20:15 Paddington to Swansea, why late?

[s3an]

Anyone know why this is late and getting later?

If anyone knows can you tell the guard to tell us.

ST

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Train fault
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EDIT - Should add as a guess, you're losing time quite badly between RDG and SWI, and there's nothing reported on a track level.

 

[Darandio]

Anyone know why this is late and getting later?

If anyone knows can you tell the guard to tell us.

ST

How can anyone tell the guard?

 

[Hydro]

No reasons on TRUST (1B88) yet, you're losing time consistently, one power car maybe?

 

[s3an]

How do guards/drivers find out about other delays?

Perhaps he should have noticed we are late and telephoned FGW to organise something for passengers going on the Hereford line? Then he could tell us?

Perhaps the connecting train won't be held at Newport, there won't be taxis available because it is a Friday and I should have telephoned my wife to pick me up at Newport?

ST

 

[lm321412]

Anyone know why this is late and getting later?

If anyone knows can you tell the guard to tell us.

ST

Confirmed as "Train Fault"

 

[Jeremy B]

So did you make your connection then or is it a taxi job. Did the guard ever make an anouncement regarding the reason for the delay.

 

[merlodlliw]

How do guards/drivers find out about other delays?

Perhaps he should have noticed we are late and telephoned FGW to organise something for passengers going on the Hereford line? Then he could tell us?

Perhaps the connecting train won't be held at Newport, there won't be taxis available because it is a Friday and I should have telephoned my wife to pick me up at Newport?

ST

ATW wont hold for a late running FGW.

Bob

 

[ValleyLines142]

Not being funny but every FGW service to Cardiff is late. The 1525 Cardiff to London was running 55 minutes late last Saturday!! Hopefully when electrification of the South Wales Main Line arrives there'll be hope!!

 

[Squaddie]

The journey between London and Swansea is scheduled to take 15-20 minutes more than it did in the 1970s, and almost every time I have made that journey in the past few years the train has been late.

 

[MidnightFlyer]

The journey between London and Swansea is scheduled to take 15-20 minutes more than it did in the 1970s, and almost every time I have made that journey in the past few years the train has been late.

I can imagine that, Bristol Parkway wasn't open until '74, and Reading and Swindon had nowhere near the service they have now from an IC perspective. It wouldn't have surprised me if headliners were first stop Newport in some cases.

 

[Squaddie]

I can imagine that, Bristol Parkway wasn't open until '74, and Reading and Swindon had nowhere near the service they have now from an IC perspective. It wouldn't have surprised me if headliners were first stop Newport in some cases.

I'm talking about 1975-77, when I used to travel to and from London quite a bit as a young teenage trainspotter. The journey time on the newly-introduced HSTs was 2 hours and 43 minutes (perhaps someone with a timetable from that era could confirm). I'm pretty sure that Bristol Parkway was open, and also that most trains stopped at both Swindon and Didcot.

 

[Greenback]

I'm talking about 1975-77, when I used to travel to and from London quite a bit as a young teenage trainspotter. The journey time on the newly-introduced HSTs was 2 hours and 43 minutes (perhaps someone with a timetable from that era could confirm). I'm pretty sure that Bristol Parkway was open, and also that most trains stopped at both Swindon and Didcot.

It was very rare for Swansea trains to stop at Didcot. IIRC correctly, in the late 1970's some trains did run non stop to Newport, others missed oput Swindon or even Reading. The best time for the full journey to London was advertised in Swansea as 2 hours and 48 minutes for many years following the introduction of the HST's.

 

[anthony263]

There was talk of the Swansea/Cardiff - London Paddington services would run non stop from Newport/Bristol Parkway to Reading once the SET/IEP's had been introduced

 

[WelshBluebird]

Not being funny but every FGW service to Cardiff is late. The 1525 Cardiff to London was running 55 minutes late last Saturday!! Hopefully when electrification of the South Wales Main Line arrives there'll be hope!!

Seems to happen a lot on the Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff services too.

 

[ValleyLines142]

Seems to happen a lot on the Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff services too.

From my personal experience I haven't seen a delayed Portsmouth-Cardiff service actually, but of course I won't judge your observations

I can honestly say I've never EVER seen a HST depart on time, genuinely.

 

[WelshBluebird]

From my personal experience I haven't seen a delayed Portsmouth-Cardiff service actually, but of course I won't judge your observations

I can honestly say I've never EVER seen a HST depart on time, genuinely.

Just as I said that, my girlfriend had a 25 minute delay going from Bath Spa to Cardiff today (problems at Trowbridge causing knock on delays from what I can tell).
I just think I tend to be unlucky really. The service can't be late all the time. Just happens to be whenever I get it.

 

[Markdvdman]

Well I need to catch the 3:48pm from Cardiff to Swansea on a Friday to get the 5pm connection bus from the Kingsway to Gorslas.

If over 5mins late, I can kiss goodbye to that. 50% of the time it is late and sometimes VERY late.

What gets me is the boards saying on time when it is late (except when massively late). why is this almost always the case! The website tends to be more accurate!

Also, on a Monday, I get the 6:22am from Llanelli to Swansea, then the 6:58am HST from Swansea. What gets me is the train is ALWAYS late form Neath EVERY time! It is pathetic!

 

[anthony263]

I think 1 problem is that trains are helped by passeners not closing doors behind them , then as the doors are all closed and about to be locked you get some late passengers getting on who again wont close the doors after them. Neath and Bridgend are the worst for this.

At least at Bristol parkway etc there is more than 1 member of platform staff so they can rush up and down the platform trying to get the doors shut.

Another problem is passengers not being ready before the train arrives at Their station and so they hold up everyone as they make their way off the train. I had 1 bloke tell me off before at Cardiff Central because as I got on to the train he came round with his suitcase, now I did check and couldn't see anyone else getting off. Of course I said to him he should have hurried up to stock delaying other people.

 

[s3an]

So did you make your connection then or is it a taxi job. Did the guard ever make an anouncement regarding the reason for the delay.

We had taxis. No announcement about the delay and no announcement about arrangements. The announcements actually went from:

we are approching X please remember to take etc etc

to

we are approaching X
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ATW wont hold for a late running FGW.

Bob

They do sometimes, it depends on who is control at Newport. I'm told there are some nasty people at Newport who revel in people missing connections.

The Hereford line connection was also late and left a few minutes before we arrived.
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Not being funny but every FGW service to Cardiff is late. The 1525 Cardiff to London was running 55 minutes late last Saturday!! Hopefully when electrification of the South Wales Main Line arrives there'll be hope!!

I find FGW between Newport and Paddington to be mostly on time.