How Well Do Current TOC's Compare to BR on Lateness / Cancellations

[Mutant Lemming]

Has there been a proper comparison of late and cancelled trains of the current TOCs and BR applying the criteria used then and now to each and if so, what were the results ?

 

[mister-sparky]

As a guess, I'd say it would be impossible to compare then and now. Completely different network, rolling stock (for the majority) and other parameters which would make the comparison very difficult and unreliable.

 

[Tiny Tim]

As a guess, I'd say it would be impossible to compare then and now. Completely different network, rolling stock (for the majority) and other parameters which would make the comparison very difficult and unreliable.

I'm not sure about it being a 'Completely different network' but comparisons would be difficult for several reasons. But not impossible.

 

[bronzeonion]

As a guess, I'd say it would be impossible to compare then and now. Completely different network, rolling stock (for the majority) and other parameters which would make the comparison very difficult and unreliable.

Even if everything is different it would still be interesting to see a comparison.

 

[6Gman]

I suspect performance is better than under BR, but it would be unfair to draw a causative link for any number of reasons:

1. Slam-door stock now very rare - was a major cause of delays
2. No parcel/mail traffic on passenger trains to delay station departures
3. Very, very few slow freights these days [try getting a 35mph empty ballast from Lancaster to Crewe without causing mayhem!]
4. Less complex traincrew diagramming
5. New communication systems - mobile phones, radios etc. In the old days getting a message from a train meant stopping at a signalbox/station or chucking out a note as you passed!

 

[jopsuk]

One of the big bits will be differences in data gathering standards and records keeping. Or to put it more simply: is there an archive of punctuality data for BR?

 

[Lewisham2221]

Surely the purpose of any such comparison would be to show what improvements (or not) there have been to delay/cancellation rates as a result of the changes to the network/rolling stock etc. since privatisation? I'm not sure what sort of comparison you would be aiming to draw by attempting to compare BR with TOCs if no other changes had been made.

 

[ivanhoe]

As a passenger who experienced both eras,I would suggest that punctuallity is better now than in the BR era but I would also suggest that the railway is a far different animal now, with more services run by different TOCS. I would also suggest now that people's expectations are far greater now than say 20 years ago. However, it has taken the privatised railway nearly 20 years to reach better punctuality( with substantial investment) and who is to say that BR's record would not have improved accordingly. I would suggest that it would have done.

 

[Nick W]

5. New communication systems - mobile phones, radios etc. In the old days getting a message from a train meant stopping at a signalbox/station or chucking out a note as you passed!

NRN and CSR were developed under British Rail.

I feel that people seem to have the view that British Rail was somehow outdated. They were using technology which was in my opinion more advanced than what have today.

 

[Muzer]

I believe any such comparison, as Lewisham2221 implied, would mostly compare the railway back then with the railway now, rather than directly comparing the merits of state- and franchise-run railways. That's not to say it's a useless comparison; I would be rather interested to see what all the advances have brought us in terms of punctuality.