New South Western franchise: Awarded to First/MTR

[TEW]

The public very much see this as RMT causing the dispute not SWR. SWR said they would review working practices, not unreasonable, ahead of new stock arriving and RMT pre-emptied the result by throwing their toys out of the pram if the status quo was not guaranteed to be retained. Surely the RMT should have been an integral part of the review and waited for the conclusion? The RMT don’t have the public onside.

What the public see is not at all the full picture, it is mainly what SWR want them to see. SWRs line seems to change every week, I find myself unable to trust a word they say.

 

[TEW]

Exacly, so is it better to fund additional positions that could patrol trains for an entire shift apart from their break/ meal times or jobs that probably in many cases would be sitting spare for most or all of their shift, just in case.?

Well SWR seem happy enough to throw money at drivers to entice them to work overtime, even though they are often sitting spare their whole shift. Why can't they spend a bit money to reduce guard related cancellations too? SWRs latest message to staff states that isn't about money anyway.

 

[Carlisle]

Well SWR seem happy enough to throw money at drivers to entice them to work overtime, even though they are often sitting spare their whole shift. Why can't they spend a bit money to reduce guard related cancellations too? SWRs latest message to staff states that isn't about money anyway.

if SWR are happy to pay lots of drivers merely to sit spare that’s no better and needs to change too, or alternatively they could always opt to return to BR productivity levels in return for today’s equivalent of BR wages if they prefer

 

[Starmill]

What if I choose to start my journey at a different station to that on my ticket?
If you hold a monthly or longer season ticket your ticket may be used from/to another station on the same line of route as the original ticket. This only applies to SWR services.

Thanks a lot for that. I am pleased to see that this rubbish is back.

 

[dctraindriver]

Well SWR seem happy enough to throw money at drivers to entice them to work overtime, even though they are often sitting spare their whole shift. Why can't they spend a bit money to reduce guard related cancellations too? SWRs latest message to staff states that isn't about money anyway.

I’ve not once sat spare working an overtime shift. They get there money’s worth.......

 

[pompeyfan]

I’ve not once sat spare working an overtime shift. They get there money’s worth.......

You must be one of the few. I know for a fact there’s one depot with 37 spare drivers today, and around 18 of them are guaranteed free Day Work.

 

[TheManBehind]

You must be one of the few. I know for a fact there’s one depot with 37 spare drivers today, and around 18 of them are guaranteed free Day Work.

No depots with 37 booked spares today, much less half on FDW!

 

[TEW]

No depots with 37 booked spares today, much less half on FDW!

There is clearly excessive spare cover for drivers today though, with a lot of drivers working Free Days where they aren't really needed for the service to run.

 

[pompeyfan]

No depots with 37 booked spares today, much less half on FDW!

I think you may have misunderstood my post. One depot has about 37 drivers showing as AO, with around half of them showing as free day working.

 

[infobleep]

The public very much see this as RMT causing the dispute not SWR. SWR said they would review working practices, not unreasonable, ahead of new stock arriving and RMT pre-emptied the result by throwing their toys out of the pram if the status quo was not guaranteed to be retained. Surely the RMT should have been an integral part of the review and waited for the conclusion? The RMT don’t have the public onside.

A friend and myself both see this as DfT lead and not caused by the RMT. I read this forum regularly. My friend doesn't. He has no major interest in trains bar getting from A to B.

If others exist like us then what you said may not be true. Alas unless someone does a comprehensive survey of the public, we won't know. Whose going to want to fund that?

 

[pompeyfan]

Would appear that the strikes are losing support, with Weymouth shuttles introduced on Wednesday, and Salisbury/Southampton shuttles introduced today. Perhaps the RMT should change tactic.....

 

[Goldfish62]

Would appear that the strikes are losing support, with Weymouth shuttles introduced on Wednesday, and Salisbury/Southampton shuttles introduced today. Perhaps the RMT should change tactic.....

We'll soon find out, given that a fresh ballot will be needed before the end of March.

 

[TEW]

Would appear that the strikes are losing support, with Weymouth shuttles introduced on Wednesday, and Salisbury/Southampton shuttles introduced today. Perhaps the RMT should change tactic.....

Numbers coming in to work are only slightly up on the last strike, but more 'contingency guards' are also available. There were a large number of short notice cancellations on Wednesday evening due to lack of available guard.

 

[pompeyfan]

Numbers coming in to work are only slightly up on the last strike, but more 'contingency guards' are also available. There were a large number of short notice cancellations on Wednesday evening due to lack of available guard.

Thanks for correcting me on that, I’d heard the numbers were creeping up quite quickly.

 

[infobleep]

Numbers coming in to work are only slightly up on the last strike, but more 'contingency guards' are also available. There were a large number of short notice cancellations on Wednesday evening due to lack of available guard.

By last strike do you mean Monday or Sunday 31st Dec? Have they been training more contingency guards in recent times?

 

[BestWestern]

The public very much see this as RMT causing the dispute not SWR. SWR said they would review working practices, not unreasonable, ahead of new stock arriving and RMT pre-emptied the result by throwing their toys out of the pram if the status quo was not guaranteed to be retained. Surely the RMT should have been an integral part of the review and waited for the conclusion? The RMT don’t have the public onside.

Both unions, Aslef and RMT, have made it unmistakably clear that they are not in agreement with the idea of running currently Guarded trains around as DOO. It doesn't matter if it's blanket DOO, or the TOCs' laughable "only if we really have to" nonsense (I smell bull****), they won't do DOO. If a TOC, who apparently has no obligation whatsoever to touch DOO, decides to try and bring it in anyway, they know perfectly well what happens next. If the RMT action is disregarded and they carry on, the next step is of course that they'll have Aslef out as well. No doubt we'll still have a director with his blinkers on trotting out the same generic TOC nonsense every few days saying he can't even begin to understand what everyone's getting upset about, followed by weeks/months/years of stalemate and disruption, before eventually SWR grasp that the unions really aren't going to support DOO. At which point they'll agree to provide the same staff, on the same money, on the same trains, possibly with a different job title so that senior management can pretend they've achieved something.

The railway doesn't appear to have learnt a great deal from Southern.

 

[Olaf]

SWR and NR answer to passenger watchdog over poor performance
http://www.railtechnologymagazine.c...r-to-passenger-watchdog-over-poor-performance
- 2018-01-10

This event was supposedly open to the public, but Transport Focus did not announce the meeting until the day it was due to take place:
https://www.transportfocus.org.uk/n...estern-railway-network-rail-poor-performance/

This details the priorities for improvement set-out by Transport Focus:
https://www.transportfocus.org.uk/r...s/rail-passengers-priorities-for-improvement/

Did anyone attend this meting, or have details of responses from Network rail and SWR?

 

[samuelmorris]

I did have to laugh at the comments regarding delay repay when in my experience SWR don't even offer it at all, let alone for 15 minute delay intervals. Outright refusal to honour franchise commitments like that is pretty frustrating to say the least.

 

[Olaf]

I did have to laugh at the comments regarding delay repay when in my experience SWR don't even offer it at all, let alone for 15 minute delay intervals. Outright refusal to honour franchise commitments like that is pretty frustrating to say the least.

Is that an internal policy, or because their system is not working as intended or other cause?

 

[samuelmorris]

Combination of factors I assume, neither the original form or the contact us for complaints systems ever result in a reply. Pretty sure some of my tweets have been ignored too and I'm not the sort of person that sends inflammatory tweets like so many do during delays, they just don't respond. It's as if the DR policy doesn't exist.

 

[Harbouring]

I sent a complaint via the online form and no response. Had to manually email them in the end

 

[TEW]

Thanks for correcting me on that, I’d heard the numbers were creeping up quite quickly.

I understand there were more that went in today at certain depots. Elsewhere however support has been better than expected.

 

[TEW]

By last strike do you mean Monday or Sunday 31st Dec? Have they been training more contingency guards in recent times?

In comparison to the November strikes. Training of 'contingency guards' was still on going at that point.

 

[Olaf]

Combination of factors I assume, neither the original form or the contact us for complaints systems ever result in a reply. Pretty sure some of my tweets have been ignored too and I'm not the sort of person that sends inflammatory tweets like so many do during delays, they just don't respond. It's as if the DR policy doesn't exist.

So that would seem to point to a resourcing and process problem.

Automatic Delay-Repay should work more effectively than a user driven process; perhaps all operators should be required to introduce this across the board.

 

[samuelmorris]

By contrast, I had a DR request to TfL go through in under 24 hours - their process doesn't seem to work for stations not managed by TfL (e.g. Shenfield, Watford Junction and the likes) but otherwise it's pretty slick.

I too have had the same experience of needing to manually email people but had no response to that either. I've just sent another tweet about that and they've asked me to email once again, so I guess we'll see what happens...

 

[Olaf]

By contrast, I had a DR request to TfL go through in under 24 hours - their process doesn't seem to work for stations not managed by TfL (e.g. Shenfield, Watford Junction and the likes) but otherwise it's pretty slick.

I too have had the same experience of needing to manually email people but had no response to that either. I've just sent another tweet about that and they've asked me to email once again, so I guess we'll see what happens...

The trouble with email is that it is not guaranteed delivery and should not be part of the process except as an option for communication with customer services. Ask then to give you reference numbers, quote them in each email, then phone up asking for confirmation of receipt.

 

[samuelmorris]

Indeed, which is why the contact form, and email, and twitter were used. I have called twice in the past but with a 45 minute wait time, that isn't a realistic option to check up on something. The staff manning the phones also had no access to the DR system last time I called up so they simply asked me to send an email. That wait time was not during any strike action either, I dread to think what it'd be like this week.

 

[CN75]

The railway doesn't appear to have learnt a great deal from Southern.

Only the RMT are showing signs they haven’t learned anything from that experience.

 

[TEW]

Only the RMT are showing signs they haven’t learned anything from that experience.

Is that a serious comment or just the standard anti-union trolling? If the industry had learnt things from Southern we wouldn't be where we are now with several TOCs in dispute with mass disruption to passengers across the country.

 

[43096]

Combination of factors I assume, neither the original form or the contact us for complaints systems ever result in a reply. Pretty sure some of my tweets have been ignored too and I'm not the sort of person that sends inflammatory tweets like so many do during delays, they just don't respond. It's as if the DR policy doesn't exist.

I shall find out shortly if the process works as I've submitted a Delay Repay for a 16 minute delay this week.

They certainly haven't publicised the 15min DR well. Am I right thinking Season Ticket holders no longer get money back for void days and you claim DR instead? Certainly I got no deductions when I renewed for the cr@p service since First took over.