The Ticket Collector

So just what is “on time” when it comes to the Railway?

The term ‘on time’ normally means that a train arrives at the correct time publicised in a timetable - correct?
No, not on the railway its not.

When it comes to punctually - the figures which the Railway Companies print huge A1 posters and show off and say “hey look at us we have 98% punctually, blah blah” and which also determines your season ticket discount . You’d expect that when they say they have 98% that 98% of trains arrived at the destination at the timetabled time.
Wrong! The trains only have to arrive within 5 minutes of the timetabled time.

So the train arrives 5 minutes late and it is still on time! Even better is that long distance ‘intercity’ services have an extra 5 minutes allowance. So now the train can be up to 10 minutes and be still on time!

Now what the Railway Companies are getting wise to is that they can add extra minutes into the timetable here and there as ‘recovery time’. So if they are regularly failing the 10 minutes time the can always add extra minutes into the working timetable to compensate. Now what the Train Company would say is this ‘recovery time’ is to compensate for engineering works and speed restrictions.

When it comes to compensation for the trains running late, you have to be delayed by 30 minutes before you even get to start to get compensation. But what with the extra minutes being added here and there just how late is it in real terms?

FCC is the worst Operator - National Passenger Survey

The National Passenger Survey was released yesterday and it comes up with some bad reading for many of the Train Companies mentioned.

The latest survey compared the passengers satisfaction levels for individual train operating companies with the survey carried out in Spring 2006. Since 2006 four Train Companies satisfaction levels have declined significantly (First Great Western, First ScotRail, First Capital Connect and Northern Rail), and three have significantly improved (Midland Mainline, Arriva Trains Wales and Heathrow Express). Fourteen have had no statistically significant changes in their overall satisfaction results compared with Spring 2006.

• The lowest ratings for overall satisfaction were given to First Capital Connect [First Group] (71%), First Great Western [First Group] (72%), One [National Express Group] (72%), Southeastern (74%), and Silverlink [National Express Group](76%).

• The highest ratings for overall satisfaction were achieved by Heathrow Express (94%), Gatwick Express [National Express Group] (92%), Chiltern Railways (90%), Midland Mainline [National Express Group] (90%), c2c [National Express Group] (89%), and TransPennine Express [First Group] (89%).

Rail Watchdog refuses to investigate ‘excessive’ fare rises.

Arrivia Trains Wales (ATW) and South West Trains (SWT) have recently increased their unregulated fares by as much as 34%.

The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) said the increases were unwelcome to the travelling public but it was “not appropriate to open an investigation”.

Examples of SWT’s increases, which were first announced in March, include a cheap-day return from Alton, in Hampshire, to London rising from £15.80 to £19 - a 20.25% increase.

A Bournemouth-to-London cheap-day return will go up from £36.40 to £43.70 - a 20.05% rise.

The real reason for these increases is the fact that the South East is getting so overcrowded that the only way to decrease passengers is to increase the fares.

In other news FCC have very quietly increased their fares from stations in the London Zones, apparently according to a Letter from Customer Services the original price increase in January was incorrect and now they are adjusting them to the correct prices.

Rail Acident Branch releases Huntingdon Report

A while ago back in the days of wagn a member of the public got their coat caught in a door and the train went off with them still trapped in the door.

The RAIB (part of the Dft, aka The Government), has released its report into the acident and made some recommendations.

There are a lot of pretty pictures, some in depth diagrams with lots of whizzy arrows and measurements. There is some really poor CCTV as well.

http://www.raib.gov.uk/cms_resources/070430_R112007_Huntingdon.pdf

The recommendations from the RAIB are as follows:

Recommendations arising from causal and contributory factors

1. FCC should ensure that driver training is reviewed with a view to increasing the emphasis placed on, and understanding of, aligning the unit correctly with the optimum viewing position of the monitor bank. The training should also identify what actions the driver should take if a person is observed to be in close proximity to the side of the train when the driver is taking power (paragraphs 102 and 105).
2. Network Rail should ensure that the specification for replacement and new CCTV monitors require improved image contrast when viewed at an angle. The specified viewing angle should make a reasonable allowance for variation in a
   driver’s stopping performance (paragraph 108).
3. HSBC should review the design of the Class 365 Unit door seal and the door control mechanism so as to reduce the door closing forces, with a view to reducing, so far as is reasonably practicable, the forces required to extract trapped
   objects. This review should take into account existing standards (paragraph 104).
4. Network Rail should review the position of the cameras associated with the CCTV system for DOO at Huntingdon station with the objective of minimising the likelihood that a passenger standing in close proximity to the train will obstruct the driver’s view of passengers standing at other doors (paragraph 107).
5. Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) should review Railway Group Standard GM/RT2473 in terms of the correlation between the obstacle extraction test, seal design and the forces required to extract trapped objects or materials (paragraph 104).Recommendations arising from other safety issues
6. FCC should review and if necessary modify the signage and controls for emergency exits at doors on the Class 365 Unit in view of the passenger reaction in this accident so as to ensure ‘best’ passenger reaction in an emergency is achieved (paragraph 111). This review should be carried out in consultation with the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) and with reference to the existing ATOC standard (Reference 13).

Should I keep this blog running?

I know this blog is popular what with all the visits from various people and employees of big major companies visiting on their company internets.

But the thing that is starting to nark me off, is the fact that I am not getting any reconigtion for doing this blog. I know big major newspaper companies do visit this site, more then likley to see what the latest thing thats been leaked is. But since The Times decided to steal the content of this site I have not listed anything which was not in the Public Domain. I have plenty of juicy documents sent to me from my contact in the DfT about the new railway franchises. Did you know for example that theyve already decided on the final 2 for the ECML?

Now I have not had any awards, have not had any big newspapers mention this site in their papers even though they obviously visit for the leaked documents. I spend a lot of time on this blog and am thinking why do I bother. Feel free to comment.

On another note well done to Disgruntled Commuter who has been shortlisted in the Metro blog awards.

Off Peak Fare Regulation?? Yes or No?

With South West Trains recent annoucment that they are adding a new off peak because too many people are using their service, would you want the Government to regulate all fares?

At the moment the Government regulates Savers and Cheap Day Returns and these cannot be increased more then around rpi+1 without the Governments consent. All other tickets can be increased any amount and in the case of SWT they have decided to add a third peak and increased fares 20%.

I have found a petition on 10 Downing Streets website at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/regulatefares/ Please sign it, if you think the fare increases are getting too much.

Re-nationalise rail network?

Was browsing the web and came across this listed on a fellow bloggers site. The UK Government is apparently having talks with Network Rail about bringing back the Railways into public ownership.

ScotRail could be a test-bed for this new idea.

Labour’s Scottish election manifesto, states: “The case for running the Scottish franchise on a not-for-profit basis needs to be fully examined as part of the preparation for the next franchise.” So it seems that First ScotRail could become Network ScotRail.

How would Scottish Rail seem to people?

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/transport/article1642806.ece