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Rail replacement bus times to Haslemere

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infobleep

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Why do they need to allow 25 - 30 minutes to get from Guildford to Godalming on a rail replacement bus?

Is it to allow for traffic being really bad. The bus is single decker so I can't imagine the bridges being too low. It is of course packed with people standing. Although you get people standing on buses, they usually stop at more bus stops than this.

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I now know the answer. It takes a while to get to Farncombe. I've done it very occasionally by car but don't remember it taking quite so long. It then allows 8 minutes to leave and arrive at Godalming.

Just shows how trains can be faster than other forms of transport!

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The bus I got, departed Godalming 2 minutes early.

When I went to catch the last bus back to Guildford I arrived in advance and waited, filming some maintenance diggers coming along the tracks
A coach pulled in. I heard some people talking and thought my bus must be the next one as there is one due to Haslemere before my one. It may be that the 22.25 to Haslemere never arrived as well.

A single decker bus pulled in and it turns out they were going to Haslemere. In the mean time my coach left for Guildford at least three minutes early. I ran after it but it wasn't stopping and may not even have seen me running.

I took a photo of the station CIS to prove it had left early and the pressed the help point. Whilst waiting 1-2 minutes for answer I photographed the empty bus stop. I then decided not to wait any more in case I'm waiting there ages for a response. I ran off to catch some people I knew who would be able to give me a lift back to Guildford, provided they hadn't left. Fortunately they haven't, so I didn't have to organise a taxi and try to claim it back.

Is there anyway they could improve the signage for the buses. I know the buses have numbers on them but the numbers don't appear in the live departure boards on National Rail Enquiries App.

I can't remember if the coach had Guildford printed on a piece of card or not but it is higher up than a bus.

I hasn't expected it to suddenly leave as it wasn't 22.53 yet.

Today I'm on a bus to Godalming and its currently waiting at Farncombe rather than just leaving. It arrived about 4 minutes early. So not to dissimilar to the coach last night. The bus left on time too.

Today they are running buses every half hour to Godalming, with one of the buses terminating there and the other going to Haslemere.

Given that there is double the frequency to Godalming than when trains run, is there enough demand to run a half hourly train service rather than the hourly one? It would have to go to Haslemere I guess as I doubt it could be turned around at Godalming.

There may not be the rolling stock available now or in the future but if there were, is there the demand?

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RJ

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Rail replacement buses are often a law unto themselves - often TOCs will pay a bus company to supply buses, but not ensure the company route learns the drivers or provides control staff. Some bus companies take on jobs when they don't have the resources to cover them. Hence you end up with buses that run when they like, get lost or not turn up at all.

The problem with slack times is that nobody wants to sit on a bus that's dwelling at each stop for several minutes, often the driver included. Whoever compiles the schedules should endeavour to have more realistic running times, only padding out the section that precedes the most important interchange point with rail services.
 
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Carlisle

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Why do they need to allow 25 - 30 minutes to get from Guildford to Godalming on a rail replacement bus?

Is it to allow for traffic being really bad. The bus is single decker so I can't imagine the bridges being too low.
The main A3 Portsmouth-Guildford road has been improved pretty extensively over the last 30 years whereas many of the surrounding town and village roads will in all likelihood have barely been altered since the 1950s/60s or in some cases even earlier than that
 
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infobleep

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So tonight I decided to get the bus from Farncombe. Only I stood at the wrong entrance and missed it. I'd forgotten there were two. I'd never really been to the main side before.

So next service comes along and I board it and off it goes.... 6 minutes early. This is a coach. Far nicer ride than a bus. Today's bus I didn't have to stand in though, which was a bonus.

I suspect there would be less chance of it happening were the station staffed.

Coach arrived into Guildford at 20.13, so 17 minutes early!

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CatfordCat

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Whoever compiles the schedules should endeavour to have more realistic running times, only padding out the section that precedes the most important interchange point with rail services.

The snag is that trains generally run at the same time past each hour through the day, and take the same amount of time to get from A to B at any time of day.

Rail replacement services - like any sort of bus - are prone to delay by road traffic, which varies during the day - on Sundays it's mainly shopping hours that are busier, but if (for example) you're somewhere in north London and either Arsenal or Spurs have a Sunday afternoon game, that adds a further layer of complication.

TOCs generally want rail replacement services to run at the same time past each hour throughout the day like the trains do - especially if they connect with trains at each end of their route.

If you give a rail replacement service enough time to cope with traffic during the busier hours, it will have too much time early morning and late evening.

if you plan it so that it's not got too much time in the evening, it will run late (and possibly miss connections) during the daytime.

Some TOCs provide (or get their contractors to provide) rail replacement control staff at more stations than others...
 

infobleep

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Joined
27 Feb 2011
Messages
12,556
The snag is that trains generally run at the same time past each hour through the day, and take the same amount of time to get from A to B at any time of day.

Rail replacement services - like any sort of bus - are prone to delay by road traffic, which varies during the day - on Sundays it's mainly shopping hours that are busier, but if (for example) you're somewhere in north London and either Arsenal or Spurs have a Sunday afternoon game, that adds a further layer of complication.

TOCs generally want rail replacement services to run at the same time past each hour throughout the day like the trains do - especially if they connect with trains at each end of their route.

If you give a rail replacement service enough time to cope with traffic during the busier hours, it will have too much time early morning and late evening.

if you plan it so that it's not got too much time in the evening, it will run late (and possibly miss connections) during the daytime.

Some TOCs provide (or get their contractors to provide) rail replacement control staff at more stations than others...
I appreciate they need to run to a timetable but it would be good if they could then stuck to it.

I once missed a train due to Southern buses nit running to the agreed timetable. Another time a bus to Reigate was delayed so we missed our connecting Reading train from Reigate. Bus was actually a replacement for part of the Reading service.

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