Wellingborough puzzle: should trains be retimed?

[muddythefish]

Apologies if this has been posted before

Is there a reason why southbound Corby trains arriving on the slow line in the refurbished platform 4 at Wellingborough are held at signals for 5 minutes in order to wait for a southbound express to pass and then cross over from the slow and follow it down the fast line?

Chatting to platform staff while I was waiting for the 13.55 from Wellingborough to Bedford today (13.39 ex-Corby) to depart, they are equally frustrated by the delays caused by this odd timetabling which apparently causes every southbound departure from platform 4 to leave at least 5 minutes late.

 

[30907]

What is your alternative? Are you suggesting the xx55 departure should use the Slow line through to Bedford? Or be retimed slightly later?

Looking at RTT today the typical delay caused by the late running express is 1-2 minutes with two at 5min.

 

[muddythefish]

What is your alternative? Are you suggesting the xx55 departure should use the Slow line through to Bedford? Or be retimed slightly later?

Looking at RTT today the typical delay caused by the late running express is 1-2 minutes with two at 5min.

Has the Wellinborough - Bedford section been restored to 4 tracks? If so I would have thought one of benefits would be the flexibility to run the Corbys on the slow lines.

According to the platform staff at Wellingborough the xx55 and xx25 (?) consistently depart 5-10 minutes late waiting to follow the express trains on the fast line and they get alot of complaints from passengers wondering why. The staff themselves find it frustrating too

On the day I was there passengers weren't happy at having to wait. Perhaps yes, the trains should be retimed to leave Corby 5 minutes or so later ?

 

[30907]

Has the Wellinborough - Bedford section been restored to 4 tracks? If so I would have thought one of benefits would be the flexibility to run the Corbys on the slow lines.

Depends what the permitted speed on the Slows is - that might cause as much delay.
Looking at RTT more closely, several trains were allowed to leave right time yesterday and precede the express which was running over 5 late.
Possibly the operator needs to work on the causes of delay further North.

 

[The Planner]

Depends what the permitted speed on the Slows is - that might cause as much delay.
Looking at RTT more closely, several trains were allowed to leave right time yesterday and precede the express which was running over 5 late.
Possibly the operator needs to work on the causes of delay further North.

This. The fast train and what is causing its delay is the issue. There doesnt appear to be anything wrong with the timetable and it appears to work the majority of the time. If you retime the Corby you are still at risk of being delayed by the fast as its a regulating decision.

 

[Falcon1200]

According to the platform staff at Wellingborough the xx55 and xx25 (?) consistently depart 5-10 minutes late waiting to follow the express trains on the fast line and they get alot of complaints from passengers wondering why.

If all trains are on time but the Corby services still get delayed there is a schedule issue; Whereas if Corby trains are held for late running longer distance services, they are being regulated to minimise overall delay, ie by not putting a stopping slower service out right in front of an express.

Possibly the operator needs to work on the causes of delay further North.

Yes, that may well be the issue.

 

[InTheEastMids]

Depends what the permitted speed on the Slows is - that might cause as much delay.

The slows are very slow between Wellingborough and Bedford. Pre 2019 there was an EMT train that crossed to the slow line at Harrowden junction, then called at Wellingborough P3 and then through Sharnbrook Tunnel. I think it took 10-15 minutes longer. Very strong preserved railway vibes as the train trundled along at about perhaps 40-50mph. I don't think electrification has done anything about line speeds South of Wellingborough as the Corby services normally only seem to use the slow lines between Wellingborough and Kettering.

 

[muddythefish]

The slows are very slow between Wellingborough and Bedford. Pre 2019 there was an EMT train that crossed to the slow line at Harrowden junction, then called at Wellingborough P3 and then through Sharnbrook Tunnel. I think it took 10-15 minutes longer. Very strong preserved railway vibes as the train trundled along at about perhaps 40-50mph. I don't think electrification has done anything about line speeds South of Wellingborough as the Corby services normally only seem to use the slow lines between Wellingborough and Kettering.

Probably explains why the Corbys are switched to the fast at Wellingborough. It does seem odd though to reinstate the 4 tracks, and electrify them, but not improve line speeds, making the investment less useful