Virgin extension until 2017

[Sheepy1209]

<IRONY ALERT> I live in Blackpool and often get a train out of Manchester.
It's a real pain that every time I board a TPE service in Manchester the train's packed, then most of them get off at Bolton.

It's just like Milton Keynes, but on a smaller scale! Why can't these commuters use the Northern stoppers intended for them so that I can sit in comfort? <END IRONY>

I'm sure the same happens elsewhere - I've certainly been on packed trains north from Birmingham New Street which become half empty at Stafford.


That's one reason we've ended up with 'commuter' trains on long-distance services - maybe we should replace the Pendolinos with commuter stock, after all it's apparently fine for Manchester - Edinburgh...... (I think the blue touchpaper is already lit on that one)

 

[thealexweb]

I live in Blackpool and often get a train out of Manchester.
It's a real pain that every time I board a TPE service in Manchester the train's packed, then most of them get off at Bolton.

It's just like Milton Keynes, but on a smaller scale! Why can't these commuters use the Northern stoppers intended for them so that I can sit in comfort?

I'm sure the same happens elsewhere - I've certainly been on packed trains north from Birmingham New Street which become half empty at Stafford.


That's one reason we've ended up with 'commuter' trains on long-distance services - maybe we should replace the Pendolinos with commuter stock, after all it's apparently fine for Manchester - Edinburgh...... (I think the blue touchpaper is already lit on that one)

Bolton's commuters have just as much right to be on Transpennine's services as you do. They use any service they can towards Bolton because the stoppers are so overloaded. If really you want a seat, do Manchester to Preston with Transpennine then onwards with Northern's ex-Liverpool services. You will avoid any congestion and almost defiantly get a seat that way.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Doesn't the Editor's Notes to the article in the OP confirm that it is the 21 9-car 390s being converted 1st->Std?

 

[Hellfire]

Surely the answer to the problems of commuters piling onto long distance services, whether it's Euston to MK or Paddington to Reading, is to make it more expensive for them to use the long distance trains rather than the stoppers.

So, if you want to get on a VT service just to get to MK, rather than a London Midland service, then you need to pay extra for the ticket.

You can't get on a VT service at Euston with a ticket marked London Midland only so the differentiation in tickets between the two TOCs already operates.Just charge extra for a ticket that is not marked London Midland only sand you can use VT..

I look forward to the comments pointing out the flaws in this plan

 

[northwichcat]

I live in Blackpool and often get a train out of Manchester.
It's a real pain that every time I board a TPE service in Manchester the train's packed, then most of them get off at Bolton.

It's just like Milton Keynes, but on a smaller scale! Why can't these commuters use the Northern stoppers intended for them so that I can sit in comfort?

Well for a start there isn't enough space on Northern services for all the local passengers.

Also do you check all their tickets to make sure that they are making a local journey and haven't alighted another regional/Intercity service at Piccadilly? Should passengers travelling between Birmingham and Bolton, for instance, be forced to walk across to Victoria or wait an additional half-an-hour because they aren't going beyond Bolton?

 

[92002]

Can anyone advise me which rotations use the 9 car 390/0's - I believe at present the London-Birmingham-Scotland through services do but not sure about the others.
Interesting Virgin reconfigured their North Wales 5 coach Super Voyager fleet to increase First Class capacity from 26 to 78 seats at the expense of 68 standard class seats a few years ago.

Would have made a lot more sense to build 2 extra
Coaches for the 9 car Pendolinos.

Offering more Standard seats and moving
Passengers from Road to Rail with more
Cheaper fares offered.

 

[gordonthemoron]

Surely the answer to the problems of commuters piling onto long distance services, whether it's Euston to MK or Paddington to Reading, is to make it more expensive for them to use the long distance trains rather than the stoppers.

So, if you want to get on a VT service just to get to MK, rather than a London Midland service, then you need to pay extra for the ticket.

You can't get on a VT service at Euston with a ticket marked London Midland only so the differentiation in tickets between the two TOCs already operates.Just charge extra for a ticket that is not marked London Midland only sand you can use VT..

I look forward to the comments pointing out the flaws in this plan

Virgin already sell a MK-London Anytime Travelcard for their services only, this however can only additionally be used on the 18:43 departure on return as that is the only train scheduled during the off-peak restriction window

 

[222001]

Doesn't the Editor's Notes to the article in the OP confirm that it is the 21 9-car 390s being converted 1st->Std?

It isn't confirmed anywhere, which is why I asked about the possibility of the 21 221 coaches that are sometimes used as 1st being converted back to full standard (which should also be done).

 

[ainsworth74]

It isn't confirmed anywhere, which is why I asked about the possibility of the 21 221 coaches that are sometimes used as 1st being converted back to full standard (which should also be done).

Err...

2) Coach G on all 21 9-car Pendolinos will be converted from First Class to Standard Class by September 2015.

Sounds fairly confirmed to me...

Also I'd leave the 221s as is. They have some of the nicest standard class (for most of the time) going in Coach D.

 

[222001]

Err...



Sounds fairly confirmed to me...

Also I'd leave the 221s as is. They have some of the nicest standard class (for most of the time) going in Coach D.

I was going on what I read in the BBC article. I hadn't read anything else.
Yep, that's pretty confirmed there.

 

[387star]

No baby pendos then?

And was it ever known what First Group envisaged for the interiors???

Virgin have just done some sort of refresh but it is only a small token

 

[Baggypants]

What I really want as a twice-a-month Manchester to London commuter is no stops at Stockport and Milton Keynes because people going to those stops always leave their coats on and complain it's hot , free wifi and twelve power sockets at every seat.

Is it too much to ask?

 

[Aictos]

I'm sure more people would prefer better data coverage at the stations themselves over wifi though. City Thameslink is probably one of the worst given it's under a building.

Not forgetting St Pancras International too specifically the FCC platforms where once you go past the ticket gatelines you can forget about getting any form of signal.

Few more details from the Dft.

Free Wi-Fi onboard and at stations too.
2 trains per day to Shrewsbury (1 on Sundays)
1 train per day to Blackpool

1.) It's good that they're doing something about the wifi as last time I used it in FC it was a waste of money as it kept disconnecting or was very very slow.

2.) IS there really more demand for Shrewsbury then Blackpool? I would have thought they would both see similar demand ie 1 train a day to both destinations?

I mean if Skipton, Harrogate, Hull, Bradford, Inverness can all cope with one train a day provided by East Coast then why can't Blackpool and Shrewsbury cope with just a daily service?

 

[Sheepy1209]

Bolton's commuters have just as much right to be on Transpennine's services as you do. They use any service they can towards Bolton because the stoppers are so overloaded. If really you want a seat, do Manchester to Preston with Transpennine then onwards with Northern's ex-Liverpool services. You will avoid any congestion and almost defiantly get a seat that way.

Well for a start there isn't enough space on Northern services for all the local passengers.

Also do you check all their tickets to make sure that they are making a local journey and haven't alighted another regional/Intercity service at Piccadilly? Should passengers travelling between Birmingham and Bolton, for instance, be forced to walk across to Victoria or wait an additional half-an-hour because they aren't going beyond Bolton?

Errr....sorry, my post was meant to be ironic!!!!!

That's a genuine apology by the way - I've never quite got the hang of this forum thing........

 

[paulb1973]

Further details on specific stations here: http://maps.dft.gov.uk/west-coast/#line2

Ticket gates to be installed at Crewe, London Euston, Macclesfield, Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Stoke-on Trent, Rugby, Birmingham International and Birmingham New Street stations

My occasional days [viewing, not travelling] on the platforms of Rugby station are at an end then? Or can one purchase a platform ticket? Gates at Euston sounds a bit grim.

 

[Manchester77]

I wonder how Manchester Piccadilly will become gated since you have the glass wall between the concourse and shed so I'm not really sure where they'd go.

 

[thealexweb]

I wonder how Manchester Piccadilly will become gated since you have the glass wall between the concourse and shed so I'm not really sure where they'd go.

I hope they a programmed to spit out any Greater Manchester ticket, passengers can retain them to use on the Metrolink inside the city zone.

 

[dannypye9999]

Blackpool North should be demolished into a 2 platform station as I feel this 9 platform station is wasted. Only 5 departures hourly from the busiest seaside resort along with a crammed out concourse during the summer.

 

[Whistler40145]

Doesn't Blackpool North to Euston warrant a Saturday service or is it a lack of stock/paths?



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[dk1]

Doesn't Blackpool North to Euston warrant a Saturday service or is it a lack of stock/paths?



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

I would very much think it does throughout the year. Trouble is these through trains are planned to be in marginal time which tends to be early morning/late evening both of which are of little use to long distance passengers heading to/from this resort.

 

[The Planner]

Blackpool North should be demolished into a 2 platform station as I feel this 9 platform station is wasted. Only 5 departures hourly from the busiest seaside resort along with a crammed out concourse during the summer.

Eh? So you would knock it down into a smaller station and then say it is crammed in summer?

 

[dk1]

Eh? So you would knock it down into a smaller station and then say it is crammed in summer?

Some posts on here never fail to amaze me. Must be a wind up.

 

[Manchester77]

Some posts on here never fail to amaze me. Must be a wind up.

I think you should note that the posting was made by the same user who made this posting about northern:

Northern do NOT deserve this franchise.
SIMPLE REASONS:
Dirty Smelly Toilets
Passengers on the route (Stoke-Manchester) always have to wait about one minute for the train doors to open in the station (doesn't happen on Birminghams cross city, same trains)
Always small trains on the busiest routes, never anything extra on football days to help with the overcrowding, stupid policy of never running two 323 units coupled together during peak times.
Never buy any new trains.
Same timetable and frequencys since 1980's
Crackly and a very bad PA system on all of their trains.
Boring livery and logo
Still using diesel DMU trains from the 70's
Failing to buck up their ideas and make priorities

so I think its best to take some of the stuff they say with a pinch or two of salt.

 

[moogal]

Ticket gates to be installed at Crewe, London Euston, Macclesfield, Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Stoke-on Trent, Rugby, Birmingham International and Birmingham New Street stations

I'd be intrigued as to how they'll manage with gating Rugby. I'd imagine there'd be barriers in the ticket hall area, but what about the far end of the tunnel? Is there much room down there?

 

[dk1]

I think you should note that the posting was made by the same user who made this posting about northern:

so I think its best to take some of the stuff they say with a pinch or two of salt.

Thought so.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Blackpool North should be demolished into a 2 platform station as I feel this 9 platform station is wasted. Only 5 departures hourly from the busiest seaside resort along with a crammed out concourse during the summer.

8 platforms, and 4 departures an hour actually. I could see the justification for getting rid of literally a couple (though IIRC everything gets a depaprture a day as a minimum, some are used only once or twice) of platforms, but two remaining is absolute nonsense.

 

[The Ham]

From the 'Urban' entry just underneath, but in fairness that does cover a lot of places you would consider independent of Reading (like Theale and Wokingham); but only in the same way Keynes's entry on Wiki does (which covers places like Newport Pagnell and Woburn Sands).

I tend to use this as my Bible on these kinds of matters though, they filter through a lot of ONS stuff to get the figures:

http://lovemytown.co.uk/Populations/TownsTable1.asp

(Reading 219,000, Keynes 172,000)

Those in MK who complain about a lack of train servies from their town should look at the number of services from the Farnborough/Aldershot Built-up Area (population of 252,937 in 2011). There are 10 services an hour over 4 lines, with only 6 of these being London bound servies.

 

[aylesbury2]

20tph? at best you get 3tph south (VT not in the peak), 3 tph north (VT), 1 tph south (southern), 5 tph south (LM), 4 tph north (LM).

So that's 16

RTT says 20tph.

 

[snail]

Reading is similar and the main objection there seems to be that commuters use the fast train. My response is why should they use a slower train to get to/from work when their ticket allows them to use the fast one?

Why is the discussion only about people travelling from Milton Keynes or Reading to London? I would have thought that Reading is a more popular destination from outside London than Milton Keynes. Add extra stops and you may increase revenue from commuters but could lose some by putting off long distance travellers with the increased journey times and restricted seat availability. If I'm travelling north from Euston I don't want to stand for half an hour so commuters can get to Milton Keynes.

 

[315804]

The new West Coast franchise will run until March 20171
Wow, super long franchise, they've done well :roll: