Killingworth
Established Member
Not humans, rail services. This week we've seen the restoration of many services but there are still a lot of trains that aren't running to the timetables intended to operate from May. There's a £500m fund to restore old railways cut in the Beeching era, but what's at risk now? How many of these cuts may become permanent?
There'll be a host of reasons why this will be possible, probable, or almost certain. The intention here is to try and collate all lines and services that may be under threat. Each may deserve a thread of its own. Some may already have one.
I'll start with 5 examples from within my normal area of travels, all with reasons peculiar to that route. My reasonings for each are speculative examples and may lead to separate threads about each. If I can spot 5 very quickly there must be many more.
There'll be a host of reasons why this will be possible, probable, or almost certain. The intention here is to try and collate all lines and services that may be under threat. Each may deserve a thread of its own. Some may already have one.
I'll start with 5 examples from within my normal area of travels, all with reasons peculiar to that route. My reasonings for each are speculative examples and may lead to separate threads about each. If I can spot 5 very quickly there must be many more.
- Hull Trains. Hull to Kings Cross via Doncaster. Open access operator, all services temporarily suspended from Monday 30th March.
- TransPennine Express. Southern route from Cleethorpes to Manchester Airport. Most trains not proceeding beyond Piccadilly.
- Northern. Nottingham - Leeds route curtailed to 2 through services in each direction. Others limited to Nottingham - Sheffield only.
- Cross Country. Birmingham to Newcastle via Leeds. Hourly stops at Chesterfield mostly omitted.
- Northern. Leeds - Goole. Pontefract line via Knottingley. No services between Goole and Knottingley.
- Hull Trains, open access operator funding issues, possibly the hardest example in this list to see restored. Is temporary starting to sound optimistic?
- TPE, few using Manchester Airport. Simple economics. May hasten rationalisation to bring reliable frequent shuttles from Piccadilly to the Airport and easing congestion around Manchester.
- Northern, apparent difficulties crewing 195s through Sheffield with trains alternating from Leeds to Lincoln or Nottingham. Likely to be resolved by September?
- Cross Country. Apparent concerns about timekeeping and saving 3 or 4 minutes by not stopping claimed to improve reliability - not for those wanting to board and leave there.
- Northern. Line disrupted by floods earlier in the year. Minimal numbers were using this section in recent years, not least because it was a very limited service. It's a single track with only a daily return gypsum working booked between Hull docks and Ferrybridge. Passenger closure might look logical?
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