Jamesrob637
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06:26 Cleethorpes to Airport was 6-car today but the main focus on the Stockport to Manchester route this morning was delays caused by overrunning engineering works near Cheadle.
36 short forms showing today at present.
Tuesday was 3 car as well.06:26 Cleethorpes to Airport has scored 1, maximum 2 out of 5 this week (I didn't see it on Tuesday as it didn't pass through Stockport due to the train breakdown at Piccadilly)
On a school report, that equates to "Could do better!"
Tuesday was 3 car as well.
but since the timetable change all the 6 car trains have gone all the way to the airport. Has something else been dropped or has some clever timetabling made it work?
Which reminds me.
When the South Transpennine trains do manage to be 6 car, how are they managing at the Airport? Before the December timetable change there was talk that it could only be managed - from the point of view of platform occupancy at the Airport - by dropping a unit off at Piccadilly while one set went to the Airport, but since the timetable change all the 6 car trains have gone all the way to the airport. Has something else been dropped or has some clever timetabling made it work?
Which reminds me.
When the South Transpennine trains do manage to be 6 car, how are they managing at the Airport? Before the December timetable change there was talk that it could only be managed - from the point of view of platform occupancy at the Airport - by dropping a unit off at Piccadilly while one set went to the Airport, but since the timetable change all the 6 car trains have gone all the way to the airport. Has something else been dropped or has some clever timetabling made it work?
Today the 1353 Airport to Cleethorpes (3-car) lost two minutes at Stockport. It arrived in the station full and standing, and the boarding passengers had difficulty pushing their way into the jam-packed vestibules. Not helped by one set of doors being out of use.
I guess the amount of Friday half day working, plus weekend commuting, has effectively made this a peak service. By the time it got to Sheffield it was 13L.
Friday afternoons are bad in both directions now, very much because people finish work earlier or travel home from Uni/go on holiday etc.
Although the delay was due to 1L11 (EMR Liverpool-Norwich) having engine problems, was 40 late in front of 1B80. Would've arrived Sheffield pretty much on time otherwise.
Ah, thanks for the explanations! I was not at Stockport early enough to see the sick EMR, but I imagine many of those on Stockport Platform 1 were Sheffield passengers who had been evicted from it to transfer to the TPE. Perhaps that service ordinarily would not justify a 6-car.
Today, 06:26 Cleethorpes to Airport will be 3-car, so no full marks this week for that one. Will the hour earlier service score a perfect 5/5?!
Most drop off the forward section from Cleethorpes at Piccadilly so if going to the Airport make sure you're in the front 3 coaches, the ones you'll be in with a reservation.
You would have thought so, but this was not my experience when reserved through to the airport last year when only a couple of diagrams were doubles. Had to get myself up the platform at Piccadilly from the front coach with luggage against the flow of a morning peak commute, to find no room left in the luggage racks of the other unit. Left my suitcase in the rack in the (empty) First as bags can't be penalty fared AFAIK.
All this was announced in detail at each station in good time, but only in English, which is not ideal for an Airport service.
One of the passengers confused about where he should be going was North American so maybe language is a moot point.On languages it's hard to know which should be introduced, there are so many to choose from.
There is a few more than 3 or so 6 car cars booked to and from MIA!!They haven't. Only 3 or so trains per day are booked to go to the Airport as 6, the rest all detach and attach at Piccadilly.
In RTT, the following eastbound services have a note "service gains coaches here" against the Piccadilly stop:There is a few more than 3 or so 6 car cars booked to and from MIA!!
The following are booked 6 cars to/from the Airport
0653/0753/0853/0953
1653/1753/1953
1B66 0653 attaches at MIA and 1B95 arriving at night is a 6 car which splits.
This is what the diagrams are booked to do, but with the unit shortages, it may be awhile before you see some of these.
The only ones that drop off and attach to CLE services at MAN are
1B79 which drops off a unit to attach to 1B84 in the afternoon.
I missed a couple:In RTT, the following eastbound services have a note "service gains coaches here" against the Piccadilly stop:
1B82/84/86/96, d Airport 1453/1553/1653/2153.
Westbound, there is a "service divides here" note for 1B65/69/79/85/91, arr Airport 0826/1025/1525/1825/2125. Also 1B61, arr 0627, gains coaches to take to the Airport.
Of course, this does not mean that TPE has all these services diagrammed as doubles. But it indicates that there is scope in the Working Timetable for them to be strengthened before the May timetable change. TPE must have requested these Piccadilly platform bookings for splitting/joining when the current timetable was compiled.
1B66 06.53 Manchester Airport to Cleethorpes and 1B85 15.26 from Cleethorpes to Manchester Airport werre 6 cars today, although not in the order shown on the screens at Scunthorpe for my return journey . What a pleasure to be on trains that were on time and with a choice of seats.
I've got to buy a new hat on the weekend as I've eaten so many at just seeing 6-car formations through Stockport even if 3 were out of service1B66 06.53 Manchester Airport to Cleethorpes and 1B85 15.26 from Cleethorpes to Manchester Airport werre 6 cars today, although not in the order shown on the screens at Scunthorpe for my return journey . What a pleasure to be on trains that were on time and with a choice of seats.