Took one of my irregular trips on SER this morning. Only 7 minutes late, due to the signalling at Lewisham that they already havent fixed for two days. Got backnto Eltham again, reading this, and thinking good job I got away smartish.
Then I remembered I' m supposed to get over to Surbiton tonight for 7.30
And then there's this winter timetable. I mean WTF? I like studying weather, I've got three apps, I thought, did I miss this snowstorm?
So what's on my app? basically a bit of sleet in the early hours. Wont even hit freezing point. I mean, WTAF?
Seriously. If the infrastructure is this fragile nowadays...I can only commiserate with you guys
Took one of my irregular trips on SER this morning. Only 7 minutes late, due to the signalling at Lewisham that they already havent fixed for two days. Got backnto Eltham again, reading this, and thinking good job I got away smartish.
Then I remembered I' m supposed to get over to Surbiton tonight for 7.30
And then there's this winter timetable. I mean WTF? I like studying weather, I've got three apps, I thought, did I miss this snowstorm?
So what's on my app? basically a bit of sleet in the early hours. Wont even hit freezing point. I mean, WTAF?
Seriously. If the infrastructure is this fragile nowadays...I can only commiserate with you guys
Trains on Southern Region ( Nationalised under British Rail), Network South East or South Eastern Trains is and have always been basically shit when there were any adverse weather or any operating conditions to deal with. Not a matter of "nowadays" but it really should be better nowadays.
Thank goodness the winter timetable was put in place.
Weather wise it's absolute carnage out there. When out walking the dog this morning I had to avoid a patch of slush on the pavement measuring approx. 16 inches x 10 inches.
I can't even begin to imagine how slippery the train tracks are.
Half the number of trains, 3 extra stops at busy Tonbridge, sevenoaks and orpington and 8 instead of usual 12 coaches. And arm rest broken. Clown show.
Half the number of trains, 3 extra stops at busy Tonbridge, sevenoaks and orpington and 8 instead of usual 12 coaches. And arm rest broken. Clown show.
Thank goodness the winter timetable was put in place.
Weather wise it's absolute carnage out there. When out walking the dog this morning I had to avoid a patch of slush on the pavement measuring approx. 16 inches x 10 inches.
I can't even begin to imagine how slippery the train tracks are.
I really should have taken pics on my journey into work this morning so we could all play "Spot the Snow". I could then send them to Southeastern and ask them if they think their boss would accept these conditions as an excuse not to work?
I wouldn't mind so much if the useless fuckers said they were running a normal timetable unless the weather was especially bad. But no, they decide in advance to just halve the number of trains they're running regardless of the actual weather conditions.
Bottom line is that Southeastern went to the winter timetable because they knew that if there was lots of snow the schedule would go to shit and they would be hit with an avalanche of Delay Repay claims
Took one of my irregular trips on SER this morning. Only 7 minutes late, due to the signalling at Lewisham that they already havent fixed for two days. Got backnto Eltham again, reading this, and thinking good job I got away smartish.
Then I remembered I' m supposed to get over to Surbiton tonight for 7.30
And then there's this winter timetable. I mean WTF? I like studying weather, I've got three apps, I thought, did I miss this snowstorm?
So what's on my app? basically a bit of sleet in the early hours. Wont even hit freezing point. I mean, WTAF?
Seriously. If the infrastructure is this fragile nowadays...I can only commiserate with you guys
Trains on Southern Region ( Nationalised under British Rail), Network South East or South Eastern Trains is and have always been basically shit when there were any adverse weather or any operating conditions to deal with. Not a matter of "nowadays" but it really should be better nowadays.
Don't forget that not only was I a rail commuter into London until the early 90s but British Rail was actually my client in the final five years. Of course I recall that the entire transport system buckled if there was - genuine - severe weather. What gobsmacks here is this SER "winter timetable".
Specifically as a typical Charlton Anorak I know that the type of electric power - the third rail system - is problematic. That's why you generally only find it in other countries underground. However third rail is used on the Berlin S-Bahn which is very intensive and has to deal with a much tougher winter than London ever has.
The thing is that third rail is used right across the old Southern Region, which means South West Trains. They have not cut their service in half this morning, even though a lot of their trains are coming in from rural Hampshire where it seems there has been significant actual snow this morning, as opposed to a bit of sleet.
That is what should concern everybody. It seems like SER cannot even interpret a weather forecast properly and throw in the towel before any bad weather has even materialized. What on earth is going to happen if there is real snow and sub zero weather for a week, like before Christmas in, was it 2011?
I think this is what you call Not Fit for Purpose. Literally.
It’s nice and comfortable sitting up in bed working from home. Unfortunately, we’re still staying at my mums so can’t fully experience the usual ‘benefits’
So let me get this right. South Eastern have implemented their 'winter timetable'. Yet Thameslink, who are using exactly the same tracks as SouthEastern south of London are running their normal timetable.
It’s nice and comfortable sitting up in bed working from home. Unfortunately, we’re still staying at my mums so can’t fully experience the usual ‘benefits’
A bloke I used to work with told a story about how when he was about 17, he bright his first proper bird home to his house to meet his mum.
His mum told the girl in front of him that she couldn’t wait for the son and bird to get better acquainted so that she didn’t need to wash out his “wanky hankie” a few times a week.
But the other thing that puzzles me, and this is all part of the total shitfest form of privatization that was dreamed up, is this. We are giving SER richly deserved pelters, but if you take the failure to fix a signaling problem at Lewisham the whole week, that's Network Rail's fault. And then when it comes to keeping the tracks clear of snow and ice, that is also primarily Network Rail's job. Although I think one of the things they have to do, to keep them clear, is actually run trains, through the night. Which means that, i suppose, Network Rail need the support of the train companies because they have the trains.
But then it still comes back to SER. It seems to be saying that it didn't trust Network Rail to keep the tracks clear, whereas Thameslink and SWR did. Thats' bollocks, isn't it. Seems to me @Lordflashheart has rumbled them, above.
- They run a Saturday timetable on a workday to ensure trains run on time - just in case it snows - It doesn't really snow in SE London - Train crawls through SE London, arriving late at London Bridge - Tannoy: "We apologise for late arrival, blah, this is due to adverse weather conditions"
But the other thing that puzzles me, and this is all part of the total shitfest form of privatization that was dreamed up, is this. We are giving SER richly deserved pelters, but if you take the failure to fix a signaling problem at Lewisham the whole week, that's Network Rail's fault. And then when it comes to keeping the tracks clear of snow and ice, that is also primarily Network Rail's job. Although I think one of the things they have to do, to keep them clear, is actually run trains, through the night. Which means that, i suppose, Network Rail need the support of the train companies because they have the trains.
But then it still comes back to SER. It seems to be saying that it didn't trust Network Rail to keep the tracks clear, whereas Thameslink and SWR did. Thats' bollocks, isn't it. Seems to me @Lordflashheart has rumbled them, above.
Prague, they run sleet trains through the night which spray the tracks and points with deicer.
Has there actually been any significant snow in the SE region? I know we had a light dusting in Welling overnight but that had mostly gone by the morning. None visible on the way into London. It's basically just a bit cold and a bit wet.
My train was cancelled this morning which made me 30 minutes later than normal for my none job. I had a brief chat with the southeastern chap at Orpington. I pointed out its not even a stiff frost let alone 1/2 inch of snow and he came out with a belter, "you should see what they've got in the West country". As if that a good enough excuse for a duvet day and a nice long weekend. On the plus side I got a train to London bridge and then another to Charing Cross and as pay treat I took the tube to work. Proper Charlton.
Roly really acquired the wrong organisation - if he wants something where you can treat your customers like shit, blame everyone else when things go wrong, lie through your teeth all the time, have absolutely no idea how to run the business and collect bundles of risk free cash in return - then he should really look into acquiring the Southeastern franchise. I'm sure he'd get on well with Grayling in any negotiations.
Still don't understand why they have to reduce the length of the trains as well as their number. I can just about get my head around the idea that the threat of snow might mean that they need to reduce the timetable - although I do wonder how Stockholm and Moscow manage to cope on the overground sections of their rail networks that also have a third rail.
It’s nice and comfortable sitting up in bed working from home. Unfortunately, we’re still staying at my mums so can’t fully experience the usual ‘benefits’
Not SER, but you will like this one I think. I am right now at Ebbsfleet, sitting on a Eurostar. It arrived a few minutes late, and we were then told that it would wait here a few minutes , because there was a problem with a passenger. That was at 9.45. Ten minutes later, they updated. They were waiting for the police - explicitly not ambulance - to come and take the passenger away. They just now said that they are still waiting for plod to actually arrive.
You have to suppose, that the passenger is not wielding a knife or a gun, and that this is the reason why plod are taking their time at 10.00 on a Saturday morning. But it's slightly concerning that they cannot get to a strategically important site like this a bit quicker.
Update, 10.09, they have arrived now. I make that almost half an hour to respond.
Comments
Signal problems again - where this time do you reckon??
Yep - Lewisham!
C**TS!!!!!!!!
Then I remembered I' m supposed to get over to Surbiton tonight for 7.30
And then there's this winter timetable. I mean WTF? I like studying weather, I've got three apps, I thought, did I miss this snowstorm?
So what's on my app? basically a bit of sleet in the early hours. Wont even hit freezing point. I mean, WTAF?
Seriously. If the infrastructure is this fragile nowadays...I can only commiserate with you guys
Weather wise it's absolute carnage out there. When out walking the dog this morning I had to avoid a patch of slush on the pavement measuring approx. 16 inches x 10 inches.
I can't even begin to imagine how slippery the train tracks are.
It's warmer than faaakin Greece today
I wouldn't mind so much if the useless fuckers said they were running a normal timetable unless the weather was especially bad. But no, they decide in advance to just halve the number of trains they're running regardless of the actual weather conditions.
Utter utter tossers
What gobsmacks here is this SER "winter timetable".
Specifically as a typical Charlton Anorak I know that the type of electric power - the third rail system - is problematic. That's why you generally only find it in other countries underground. However third rail is used on the Berlin S-Bahn which is very intensive and has to deal with a much tougher winter than London ever has.
The thing is that third rail is used right across the old Southern Region, which means South West Trains. They have not cut their service in half this morning, even though a lot of their trains are coming in from rural Hampshire where it seems there has been significant actual snow this morning, as opposed to a bit of sleet.
That is what should concern everybody. It seems like SER cannot even interpret a weather forecast properly and throw in the towel before any bad weather has even materialized. What on earth is going to happen if there is real snow and sub zero weather for a week, like before Christmas in, was it 2011?
I think this is what you call Not Fit for Purpose. Literally.
Defies belief doesnt it.
His mum told the girl in front of him that she couldn’t wait for the son and bird to get better acquainted so that she didn’t need to wash out his “wanky hankie” a few times a week.
But then it still comes back to SER. It seems to be saying that it didn't trust Network Rail to keep the tracks clear, whereas Thameslink and SWR did. Thats' bollocks, isn't it. Seems to me @Lordflashheart has rumbled them, above.
- They run a Saturday timetable on a workday to ensure trains run on time - just in case it snows
- It doesn't really snow in SE London
- Train crawls through SE London, arriving late at London Bridge
- Tannoy: "We apologise for late arrival, blah, this is due to adverse weather conditions"
Their answer, they understand the frustration, but they are needed to ensure other services across the south east are running.
HOW IS THAT EVEN MATHMATICALLY POSSIBLE??!!! I swear they’ve got magical disappearing trains that just fuck off into the abyss.
I had a brief chat with the southeastern chap at Orpington. I pointed out its not even a stiff frost let alone 1/2 inch of snow and he came out with a belter, "you should see what they've got in the West country". As if that a good enough excuse for a duvet day and a nice long weekend.
On the plus side I got a train to London bridge and then another to Charing Cross and as pay treat I took the tube to work. Proper Charlton.
Wasn't a fan.
Let's hope its all sorted for next Saturday.
You have to suppose, that the passenger is not wielding a knife or a gun, and that this is the reason why plod are taking their time at 10.00 on a Saturday morning. But it's slightly concerning that they cannot get to a strategically important site like this a bit quicker.
Update, 10.09, they have arrived now. I make that almost half an hour to respond.