than the through journeys that are made. To provide through journeys would also complicate the unit diagrams up significantly, as at present its just five diagrams for the majority of the day alternating on each trip between Woodhouse and Worksop.

To be honest the only thing I feel the Robin Hood Line needs is extending through from Shirebrook to Ollerton with shacks at Market Warsop, Edwinstowe and Ollerton. Perhaps add in a local shack in Lenton by the new University campus to provide a local station for the Jubilee Campus and Queens Medical Centre and the Lenton part of Nottingham.

If it hadn't been obliterated a second branch from Shirebrook over to Chesterfield Midland via the Lancs, Derbys & East Coast line would do well as a lot of Mansfield to Chesterfield and Sheffield custom is forced onto the roads due to lack of route/decent connections respectively.

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

The Robin Hood line is unlikely ever to have regular through services other than the two present morning Worksop-Lincoln via Nottingham and Mansfield Woodhouse-Norwich services, both of which are more for convenience rather than the through journeys that are made. To provide through journeys would also complicate the unit diagrams up significantly, as at present its just five diagrams for the majority of the day alternating on each trip between Woodhouse and Worksop.

To be honest the only thing I feel the Robin Hood Line needs is extending through from Shirebrook to Ollerton with shacks at Market Warsop, Edwinstowe and Ollerton. Perhaps add in a local shack in Lenton by the new University campus to provide a local station for the Jubilee Campus and Queens Medical Centre and the Lenton part of Nottingham.

If it hadn't been obliterated a second branch from Shirebrook over to Chesterfield Midland via the Lancs, Derbys & East Coast line would do well as a lot of Mansfield to Chesterfield and Sheffield custom is forced onto the roads due to lack of route/decent connections respectively.

Notts county council and Centerparcs have both committed to the Ollerton line being reopened. The proposals are being looked at by the DaFT right now. I'll get the story...
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
http://trundleage.co.uk/2015/01/government-reviews-ollerton-edwinstone-proposals/
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Government reviews Ollerton and Edwinstone proposals

Patrick Mcloughlin has*advised that he will look closely at proposals to bring railway station to Edwinstone and Ollerton.

That's the story.

 

[berneyarms]

That is the intention. I'd estimate that you can cut between 10-15 minutes off the current journey times with the higher line-speeds. There has been talk of service improvements, but I'm not sure those will arrive as quickly.

Looking at Open Train Times, the same running times appear to be retained post the May timetable change unfortunately.

 

[ashworth]

The Robin Hood line is unlikely ever to have regular through services other than the two present morning Worksop-Lincoln via Nottingham and Mansfield Woodhouse-Norwich services, both of which are more for convenience rather than the through journeys that are made. To provide through journeys would also complicate the unit diagrams up significantly, as at present its just five diagrams for the majority of the day alternating on each trip between Woodhouse and Worksop.

To be honest the only thing I feel the Robin Hood Line needs is extending through from Shirebrook to Ollerton with shacks at Market Warsop, Edwinstowe and Ollerton. Perhaps add in a local shack in Lenton by the new University campus to provide a local station for the Jubilee Campus and Queens Medical Centre and the Lenton part of Nottingham.

If it hadn't been obliterated a second branch from Shirebrook over to Chesterfield Midland via the Lancs, Derbys & East Coast line would do well as a lot of Mansfield to Chesterfield and Sheffield custom is forced onto the roads due to lack of route/decent connections respectively.

The Robin Hood Line service has now been reinstated between Nottingham and Worksop since 1998. Even after 17 years no-one has been able or willing to sort out the disgraceful situation of the 40 minute wait at Worksop for a connection to Sheffield. Perhaps many people who are forced onto the roads for the journey between Mansfield and Sheffield might be more inclined to use the train if that could be sorted.

You will never please everyone but I have heard that many people from the larger communities along the Nottingham to Lincoln line, like Lowdham are not so happy about the introduction of the new Matlock to Newark Castle service. It will provide a much needed regular service into Newark and Nottingham from the smaller village stations and help to speed up the journey between Nottingham and Newark and Lincoln. However, Lowdham has now almost completely lost its service to Lincoln. The same could be said for Carlton, Burton Joyce and all of those other stations but there have always been quite a few passengers from a wide area who park at Lowdham to travel to Lincoln.

 

[bunnahabhain]

Indeed, its a little disappointing that the connections at Newark are so poor, I think in the ideal world we'd have ended up with something more like a Matlock to Lincoln and Grimsby service with the set reversing at Crankley Point to serve North Gate and calling all shacks between the two. Alas it is not to be! I do think there may be one or two amendments to the fast service come the December timetable change which will add in a few additional calls at Lowdham on the Lincoln services.

 

[Starmill]

As a proportion of the demand from Lincoln, how much is there from Lowdham?

If you (theoretically) ran a two-coach train non-stop from Lincoln to Nottingham and back every hour, how busy would it be? I know it'd be crazy not to stop at at least Newark, but it's an interesting question.