TFW problems on Saturday

[Phil from Mon]

BBC are reporting numerous cancellations across the TFW network yesterday, blamed on staff shortages and “work on the new timetable”. Doesn’t bode well for the increased services planned from today.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-50794666

Staff shortages due to timetable changes have been blamed for train cancellations, with passengers warned more could follow.
Transport for Wales (TfW) has blamed work on the new timetable, which comes into force on Sunday.
This led to 12 train services being cancelled before 13:00 GMT and delays.
TfW apologised and thanked workers who had given up rest days or volunteered to work overtime.
Earlier TfW's website showed there were delays to services between Aberystwyth and Shrewsbury, from Cardiff to Shrewsbury and Swansea and Chester to Holyhead, among others.
A bus replacement service was also operating between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog.
"We're sorry that there have been a number of cancellations on our network today," a TfW spokesman said.
"As always, we are very grateful to colleagues who gave up their own time to volunteer to work overtime and rest days."
TfW said over the past few months it had been "meticulously planning and preparing" for the new timetable by recruiting additional staff.
Capacity is being added for 6,500 more Valley Lines passengers, while an extra 186 Sunday services will also be added in Wales.
The spokesman added: "We are continuing to do everything possible to ensure the maximum number of services are operating every day and this time of year can always be challenging, particularly on weekends."

 

[Dai Corner]

14 cancellations and 49 alterations, mostly due to shortage of train crew currently showing in Journeycheck.

 

[PHILIPE]

There seems to be a problem at Carmarthen and Machynlleth in particular which is affecting all days of the week with multiple cancellations and not just confined to weekends. Strange to say, there seem to be no problems on the Cambrian today.

 

[MarkWiles]

Well it looks like today's launch of the "super improved XL Sunday timetable" on the Cambrian got off to a flying stop, with trains apparently turning short of destination (according to RTT) and cancellations due to short staffages. Which does rather beg the question, if you plan a timetable, then rely on staff goodwill to run it, why announce something that won't work if you can't get staff to cover the duties?

(Edit) Having said that, it may have been planned engineering work that caused trains to turn round at Tywyn, unless the mass bustitution at Mach was due to staffing issues...strange, the TfW website didn't mention anything about services being caped for engineering. Anyone know?

 

[Statto21]

Well it looks like today's launch of the "super improved XL Sunday timetable" on the Cambrian got off to a flying stop, with trains apparently turning short of destination (according to RTT) and cancellations due to short staffages. Which does rather beg the question, if you plan a timetable, then rely on staff goodwill to run it, why announce something that won't work if you can't get staff to cover the duties?

(Edit) Having said that, it may have been planned engineering work that caused trains to turn round at Tywyn, unless the mass bustitution at Mach was due to staffing issues...strange, the TfW website didn't mention anything about services being caped for engineering. Anyone know?

It was planned as there was a timetable up for it at Aberystwyth station in the week for it.

 

[MarkWiles]

Thanks, I hadn't seen any publicity myself. I'll go away and swallow my other foot to save me falling over.

 

[Dai Corner]

Things seem to better today with the train crew shortage apparently only affecting trains west of Carmarthen.

 

[PHILIPE]

Currently TFW Journey Check is showing 35 full and 26 part cancellations, seemingly most of them due to traincrew shortage (Following Twitter hints at this). However, the explanation being given today says "due to resource availability" and not defining whether shortage of train or crew. When somebody Tweeted to ask, the reply said could be due to a number of factors. Are TFW trying to cover something up or not, would you think ?

 

[Cambrian359]

Currently TFW Journey Check is showing 35 full and 26 part cancellations, seemingly most of them due to traincrew shortage (Following Twitter hints at this). However, the explanation being given today says "due to resource availability" and not defining whether shortage of train or crew. When somebody Tweeted to ask, the reply said could be due to a number of factors. Are TFW trying to cover something up or not, would you think ?

Why can’t companies just be honest with their customers with what the issues are. (Not just railways but in other industries to) Honesty goes much further than deception.

 

[Dai Corner]

'This train is cancelled due to fewer than the expected number of drivers deciding to work today'

 

[PHILIPE]

Wales on Line Website saying:-


Transport for Wales cancels 36 trains on Black Friday night
Most of the services between Cardiff Bay and Queens Street are cancelled

By
Laura Clements

• 17:45, 20 DEC 2019

NEWS

Transport for Wales say they are 'juggling' a very busy time (Image: Daily Post Wales)

Passengers and commuters have been left frustrated on the last Friday before Christmas as Transport for Wales cancels 36 trains.

At a particularly busy time for rail services, with many people out shopping and enjoying the festive season on Black Friday night, the train cancellations have been blamed on "resource availability".

For some, Friday is the last working day of the year.




@tfwrail wrexham - bidston route is an utter shambles. Trains running 15 - 20 min late over the last few weeks, 5pm cancelled yesterday, 4pm the day before and now ALL TRAINS CANCELLED THE LAST WORKING DAY OF THE YEAR FOR MANY. whats the reason this time?

Nearly all scheduled services between Cardiff Bay and Cardiff Queen Street have been cancelled throughout Friday evening. Other services affected include trains running between Wrexham and Bidston, Maesteg and Cardiff Central and Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock.

Announcements made over the tannoy and on the platform inform passengers services have been delayed or cancelled because of a lack of driver or insufficient train crews. However, TfW has maintained it does have enough staff to cover operations.

The rail provider has cancelled over one hundred services in the last week. The reason for the numerous cancellations and service disruptions earlier in the week was due to "a shortage of train crew" but on Friday Transport for Wales said the cancellations were due to "resource availability" .


A spokesman said: "The run up to Christmas is a difficult period for all service providers trying to juggle a very busy time with a shortage of available staff. We’re no different to any other industry, despite meticulous planning ahead of our timetable change."

But train passengers have had enough of further disruption after a "nightmare" week, demanding TfW provides a better explanation.

 

[PHILIPE]

Delete Post

 

[PHILIPE]

Delete Post

 

[Cardiff123]

Deleted

 

[Mark Carter]

Should be interesting tomorrow when the Milford Haven branch should reopen after a 5 week shut down. If there were cancellations with this being bus operated for 5 weeks what chance is there for tomorrow. Bet the bus companies are laughing. Does anyone know how much of the line has been completed?

 

[tomos dafis]

TFW a shambles every day for over a week now and again today with 22 cancellations and a large number of curtailed services seemingly virtually over much of the network. The new catch-all reason given is "resource availability" - which means not enough staff or traction to run the long-promised timetable enhancements from 15th Dec. - not one day since then has the full rail timetable run.

 

[Eccles1983]

Unfortunately it's not going to change anytime soon.

TfW have been let down massively by ROSCOS.

230's - not sure they will ever arrive
Mk4's not ready
170's late
769's ditto.

Added with the prm requirements, it's a perfect storm.

Their is enough staff, but with traction being stretched to the absolute limit you are starting to see unit failures. Some of the units get absolutely hammered to try to recover some services.

 

[Cardiff123]

Unfortunately it's not going to change anytime soon.

TfW have been let down massively by ROSCOS.

230's - not sure they will ever arrive
Mk4's not ready
170's late
769's ditto.

Added with the prm requirements, it's a perfect storm.

Their is enough staff, but with traction being stretched to the absolute limit you are starting to see unit failures. Some of the units get absolutely hammered to try to recover some services.

Surely the level of curtailments and cancellations since last week, that have been rising by the day, can't just be due to unit unavailability? The number of cancellations and curtailments showing on journey check as of now (18:15) is grim - 56 full cancellations and 53 curtailments.
I can't remember the run up to Christmas ever being this bad under ATW for the number of part and full cancellations.