Looks like the path to get down to Gatwick and back simply doesn't exist. The GWR trains are at Redhill xx16-xx44. There is a Reigate to Tonbridge service which arrives at Redhill at xx20, departing at xx24. There is a Three Bridges to Bedford train which calls at the stations south of Redhill and runs at the time the GWR train would need to run up from Gatwick.
Also, only two units east of the block.
Funnily enough, on 14 April, GWR services run east of Shalford only on completely different timings and do get down to Gatwick and back, again with two units, and a slow line block south of Earlswood.
Reflecting on this further, I think the GWR times are the stopping trains times that happen on a regular Sunday.
I guess the time it might take the bus to reach Shalford, might mean they can't run in the usual Guildford path without an even longer delay.
I think there was talk of eventually have two trains an hour to Gatwick Airport on a Sunday. If that ever did occur, would they still have the stopping train terminate at Redhill during engineering work such as this? I'm not even sure what path such a train would be able to use.
At least the wait at Redhill is only 15 minutes. Better than 30 minutes, which I've come across in the past.
I also hadn't noticed that they run Reigate to Tonbridge services.
Yes, they are basically adapting the regular Gatwick service - but the bus is only to Guildford not N Camp.
This also happened earlier this month, if I recall correctly. I can't remember which starting station but the regular Guildford fast slot was used to stop at additional stations on route to Gatwick Airport.
I don't know what work is being done but they are only using one day to close part of the NDL, as opposed to the whole Easter weekend.
So for fun I got the 10 am bus. It departed just under a minute early and we arrived into Shalford 8 minutes early!
So much so I was able to get some photos and still get to the station 5 minutes before the incoming train was due to arrive.
I now intend to relax on the train for 28 minutes prior to it's departure.
Only two of us here so should be fairly quiet. More got off than getting on though.
There is more engineering works this weekend. This time between Guildford and Redhill. The summary document says there are buses between Guildford and Redhill/Gatwick Airport.
However, on the Saturday no buses are showing up and when I do a search on the Sunday, no buses to Gatwick Airport show up, only to Redhill.
I appreciate GWR are on strike on Saturday but South Western Railway are not, so surely there must be people travelling from SWR stations who want to travel to GWR stations along the route. Or from Govia Thameslink Railway stations to stations along the GWR route, or to change onto SWR services.
I bet if SWR ran services from Guildford to Gatwick Airport, the buses would be running. If SWR did and SWR were on strike on Saturday, they would not be.
This comes across to be a silo mentality and silo thinking.
I sent a post, formally known as a tweet, to GWR_help and got the following reply.
Hi Tim. As industrial action is taking place this weekend, I'm afraid there aren't any rail replacement buses scheduled to run.
If you have purchased tickets, you can claim a full refund via this link refunds.gwr.com selecting Service Cancelled/Disrupted as the reason - Alexandra
I replied that their train drivers didn't drive the buses.
I do appreciate people cannot get to Reading but there must be a reasonable number of people who rarely venture west of Guildford as that is an interchange with other train companies. I don't often go west but do go east a lot.
I mean GWR are still running trains on the Monday when SWR and GTR are not and if the issue is people thinking they can get to their destination, wouldn't they think that on the Monday as not everyone's destination is on one rail company, in this case GWR.
If someone wants to provide a good reason for why I'm wrong on this matter then please do.