Swanage Railway announce 2023 Wareham service

[Brush 4]

It's good to see positive quotes from Swanage Rly staff but, the 'trial' needs to offer useful times for locals to use, before and after heritage services. The timings today for 70000 illustrate that a path is available at least in the morning.

Just over an hour, with a stop only at Wareham. Adding stops at Poole and Bournemouth only would add about 10 mins. Dep BOMO around 0845, would allow a tight arrival at Swanage at 0955ish, 5 mins before the first steam dep. If it was delayed on NR, there are loops at Corfe and Harmans Cross to pass the 10am steam. If too tight, an 0710 dep should do it.
Edited.....
Swanage [SGE]
Pathed as Diesel locomotive, trailing load 715 tonnes at 60mph
0720
Corfe Castle (Swanage R) [CFC]
pass
0743
Worgret Jn
pass
0805
pass
actual
0756¾
Wareham [WRM]
1
0810
0812
actual
0801
0803¼
Hamworthy [HAM]
1
pass
0819
pass
0811
Poole [POO]
1
pass
0822
pass
0816½
-5
Parkstone (Dorset) [PKS]
1
pass
0825½
pass
0820½
-4
Branksome [BSM]
1
pass
0828
pass
0823
-4
Bournemouth [BMH]
2
pass
0832
pass
0829¼
-2

I'm sure an evening service could also be provided with proper timetable planning. You won't get locals on board with a mid morning dep from Wareham. So, is it designed to fail? As for other lines with hardly used main line connections, TOC services should be imposed, if they won't do it themselves. Not instead of but, in addition to the heritage services, along the same early/late principles. It may be possible to fit later services inbetween the steam but, each line is different and would have to be looked at individually.

 

[James H]

As has been discussed upthread, the current service is all that can be fitted into a single shift.

I'd love to see earlier and later services, but the increase in operating costs would be considerable.

One step at a time.

 

[railfan99]

No one has yet informed as to how patronage is going. Does anyone know?

 

[williamn]

I guess you can get a vague idea by looking online at the advance sales. They started selling 100 for each train. The 11.19 tomorrow from Wareham has sold 28 tickets and the 13.05 has sold 5. The others don't have any sales. I have no idea how much is sold on the day however. For This Saturday there don't appear to have been any advance sales yet on Swanage bound services.

 

[Titfield]

I guess you can get a vague idea by looking online at the advance sales. They started selling 100 for each train. The 11.19 tomorrow from Wareham has sold 28 tickets and the 13.05 has sold 5. The others don't have any sales. I have no idea how much is sold on the day however. For This Saturday there don't appear to have been any advance sales yet on Swanage bound services.

Cant help but feel that advance sales are virtually irrelevant in a business which is traditionally turn up, pay and go.

 

[Techniquest]

There's also the fact that today had a weather warning for heavy rain and strong wind in place. I can imagine that will have factored into decisions on booking heritage railway tickets, it certainly did with me and I cancelled all plans to go adventuring today. The blue skies right now are taunting me, so I'm wondering if I made the right call.

With the advanced booking tickets on the Swanage Railway, are they insisting on printing them at home or have they joined the modern day with some form of e-ticket?

 

[E759]

Like other tourist railways which haven't quite understood the concept you are are issued with an e-ticket when you book which they then ask you to convert into a "travel ticket" when you arrive. I noted the lack of a booking office at Wareham but didn't get a reply on that. Anyway I've circumvented the need for individual tickets by purchasing the Annual Season which covers the whole route from Wareham to Swanage. I plan on making very good use of that in the summer season alongside via Barnham big transet tickets.

 

[Techniquest]

So it kind of defeats the point of booking in advance. If you have to queue up anyway, then you might as well buy on the day.

I seriously don't understand why they have to make it so awkward. Surely it cannot be beyond the abilities of at least one person to design an e-ticket in PDF form that a customer gets issued with when booking online. Download the PDF to your phone, to avoid any need for a dodgy mobile signal, and show to the conductor when they come along. Maybe even that system in the railway's booking systems would allow one to look up a customer's booking if for whatever reason their devices runs out of charge, possibly for a small fee to cover the cost of printing the PDF.

If a railway expects me to buy online to get a booking reference, to then queue up and hand over in the booking office, then the odds are I will take my business elsewhere. That I would guess will apply to a lot of other people too.

I know that's going to sound a bit entitled, but it is the way it's going everywhere. Speed and convenience are two key factors these days!

 

[BenS123]

Swanage Railway's page on this contradicts itself it seems - saying tickets will be posted then immediately saying they will require collection

Terms and conditions of tickets issued by Swanage Railway

Here are the terms and conditions which apply to our tickets

www.swanagerailway.co.uk

The company will aim to post all tickets within five working days unless otherwise noted.
Tickets will not be posted but held for collection by you from a selected Swanage Railway ticket office. If you have not otherwise received your booking confirmation within 48 hours of travel you should contact the company as soon as possible.

However further down the page it seems to clarify

We aim to despatch Tickets purchased by telephone, postal booking or on-line within five working days. We suggest that tickets are purchased at least seven days before travel and for this reason some ticket types will not be available less than seven days before travel.
However, if the date of travel is such that it is possible that tickets will not reach the customer in time Tickets can be held for collection from the Company's Ticket Office at Swanage Station. Tickets can only be sent to the cardholder's registered billing address

 

[E759]

Forgot to say I saw a number of people who just showed their phones or a print of their email conformation. Also to note that email confirmations can be easily saved as PDF to your phone so a 4G signal is not required.

 

[railfan99]

When doing the first part of a 'ghost booking', I can no longer see how many tickets remain for each trip ex Wareham. Could others confirm that they also cannot?

Forgot to say I saw a number of people who just showed their phones or a print of their email conformation. Also to note that email confirmations can be easily saved as PDF to your phone so a 4G signal is not required.

Which train on what date were you on, and about how many used it (from Wareham?)

 

[Brush 4]

All that tech stuff sounds far more complicated than buying at the ticket office with either cash or a card. A case of blinded by that if its new, it must be better assumption....

 

[tnxrail]

I went on the train yesterday asked at booking office freedom of line was okay, most normal travellers used it on both services.

 

[Techniquest]

All that tech stuff sounds far more complicated than buying at the ticket office with either cash or a card. A case of blinded by that if its new, it must be better assumption....

Not necessarily, for some of us it's good to have all our tickets ready before the trip if possible. The way some railways are failing to adapt is the problem, although this does of course apply to Merseyrail as well who seem stuck in a timewarp and won't move on.

I want to turn up and have my ticket on my device ready to go, I don't want to spend a potentially silly amount of time in line waiting to pay for a ticket that I'm going to throw in the bin later on when I've finished my day out. I especially don't want to be having to queue to pay, to then risk finding there's a hold-up and 20 minutes later the train's gone with potentially a long wait for the next one. That sort of nonsense belongs in the 1990s, not the 2020s.

 

[paul1609]

Cant help but feel that advance sales are virtually irrelevant in a business which is traditionally turn up, pay and go.

Can't speak for the Swanage but at the K &ESR turn up pay & go is less than 30% of our business now and has been since the pandemic. Understand that at some of the Welsh Narrow Gauge its less than 5%.

 

[williamn]

When doing the first part of a 'ghost booking', I can no longer see how many tickets remain for each trip ex Wareham. Could others confirm that they also cannot?



Which train on what date were you on, and about how many used it (from Wareham?)

I can no longer see it either, looks like they tweaked it so it's not visible, perhaps because the numbers weren't very flattering! As others have said most people book in advance now, so the figures were probably a good guide to the popularity (or otherwise!) of the service.

 

[Titfield]

I can no longer see it either, looks like they tweaked it so it's not visible, perhaps because the numbers weren't very flattering! As others have said most people book in advance now, so the figures were probably a good guide to the popularity (or otherwise!) of the service.

I am not in the least bit surprised. A lot of public money has gone into this project directly or indirectly and SRC will want to be able to declare it a success given it may influence future funding.

Like other tourist railways which haven't quite understood the concept you are are issued with an e-ticket when you book which they then ask you to convert into a "travel ticket" when you arrive. I noted the lack of a booking office at Wareham but didn't get a reply on that. Anyway I've circumvented the need for individual tickets by purchasing the Annual Season which covers the whole route from Wareham to Swanage. I plan on making very good use of that in the summer season alongside via Barnham big transet tickets.

This may be due to the booking system they use which I understand is designed for tourist attractions (ie admissions) rather than travel bookings.

Like other tourist railways which haven't quite understood the concept you are are issued with an e-ticket when you book which they then ask you to convert into a "travel ticket" when you arrive. I noted the lack of a booking office at Wareham but didn't get a reply on that. Anyway I've circumvented the need for individual tickets by purchasing the Annual Season which covers the whole route from Wareham to Swanage. I plan on making very good use of that in the summer season alongside via Barnham big transet tickets.

There was a notice on the SWR ticket counter at Wareham saying that tickets will be available from the end of April.

 

[paul1609]

This may be due to the booking system they use which I understand is designed for tourist attractions (ie admissions) rather than travel bookings.

The booking system at Swanage and the K&ESR and other railways is made by a firm called MERAC and its derived from a museum and theatre booking system.
At the K&ESR we want you to exchange the tickets so we can regulate loadings on the trains and also so we can persuade you to register for gift aid.
This is primarily because of the limited capacity and the large number of prebooked parties that we have.
If you turn up at 10.20 and the 10.40 is fully booked we will suggest that you go and have a look round the museum and go for a later train rather than standing on a hour journey to Bodiam. This is a compromise which allows us to accommodate people who miss their booked train and allows us to retain the flexibility of day rover tickets.

 

[williamn]

I am not in the least bit surprised. A lot of public money has gone into this project directly or indirectly and SRC will want to be able to declare it a success given it may influence future funding.



This may be due to the booking system they use which I understand is designed for tourist attractions (ie admissions) rather than travel bookings.


There was a notice on the SWR ticket counter at Wareham saying that tickets will be available from the end of April.

Tbf they’ve only had like…two years to plan the through ticketing.

 

[Turbo004]

Just thought I'd report back on a fantastic day out to Swanage on Tuesday 25th April. I set off very early from the North West of England going via Euston where I saw a Class 50. Other heritage traction seen included a pair of 73's on a freight at Winchester.

I had about a month previously phoned the Swanage Railway to find out if they did reduced tickets for Train Operating Company Railway Staff. I was told they did. On arrival at Wareham I noted that a charter train was on time at 11.19 on the CIS screens. It was shame it did not say Swanage and confused a few people. I went to the booking office and enquired about buying my ticket. I was told that the day I arrived was the first day you could buy tickets from the South West Trains ticket office for the Swanage Railway. However as mine was a Priv ticket the office could not sell it me and I would have to buy on board the train. To make things more complicated I would have to pay cash as I was told by the office that cash only was accepted on board the train. I had no cash but the gentleman in the office informed me where to find a cash machine about 5-10 minutes walk away and if I was quick I should make the train. I walked quickly and I made the cash point which unfortunately charged. Instead I went to The Spa next door and got some cash back instead.

On arrival back at the station the Class 117 DMU had arrived. There was also a group of 10 Network Rail staff clearing vegetation in the nearby former West facing bay. I'm pleased to report that there was approximately 40 people on board this 11.17 to Swanage at Wareham.

Much to my surprise when the guard came round to collect tickets the Guard had contactless for me to pay for my £5 single to Swanage. On arrival at Norden I was the only passenger to get off yet a further 20 boarded.

I had pleasant 30 minutes or so walking round the station area in the sunshine where there was a mining museum. I then boarded a Southern 2-6-0 to Swanage which made plenty of noise on the journey although only had about 25 people on board.

On arrival at Swanage I found an independent bakery for a nice pasty. I then paid £2 for a single to Bournemouth on an open top bus. This was great in the sunshine going past a couple of nice beeches and going over the chain link ferry.

I just made my connection at Bournemouth to catch my train back up North. Overall a very successful day although I will be in touch with South West Trains and the Swanage Railway about the issues at Wareham. Also thank you to those on the forum who gave me advice on the trip - they certainly helped.

 

[Titfield]

Just thought I'd report back on a fantastic day out to Swanage on Tuesday 25th April. I set off very early from the North West of England going via Euston where I saw a Class 50. Other heritage traction seen included a pair of 73's on a freight at Winchester.

I had about a month previously phoned the Swanage Railway to find out if they did reduced tickets for Train Operating Company Railway Staff. I was told they did. On arrival at Wareham I noted that a charter train was on time at 11.19 on the CIS screens. It was shame it did not say Swanage and confused a few people. I went to the booking office and enquired about buying my ticket. I was told that the day I arrived was the first day you could buy tickets from the South West Trains ticket office for the Swanage Railway. However as mine was a Priv ticket the office could not sell it me and I would have to buy on board the train. To make things more complicated I would have to pay cash as I was told by the office that cash only was accepted on board the train. I had no cash but the gentleman in the office informed me where to find a cash machine about 5-10 minutes walk away and if I was quick I should make the train. I walked quickly and I made the cash point which unfortunately charged. Instead I went to The Spa next door and got some cash back instead.

On arrival back at the station the Class 117 DMU had arrived. There was also a group of 10 Network Rail staff clearing vegetation in the nearby former West facing bay. I'm pleased to report that there was approximately 40 people on board this 11.17 to Swanage at Wareham.

Much to my surprise when the guard came round to collect tickets the Guard had contactless for me to pay for my £5 single to Swanage. On arrival at Norden I was the only passenger to get off yet a further 20 boarded.

I had pleasant 30 minutes or so walking round the station area in the sunshine where there was a mining museum. I then boarded a Southern 2-6-0 to Swanage which made plenty of noise on the journey although only had about 25 people on board.

On arrival at Swanage I found an independent bakery for a nice pasty. I then paid £2 for a single to Bournemouth on an open top bus. This was great in the sunshine going past a couple of nice beeches and going over the chain link ferry.

I just made my connection at Bournemouth to catch my train back up North. Overall a very successful day although I will be in touch with South West Trains and the Swanage Railway about the issues at Wareham. Also thank you to those on the forum who gave me advice on the trip - they certainly helped.

There are connectivity issues with card payment machines along the "Purbeck Line" especially on the "top section" between Corfe Castle and Wareham so Swanage Railway advertise that they only accept cash payments onboard. https://www.swanagerailway.co.uk/tickets (In fact poor mobile phone signals is a problem throughout the isle of Purbeck, a problem the network providers can not be bothered to sort out despite much complaining by residents).

However the TTIs are carrying card payment machines and if passengers proffer cards try to get the machines to work, falling back to cash acceptance if they cant get the requisite signal or encounter other problems.

I do not know why the SWR ticket office cant issue a priv ticket this may be a rule where some part of the travel has to be on the services of the company who runs the ticket issuing office or something to do with SRC having to pay a handling fee per ticket for each SRC ticket issued by SWR.

Anyway glad to hear you had a "grand day out".

 

[Falcon1200]

I also visited the Swanage Railway, using the Wareham connection, in my case on Thursday 20th April, and had a great day out, helped by the glorious weather! I also travelled on the 1109 from Wareham and alighted at Norden, took the steam train to Swanage and then back to Corfe Castle for the DMU to Wareham. I was aware somehow of the theoretical cash-only payment on the DMU so was prepared with my £25. It was a well-run and friendly railway and I wish it, and in particular its main line connecting service every success.

 

[railfan99]

I also visited the Swanage Railway, using the Wareham connection, in my case on Thursday 20th April...

How many do you estimate used that trip from the main line to the branch?

 

[williamn]

Will the through tickets from SWR be available online? I can't seem to find it as an option.

 

[Watershed]

Will the through tickets from SWR be available online? I can't seem to find it as an option.

They came on sale on Tuesday this week, but it depends on the booking site as to whether they've added the requisite ticket types and origin/destination locations to allow you actually book them.

 

[williamn]

They came on sale on Tuesday this week, but it depends on the booking site as to whether they've added the requisite ticket types and origin/destination locations to allow you actually book them.

Thanks - trying on the SWR site but just getting an error message.

 

[Titfield]

Thanks - trying on the SWR site but just getting an error message.

Yes me too. Something not quite right but can figure out what it is.

 

[Falcon1200]

How many do you estimate used that trip from the main line to the branch?

At a rough estimate, 25 to 35.

 

[railfan99]

At a rough estimate, 25 to 35.

That strikes me as quite reasonable. Fairly encouraging.

It's certainly not just nil, one or three passengers, even though '25 to 35' may not cover the running costs for the day if other trips had far fewer.

 

[paul1609]

That strikes me as quite reasonable. Fairly encouraging.

It's certainly not just nil, one or three passengers, even though '25 to 35' may not cover the running costs for the day if other trips had far fewer.

Guessing at the Swanages likely costs for running on to the mainline an average of 35 passengers per train (at full fare) wouldn't cover costs by a wide margin.