Sunday morning Basingstoke to Reading stopper

[m00036]

Being based in Reading Green Park, I have become a bit frustrated over the summer that the first Sunday service towards Reading isn’t until 9:25 which seems very late for the first train to run (I’m sure I remember there being a service an hour before but I might be forgetting!).

I appreciate I might be the only person who would find an earlier service helpful and it would need GWR to run an extra set to Basingstoke from Reading first in the morning. However, SWR runs a non stop service (1J22) before that which, if it ran as a stopper, would call at Green Park at around 8:40. Based on RTT, it already has 6 minutes worth of allowances which means that it’s actually timetabled to take longer than the stopper between Basingstoke and Reading, there isn’t a quick turnaround in Reading and (as far as I can tell) no obvious connections in Reading would be lost if it took an extra few minutes between those stations. I suppose my question is therefore whether I’d be likely to have any luck in asking SWR if they’d consider adding in stops on that route (maybe even the old fashioned request stop!) just for that service in the morning or whether that’s got too much common sense involved? I’ve had to walk to a connecting bus around ten times this summer so it’s not just a one off instance where having this service would have been helpful. Any thoughts welcome!

 

[Bedwyn32]

You could ask SWR to consider it for the new re worked timetable coming in 2027. But I think it might be to late for the December 2026 change.

 

[swt_passenger]

I can think of a precedent the other way around, where GWR filled a long late evening gap at Hedge End and Botley, stopping at those two stations normally served only by the SWR Waterloo to Portsmouth via Eastleigh. The calls were put in the daily Cardiff to Portsmouth via Eastleigh which was basically there as a route retention.

 

[Deepgreen]

You could ask SWR to consider it for the new re worked timetable coming in 2027. But I think it might be to late for the December 2026 change.

I'm unclear why SWR runs on that route anyway.

 

[5562]

Route knowledge retention for diversions via Reading?

 

[Deepgreen]

Route knowledge retention for diversions via Reading?

Possibly, but that is only possible for WoE workings.

 

[swt_passenger]

Possibly, but that is only possible for WoE workings.

It provides for a destination for the Salisbury services on Sundays during the period when the line capacity into Waterloo is reduced for weekly maintenance. Finishes with the 1544 service off Salisbury then they switch to Waterloo.

I just looked back through earlier threads, and was reminded that SWT ran stoppers to Reading as one of the diversions during the 2017 Waterloo 10 car platform works, when half of Waterloo was unavailable. I think it was then about 2019 that they became a regular Sunday morning and afternoon thing, under SWR.

There were always a few weekday ECS route learners previously, but SWR introduced the regular morning and afternoon Sunday passenger service.

 

[30907]

It provides for a destination for the Salisbury services on Sundays during the period when the line capacity into Waterloo is reduced for weekly maintenance. Finishes with the 1544 service off Salisbury then they switch to Waterloo.

I just looked back through earlier threads, and was reminded that SWT ran stoppers to Reading as one of the diversions during the 2017 Waterloo 10 car platform works, when half of Waterloo was unavailable. I think it was then about 2019 that they became a regular Sunday morning and afternoon thing, under SWR.

There were always a few weekday ECS route learners previously, but SWR introduced the regular morning and afternoon Sunday passenger service.

The weekday trains are passenger now.

 

[DannyMich2018]

Being based in Reading Green Park, I have become a bit frustrated over the summer that the first Sunday service towards Reading isn’t until 9:25 which seems very late for the first train to run (I’m sure I remember there being a service an hour before but I might be forgetting!).

I appreciate I might be the only person who would find an earlier service helpful and it would need GWR to run an extra set to Basingstoke from Reading first in the morning. However, SWR runs a non stop service (1J22) before that which, if it ran as a stopper, would call at Green Park at around 8:40. Based on RTT, it already has 6 minutes worth of allowances which means that it’s actually timetabled to take longer than the stopper between Basingstoke and Reading, there isn’t a quick turnaround in Reading and (as far as I can tell) no obvious connections in Reading would be lost if it took an extra few minutes between those stations. I suppose my question is therefore whether I’d be likely to have any luck in asking SWR if they’d consider adding in stops on that route (maybe even the old fashioned request stop!) just for that service in the morning or whether that’s got too much common sense involved? I’ve had to walk to a connecting bus around ten times this summer so it’s not just a one off instance where having this service would have been helpful. Any thoughts welcome!

You're lucky! Here in the Midlands our first Sunday service at Hinckley is 10.30 to Leicester and about 10.40 to Birmingham.
Melton Mowbray, Oakham and Stamford don't see services till much later and Spalding must be one of the largest towns with no Sunday service.

 

[evergreenadam]

You're lucky! Here in the Midlands our first Sunday service at Hinckley is 10.30 to Leicester and about 10.40 to Birmingham.
Melton Mowbray, Oakham and Stamford don't see services till much later and Spalding must be one of the largest towns with no Sunday service.

Cross Country in the East Midlands/Cambridgeshire is so poor on Sundays.