SWR Waterloo to Reading Line service reduction 17/07/2023

[sp503]

The Waterloo to Reading Line is normally one of the more reliable services of the SWR, with half-hourly services during the day like clockwork. Today, and a few times in the recent week or so, however, there are noticeable reduction of services. Some services only go between Staines and Reading, some disappeared entirely, leaving an entire hour’s gap between two trains. RTT’s info at Bracknell station can provide an overview of the service pattern today: https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/se...23-07-17/0600-2000?stp=WVS&show=all&order=wtt

The weird things are: 1) there are no notices on the changes, not on SWR’s website, nor are there any planned engineering works; and 2) the missing departures are actually not marked “cancelled” on RTT, but disappeared altogether. This suggests that the cancellations and alterations are planned in advance (probably due to ASLEF overtime ban?) but I cannot find any such information from SWR. Does anyone know what’s going on, and am I being too unreasonable to expect some more explanation and communication from SWR? (Or am I looking at something similar to what TPE has been doing for the past couple of years…?)

 

[mangyiscute]

I imagine it's to do with the overtime ban currently in place from Aslef, meaning some services have been cut from the timetable

Industrial Action | South Western Railway

Industrial action by members of the ASLEF union will take place during January and February

www.southwesternrailway.com

 

[Ascotroyal]

Its due to the overtime ban this week. The same happened a couple of weeks ago during the last one.

 

[sp503]

I imagine it's to do with the overtime ban currently in place from Aslef, meaning some services have been cut from the timetable

Industrial Action | South Western Railway

Industrial action by members of the ASLEF union will take place during January and February

www.southwesternrailway.com

Cheers, I suppose this is the reason indeed, and my bad for not finding this before posting. I suppose it’s with the big RMT strike on 20 and 22 that I have overlooked the details on the ASLEF overtime ban during the week.

 

[ABDeltic]

Cheers, I suppose this is the reason indeed, and my bad for not finding this before posting. I suppose it’s with the big RMT strike on 20 and 22 that I have overlooked the details on the ASLEF overtime ban during the week.

There's another overtime ban week commencing July 31st. Some SWR routes have been more attracted than others. There is a summary of the changes on SWR website.

 

[davews]

All on their website, as it has been for a week or so:

Industrial Action | South Western Railway

Industrial action by members of the ASLEF union will take place during January and February

www.southwesternrailway.com

Basically hour service off peak, which seems to be between 11am and 3pm ish.

 

[Goldfish62]

All on their website, as it has been for a week or so:

Industrial Action | South Western Railway

Industrial action by members of the ASLEF union will take place during January and February

www.southwesternrailway.com

Basically hour service off peak, which seems to be between 11am and 3pm ish.

And from about 1900.

Cheers, I suppose this is the reason indeed, and my bad for not finding this before posting. I suppose it’s with the big RMT strike on 20 and 22 that I have overlooked the details on the ASLEF overtime ban during the week.

On a positive note trains are running beyond Staines to Ascot on Thursday for the first time on an RMT strike day.

 

[davews]

And from about 1900.


On a positive note trains are running beyond Staines to Ascot on Thursday for the first time on an RMT strike day.

Hadn't spotted that. But why not all the way to Reading?

 

[sushiuk]

On a positive note trains are running beyond Staines to Ascot on Thursday for the first time on an RMT strike day.

If you have to train then, yes, good news but an already very slow journey of 55 mins from Ascot to Waterloo is extended to 75-85 mins.

 

[Horizon22]

Hadn't spotted that. But why not all the way to Reading?

Are they dispatched from Reading by GWR? If so they might not be able to staff it adequately.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

If you have to train then, yes, good news but an already very slow journey of 55 mins from Ascot to Waterloo is extended to 75-85 mins.

Really quite ludicrous.

 

[Goldfish62]

If you have to train then, yes, good news but an already very slow journey of 55 mins from Ascot to Waterloo is extended to 75-85 mins.

Yes, and an unusual service pattern of via Hounslow towards Waterloo and via Richmond towards Ascot with Windsor services doing the opposite. Can't work out the reasoning given that journey times are the same within a couple of minutes via each route.

Are they dispatched from Reading by GWR? If so they might not be able to staff it adequately.

There are trains to Redhill on Thursday from P4-6 so that's not the reason.

Surely the reason is the same as why other parts of the network aren't being served, ie it would require more trains, which would require more contingency guards, which SWR doesn't have.

 

[Fastlane256]

Reliable? That's the most nonsense I've ever heard about the reading lines. I regularly use these lines from Staines and SWR is awful. For example, today's service to reading at 5Pm was delayed 19 mins at Feltham due to a door failure it was cancelled later, thankfully after I had gotten off

 

[Horizon22]

Surely the reason is the same as why other parts of the network aren't being served, ie it would require more trains, which would require more contingency guards, which SWR doesn't have.

Quite possibly - curtailing the service may mean less diagrams required across the day.

 

[davews]

Reliable? That's the most nonsense I've ever heard about the reading lines. I regularly use these lines from Staines and SWR is awful. For example, today's service to reading at 5Pm was delayed 19 mins at Feltham due to a door failure it was cancelled later, thankfully after I had gotten off

I think you mean this one, the 1720 from Waterloo. It wasn't cancelled, delayed 11 minutes at Feltham, but then continued through to Reading.

Realtime Trains | 2C53 1720 London Waterloo to Reading | 18/07/2023

Real-time train running information for 2C53 1720 departure from London Waterloo to Reading on 18/07/2023. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

I had a trip up to town yesterday, both my trains (0839 from Reading and 1550 from Waterloo) ran bang on time.

 

[Goldfish62]

Quite possibly - curtailing the service may mean less diagrams required across the day.

Most definitely. Running 2tph beyond Ascot to Reading would require three additional diagrams and a corresponding number of extra train crew.

 

[Surreytraveller]

Put the date in the thread title