West Coast Franchise

[jaigee]

And you obviously don't live in Stafford ! The train is the only VT one per hour to / from London. I see you argument though. May be better to stop the Euston - Glasgow trains at Stafford as Stafford currently has no direct service at all to Scotland.

That's one more per hour than Nuneaton. :cry:

When Nuneaton had an hourly VT service there was always a healthy flow of passengers to and from the East Midlands trains. This has now dwindled to the odd few, the rest presumably travelling via Birmingham or by other routes/modes of transport.

 

[Zoe]

When Nuneaton had an hourly VT service there was always a healthy flow of passengers to and from the East Midlands trains.

Nuneaton does have an hourly direct train to London though.

 

[MCR247]

And Stafford has two

 

[Statto]

Nuneaton does have an hourly direct train to London though.

Which takes 1hr 45 min, as apposed to VT which took 1hr.

Can't see why the VT Chester/North Wales services don't stop at Nuneaton, & maybe Stafford, as well as Crewe, with the VT Liverpool train calling at Crewe instead of Stafford.

 

[Zoe]

It all depends what you really want Virgin Trains to be. They can be considered the only true high speed intercity TOC and so have no interest in serving places like Nuneaton and Tamworth is their primary job is to get people between major cities as fast as possible. You can't have it both ways.

 

[jaigee]

It all depends what you really want Virgin Trains to be. They can be considered the only true high speed intercity TOC and so have no interest in serving places like Nuneaton and Tamworth is their primary job is to get people between major cities as fast as possible. You can't have it both ways.

So why do they stop at Stafford?

 

[Zoe]

So why do they stop at Stafford?

I'm surprised they still do, considering there is a direct London Midland service to London. Personally I think Stafford, Nuneaton and Tamworth all deserve fast intercity services to London but I don't think Virgin Trains would agree.

 

[Statto]

It all depends what you really want Virgin Trains to be. They can be considered the only true high speed intercity TOC and so have no interest in serving places like Nuneaton and Tamworth is their primary job is to get people between major cities as fast as possible. You can't have it both ways.

VT have some frequent routes though, maybe 1 an hour Off Peak, with extra Peak trains as happens now could stop at Nuneaton, maybe one of the Manchester trains an hour could stop there, if there going to 4 an hour when the new franchise starts.

 

[Daimler]

It all depends what you really want Virgin Trains to be. They can be considered the only true high speed intercity TOC and so have no interest in serving places like Nuneaton and Tamworth is their primary job is to get people between major cities as fast as possible. You can't have it both ways.

Why not? Why not have some fast expresses and some slower trains? Intercity seemed to manage it - and with far fewer trains overall.

 

[Zoe]

Why not? Why not have some fast expresses and some slower trains? Intercity seemed to manage it - and with far fewer trains overall.

I think Virgin want fast, frequent trains betwen major cities. Adding stops to any of the increases their headline journey times.

 

[TomJ93]

I'm surprised they stop at Coventry! Not that i'm complaining

 

[Zoe]

I'm surprised they stop at Coventry! Not that i'm complaining

Coventry is a majory city. It would be a bit stupid not to stop there.

 

[Daimler]

I think Virgin want fast, frequent trains betwen major cities. Adding stops to any of the reduced their headline journey times.

Not in the least. Headline journey times are just that - the fastest trains. I would advocate some very fast trains, and quite a few 'reasonably fast' trains, that still provide a service for the countless large places which have seen their direct intercity trains decimated during Virgin's tenure.

 

[Zoe]

Not in the least. Headline journey times are just that - the fastest trains. I would advocate some very fast trains, and quite a few 'reasonably fast' trains, that still provide a service for the countless large places which have seen their direct intercity trains decimated during Virgin's tenure.

Sorry, for some reason I put reduced rather than increases but from Virgin's point of view they'd no longer be able to claim a clockface timetable with all trains running at the headline journey times.

 

[TomJ93]

But 3 trains an hour? The same as Manchester?
Liverpool only gets 1
Bristol gets 1 or 2 I think
Leicester 3
Sheffield 2

Please don't think I'm ungrateful, I think we get a fantastic service but i'm surprised it has been sacrificed to shave off a couple of minutes off of the New Street service.

 

[MCR247]

Coventry doesn't get 3tph in its own right, but it would be pointless not to stop there.

Like Leicester only gets 4tph )) for the same reason

 

[Daimler]

Sorry, for some reason I put reduced rather than increases but from Virgin's point of view they'd no longer be able to claim a clockface timetable with all trains running at the headline journey times.

Do people really care about ten minutes when they're travelling for two or more hours? And if they do, they can just book on the faster train - goodness me, there are three trains an hour to Manchester - you aren't seriously suggesting there's no scope to have at least one of them stop a little more?

And while they would no longer be able to claim every one of their trains follows the 'headline' journey time (and to be honest, I'm not sure they all do even now!), they could make the far more exciting claim that they're offering all sorts of new direct journey opportunities for passengers up and down the West Coast - even by only slowing down one or two services an hour across the whole Virgin network!

 

[Ivo]

Liverpool only gets 1
Bristol gets 1 or 2 I think

Allowing for Parkway, Bristol gets four HSTs every hour to London - the best of the major cities. It is compared to this that Liverpool is really shown to struggle.

 

[MCR247]

Daimler: But slowing one down will affect more trains than just that train...

 

[Zoe]

If the pendolini could split en route then you could give Liverpool an extra service by stopping the Preston services at Crewe and splitting there. I think this is one feature Virgin should have considered when ordering the trains.

 

[TomJ93]

I understand the I is a bit close to to O Zie but it's Pendolino

just kidding ofcourse!

 

[Zoe]

I understand the I is a bit close to to O Zie but it's Pendolino

Not if there's more than one of them.

 

[TomJ93]

Pendolinos? :P

 

[Zoe]

Pendolinos?

If you are going to use English just say tilting trains.

 

[Daimler]

Daimler: But slowing one down will affect more trains than just that train...

True, and I admit something I hadn't factored into my original post. Nonetheless, considering a new London-Preston/Blackpool/Lancaster slower service to run every hour is being mooted for the new franchise, the space is there to serve some more stations - and it looks like (finally!) this will be happening.

 

[TomJ93]

Maybe we need a thread on the plural of Pendolino!

Will we be able to find out what each bidder has bought to the table?

 

[jaigee]

But 3 trains an hour? The same as Manchester?
Liverpool only gets 1

If the proposed 2012 services on the WCML get the go ahead, Liverpool will get an additional through (LM) train to London, but the bad news is it will take 4 hours 10 minutes!

Still, it will stop at Nuneaton, but that will take 2 hours 13 minutes. :cry:

Also, The half-hourly Birmingham service will become hourly, Preston getting the other Birmingham service.

http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/s22-london-midland-wcml-business-case.pdf

 

[Zoe]

Maybe we need a thread on the plural of Pendolino!

-ino is a masculine diminutive suffix. The plural is -ini.

Will we be able to find out what each bidder has bought to the table?

I doubt it, it's confidential information.

 

[Geezertronic]

Maybe we need a thread on the plural of Pendolino!

Just call them 390s, that's what I tend to do

 

[Ivo]

Or shorten it to "Pendo" like I and some others do?