As an Marston Vale user on a daily basis i can feel an argument coming on!
Does the cascade of Class 153 from other operators offer the new LM franchisee the opportunity to enhance the existing hourly service (Monday-Saturday only) along the Marston Vale line between Bletchley and Bedford ?
In theory yes, in practice.............
Platforms are short so cannot adequately accommodate 2 x 23m units.
But use of the single-car Class 153 units at an improved half-hourly frequency could be a solution.
1. The journey end to end is 45 minutes, with toilets at Bedford, Ridgemont and Bletchley stations, there would be no requirement for on-board toilet facilities. So no expensive modifications would be required for PRM toilets on the train.
2. Half-hourly frequency would stimulate growth, where the current hourly frequency deters use of the service.
3. If 4 x Class 153 units were stabled at Bletchley, they would provide resilience in the event of a single unit failure.
4. Introduction of an hourly frequency on Sundays and Bank Holidays would be possible with 2 units, while the other 2 units received maintenance.
Until we get a direct MK connection from the Vale passenger numbers will be suppressed and I doubt they will support the suggested service. Passenger numbers are up in the 5 years since i moved here but the main issue depressing user numbers is the slow time into MK and the change at Blethcley. That wont change with an hourly service. The villages along the line are growing with people working in MK or London, it is a prosperous area with lots of well paid people travelling daily. These are exactly the sort of people who should be attracted to a decent service.
There is also no way LM would want to out base 4 x 153 at Bletchley. They need 1/2 for Kenilworth and 1 on maintenance. I would like to see a one train Sunday service as trial if possible to test passenger numbers.
The logistics in supporting 4 units away from base would be interesting and leave LM with little flexibility in their operations.
Platform extensions on the Marston Vale then? 2x23m presently doesn't fit.
that is one answer but I doubt it will happen.
Can't see 4 dogboxes being sent to Bletchley even after the cascade and the 150's go off lease.
What are the loadings like in the peaks? Even running a single 153 every 30 minutes sounds like it would cause issues fairly quickly.
Loadings in the peaks are much better than they were and i doubt a 153 would cope with much more traffic. Connections at Blethcley have been improved and Ridgmont is a busy station with Amazon next door. Lots of the staff come by train. However a 30 minute service would be overkill
If one put a third diagram on Marston Vale, one could run two trains per hour - each could skip 1-2 of the quieter stations (Kempston Hardwick, I'm looking at you...). This could get the end-to-end time down to about 40 minutes, so it'd be possible to run a half-hourly service with only one extra diagram.
Kempston is getting busier as people at the nearby distribution warehouses relasie they have a cheap way to get to work. You would have to make sure your trians met this demand.
I maintain, however, that whislt speed is an issue ( bus and car are quicker) the issue is the lack of a direct connection to MK, the biggest employment zone in the area, is the key reason for numbers being lower than they could be. Until then i doubt the service could support more than one an hour.
I can potentially see LM becoming a home for a couple Class 230s, for use on the Coventry-Nuneaton services (and perhaps Kenilworth?), allowing the 153s to be used more liberally elsewhere, such as some previous posters' suggestions regarding the Marston Vale line.
I fear we will end up with these things on the line and i worry that will mean the line is considered to be even more of a back water. Just give us 2 x 150 and all will be fine!
Bang some 230s on the Marston Vale and send the 153s to somewhere that is in desperate need of capacity. I'm fairly certain GA would welcome them with open arms.
Well they can sod off! We are talking about affluent Buckinghamshire here, not some yokel Anglian or dirty northern route. We don't want either the 153's or the tube things!
Can't see either to be honest.
Both routes are slated for wiring over the next few years.
Not before the 150 is due to go away. It will be single dog boxes followed by tube trains followed by electrics on the stoppers if we are lucky.
Cannot see the passengers on the marston vale losing the 150's and getting a single 153.
that is exactly what will happen. The sooner Chiltern take over the better. At least that is the hope following the construction of E-W! The line doesn't fit within the LM or EMT portfolio being a diesel island in the middle of an electric sea
EDIT: there is another issue against the dog boxes: bikes ( and buggies). A 153 can not keep to time even on this simple route. It is late all the time mainly though loading on bikes and the hassle in getting them through the narrow doors and round the corner into the saloon.
I know the train should only take two but no conductor is going to turn people away on a rural line with one train an hour, especially when people cycle to and from the stations. On the 150 there are no problems!