Transpennine Express December 2019 Proposals

[PG]

Just had a look at trains.im. Very depressing.

Cancellations or very late.

35%. Overall

58%. Scotland
33%. North
12% South

What is even worse is when you look at the historical tab. I guess if that was a London based franchise the knives would be out by now.

If Scotland wasn't so poor then the overall % would be less and the North would look even worse...

I guess TPE and Northern are grateful for Scotrail's (non) performance!

 

[Failed Unit]

If Scotland wasn't so poor then the overall % would be less and the North would look even worse...

I guess TPE and Northern are grateful for Scotrail's (non) performance!

I was meaning the routes. So in this case I believe it is covered as.

Scotland.
Liverpool / Manchester - Edinburgh/ Glasgow

North
Edinburgh - Liverpool
Newcastle - Manchester Airport.
Smog - Manchester Airport
Scarborough- Liverpool
Hull - Manchester
Leeds / Manchester- Huddersfield.

south
Cleethorpes- Manchester Airport.

 

[Failed Unit]

just read on the internet that Grant schapps has told TPE it needs improve services and it must start from next week. That's from the Yorkshire coast radio site. don't know how true the statement is though .

They will get 2 days next week at 100% delivered as promised. 25th and 26th December.

 

[PG]

I was meaning the routes.

Oops my mistake

They will get 2 days next week at 100% delivered as promised. 25th and 26th December.

And Shapps can then say he told them to improve their performance and they did...

 

[Solent&Wessex]

Word is that a different emergency timetable will appear in the new year and last until the end of January.

 

[86247]

The 19.45 Glasgow -liverpool cancelled due to issue with the train crew ,
19.54 Liverpool - Scarborough cancelled ,
16.33 Edinburgh-liverpool cancelled issue with the train crew
21.15 Liverpool-newcastle cancelled wonder how long this is going to go on for?

 

[Failed Unit]

The 19.45 Glasgow -liverpool cancelled due to issue with the train crew ,
19.54 Liverpool - Scarborough cancelled ,
16.33 Edinburgh-liverpool cancelled issue with the train crew
21.15 Liverpool-newcastle cancelled wonder how long this is going to go on for?

My guess, until around March.

 

[PG]

16.33 Edinburgh-liverpool cancelled issue with the train crew

By my reckoning that means after the 1233 Edinburgh-Liverpool the next TPE service would have been the 1811.
Nice 5+ hour gap...

 

[Failed Unit]

Will they get to keep all the revenue from the APs they have sold? They extract revenue from LNER / XC. Don’t run their trains and LNER / XC carry the passengers anyway. Brilliant business plan.

 

[Tim_UK]

just read on the internet that Grant schapps has told TPE it needs improve services and it must start from next week. That's from the Yorkshire coast radio site. don't know how true the statement is though .

(outsider view point)

It might be. Optimistically, 2 days rest. Do depot people work at all over Christmas/boxing day? Might catch up some maintenance.

They will have had another weeks experience of running the new timetable, with the new diagrams. This must make some difference.

 

[86247]

The 18.11 only starting from Newcastle was cancelled between Edinburgh and Newcastle due to late arrival of the inbound service.

 

[josh-j]

I feel really bad for the staff on the ground with this continuing nightmare. The guard on my train this evening - which was packed full due to the previous service being cancelled and then delayed 15 minutes for unknown reasons - didn't just "apologise for the inconvenience" but said he couldn't apologise enough, that the service they have provided has been appalling recently, that he would do everything he could to help and get people connection times and so on. You could hear in his voice that he meant it and I think that probably shifted some passenger attitudes somewhat.

It has not been the brilliant recently from a passenger perspective but I'll be the first to defend front line staff who are doing their best in unenviable circumstances.

 

[Harryn9000]

I feel really bad for the staff on the ground with this continuing nightmare. The guard on my train this evening - which was packed full due to the previous service being cancelled and then delayed 15 minutes for unknown reasons - didn't just "apologise for the inconvenience" but said he couldn't apologise enough, that the service they have provided has been appalling recently, that he would do everything he could to help and get people connection times and so on. You could hear in his voice that he meant it and I think that probably shifted some passenger attitudes somewhat.

It has not been the brilliant recently from a passenger perspective but I'll be the first to defend front line staff who are doing their best in unenviable circumstances.

not all staff are like that though. my sister was coming home from manchester they cancelled the service the directed ppl to get piccadilly and refused to let people board next liverpool service it a nightmare

 

[tpjm]

not all staff are like that though. my sister was coming home from manchester they cancelled the service the directed ppl to get piccadilly and refused to let people board next liverpool service it a nightmare

“refused”? Could that have been because the next one was cancelled as well? Ticket acceptance is in place.

In appreciation to some of the above, I’d just like to highlight that today alone I have had 7 verbal and 1 threat of physical assaults towards my front-line colleagues. These are people pulling longer than rostered days of their own volition to keep customers moving. The service is abysmal and there’s no doubt about it, but attacking rail staff who are doing their best (and even ones who aren’t) is never acceptable.

 

[Harryn9000]

“refused”? Could that have been because the next one was cancelled as well? Ticket acceptance is in place.

In appreciation to some of the above, I’d just like to highlight that today alone I have had 7 verbal and 1 threat of physical assaults towards my front-line colleagues. These are people pulling longer than rostered days of their own volition to keep customers moving. The service is abysmal and there’s no doubt about it, but attacking rail staff who are doing their best (and even ones who aren’t) is never acceptable.

yes refused, she was told she couldn't board the train.some staff are willing to help others ain't it a joke. the liverpool service seems to have gone from very reliable to non existant. she manage to get home thankful for someone decent tpe staff told her to just bored the next service. the next service wasn't cancelled thats the thing.

 

[clagmonster]

“refused”? Could that have been because the next one was cancelled as well? Ticket acceptance is in place.

In appreciation to some of the above, I’d just like to highlight that today alone I have had 7 verbal and 1 threat of physical assaults towards my front-line colleagues. These are people pulling longer than rostered days of their own volition to keep customers moving. The service is abysmal and there’s no doubt about it, but attacking rail staff who are doing their best (and even ones who aren’t) is never acceptable.

Disgraceful. I trust that is 8 passengers removed from the railway, preferably permanently.

 

[Deerfold]

First Manchester Airport to Glasgow service of the day started at Carlisle today.

Currently on the second which is running well.

 

[tpjm]

Disgraceful. I trust that is 8 passengers removed from the railway, preferably permanently.

Unfortunately, not quite. Sometimes, especially given the serious delays and cancellations at the moment, station colleagues don’t feel that they can afford to delay a train waiting for security/BTP to remove an individual. However yesterday, thanks to some clever planning, two of those individuals were removed by BTP without delaying any trains.

Please - if anybody sees rail staff getting serious abuse from customers, do the decent thing. If it’s safe to do so, and you think you can have a positive effect, ask the customer to calm down. Otherwise, or if you have any doubts, text BTP on 61016. You wouldn’t go into a shoe shop and abuse the staff when they brought you the wrong size by accident, so why punish rail staff when the service delivery is not even directly within their control?

 

[northernchris]

Please - if anybody sees rail staff getting serious abuse from customers, do the decent thing. If it’s safe to do so, and you think you can have a positive effect, ask the customer to calm down. Otherwise, or if you have any doubts, text BTP on 61016. You wouldn’t go into a shoe shop and abuse the staff when they brought you the wrong size by accident, so why punish rail staff when the service delivery is not even directly within their control?

There really needs to be tougher punishment for those who abuse staff (and not just on the railway). The 'service' being provided by TPE at the moment is indefensible, but getting aggressive doesn't get you on your way any sooner.

 

[tpjm]

On Friday, one of my team was travelling on a train (on duty after being trapped on a train doing an assist). On the way back to her station, the train called at an intermediate. There was so much luggage in the doorways that in order to get everybody off she politely asked customers to step off and then get back on when people had alighted. A gentleman then started to berate her for this action to the point that she was backed into a corner with nowhere to move with him swearing and pointing in her face. This is a respectable looking man who is 50+, travelling with his wife, attacking a petite lady in her early 20s. Despite this, when she got to the next station, BTP met the train and off she went to continue to help those who needed it.

This is not a one off. 1% PPM or 100% PPM. This is just not acceptable behaviour.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Thinking of all the new TPE units, how far advanced is the driver training programme on them? The more trained drivers should lessen the service cancellations each month in the early months of 2020.

Being something of a realist, I was sorry that the current TPE problems were the reason why my good lady wife of 78 years vintage (and now in the early stages of a dementia affliction) and I did not make our annual pre Christmas visit to York to attend a special service in the minster on Saturday for the first time in the last twelve years.

 

[Yorkshireman16]

could TPE not go back to the 185 units 350 units York-Edinburgh until more crew trained up

 

[scarby]

Before May 2018 there was an 06.34 departure from Scarborough to Manchester Airport. It was generally reliable and on time.

Then in May 2018 an “improved” 06.00 service was introduced. As far as I know from checking on RTT this NEVER arrived at Manchester Airport on time on a weekday in over a year and a half’s service. Often 15+ late, sometimes more and sometimes terminated short.

Now with the new timetable we have an “improved” 05.34 departure. However it now goes to Liverpool, so the convenience of an early train to the airport has simply been axed. In its first week, on Wednesday it was 70L into York where it terminated and yesterday cancelled throughout.

 

[JonathanH]

could TPE not go back to the 185 units 350 units York-Edinburgh until more crew trained up

The staff who work York to Edinburgh won't have knowledge of 350s either and they are needed on the west side / going away in any case. 185s are hypothecated for strengthening other services. Why run 185s north of Newcastle when this route has other operators? They are needed on the core routes.

 

[Yorkshireman16]

The staff who work York to Edinburgh won't have knowledge of 350s either and they are needed on the west side / going away in any case. 185s are hypothecated for strengthening other services. Why run 185s north of Newcastle when this route has other operators? They are needed on the core routes.

good point

 

[AndyHudds]

No better today on a Sunday. Is Leo Goodwin going to fall on his sword and resign over the whole debacle?

 

[NoMorePacers]

The Hull route seems to have slipped somewhat since the last change. 4 services towards Leeds cancelled today.

 

[Bertie the bus]

Is Leo Goodwin going to fall on his sword and resign over the whole debacle?

I wouldn't have thought so. He would have to accept that he and his company were in any way to blame to resign. There is no evidence so far he isn't playing the same game as David Brown (Northern MD) has for the last 18 months - blame everybody else and claim you are delivering what you promised against all the odds.

 

[37057]

(outsider view point)

It might be. Optimistically, 2 days rest. Do depot people work at all over Christmas/boxing day? Might catch up some maintenance.

Put them all to bed on christmas eve as they come in at night then pick up the pieces boxing day night ready for the following day. Workload wise, same as any nightshift except they don't have to be prep'd and handed over to mainline drivers. Boxing day night the opposite as we don't have to wait for them to roll in...

 

[37201xoIM]

If the DfT were to attempt to enforce all the penalty provisions in the TPE franchise agreement, I imagine FirstGroup would find it commercially preferable to cut its losses and "hand back the keys", forfeiting its performance bond. With Northern also reportedly "on the brink", the SoS might well consider this outcome politically highly undesirable. Adapting Oscar Wilde's quote: "To lose one franchisee, Mr Shapps, may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose two looks like carelessness."

Exactly so.

And didn't I use a very similar misquotation too...?!