duffield
Established Member
| Leg | From | Dep. WTT | Dep. Real | To | Arr. WTT | Arr. Real | Distance | ID | Oper Code | Origin | Destination | Class | Car. | Loading | Ref. |
| 1 | Nottingham | 0737 | OT | Derby | 0802 | 0800-2 | 1G09 | XC | Nottingham | Birmingham New Street | 170 | 3 | Light | ||
| 2 | Derby | 0828 | OT | Cheltenham | 0950 | 0951+1 | 1V46 | XC | York | Plymouth | 221/220 | 4+4 | Medium | *1 | |
| 3 | Cheltenham | 0959 | OT | Swindon | 1058 | 1059+1 | 1L70 | GW | Cheltenham | London Paddington | 802 | 5 | Light | *2 | |
| 4 | Swindon | 1105 | 1107+2 | Westbury | 1147 | OT | 2M24 | GW | Swindon | Westbury | 158 | 2 | Light | *3,4 | |
| 5 | Westbury | 1250 | OT | London Paddington | 1416 | 1425+9 | 1A81 | GW | Paignton | London Paddington | 802 | 9 | Medium | ||
| 6 | London Paddington | 1434 | OT | Farringdon | 1442 | OT | 9U89 | XR | Heathrow Airport Terminal 4 | Abbey Wood | 345 | 9 | Medium | *5 | |
| 7 | Farringdon | 1444 | OT | London St. Pancras | 1448 | OT | 9O42 | TL | Sutton | St. Albans | 700 | 8 | Medium | ||
| 8 | London St. Pancras | 1505 | 1508+3 | Nottingham | 1650 | 1700+10 | 1D51 | EM | Nottingham | London St. Pancras | 222 | 5 | High | *6 | |
| ALL | Nottingham | 0737 | OT | Nottingham | 1650 | 1700+10 |
Notes:
*1: For a change, a Cross Country service with an appropriate capacity (seats for all, even in standard) and catering in both units including 1st complementaries. Also arrived at Cheltenham in time to connect to the GW service, a connection which I had noted did not work out yesterday.
*2: The complementary fruit cake slice in 1st on GW is very good, moist, fruity and delicious!
*3: The class 158 unit for this journey was very smart and appeared recently refurbished, and could be mistaken for new. Just west of Chippenham, there was considerable evidence of the aborted GW electrification of this section. Between Chippenham Thingley Junction and Trowbridge (Bradford Junction) this route is single track, with just one station, Melksham. Melksham was closed and demolished and the line singled in the 1960’s but the station was rebuilt and re-opened in 1985. The service has improved since the re-opening but is still only around one train per two hours, with local ambitions to make it hourly. In addition to the limited passenger service, there is regular freight, 6M40 1134 Westbury Down T.C. to Cliffe Hill Stud Fm (Colas) was waiting for the single line when my service passed Bradford Junction. The substantial stone bridges on the single track section clearly show its former double track status.
*4: Westbury: A somewhat tedious walk from the station to the town centre (about 15 minutes) leads to a disappointing High Street which appears to have been demolished and replaced with a now-shabby shopping precinct in the 1960’s, with a significant number of charity shops; but at least it lacks the many empty units found in other towns. The surrounding area seems better with a war memorial garden sporting some magnificent huge trees and a number of historic buildings, including the listed Angel Mill in Edward Street, which bears a passing resemblance to an old station frontage. There are quite a few local craft type and specialist stores.
*5: Paddington mainline platforms to St. Pancras EMR platforms: Using the Elizabeth line and Thameslink as shown took around 28 minutes without straining. Going full tilt, and with perfect timing it might be possible to bring this down to just over 20 minutes. A 40 minute allowance (as in this case) should be comfortable for most people (out of rush hour when there is no disruption), In this case I arrived just a couple of minutes before boarding commenced for the EMR service.
Note that the optimum location on the Elizabeth line train for changing at Farringdon is the rear (easternmost) coach.
*6: Delayed “due to being held at a red signal in the Luton area”. We were being held up by the Sheffield service (1F50, 1502 from St. Pancras) being stopped just ahead of us, but it was a mystery what was holding that service up. Traksy showed no other services anywhere ahead of it, before or after the delay, and the onboard announcements gave no further information.
Photo: Cheltenham station, class 802 for Paddington approaching:
Photo: Westbury station frontage:
Photo: Westbury Angel Mill:
Last edited: