Can’t buy tickets more than about two weeks ahead

[Bald Rick]

So if it wasn't for covid-19, would there be an outrage in national newspapers that pasemgers can't book tickets weeks in advance?

If it wasn’t for Covid, the issue wouldn’t have arisen.

 

[infobleep]

If it wasn’t for Covid, the issue wouldn’t have arisen.

That's fair enough.

Just to understand this in my head, is it reservation related or timetable? I mean there is a bass timetable. If it's reservation, is their a lot of manual intervention currently required. By people working for Cross Country to get reservations in?

 

[Bald Rick]

That's fair enough.

Just to understand this in my head, is it reservation related or timetable? I mean there is a bass timetable. If it's reservation, is their a lot of manual intervention currently required. By people working for Cross Country to get reservations in?

It’s the timetable. The base timetable is in, but amendments for engineering works can only start to be processed once that base timetable is confirmed. Usually each week of amendments takes a week to process, and it is done 4-5 months out.

As the base timetables have changed several times over the summer, at relatively short notice, several months worth of already done amendments were effectively binned and had to be redone when the new base was known. The teams doing the engineering amendments have been playin catch up ever since.

And, whenever a new base timetable is introduced at short notice (as is happening with several train operators now) the whole process resets and has to be done again.

 

[crablab]

Have you been on one of our services lately?

Yes :P They are generally quite full, in my experience.

 

[infobleep]

It’s the timetable. The base timetable is in, but amendments for engineering works can only start to be processed once that base timetable is confirmed. Usually each week of amendments takes a week to process, and it is done 4-5 months out.

As the base timetables have changed several times over the summer, at relatively short notice, several months worth of already done amendments were effectively binned and had to be redone when the new base was known. The teams doing the engineering amendments have been playin catch up ever since.

And, whenever a new base timetable is introduced at short notice (as is happening with several train operators now) the whole process resets and has to be done again.

Thanks for that. It is time consuming entering in base timetables? Or if one is the same as a previous one, can they just copy and paste it in, with perhaps minor tweeks if needed?

 

[Bald Rick]

Thanks for that. It is time consuming entering in base timetables? Or if one is the same as a previous one, can they just copy and paste it in, with perhaps minor tweeks if needed?

If the timetable is exactly the same as the previous one, and the underlying data is the same, then yes it can be ‘copy and paste’. But it very rarely is.

But the timetable is just part of it. There is also the resource plan - rolling stock diagrams, train crew diagrams, and of course the rosters.

 

[infobleep]

If the timetable is exactly the same as the previous one, and the underlying data is the same, then yes it can be ‘copy and paste’. But it very rarely is.

But the timetable is just part of it. There is also the resource plan - rolling stock diagrams, train crew diagrams, and of course the rosters.

Interesting. It's easy to not appreciate all of that as a lay person.

So when Cross Country Trains are talking about updates to their internal reservations system are they referring to this timetable updating part of the work?

Please note, due to an update to our internal reservation systems, we are currently running a reduced advance booking window.

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[Bald Rick]

No, I think that most TOCs are swapping to a different back office system for reservations etc.

 

[alistairlees]

No, I think that most TOCs are swapping to a different back office system for reservations etc.

All TOCs are moving to the new reservations system. There isn’t a choice. We are about half way through the move.

 

[infobleep]

All TOCs are moving to the new reservations system. There isn’t a choice. We are about half way through the move.

So is the new reservations system being brought in due to covid-19?

 

[Wallsendmag]

So is the new reservations system being brought in due to covid-19?

No it's due to the old system being past it's sell by date, this project has been in flight for a couple of years

 

[infobleep]

No it's due to the old system being past it's sell by date, this project has been in flight for a couple of years

So there would have been negative newspaper stories because I'm not aware od reservations being two weeks this time last year but longerm

Obviously covid-19 has meant otherwise.