Abellio Greater Anglia Class 755s (Regional Trains)

[eastdyke]

The latest from Greater Anglia's media department
https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/10-questions-for-greater-anglia-1-6448079

After reading Q1, I don't need to read any more of the obfuscation presented:

1) At the height of the branch line chaos in December, Greater Anglia apologised on a daily basis, followed by statements the company didn't know why it had happened. What can you now tell rail users about the causes of the problems?
Our investigations showed that the signalling issues on rural lines in Suffolk and Norfolk, were not due to the design or performance of our new trains.

LOL. So what was all that hiatus about then? Lots of WSFs (?circa 25?) inspecting wheelsets after each journey? citrus oil? wheel scrubbers? isolation of flange lube? wrong kind of gunge at the railhead?
I know that we will hear from RAIB in all good time.
Can't wait for the next leaf fall season, only 9+ months to go

 

[F Great Eastern]

Hard to know what to say other than the company is spending far too much time and effort on protecting it's image. It starts to feel like it's the only thing that matters.

As a customer I feel valued by frontline staff but not o management. The quote from Greater Anglia about frontline staff is priceless.

 

[ashkeba]

After reading Q1, I don't need to read any more of the obfuscation presented:

LOL. So what was all that hiatus about then?

Precautionary principle? I await the RAIB report too.

 

[hwl]

After reading Q1, I don't need to read any more of the obfuscation presented:

LOL. So what was all that hiatus about then? Lots of WSFs (?circa 25?) inspecting wheelsets after each journey? citrus oil? wheel scrubbers? isolation of flange lube? wrong kind of gunge at the railhead?
I know that we will hear from RAIB in all good time.
Can't wait for the next leaf fall season, only 9+ months to go

Notice how they carefully don't mention their new stick lube as not being the problem - SWT delay attribution creative accountancy all over again. e.g. "The train didn't break down, the maintenance instructions weren't correctly interpreted"

Presumably the 23 non-detections will be covered by RAIB as a "Group Incident Report" (a long while since we have had one of those)

 

[WroxhamTroll]

Amazing how many questions they can deflect and not answer. It cannot come as a surprise that there is such little trust of a rail company that never owns up when they make a mistake.

Today's 0623 from wroxham to norwich arrived at 0642, 20 mins late, missed connection in NRW this is now the standard service daily.

I am now regularly using the car!

 

[eastdyke]

Notice how they carefully don't mention their new stick lube as not being the problem - SWT delay attribution creative accountancy all over again. e.g. "The train didn't break down, the maintenance instructions weren't correctly interpreted"
Presumably the 23 non-detections will be covered by RAIB as a "Group Incident Report" (a long while since we have had one of those)

Ah ... only 23 my bad!
I have been perusing:
Managing Low Adhesion [Sixth Edition, January 2018]
https://rssb.wavecast.io/forecasting-adhesion/managing-low-adhesion
I don't pretend to have read it all, or to have fully understood and retained all that I have read, but there is interesting stuff in there for anyone with too much time on their hands! In particular I found this section of interest:

[from page 123]5.2.4 Aerodynamics to reduce contamination
The main cause of leaves being in the wheel / rail nip to be crushed by the wheels is the slipstream created by the train itself as it moves along. As seen in section 4.3.1, the air turbulence draws up leaves from the four foot and the trackside and, depending on the train’s aerodynamic effects, sucks them into the path of the wheels. One way in which the amount of leaves being crushed on the rails can be minimised is to design the vehicle such that the aerodynamic effects tend not to draw leaves into the path of the wheel.
Attempts have been made in the past to influence this effect both by trainborne and trackside solutions. This was prompted by an increase in low adhesion problems found with new rolling stock when introduced in the 1980s. Practical tests had confirmed that the new trains deposited more leaves than those they replaced, by as much as two-fold. The tests identified that the length of the train formation affected the number of leaves deposited on the railhead, but the number was not proportional to the train length. Train speed was also a major factor affecting the number of leaves trapped by passing trains.
Later, following a rise in wrong side track circuit failures in the early 1990s, fullscale
tests were carried out by BR Research with Class 156, 158 and 165 two-car DMUs, with different front-end configurations. Tests were made .......

The Class 755s are the first new units to be introduced to the rural routes for some time (perhaps the industry got lucky with 170s). The routes most at risk would be the least used lines which in rural GA would be the double track sections of the Sheringham and East Suffolk.
Perhaps GA/Stadler and NR would be advised to consider some more testing, especially before the next leaf fall season ...

 

[samuelmorris]

The latest from Greater Anglia's media department
https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/10-questions-for-greater-anglia-1-6448079

This is just sad. I know people go a bit overboard with some of the comparisons they make about TOCs, but this really does have the hallmarks of one of those unfortunate nation states where everything from the mouth of their propaganda department is a lie, everybody knows it's a lie but has to go about their business regardless. It does make me wonder what we're in for further South once the 720 rollout begins and the legacy stock I imagine will also go prematurely off-lease.

 

[LAX54]

After reading Q1, I don't need to read any more of the obfuscation presented:

LOL. So what was all that hiatus about then? Lots of WSFs (?circa 25?) inspecting wheelsets after each journey? citrus oil? wheel scrubbers? isolation of flange lube? wrong kind of gunge at the railhead?
I know that we will hear from RAIB in all good time.
Can't wait for the next leaf fall season, only 9+ months to go

What a load of 'wibble' written in that article, I think even GA staff are getting embarrassed now by their PR team !

 

[Tug]

Yes a load of "wibble" but nobody is going to admit it is their fault in public as there is going to be a massive bill for this chaos and nobody wants to be left responsible. The blame game is in full swing (at GA anyway).

 

[LAX54]

This was in the EADT.....
Several mainline services from East Anglia to London Liverpool Street have been cancelled today due to train faults - leaving commuters with a bus replacement service.

The 7.08am, 7.30am, 8.41am and 9.08am trains from Ipswich to London

Whilst this is not good by any means, there was still trains to London at 0715. 0738. 0749. 0820. 0826. 0858. 0923. 0933. 0947, (all RT or early into London) so still a fair old few covering the 4 missing,,,and a bus to London ?

 

[LAX54]

Yes a load of "wibble" but nobody is going to admit it is their fault in public as there is going to be a massive bill for this chaos and nobody wants to be left responsible. The blame game is in full swing (at GA anyway).

NR will pick up the tab.. they nearly always do !

 

[fat_boy_pete]

Richard Clinnick says 26 of the 755's have been accepted into service, so if (big if) they all work, they have enough units now to cover all the rural diagrams I believe. https://twitter.com/Richard_rail/status/1213060488340426752?s=19

 

[Shunter_69]

Still struggling for trained drivers, certainly at Colchester due to the 10 days they were restricted coupled with Christmas.

Training is cracking on though as even the Stratford Academy was open for Stadler training over the break.

 

[WroxhamTroll]

Video of near miss

Not sure if this was shared before

 

[stonojnr]

As Ive said before I dont mind GA playing the "wibble" game at all if thats what they feel they have to do, its when the local press just publish the "wibble" as if that answers anything and doesnt challenge them very clearly,concisely and hold them to account that those answers provided in anyway go near answering their questions,I mean you read some of them and wonder whether theyve got the ordering of the Q to the A right

 

[LAX54]

As Ive said before I dont mind GA playing the "wibble" game at all if thats what they feel they have to do, its when the local press just publish the "wibble" as if that answers anything and doesnt challenge them very clearly,concisely and hold them to account that those answers provided in anyway go near answering their questions,I mean you read some of them and wonder whether theyve got the ordering of the Q to the A right

Have read the article, and where there are specific questions, and a waffle answer is given, the 'reporter' does not question it any further, just moves on with the next so called 'question' !

 

[samuelmorris]

Have read the article, and where there are specific questions, and a waffle answer is given, the 'reporter' does not question it any further, just moves on with the next so called 'question' !

Is it an actual interview? To me it read like having received a letter from GA replying to queries sent in advance.

 

[fat_boy_pete]

Video of near miss

Not sure if this was shared before

Poor driver. Definitely a brown trousers moment.

 

[Icky Qualms]

Unit 422 standing in down platform at Stowmarket, failed
Diesel engine hasn't powered up

 

[Icky Qualms]

Got away eventually after about 15 minutes

 

[F Great Eastern]

This is just sad. I know people go a bit overboard with some of the comparisons they make about TOCs, but this really does have the hallmarks of one of those unfortunate nation states where everything from the mouth of their propaganda department is a lie, everybody knows it's a lie but has to go about their business regardless. It does make me wonder what we're in for further South once the 720 rollout begins and the legacy stock I imagine will also go prematurely off-lease.

In relation to the 720s, you will notice from the article on the local press, that they didn't even want to admit what the real problem was, putting it down to a production slowdown, rather than the fact that it's related to software problems, which is already seeking to try and deflect on that fleet.

Greater Anglia at the moment feel like an out of touch government that has been in power too long. They have forgotten what made them such a breath of fresh air when they took over from National Express and have become so obsessed with PR and image protection and looking after themselves, that everything else appears to come as an afterthought.

One of the best things about British Railways I always used to think was the fact that we have very open real time running information and honest updates through the likes of JourneyCheck and transparent information being given at stations etc. Now I see an increasing number of passengers rolling eyes at announcements, laughing or smirking at such information, which I can never remember ever seeing before.

It remains to be seen if JourneyCheck even remains, since Abellio haven't bothered at all with one for EMT, the West Midlands one has been changed in layout to only show the next 6 hours and to make cancellations less apparent, by putting all the updates together, rather than in categories. It would be probably good for their image to remove it, as it will help them hide the scale of disruption.

 

[ScottGallagher]

I've just noticed Jonathan Denby is the head of PR at GA , he worked a similar job for Anglia Railways .Back in 1997/98 I rang or wrote to Anglia Railways and he actually sent me Anglia promotional material in the post for my failed GCSE Graphics coursework when I asked a few TOCs for some ! Clearly a survivour!

 

[Icky Qualms]

Yes, undoubtedly the Gloria Gaynor of the British Rail industry

 

[ashkeba]

One of the best things about British Railways I always used to think was the fact that we have very open real time running information and honest updates through the likes of JourneyCheck and transparent information being given at stations etc. Now I see an increasing number of passengers rolling eyes at announcements, laughing or smirking at such information, which I can never remember ever seeing before.

I am not sure this is a new thing. I thought some old BBC comedy made fun of the journey delay announcements. Was it Reggie Perrin?

 

[samuelmorris]

In relation to the 720s, you will notice from the article on the local press, that they didn't even want to admit what the real problem was, putting it down to a production slowdown, rather than the fact that it's related to software problems, which is already seeking to try and deflect on that fleet.

Greater Anglia at the moment feel like an out of touch government that has been in power too long. They have forgotten what made them such a breath of fresh air when they took over from National Express and have become so obsessed with PR and image protection and looking after themselves, that everything else appears to come as an afterthought.

Well production slowdown is true, it's just that it's a symptom not a cause. I'm not quite as bothered by that as it's being somewhat conservative with the truth but despite the enormous delay there's no evidence yet to suggest that when the 720s finally arrive that they will be so problematic. It's almost a foregone conclusion that they will be just by virtue of being new stock as no manufacturer really has an immediately reliable solution for UK railways. Nonetheless, 'sorry, they're late' is at least all you can reasonably expect with the 720s and that's sort of what we got. It's GA's attitude to the 755s that has me distinctly unimpressed. I certainly hope similar issues don't manifest with the 745s when they finally enter passenger service.

It remains to be seen if JourneyCheck even remains, since Abellio haven't bothered at all with one for EMT, the West Midlands one has been changed in layout to only show the next 6 hours and to make cancellations less apparent, by putting all the updates together, rather than in categories. It would be probably good for their image to remove it, as it will help them hide the scale of disruption.

I didn't know about this. That's a very worrying precedent. It's not as if journeycheck is even something I use, but any movement to reduce the amount of information available or to obfuscate it from the public is not the sort of thing I want to see. I'm not really sure how much to read into other Abellio TOCs' behaviour cross-contaminating GA or vice versa, they always seemed like separate entities, and perhaps by the sound of it it's best they stay that way.

 

[Abbo]

It would appear the NiN services are diagrammed for 2 x 755/4 rather than a 745. Does anyone know why ? Are 2x755 more powerful/faster than a 745?

 

[JonathanH]

It would appear the NiN services are diagrammed for 2 x 755/4 rather than a 745. Does anyone know why ? Are 2x755 more powerful/faster than a 745?

There was a theory that 755s would be available for service when the 'Norwich in Ninety' started whereas 745s were some time away from introduction.

 

[dk1]

It would appear the NiN services are diagrammed for 2 x 755/4 rather than a 745. Does anyone know why ? Are 2x755 more powerful/faster than a 745?

It was just a way to release an IC set but in the end covering the local services was far mor desperate. Also the 755s are still not permitted to work in multiple.

 

[LAX54]

It was just a way to release an IC set but in the end covering the local services was far mor desperate. Also the 755s are still not permitted to work in multiple.

DK, we have heard 'emergency only' for multiple working, then 5mph max ? all down to the software problems.......sorry Signalling problems ?

 

[dk1]

DK, we have heard 'emergency only' for multiple working, then 5mph max ? all down to the software problems.......sorry Signalling problems ?

Blimey, how on earth did I spell more???

Yes sounds about right. Thankfully we leave all that sort of crap to the ROG boys & girls. A couple have been brought across from Crown Point together. The drivers concerned pleaded ignorance. Saved them walking back out in the rain though