Additionally to the large amount of cancellations Wmr have been using a large amount of Chiltern 172s (Still with Chiltern livery and interior; which is a quite repulsive dark blue and orange), i am likely incorrect but it seems they are on a very quick and unplanned lease or something similar to that
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WMR Cancellations/Problems
- Thread starter GWVillager
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trundlewagon
Member
There's 4 (ex-)Chiltern 172/1s. Think it was a temporary move at first but was made permanent. They've all got WMR livery but still have (rather dark and tatty) Chiltern interior and could do with a good refurb inside.
The 172/1's of which there are 4 are apparently staying long term with WMR. At the moment their is an apparent maintenance backlog with 172's and also 172's are still covering Hereford diagrams as full 196 service has not happened.
I immagine once all Hereford trains are 196's the 172/1's will be off for an interior update and also full DCO system installation.
This will then mean all Snow Hill line services should be 5 carriages long.
I immagine once all Hereford trains are 196's the 172/1's will be off for an interior update and also full DCO system installation.
This will then mean all Snow Hill line services should be 5 carriages long.
trainophile
Established Member
They put a 2-car (sorry didn't notice what Class) on yesterday, 14:50 BHM-HFD. The Friday of a bank holiday weekend. Why is the Hereford service always the poor relation? Waiting for departure I saw a couple of 4 or 5 coach trains on local services, Redditch and Bromsgrove I think, with hardly anyone on them. No doubt they'd say it was the wrong type of train or something, but for an hourly service which is always busy it's pretty poor.
Dr Hoo
Established Member
Redditch and Bromsgrove are normal 2x 3-car Class 323 EMU (and well loaded). Was the power off or something?
The Cross-City line is electrified whilst the Hereford line isn’t (beyond Bromsgrove). So with the best will in the world, 6-car electric formations from the Cross-City can’t be split down to help with the Hereford line.
GWVillager
Member
It is the wrong type of train, as others have pointed out Hereford isn't electrified so it would be physically impossible to send a 323 there. But it has certainly drawn the short end of the stick, the service is rather poor. I imagine this is primarily due to low external funding - unlike much of the WMR network, this service is firmly outside of the reach of the WMCA, and thus it receives less attention. You certainly get the impression that no-one really wants to run it.
It's the others that are the worst I find, they've become very grotty with dirty floors, windows and paint, loose seats, graffitied toilets and scratched glass. A very unpleasant travelling environment, particularly for the longer routes.
Liam L
Established Member
So that explains the short formations I saw on the snow hill line the other day.
centraltrains
Member
Come on! This is RailForums, a class 37 dragging 323s should be the obvious call to action!
Customer Service backlog seems high at WMR too. Still waiting on a response for refunds for an abandoned journey in March.
Last got a reply for a similar issue was sent in December and replied to in April.
On Tuesday I was commuting home from Snow Hill, 3 Dorridge/Whitlock's trains had been cancelled in a row and while awaiting the delayed 17:05 an announcement was made that platform 3 had been temporally closed due to platform overcrowding. First time I've heard that at Snow Hill!
Not been great this summer on the Snow Hill Lines, as others say, hopefully just a Summer thing. It's been generally a very reliable service up until the summer.
Kite159
Veteran Member
Just go to the ombudsman if they are dragging their heels from something back in March or if anything takes longer than 8 weeks.
Might not resolve the issue but could put extra pressure as it gets flagged up to a higher level person
trainophile
Established Member
I put in a claim for a cancelled train on 2nd January this year, got my refund on 13th June! I'd almost given up and chucked the ticket away during a tidy up, but put it on one side and remembered it was still there when they finally asked for a photo of it.
GWVillager
Member
Touché!Come on! This is RailForums, a class 37 dragging 323s should be the obvious call to action!
My experience with WMR Customer Service has been relatively good, though admittedly the last time I had to deal with them was 2021. Things really seem to have come to a head over the past few months, so I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s also the case there. The ever-present staff shortages, perhaps?
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