The Ticket Collector

January 2007 - Fare Increases.

Its that time of the year again - the end of the year. Fare increases are coming. Good old ATOC keep using the same old excuse that the money is needed to pay for the renewal of the trains/track/etc blah blah.

DfT Rips up GNER Franchise Contract, but………

The Department for Transport aka UK Government PLC has agreed to rip up GNER’s £1.3 billion franchise agreement to operate the East Coast main line railway.

The DfTransport has finally decided to re-let the franchise, but as a interim solution, GNER will be allowed to continue to run it for up to two years on a new, fixed-management-contract basis. Talks are under way between the DfT and GNER to agree the terms of the new arrangement. It is expected to run for between 18 and 24 months until a new invitation to tender can be produced and a train operating company selected.

GNER’s former chief executive, admitted the group had overbid. GNER is understood to be perilously close to being in breach of its liquidity ratio, the amount of cash that it is legally required to retain to honour its franchise agreement.

So it seems that we will have to cope with GNER for another year and a half, two years at most.

RMT to ballot GNER members on 35 Hour Week.

Members of the RMT at GNER are to be balloted for Strike action over GNER’s failure to implement a 35 hour week. GNER previously agreed to introduce the 35 hour week.

RMT has notified GNER of its intention to ballot for action following the failure of the company to sign off implementation of the shorter working week for any member of staff, despite an agreement having been reached several years ago.

GNER is refusing to discuss this matter with the Union, Instead they are cynically trying to use the 35 hour week as cover for the staff cuts they are implmenting.

Said Bob Crow “GNER Travel centres in Edinburgh and at King’s Cross are both operating with 20 staff fewer than the agreed levels, and at Kings Cross there are several staff on long-term sick leave due to the resulting stress.”

“It is the same story with on-train teams, where the recruitment ban is having a major negative effect on the remaining staff members, and the failure to replace chefs is fuelling fears that GNER is preparing to cut its prestige restaurant cars altogether.”

“Everyone knows that Sea Containers is in deep financial crisis and is trying to sweat its assets and squeeze every last drop of cash out the franchise, but we have already warned GNER that we will not stand by and watch them make our members pay with their jobs.

“We are happy to negotiate implementation of the long-promised 35-hour week, and we are now due to meet the company at national level on December 6, but we have made it clear that we are now in dispute,” Bob Crow said.

GNER are really having problems (as if we didnt know that allready) and its good to see the Unions actually doing somthing for a change.

Update on Brighton Derailment

The new current estimate for a normal service to resume is the start of service, Monday 19 November 2006.
First Capital Connect:
Train services will start from and terminate at Haywards Heath they will not serve any stations between Haywards Heath and Brighton. A limited train service will operate between Haywards Heath and Preston Park in either direction.
Haywards Heath to Preston Park, XX:28 past each hour
Preston Park to Haywards Heath, XX:03 past each hour

Southern Railway:
Train services between London Victoria and Brighton will start from and terminate at Preston Park
Please see ‘easements’ at the bottom of the page for connections to/ from Brighton.

First Capital Connect and Southern Railway
Passengers to and from Brighton are strongly advised to travel via Lewes, a Shuttle bus service will operate between Brighton and Lewes from the start of service at the following times:
Brighton to Lewes, XX:40 and XX:10 minutes past each hour calling at London Road, Moulscoomb, Falmer and Lewes.
Lewes to Brighton, XX:55 and XX:25 minutes past each hour calling at Falmer, Moulscoomb, London Road and Brighton.

Southern Railway Seaford to Brighton services will start from and terminate at Lewes
Southern Railway Ashford to Brighton services will start from and terminate at Eastbourne with all trains also calling at Hampden Park.

A special shuttle train service will operate between Eastbourne and Three Bridges calling all stations to Lewes then Wivelsfield, Haywards Heath and Three Bridges, will connect at Three Bridges into First Capital Connect and alternative Southern services.

Virmin Trains:
09:40 Brighton to Oxford service will start from Gatwick Airport.

First Great Western and South West Trains:
First Great Western and South West Trains do not have any scheduled train services into or out of Brighton for Sunday 19 November. Their bus replacement services will operate normally.

Brighton & Hove buses will accept National Rail tickets between Preston Park and Brighton.

No Christmas party at FCC

Apparently First dont do or fund the Christmas party, grr. I bet GNER have a Christmas party and they cant even afford it. WAGN used to have Christmas parties, mind you most people couldnt drink booze at them because they were working the next day.
So what are we getting? £25 of ‘Capital Incentive Vouchers” which apparently can be spent in up to 120 shops. ooooh wowie. £25 hmm I wonder what I can buy with that?

Then they say that we are not getting any Christmas Cards from First Group. Is this so that it does not offend the people that dont celebrate Christmas, or just because they want to divert the money elsewhere? I had a Christmas card last year from the Director of National Express Rail and from the Director of WAGN.

Overhead wire problems on Hertford North loop

There has been an ADD/AAD activation on the Hertford North Loop. Dont ask me what the hell an ADD/AAD is.
Alterations and delays can be expected.

Hertford North/Moorgate trains have been delayed as result of this.

edit: 17:30 - Things have started getting back to normal.

Engineering work between Huntingdon and Peterborough for the next few weekends.

There will be Engineering work between Huntingdon and Peterborough:
From 17:00 on Saturday 18th November until 09:00 on Sunday 19th November,
from 17:00 on Saturday 25th November until 09:00 on Sunday 26th November, and
from 17:00 on Saturday 2nd December until 09:00 on Sunday 3rd December.

Services towards London Kings Cross from Peterborough.
GNER services to London Kings Cross will terminate at Peterbourgh for a replacement coach to Huntingdon. First Capital Connect services will then run to London Kings Cross ‘as booked’.

First Capital Connect services will start and terminate at Huntingdon

Hull Trains will be diverted via Ely and Cambridge.

Services from London Kings Cross towards Peterborough.
A reduced number of GNER services from 18.00 will operate direct from London Kings Cross. First Capital Connect services will start and terminate at Huntingdon for a replacement coach to Peterborough.

Hull Trains will be diverted via Cambridge and Ely.

Links to amended Timetables:

• http://www.firstcapitalconnect.co.uk/uploads/engineering/Sat%2018Nov%20Hun.pdf - Saturday
• http://www.firstcapitalconnect.co.uk/uploads/engineering/Sun%2019Nov%20Hun.pdf - Sunday