Dr_Paul
Established Member
- Joined
- 3 Sep 2013
- Messages
- 1,465
Having by chance ended up at Sudbury and Harrow Road station on a Saturday evening and found that catching the next train to Marylebone would mean a 36-hour wait (fortunately, a Piccadilly line station is nearby), I looked at the Chiltern Line timetable for its London suburban services. There seems to be at least to me a rather odd pattern.
Some stations have a somewhat sparse service. There are just four up services stopping at Sudbury and Harrow Road, at 0701, 0756, 0858 and 10.41, then nothing for the rest of the day. There are four down services in the late afternoon/early evening.
There are no services which stop at all stations between West Ruislip and Marylebone. The 0742 from West Ruislip stops at them all except Wembley Stadium; the 1105 stops at them all except South Ruislip and Wembley Stadium (followed by a service that stops at South Ruislip at 1141 and Wembley Stadium at 1148, but which does not previously stop at West Ruislip). There is no service from West Ruislip to Marylebone that stops at Wembley Stadium between 0902 and 1105; and only three before that, at 0601, 0704 and 0827.
Perhaps I am too accustomed to suburban services from Waterloo, which run to a far more regular schedule. For example, one can expect a Kingston or Hounslow loop service to stop at all stations; Windsor and Reading services do not stop at Mortlake, North Sheen, etc. Exceptions are normally confined to the early mornings or late evenings.
This regularity means that people know that there are services at regular intervals through the day, stopping at the same stations; this encourages more use. Suburban services to and from Marylebone have little regularity and irregular stopping patterns. These services offer a quicker service both into central London and between places in the area than can be had on the Underground. It does seem to me that Chiltern Lines could develop its London suburban services by offering a more regular and frequent service.
Some stations have a somewhat sparse service. There are just four up services stopping at Sudbury and Harrow Road, at 0701, 0756, 0858 and 10.41, then nothing for the rest of the day. There are four down services in the late afternoon/early evening.
There are no services which stop at all stations between West Ruislip and Marylebone. The 0742 from West Ruislip stops at them all except Wembley Stadium; the 1105 stops at them all except South Ruislip and Wembley Stadium (followed by a service that stops at South Ruislip at 1141 and Wembley Stadium at 1148, but which does not previously stop at West Ruislip). There is no service from West Ruislip to Marylebone that stops at Wembley Stadium between 0902 and 1105; and only three before that, at 0601, 0704 and 0827.
Perhaps I am too accustomed to suburban services from Waterloo, which run to a far more regular schedule. For example, one can expect a Kingston or Hounslow loop service to stop at all stations; Windsor and Reading services do not stop at Mortlake, North Sheen, etc. Exceptions are normally confined to the early mornings or late evenings.
This regularity means that people know that there are services at regular intervals through the day, stopping at the same stations; this encourages more use. Suburban services to and from Marylebone have little regularity and irregular stopping patterns. These services offer a quicker service both into central London and between places in the area than can be had on the Underground. It does seem to me that Chiltern Lines could develop its London suburban services by offering a more regular and frequent service.
