HOGRIDER 116 : OCTOBER-DECEMBER 2007
NEW DAWN IN THE SOUTH / NEW DARK AGE ON SOUTH WEST TRAINS
REPORT ON WATERLOO DERAILMENTS
NUMBER CRUNCHING
SWT PERFORMANCE CRASHES
POLITICAL VIEWS
PUBLISHED MATERIAL FROM THE SOUTH HAMPSHIRE RAIL USERS’ GROUP
CUSTOMER SERVICE THE SWT WAY
DRIVEN TO DISTRACTION BY SWT’S AUTOMATED VERBAL DIARRHOEA (“e-MOTION”?)
FARES ISSUES / SWT PROFITEERING FROM RIPPING OUT PERMIT MACHINES
NEW FOREST EAST PUBLIC TRANSPORT CRISIS
CROSS COUNTRY - VIRGIN GOES WITHOUT SPEAKING THE NAME OF THE SCOTTISH PLAYER
CROSS COUNTRY – ARRIVA ARRIVES WITH IMMEDIATE BENEFITS
NETWORK RAIL ISSUES – SOUTHAMPTON TUNNEL AND WATERLOO INTERNATIONAL
NATIONAL AUDIT OFFICE EXPOSES UNLEVEL PLAYING FIELD FOR TRAMWAY SCHEMES
WITHDRAWAL OF ROMSEY-WINCHESTER LINK & OTHER STAGECOACH BUSES CAUSES FURY
SIEMENS SHAMED
FEET ON SEATS - TARGETING ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR OR TARGETING YOUNG PEOPLE?
ROBIN GLOAG OBITUARY – A CAUTIONARY TALE FOR THE SEASON OF CHRISTIAN GOODWILL
DIARY OF A TOTTON-WATERLOO COMMUTER –14
POOR PERFORMANCE, A MAJOR CAUSE OF OVERCROWDING ON SWT
NEWS MISCELLANY
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
NEW DAWN IN THE SOUTH / NEW DARK AGE ON SOUTH WEST TRAINS
At the end of 2007, prospects for the majority of the south’s rail users have rarely looked better:
* New Channel Tunnel line puts London on Europe’s high-speed network.
* Travel across London being transformed, with huge capacity increase. East London line extension in progress; expanded Thameslink network and Crossrail route authorised.
* Kent coast to get high-speed London services, with first train already under trial. Transfer of Eurostar trains to new Channel Tunnel line permits improved timetable on domestic routes.
* Brighton commuters to get improved service through extension of Gatwick Express trains in the peaks.
* West Sussex coastal towns given improved London services from December 2007.
* Also from December 2007, faster and more frequent Southern trains along the south coast (including Southampton Central – Ashford International every hour, with single change at Brighton). Medium-sized centres of population like Emsworth, Portchester and Swanwick now have service increased to 6 departures an hour.
* After a year which started with serious complaints about overcrowding and poor performance, First Great Western has majored on consultation. There is increased capacity on selected services. Local and inter-regional services across Bristol have been rescheduled to give more direct journey opportunities and better spacing of services. A further stakeholder conference is scheduled for March.
* As on Southern, some medium-sized centres of population on Great Western, including Bradford-on-Avon, are getting enhanced services. Bristol suburban stations get more trains. A twice-daily service now links Brighton and the South Midlands (Worcester/Great Malvern) via Bristol.
* Reading station, a bottleneck which affects punctuality across the franchise, is to undergo massive redevelopment and expansion.
On South West Trains, however, things have never looked worse:
* Morning off-peak fares to London from stations without competing services increased by 20%, and premium for first class season tickets increased from 50% to 80%. First class season ticket holders from Winchester frequently stand all the way to Waterloo because of reduced seating.
* Huge increases in station car parking charges, yet miserly attitude to increasing car parking space highlighted a few months after the new franchise started, when the Managing Director told dozens of delegates at Hampshire County Council’s Rail Forum that parking spaces need more than an Irishman with a bit of tarmac.
* Less-reliable rolling stock returned to Waterloo-Reading services. Train failures now a major problem (see our reports of poor performance).
* Long-distance ‘Wessex Electric’ rolling stock (the introduction of which was linked to big rises in season ticket prices) on the Waterloo-Weymouth service replaced with less-reliable, hard-seated, quasi-suburban class 444 Desiro trains. These trains are cheaper to hire but offer all the comfort you would expect from a Tube train running at 100mph. Far too little space for luggage, and aisles too narrow to move luggage without bumping seated passengers. Safety issue about big bags and cases being stowed on high-level racks, which was forbidden on the displaced trains, and shorter passengers standing on seat cushions to lift up luggage. Further safety issue about passengers having to place some luggage at the carriage ends instead of under there seats, at a time when they are exhorted to stay with their luggage because of the perceived threat of terrorism. Rough riding at speed increases risk of injury; speed limit has been introduced west of Basingstoke, presumably in response to complaints of passenger trauma from severe jolting and items flying off tables.
* Stagecoach decided to replace the Wessex Electric trains after they had badly neglected them (for example, hazard warning tape in place for years). When the change was leaked, e’mails flew around briefing against the Wessex Electrics and claiming that they were outdated and that spare parts were no longer available. Now the units are being internally refurbished in readiness for providing Southern comfort on services between London, Gatwick and Brighton, and must therefore have a good life expectancy. So why are spare parts a problem to Stagecoach and not to GoAhead? Since even the class 444s are apparently too good for long-distance passengers, some services, including the Bournemouth portion of the 16.35 from Waterloo, are frequently switched to 4-coach suburban units with even more discomfort and overcrowding.
* Portsmouth-Waterloo commuters switched to such cramped suburban trains that many prefer to stand, with increased risk of injury in the event of a derailment or sharp braking. The real reason for compacting passengers in this way seems to be the phenomenal number of train cancellations and short formations on this route (see our performance reports). The official reason for the stock change is traffic growth but, on occasions when the full service is provided, overcrowding is reportedly confined to the Waterloo-Woking section of the route. Stagecoach has abandoned BR’s strategy, introduced with its 1993 timetable, of increasing capacity on Waterloo-Salisbury trains to cope with the growth in Woking and Basingstoke commuters. If all peak Salisbury line trains were regularly increased to 12 coaches, instead of 9, 6, 3 or – in the event of breakdowns - even 2, the problem should be largely resolved. Presumably passenger comfort and safety is no longer prioritised ahead of greed.
* Programme of reducing seats in suburban trains progressed, similarly risking greater passenger injury in the event of a derailment or sharp braking.
* Permit to travel machines removed, making it more difficult for passengers to avoid penalty fares. Passengers treated as fare evaders for misunderstanding the complex fares system and buying the wrong ticket.
* Passengers threatened with penalty fares even at unstaffed stations with no ticket or permit issuing machines. Those unable to obtain tickets are no longer advised to buy on boarding, but risk penalty fares if they leave ticket purchase until reaching their destination. Since we first highlighted this issue, the permit to travel machine at Ashurst has actually been reinstated.
* For months, journeys have been disturbed by continual threatening announcements about having to buy tickets before boarding.
* Staffing of some booking offices during advertised opening hours has been moving from erratic to rare. Rats taking food left on platforms for days at a time. Totton is one of the stations that now has a collection of rat traps.
* All travel centres except Waterloo to close, making it much more difficult to get responses to complex enquiries, and making even longer queues at ticket offices inevitable.
* Huge timetable downgrade from December 2007, with some of the slowest train services in Britain being introduced. Timetable is non-compliant with the specification on which the Department for Transport consulted, but the Department appears not to care. Schedules as low as 16mph between Totton and New Milton, and Totton generally left with only 2 departures an hour. These are the kind of medium-sized centres where other operators are boosting service levels. The gain – 3 minutes faster from Weymouth to Waterloo and 4 minutes slower from Poole to Waterloo! The Guardian of 10/12/07 reports that Southampton has the fastest population growth rate of anywhere south of the London-Swindon line, so it is clear risible to reduce its local rail services.
* Romsey-Winchester rail-bus link withdrawn. Users only found out when the bus driver told them.
* Overall, no significant improvements in prospect and passengers mount campaign after campaign: against the imposition of suburban stock on Waterloo-Portsmouth commuter services; against the removal of the long-distance Waterloo-Weymouth Wessex Electric trains; against the huge downgrade of services west of Southampton; and against withdrawal of the Romsey-Winchester rail-bus link.
REPORT ON WATERLOO DERAILMENTS
[Extract from the Rail Accident Investigation Branch’s report]
“Key facts about the derailments
7 At 22:48 hrs on 11 September 2006, a train formed of two class 455 electric multiple units derailed on 1565 points, which were traversed in the facing direction as the train made an empty coaching stock move into Waterloo south sidings. The points had recently been subject to unplanned maintenance.
8 At 18:27 hrs on 24 October 2006, a loaded passenger train, also formed of two class 455 units derailed on 1507 points, which were traversed in the facing direction as the train approached Waterloo station from Dorking. These points had also been subject to recent unplanned maintenance. Immediate cause, causal and contributory factors, underlying causes:
9 The immediate cause of both derailments was the condition of switch blades within each set of points. These exhibited known derailment risks which had not been identified by the routine inspection process or by detailed inspections following maintenance activity.
10 Causal factors were:
a. a visual inspection practice which failed to properly identify defects;
b. a reporting practice which resulted in essential information on the condition of the points being routinely unavailable to the Track Section Manager (TSM) and others with responsibility for track maintenance;
c. at 1565 points, a grinding repair that failed to correct an existing rail profile defect and increased the surface roughness of the switch blade without applying lubrication; and
d. at 1507 points, the repair of the defective switch blade which introduced a sharp edge along its upper surface, and exacerbated the derailment risk presented by an already defective and unlubricated switch blade profile.
11 Contributory factors were:
a. the Facing Point Inspection form (FPI form) used for recording three-monthly inspections, which was not effective in supporting the defined inspection process;
b. the lack of guidance within the applicable standard on the scope of both visual and increased-frequency inspections;
c. track access time during dayshift working, which was limited and compromised the effectiveness of the switch inspection regime;
d. the provision of insufficient special inspection resources, which led to the Asset Inspectors having a significant and unremitting workload [Remember the reasons for the Clapham Crash?];
e. lack of planning support, which placed an additional burden on the asset inspectors and did not result in track protection arrangements appropriate to their needs being arranged;
f. the Track Section Manager not being trained or certified competent to undertake the necessary switch inspections, which led to over-reliance on the asset inspection regime;
g. the lack of transfer of records or plan to install the replacement half set at 1565 points, which allowed the defective rail to remain in the track for an extended period;
h. not observing the switch blade closed against the stock rail, or correctly recording the developing sidewear, which resulted in the effectiveness of the standard 053 inspections being seriously compromised;
i. the Waterloo Grinding Supervisory Manager (GSM) whose authority was undermined when grinding went ahead at 1565 points. This resulted in an inappropriate grinding repair being attempted;
j. the post-grinding inspection which did not identify the presence of a significant rail profile defect at 1565 points, or a sidewear value on the adjacent stock rail which required facing movements to be immediately prohibited;
k. the lack of site checks by Network Rail which meant that they had no detailed knowledge of the activities of their sub-contractor;
l. the lack of recognition of an existing standard 053 derailment hazard by both the welder and welding manager at 1507 points; and
m. the welder’s lack of practical experience in undertaking standard 053 inspections which allowed a non-compliant switch profile to remain in the track at 1507 points.
12 Underlying causes were:
a. loss of information on legacy renewal plans;
b. an inadequate understanding of the requirements of the Network Rail standard for detailed switch inspections by Network Rail staff and contractors working within the Wessex area;
c. inadequate understanding or involvement by depot management staff in the facing point inspection process and a lack of checks on inspection and maintenance activity;
d. a lack of an appreciation of the need to lubricate newly ground running surfaces;
e. a general inadequacy of the various inspection forms and reports produced; and
f. inadequate track access.
Severity of consequences
13 Both derailments occurred at low speed. Damage to the trains was minor and there were no injuries.
14 Signalling and electrification equipment was damaged after coming into contact with derailed wheels.
15 Services into and out of Waterloo station were affected for several days while repairs were undertaken to the affected points and others exhibiting similar defects.
[The Guardian of 21/12/07 reported that HM Railway Inspectorate had told Network Rail to invest in an overhaul of its track inspection regime. It had found problems “across all territories” after the fatal Grayrigg crash in February. Network Rail has been ordered to implement changes by March 2008.]
NUMBER CRUNCHING
* 29% of peak passengers think SWT gives value for money (Passenger Focus survey)
* Only one third of all respondents supported the re-award of the SWT franchise to Stagecoach (SWT’s own poll)
* The retired chairman of South West Trains reportedly received £380,000 in 2006-07. To see who’s making massive profits from Stagecoach, go into the Glasgow Herald website, and enter ‘Stagecoach’ in the search box.
* During November, the press reported that 40% of households in London don’t own a car. Could it be something to do with better public transport in the capital?
* The 10-month delay in Siemens Portsmouth re-signalling has not achieved a robust and dependable outcome. Services in the area are frequently subject to severe delay and cancellation because of signalling problems.
* SWT has effectively dismissed the petition of some 1,350 Portsmouth commuters about cramped suburban rolling stock on their London trains whilst declaring themselves ‘absolutely chuffed’ that 1,300 people, spread thinly across the SWT network, had voted in their ‘employee of the year’ competition.
* A petition with over 1,000 signatures has gone to 10 Downing Street about withdrawal of SWT’s Winchester-Romsey rail bus link, which has been axed without consultation or prior notice – passengers learned of its impending demise from a driver.
* The article in issue 114 of this magazine, exposing the farce of SWT’s Passengers’ Panel and the myth that it is independent, seems to have hit target. The November-December issue of e-motion magazine reports a meeting at which the Panel reviewed its work. The article uses the word independent/independence 3 times, and pompously declares that ‘The Panel has done a good job’ in representing passengers. Compare this with the Panel’s view that the ‘vast majority’ (one third, as above) of passengers wanted Stagecoach to keep the franchise, and its irrelevance becomes clear.
(Hilariously, the anonymous article is accompanied by a picture of 4 open mouths addressing a head with an ear trumpet, presumably indicating that people’s views do generally fall on deaf ears, as claimed by past Panel members Helen Guggiari and Venessa Wilkins.)
* Production of the National Rail Timetable has transferred to The Stationery Office. The number of pages has fallen from 3,184 to 2,736 and the price has increased from £12 to £15.
SWT PERFORMANCE CRASHES
* Defects in Stagecoach’s cheaper-to-hire fleets of Juniper and Desiro trains are causing many services to run in short formation, to be cancelled, or to fail in service. A cancellation or short formation is not just a statistic. It means passengers being forced to travel in even more wretchedly overcrowded conditions (see the shocking daily performance reports in this issue). A failure in service is not just a statistic. It means passengers being thrown off their train clutching children, luggage, laptops, and hot drinks, often during bad weather and at stations with negligible facilities. So bad are things that suburban coaches frequently have to operate through from Waterloo to Dorset. Incredibly, SWT’s targets for the percentage of trains actually operated are so slack that they are continuing to be met.
* Punctuality is even worse. This is sometimes due to signalling and other infrastructure problems, but in many cases it is due to duff rolling stock and ongoing crew shortages. Over the 4 weeks to 10/11/2007, peak mainline punctuality on SWT crashed from 93.1% to 86.2%. Over the 4 weeks to 8/12/07, it further crashed to 83.7%. During this latter period, the performance of suburban services also crashed below charter standard, to 90.9%.
* With extraordinary cynicism, during the summer SWT’s website bore the promise that they were “determined to get all our trains arriving on time” with a picture of a Wessex Electric train. The article did not explain that they had ditched these trains for cheaper-to-hire, less reliable stock.
* The Metro of December 14, reported statistics from the Office of Rail Regulation showing that, nationally, the percentage of mainline trains running punctually had increased by 2.3% during the July-September quarter, compared with 2006. That presumably reflects the operational advantages of not having a severe heatwave this year!
* Of course, ‘punctual’ in rail terms has its own meaning. The following edition of the Metro contained a letter from a Mr Tony Savage, saying: “ Your article ‘9 out of 10 trains running on time’ reports that in railway terms, ‘on time means within ten minutes of the scheduled arrival time, Surely, in normal people’s terms, ‘on time’ means at the time published in the timetable, or maybe within one minute. I’m sure many of your readers will use the trains for commuting “as I do) and are also shaking their heads at this blatant carve-up of figures. On the line that I use, 92.6% of trains were ‘on time’. OK, so if I commute to and from London five days a week (which I do), then at least once every two weeks my train will be more than ten minutes late. Is that acceptable? Not to me it’s not, that’s for sure. It’s an absolute shambles. I’m sure all the rail fat cats are busy slapping each other on the back this morning and not paying a thought to those people who have to use their poor excuse for a service. Show me a figure for trains that are more than 5 minutes late and I’ll show you a figure a lot closer to 100%.”
* But it’s not as good as Mr Savage suggests. There are the void days when especially bad statistics are omitted in calculating the average figures. On SWT doors close up to a minute before departure time, and trains disappear from SWT’s disinformation screens up to two minutes before departure time. Huge slack is built into the timetable and many connectional times are much slacker than in the past. It all helps create an illusion that performance (in its normal sense) on the railways is better than in the past, which in the case of SWT it pretty clearly isn’t.
POLITICAL VIEWS
ON HUGE DOWNGRADE OF TRAIN SERVICES FROM TOTTON
* “I think these changes are an appalling outcome for people in the New Forest and I know from the correspondence I have had with South West Trains that their response is just to pass the buck on to the Government. These kind of changes clearly won’t encourage people on to the trains and are very disappointing and unsatisfactory”. (Dr Julian Lewis MP on SWT’s December timetable downgrade - Southern Daily Echo 9/10/07)
ON WITHDRAWAL OF THE ROMSEY-WINCHESTER RAIL BUS LINK
* “Romsey MP Sandra Gidley said that it was dreadful news and that she would be seeking a meeting with South West Trains. “This bus link is critical to the people of Romsey who work or go to school in Winchester,” she said. “Romsey is already poorly served by rail and bus links. This is going to force more people on to the roads or on to other busy bus routes, which are less convenient because of their longer journey time. The move will also put a greater strain on to the already stretched parking facilities at Winchester station.” The Lib Dem MP criticised train bosses for consistently letting down local people following this year’s hike in off-peak rail fares, and said that they seem “hell bent on axing services”. (Southern Daily Echo 20/10/07)
EARLY DAY MOTION NO 62
* SOUTH WEST TRAINS
Hancock, Mike
That this House believes that the decision by South West Trains to replace the Wessex Electric trains with 450s on the Portsmouth mainline route to Waterloo was a cynical move to increase profits at the expense of customer comfort; notes that Stagecoach has made little effort to remedy the situation and to accept that 450s are unacceptable on long journeys; believes that their attitude to passenger comfort, their aggressive policy on penalty fares and the increases in off-peak fares further show that there must be a long-term solution to the problems on Britain's railways that puts passengers first and not the profits of franchisees; and urges the Government to take action to bring the whole of the rail network back into public ownership.
[Signed by Mike Hancock; Graham Stringer; Jeremy Corbyn; Rudi Vis; Sandra Gidley; Martin Caton; Janet Dean; Paul Flynn; and Ann Cryer; John McDonnell; Eric Illsley; Robert N Wareing]
PORTSMOUTH CITY COUNCIL ON THE HUGE DOWNGRADE OF ROLLING STOCK ON PORTSMOUTH- WATERLOO PEAK TRAINS
* The Portsmouth City Council meeting of 27 November 2007 included a notice of motion on South West Trains’ services from Portsmouth. We understand that the final straw which led to this action was the refusal by SWT management to reply to two letters from a Portsmouth MP (and City Councillor).
The text of the Portsmouth City Council motion reads :
“South West Trains Service from Portsmouth Proposed by Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson Seconded by Councillor Alex Bentley
Portsmouth City Council strongly supports the use of public transport to encourage people not to use private cars. We greatly welcome the introduction of the modern, comfortable and efficient trains introduced by South West Trains on this mainline route. These 444s were a considerable improvement on the old slam door commuter trains.
This Council deeply regrets the decision by South West Trains to downgrade the service from Portsmouth with the introduction of the commuter trains (450s).
This discourages the use of public transport as seats are uncomfortable, cramped and there are no tables to work at on this hour and a half journey, except in first class. The City Council understands that the reason given is for increased seat capacity per train, but notes that as the seats are so small, many people choose to stand instead of being crammed into these narrow seats.
The City Council calls on the Government and South West Trains to reintroduce proper long distance trains either 444s or 442s, and to remove the 450s with immediate effect.
The City Council notes with regret the fragmentation of the train service and asks the Government to allow the train companies to be able to own their trains to allow for a more integrated service, even if the railways are not brought back to some sort of central organisation, control or planning. The City Council also calls on the Government to bring in extra platform capacity at Waterloo Station with the conversion of Waterloo International to domestic use after the move of Eurostar to St Pancras. We also call on the Government to fully integrate these lines into the domestic network to allow for their proper use.
Finally, the City Council condemns the fact that whilst the citizens of Portsmouth and the surrounding areas have to put up with substandard suburban commuter trains, better inter-city rolling stock is left idol at the sidings in Eastleigh. This is no way to run a properly integrated, planned railway system for the benefit of passengers not private companies.”
PARLIAMENTARY QUESTIONS
* South West Trains - Winchester
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reason she decided not to include the Winchester to Romsey Rail Link bus service in the franchise re-awarded to South West Trains; and if she will make a statement. [162606]
Mr. Tom Harris: The Winchester to Romsey Rail Link bus service was not explicitly included within the South Western franchise specification. Bidders were asked to consider transport integration within their bids, and to seek opportunities within the franchise area. The improved rail service from Romsey in recent years and the loss-making nature of the existing Rail Link bus service resulted in Stagecoach deciding that it would be poor value to continue with the service.
* Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the expected additional journey time is for commuters who will have to travel from Winchester to Romsey by rail, via Southampton, when the direct rail link bus service is discontinued; and if she will make a statement. [165427]
Mr. Tom Harris: The current time for the Rail link bus between Winchester and Romsey is 25-26 minutes. In the new timetable the time by Rail from Winchester to Romsey via Eastleigh will vary dependent on the time of day but at best is 42 minutes, an increase of 17 minutes.
Additionally, it should be noted that the X66 commercial bus service runs a parallel service taking approximately 30 minutes.
* Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of the degree of compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act 2005 of railway stations in Hampshire; what steps are being taken to ensure full compliance; and if she will make a statement. [165860]
Mr. Tom Harris: I have been asked to reply.
Under Part 3 of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 station operators are required to take reasonable steps to ensure that disabled people do not find it impossible or unreasonably difficult to access their services. This may be done by altering physical features at stations, taking steps to avoid them or by providing the service by other means. Operators are responding to these duties and over half of rail journeys now originate from step-free stations. In addition, we recognise station access as being a key issue and in 2005 launched the £370 million Railways for All programme to provide step free access to selected stations. So far 92 stations have been announced for inclusion in the programme including in Hampshire Fareham, Farnborough, Brockenhurst, Fleet, Havant, Fratton and Southampton Airport Parkway.
* South West Trains: Franchises
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 13 November 2007, Official Report, column 94W, on South West Trains: Winchester, if she will identify (a) what the new opportunities for transport integration in the franchise awarded to South West Trains were and (b) which established links have been removed from the new franchise; and if she will make a statement. [166118]
Mr. Tom Harris: The information is as follows:
(a) The Franchise Agreement commits Stagecoach South Western Trains (SSWT) to:
Procure a bus link between Waterlooville and Petersfield from December 2007
Promote other transport integration measures to customers which may include:
advertising and promotion of integrated tickets
liaison with local bus and coach operators
promotion of park and ride facilities
staff training to ensure staff are informed and helpful to assist customers with their onward journey
access integration, working closely with disability groups and organisations
Install an additional 700 bicycle spaces by February 2013
Establish two new Plus Bus Schemes
(b) The Romsey to Winchester Rail Link bus service is being withdrawn due to the low number of passengers using it. This dedicated bus link is not a commitment within the current SSWT Franchise Agreement; therefore, SSWT are under no obligation to continue to provide this facility.
* Railway Stations: Hampshire
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 20 November 2007, Official Report, columns 785-6W, on railway stations in Hampshire, what the schedule is for including in the Railways for All programme those Hampshire railway stations which have not been announced for inclusion in the programme; and if she will make a statement. [168912]
Mr. Tom Harris: I have been asked to reply.
The Department is currently drawing up the next list of stations to be targeted for investment under the Access for All Programme, and will make an announcement before the end of the year. Stations in Hampshire will be considered, alongside other stations not selected so far, for enhancement during the 2012 to 2015 period.
In addition, annual rounds of Access for All Small Schemes Funding will continue to support smaller scale enhancements, such as the low height ticket counters being installed at Havant, Southampton Central, Farnborough and Brockenhurst over the same period.
* South West Trains: Rolling Stock
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will urge South West Trains to replace the Desiro Class 450 units on the Portsmouth to London services in the interests of passenger comfort. [169337]
Mr. Tom Harris: I have no plans to do so.
The introduction of the Class 450s to the Stagecoach South Western Franchise (SSWT) has meant that older trains have been replaced with newer stock. This has led to an increase in overall capacity allowing greater numbers of passengers to have a seat during their journey.
* Trains: Standards
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will make a journey in a Desiro Class 450 train unit to assess the level of passenger comfort provided. [169825]
Mr. Tom Harris: Officials from the Department, acting for the Secretary of State, have made multiple journeys on the Desiro Class 450 trains to assess the level of comfort.
Stagecoach South Western Trains (SSWT) have carried out an ergonomic study on the class 450s. The findings of this report have been independently reviewed by Passenger Focus, the passenger representation body, and have been made public by SSWT on their website.
* Railways: Standards
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will seek the views of passengers who travel in Desiro Class 450 Units, on mainline services between Portsmouth and London on passenger comfort. [172134]
Mr. Tom Harris: Stagecoach South Western Trains (SSWT) has carried out an ergonomic study on the Class 450s based on customer (specifically Portsmouth passengers) feedback. The findings of this report have been independently reviewed by Passenger Focus, the passenger representation body and have been made public by SSWT on their website.
* South West Trains: Rolling Stock
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 29 November 2007, Official Report, column 605W, on South West Trains: rolling stock, what assessment she has made of the difference in seated passenger comfort between the Desiro Class 450 units and the previous stock on the mainline journeys between Portsmouth and London; and if she will make a statement. [172149]
Mr. Tom Harris: Stagecoach South Western Trains (SSWT) have carried out an ergonomic study on the Class 450s compared with previous rolling stock. The findings of this report have been independently reviewed by Passenger Focus, the passenger representation body and have been made public by SSWT on their website.
* Railways: Portsmouth
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the evidential basis is of the stated need to increase the capacity on the Portsmouth mainline and use high density suburban rolling stock; and if she will make a statement. [172817]
Mr. Tom Harris: Network Rail has undertaken a route utilisation strategy for the South West Main Line (March 2006), and this confirmed that there was no capacity for running additional trains in the morning peak period of 07.30 to 09.30.
Stagecoach South Western has therefore addressed the need to accommodate passenger demand within the infrastructure available. While recognising that this may not be met with universal approval, the fact that a 12-car Class 450 (“blue”) train can offer an additional 140 seats compared to a 10-car Class 444 (“white”) train should mean that fewer passengers need to stand on the Portsmouth line trains particularly for stations closer to London.
* Trains: Standards
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 3 December 2007, Official Report, column 856W, on trains: standards, what opportunities her Department has given passengers on Desiro Class 450 trains to submit their views on the level of comfort afforded by such rolling stock. [172822]
Mr. Tom Harris: Stagecoach South Western has carried out an ergonomic study in response to questions and feedback from a number of customers who remain discontent with the comfort of the new Class 450 rolling stock. The findings of this report have been independently reviewed by Passenger Focus, the passenger representation body and have been made public by SSWT on their website.
* South West Trains: Rolling Stock
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 3 December 2007, Official Report, column 857W, on ports, if she will place in the Library a full copy of the ergonomic study on the Desiro Class 450s rolling stock. [173240]
Mr. Tom Harris: South West Trains commissioned an independent ergonomic assessment of the seating design and layout of the Class 450 units. The report findings are available on the South West Trains website.
* Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 11 December 2007, Official Report, column 431W, who (a) commissioned and (b) financed the ergonomic study; whether (i) her Department and (ii) passengers were consulted as part of the study; and if she will make a statement. [175144]
Mr. Tom Harris: The ergonomic report was commissioned and financed by South West Trains in response to customer feedback with regard to Class 450 seating.
The Department and Passenger Focus were advised that the study was going to be undertaken.
South West Trains advise that no passengers were consulted as part of the ergonomic study.
[Note this claim from ‘Building on Success’ which Stagecoach used in promoting its franchise bid: “Stagecoach’s success has been built on listening to customers and using their special insight to improve services even further”.]
* Rolling Stock
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the acceptable tolerances are for (a) the seat back angle and (b) amount of legroom of a railway carriage seat; and what the figures for each are for a seat on a Desiro 450 carriage. [175145]
Mr. Tom Harris: There is no specified acceptable tolerances for seat back angle or amount of legroom.
The Department does not hold the specific measurements for different rolling stock.
The seats on a Desiro 450 meet ATOC vehicle standard for vehicle interior crashworthiness (AV/ST 9001).
* Railways: Standards
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 11 December 2007, Official Report, column 430W, on railways: standards, how many passengers provided feedback to the ergonomic study relating to (a) medical matters and (b) comfort; and how the customer feedback was obtained. [175153]
Mr. Tom Harris: The ergonomic study was carried out by Stagecoach South Western Trains Ltd. The hon. Member should direct his inquiry to: Stewart Palmer Esq., Managing Director, Stagecoach South Western Ltd, Friars Bridge Court, 41-45 Blackfriars Road, London, SE1 8NZ.
VIEWS FROM MRS SANDRA GIDLEY MP
* COULD BE TROUBLE AHEAD
It has been a busy couple of weeks as many constituents have been upset by various announcements about downgrading or closure of local services. Some people are understandably unhappy about proposals to close their local post office whilst others are up in arms about the decision to axe the Rail-link bus between Romsey and Winchester. Other bus services around the county have also been cut back. We have also seen changes in health provision such as closure of midwife led maternity units.
The problem with the post offices may seem disconnected from the problem with the bus or maternity service but there is actually a common, fundamental theme. All of these services are being withdrawn because somebody, somewhere took the decision that the service was no longer viable. Public money was being used to subsidise these vital services and questions were being asked as to whether this was the best use of scarce resources.
There is also a problem of lack of consistency. We are being encouraged to use public transport but if the network is cut back in some way it is counter productive. We are also told that it is important to keep services in small communities but the Government has seemed hell bent on cutting back the services that have been provided by sub post offices. Indeed, they have actually encouraged people to use services in a way that cuts out the post office. The Government is also supposed to be providing choice in health services but then restricting that choice at a local level. There is a lack of consistent thinking on many of these issues.
When services are cut back we are always told that this was inevitable because the public weren’t using the service in question. Yet the same public become, understandably, very agitated when a service is withdrawn. Cynics point out that if all the people complaining about withdrawn services actually used them then there wouldn’t have been a problem.
What would be helpful in many of these cases would be if the public were kept more informed and told that there might be “trouble ahead”, That way people could make a conscious decision to try and increase their use of the local post office / village shop or think of ways to increase their use of public transport. So often the public are treated to a sham consultation on what is widely regarded as a fait accompli. No one seems to want to treat the public as adults and give them a chance to make decisions that could turn around the fate of these essential local services.” (Southern Daily Echo 01/11/07)
* WHY IS LIFE MADE SO TOUGH FOR BUS AND RAIL PASSENGERS?
I am beginning to wonder if anyone is really serious about increasing the use of public transport. At a time when we are all being encouraged to reduce our carbon footprint, public transport is being downgraded and made yet more expensive.
Over the years we have seen the wholesale destruction of the local bus network. Services have been cut and usage further decreases because the service is no longer convenient. This leads to further cuts in service and a vicious downward spiral results.
With trains the situation is also fairly dire. Ever since the privatisation of the railways by the last Conservative Government, standards have fallen and prices have been cynically increased. It is always the hard-pressed commuter traveller who suffers the largest annual price rise. It smacks of cynical exploitation, as the train companies know that those are the people most likely to (reluctantly) stump up extra money.
At a local level we have also experienced the much criticised move by South West Trains to introduce a higher fare for those travelling after peak time but wishing to arrive in London before midday. The trains at that time of the day are far from full and I just cannot understand why the train company is not taking a different approach and making the fares more attractive.
I regularly commute by train to London and although the service is frequent there have been numerous experiences of delays and trains developing faults. Last weekend I travelled from London to Southampton on Saturday morning, and engineering works meant that the journey took practically all morning. No wonder there is a publication called Hog Rider which chronicles the problems with the service in fine detail.
I also receive letters and e-mails on an almost daily basis from users of First Great Western services. The trains are frequently overcrowded and unpleasant to use. All of these problems were identified during the tendering process for the franchise. Use of passenger numbers and some fairly simple maths demonstrated that the new, less frequent, service would be overcrowded.
The latest decision to withdraw the use of the rail link bus between Romsey and Winchester is further evidence of the accountant’s pen being the deciding factor. Little attempt is made to promote and improve the existing services and there is no noticeable integrated transport policy.
I meet a lot f nice people who as individuals seem committed to public transport but there is very little move to develop some joined-up thinking at any level of government.” (Southern Daily Echo 29/11/07)
VIEWS FROM DR ALAN WHITEHEAD MP
* GETTING CITY MOVING
A few weeks ago, the government announced the biggest ever upgrading of railways in and out of Southampton. This will enable all future standard containers to be transported to the docks by train, which in addition to securing Southampton’s future as a major trade hub for the south, will also take thousands of lorries off our already busy roads.
But while measures like this will ease congestion, alone they will not be enough. By 2015 traffic congestion across the UK will increase by over a quarter, with 80% of that increase being in cities like Southampton.
A key element in avoiding getting closer and closer to gridlock is to make public transport more frequent, stable and punctual. Part of achieving that is proper funding – but another big part is giving councils the power to ensure a quality service from bus operators. That is why the Local Transport Bill currently going through Parliament is so important.
Ever since the Thatcher government deregulated buses in 1985, it has been very difficult to ensure bus companies provide a joined-up, reliable service. Southampton is a good example. The city is split between three major bus companies – and if you buy a ticket from one company, say First, you cannot then use it on another. There is very little co-ordination from the council on the overall network of bus services, with less profitable routes increasingly facing the axe. Under provisions in the new Local Transport Bill, councils will be able to institute “quality contracts” with bus companies, under which they can require that companies maintain a spread of routes, and that once those routes are agreed, they stay agreed. Councils would also get new powers to ensure punctuality, and could require bus companies to offer a travel card or ticket valid on all bus services, including those run by their competitors.
If implemented properly, this Bill could signal a massive improvement in the quality of public transport across the UK. Which is why it is such a tragedy that the Conservative-run Southampton City Council is choosing this time to further slash local bus services. Under the Conservatives’ proposals, the 5A evening service will be axed, along with school routes and the popular City-Loop, which serves the hospital.
And just as the government is funding the introduction of free nationwide travel for all, the Conservatives want to reduce the number of hours pensioners can use their bus pass for, and to make it harder for disabled people to qualify for a free bus pass at all. Why are they doing it? The Conservatives need to find a way to pay for their proposed ten per cent council tax discount for pensioners and special constables. I support the principle of diverting more help to those who have difficulty paying their council tax bills (and have argued publicly for reforms to make council tax fairer). But the reality is that this particular discount, which as the Daily Echo reported 50 per cent of OAPs will not even be eligible for, will be paid for by cuts in services used predominantly by all pensioners – a clear example of giving with one hand while taking away with the other.
The real tragedy is that just as the Government is taking steps to oil the wheels that will get our city moving, the Conservatives are poised to slash the tyres. Every pensioner, every commuter, every parent on the school run, has an interest in making sure they don’t succeed.” (Southern Daily Echo 11/12/07)
PUBLISHED MATERIAL FROM THE SOUTH HAMPSHIRE RAIL USERS’ GROUP
* “You’re having a laugh!
South West Trains (Daily Echo, October 18) claims that December’s downgrade of services from Totton is a case of matching service to demand.
This is risible. The trains which will omit their current Totton and Ashurst stops will serve the tiny hamlet of Moreton and remote industrial halt at Holton Heath, where many services see no passengers at all. Totton, however, serves some 60,000 people locally and in the Waterside area. SWT services are much slower than in the past, which improves the punctuality statistics. The Department for Transport therefore specified that some Weymouth trains should be accelerated by transferring stops to other services. Under SWT’s proposals, the fastest Weymouth trains will make just one stop less, so much pain for little gain.
Southern is to double its service from Swanwick and increase trains from Emsworth by 50 per cent. If Southern took over South West Trains, passengers at places like Totton could expect much more.” (Southern Daily Echo 23/10/07)
* “Heading for the buffers
The short-lived Strategic Rail Authority declared that the railways should be a “public service, publicly specified and privately delivered”, but allowed train operators to improve the services specified.
Following consultation with stakeholders, First Great Western is improving its services through the Bristol area, which will now include a twice-daily service between Brighton and the South Midlands via Southampton. Southern is introducing an improved and integrated timetable along the coastal line between Southampton, Brighton and Ashford in Kent.
Unfortunately, the policy has also achieved spectacular failures. The increasing slowness of South West Trains’ services prompted the Department for Transport to specify faster off-peak and Saturday trains between Weymouth and Waterloo.
The DfT duly announced that, from this December, the existing Weymouth-Waterloo trains should omit some stops west of Southampton. To provide alternative services, the Poole-Waterloo trains would start from Weymouth and the Southampton-Waterloo trains from Bournemouth.
The Department emphasises the importance of consultation which, in this case, resulted in some further changes, including the Bournemouth train starting from Poole.
South West Trains then drafted a timetable which means that Weymouth-Waterloo journeys become three minutes faster, Poole-Waterloo journeys four minutes slower, and the additional hourly service between Poole and Southampton will take 61 minutes eastbound, and 85-97 minutes westbound.
Totton and Ashurst lose virtually all their existing services except at the height of the commuting peaks. The replacement trains result in direct journeys from Waterloo to Totton taking over 30 minutes longer, and the average speed for the Totton-New Milton journey being reduced to 16mph-19mph.
The South Hampshire Rail Users’ Group alerted the local MP, Dr Julian Lewis, some seven months ago. SWT told him that the service was specified by the DfT and could not be changed. Railways Minister Tom Harris then told him the opposite, saying that he would welcome improvements.
Prolonged correspondence between the Group and the DfT resulted in a meeting on 16 November. The DfT’s officials grudgingly admitted that the changes at Totton had never been subject to consultation. They seemed surprised, however, that SWT’s cuts were biting so far into the evening peak, including trains like the 16.05 from Waterloo, from which scores alight at Totton. Contrary to what they had suggested before the meeting, remedies were not on the agenda.
So Totton, the fourth largest town between Southampton and Weymouth, is to have its worst service since the steam era, despite the 20 per cent increase in off-peak fares to London. It will have no direct commuter service to Eastleigh between 06.12 and 08.17. Trains from London will save two minutes by not calling at Totton but will continue to stand at Basingstoke for up to six minutes because the timetable is so slow.
A public service secretly specified and appallingly delivered? (Southern Daily Echo 07/12/07)
CUSTOMER SERVICE THE SWT WAY
DAY-TO-DAY CONTEMPT FOR PASSENGERS
* On 8 October 2007, the 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth was delayed by a signal check north of Winchester. The train therefore reached the station about on time, instead of being 5 or 6 minutes early because of the slack scheduling designed to boost performance returns. Suddenly dozing commuters got a VERY RUDE AWAKENING. The guard bellowed over the intercom: “USE ALL THE DOORS! THE TRAIN HAS GOT 20 DOORS! IT’S A TRAIN, NOT A SHEEPDOG TRIAL!”
* A SW19 rail user complains in the London Lite of 27/11/07: “Does blowing the whistle before people are off the train happen anywhere other than Wimbledon? Makes me mad”. A TW8 rail user complains: “Platform attendant at Waterloo tried to steal an oil painting I left on train after saying he didn’t have it!”
* On the 05.45 from Poole, many commuters leave their season tickets on the table in front of them, so that they can doze without being woken up for a ticket check. One morning, the guard crashed into the front coach of the train, shouting to see people’s tickets. He was politely but firmly admonished by a longstanding (and often standing) Winchester commuter, and must have felt very small indeed. Yet on 25/10/07, to passengers’ amazement, the guard of this train intervened to see which of two commuters’ headphones was producing an almost imperceptible background noise.
* These are not the only cases of contemptible behaviour by SWT guards. One recently spotted that a home-going commuter’s weekly season had reached its last day, scribbled all over it, and declared loudly: “You won’t use that again!” The ticket was, of course, valid until midnight and there was plenty of time to use it again for local journeys.
IMPEDIMENTS TO GETTING A WEEKLY PARKING PERMIT
* A London commuter arrived at Southampton Central on Monday 1 October with plenty of time to get the 06.30 service to London. Leaving his car in the downside park, he attempted to get a weekly parking permit on that side of the station, avoiding the rats which infest the area. None of the revenue protection officers on duty could sell him one. Asked why he could not get a weekly permit from the machine, one told him, “Nothing to do with us, the machines are controlled from London”. Having tramped the footbridge to get the required permit from the other side of the station, he retraced his footsteps across the bridge, just in time to be locked out of his train and delayed for half an hour. He reckons that to buy daily permits costs £11 more, so Stagecoach greed has clearly dictated that it should be difficult to get weekly ones.
INFORMATION FARCES
* Following a false security alert at Waterloo station on 2 October, commuters found the usual information blackout. There were plenty of trains but Stagecoach’s tight staffing meant that nobody was available to drive them. The 17.05 to Weymouth was actually shown on the screens about 10 minutes before departure. Passengers piled on, to be welcomed by ‘not in service’ displays. Conditions were dreadful with scores standing and even the draft-conditioning of the Desiros unable to cope. After Wimbledon, the guard announced that the train comprised only 5 coaches but he had no idea which passengers would have to get off when it was unable to split into Weymouth and Poole portions at Southampton. The automated address system then announced the split and told passengers to move into the correct portion of the train. A slow journey to Winchester took 70 minutes, with the station disinformation display showing the train as formed of 10 coaches and splitting at Southampton. The guard then announced that the Poole passengers would be dumped and it was hoped to provide an alternative train for them. The automated address system then announced the non-existent split at Southampton. Arrival there was at 18.36, with the 18.35 ‘connection’ to Totton having disappeared down the line pretty quickly. After departure of the Weymouth train, the alternative service to Poole arrived – a suburban unit. The station displays helpfully showed it as not in public use.
* Sunday 14/10/07 saw the 12.54 to Warminster standing at Southampton Central alongside a SWT disinformation screen which wrongly showed it as the 13.05 to Romsey via Eastleigh.
* From SWT’s website on 2/12/07: “07.29 Portsmouth Harbour to London Waterloo due 09.19. This train is running on time. This is due to over-running engineering works. Message received 07:42:40 02/12/2007”.
LACK OF RISK ASSESSMENT LEAVES TRAINS LATE ALL DAY
* On Sunday 14/10/07, the line was closed between Brockenhurst and Poole for engineering work. This meant that an hourly service operated, in isolation from the rest of SWT, between Poole and Weymouth. With the Desiro trains breaking down every day, you might have expected a spare train unit to be included in the rolling stock allocation for this duty. Alas, not on SWT! A unit failed early in the day. This meant that trains arrived at Weymouth at 18 minutes past each hour, and then had to return to Poole as the service which should have left 10 minutes earlier.
UNUSED WHEELCHAIR RAMP RUSTING AWAY
* If you want to see some dramatic rust, look at the top of the wheelchair loading ramp on platform 2 at Totton station. The platform isn’t accessible to wheelchair users so the ramp seems to serve no purpose beyond creating a false impression of accessibility. SWT say they intend to make the platform wheelchair accessible by replacing the steps with a ramp. That would have been fine for disabled people before December’s massive service downgrade which means they would either have to tolerate very slow journeys or else face the hassle of changing trains at Southampton or Brockenhurst soon after starting, or just before ending, their journeys. Good bit of joined-up thinking there!
DIAL FOR YOUR TRAIN
* The 06.06 Totton-Yeovil Junction service normally departed up to 45 seconds early. On 26/10/07, however, it was still in Totton siding at 06.09 even though there were no other trains in the area. A commuter used the help-point at 06.12 to see what was up. The person at the other end went to enquire but, before he could give a reply, the train arrived and left 8 minutes late.
* On 29/10/07 the 06.06 was advertised as departing on time. At 06.09 a commuter asked the temporary booking clerk where the train was, but she simply said she had no information. The commuter then used the help point. By the time the person at the other end had made enquiries, the empty stock was passing the opposite platform on its way to the siding. At 06.15 the service was shown as delayed. A second approach to the booking clerk found her no more helpful. A further call on the help point elicited the information that the train was now on its way back from the siding. It eventually left 12 minutes late, being sent ahead of the 05.45 from Poole and becoming duff at St Denys. The 05.45 was therefore 20 minutes late, reaching London after its scheduled departure time as the 08.00 to Portsmouth.
* On 13/11/07 the customer information system was down, though the tannoy was working. The 06.06 didn’t arrive and there were no announcements other than about smoking policy. An enquiry to the booking clerk elicited the usual response that she had no information. The person at the other end of the helpline had no information and claimed he had no way of getting any – some help! The booking clerk meanwhile contacted Southampton Central, saying they had given her two numbers to ring the controllers but neither appeared to have anyone at the other end. The London connection then raced through the station leaving passengers who had got there at around 06.00 to await the 06.46. A comment to the booking clerk that the situation neatly summarized how much Stagecoach cared about its customers drew the response that “Today it certainly does”. The 06.46 was 12 minutes late due to emergency braking in Litchfield tunnel which the driver attributed to a door starting to open as another train passed.
LIE OF THE DAY
* Monday 29/10/07 was the day that SWT services were supposed to return to normal after completion of Christmas engineering works at Portsmouth. They were indeed fairly typical but, as our 'poor performance' reports record, were not actually any better. Passengers arriving at Waterloo for the 17.05 to Weymouth found the service cancelled due to duff incoming stock. The 17.35 train, already in the station, was therefore advertised at 16.55. Passengers who boarded found it quickly turned into the 17.05. However it left about 6 minutes late awaiting a crew to switch from the duff incoming service. The train lost time all the way, and was further slowed due to a post-fatality speed restriction at Winchester. It reached Southampton about 25 minutes late and the Weymouth portion eventually departed. Passengers on the Poole portion sat for another 10 minutes and eventually saw the 17.35 from Waterloo arrive at the other side of the station. It was then announced that all passengers on the Poole portion had to switch to the 17.35 due to a defect on their train. Long tramp over footbridge with luggage, children, laptops, drinks etc. The guard on the 17.35 then announced that their original train had been taken out of service to avoid delays to other services. So the story of a defect on the 17.05 was apparently just a lie and, with the Desiros so duff, one that was very plausible.
TELLING THE TRUTH AS A LAST RESORT?
* On 28/12/07, passengers on the 10.23 Waterloo-Alton were thrown off at Farnham. SWT’s website advised: “This train will be terminated at Farnham. It will no longer call at Alton. This is due to a train late from the depot earlier”. However, National Rail’s live running information showed the 10.23 as having left Waterloo on time, so the ‘late from depot’ was presumably a convenient, but untrue, off-the-shelf excuse. If you clicked on SWT’s ‘Further Information’ box you (presumably) got the truth: “Good morning. This service on a normal weekday would terminate at Farnham to allow a freight train to proceed down the line to Alton. This freight train does not run on a Saturday, and our Saturday timetable is in use today. This freight train however, IS running today, so the 10:23 service from London Waterloo to Alton has been revised back to it's [sic] normal weekday schedule and terminates at Farnham.”
EXTRAORDINARY CREW SHORTAGES AND DUFF TRAIN AFTER DUFF TRAIN
* During the autumn, crew shortages added even more to the contribution of duff cheaper-to-hire replacement rolling stock in spectacularly fuelling passenger misery on SWT. Our performance reports log some of these shortcomings. Things were especially bad during the half-term period. It is clear that Stagecoach has no contingency plans in place – for example, on 9/11/07, SWT’s website was updated at 19.55 to say that the 21.40 Brighton-Salisbury would terminate at Southampton due to the train crew having been unavailable earlier! On 25/11/07, an afternoon train on the Waterloo-Reading service failed so, every 3 hours from 16.39 to 22.39, there was a cancelled service – hard to believe no other stock was available, given SWT’s sparse Sunday services.
* Great that on 7/11/07 the 17.00 Weymouth-Waterloo ran 25 minutes late and omitted all intermediate stops between Bournemouth and Waterloo, and on 9/11/07 the 14.00 Weymouth-Waterloo was axed between Weymouth and Bournemouth, in both cases due to the crew shortage. The latter incident meant a two-hour gap in the Weymouth-Waterloo service, as indeed there was between Waterloo, Southampton and Weymouth on 10/11/07 when the 10.35 Waterloo-Weymouth was axed from the engineering work timetable. Sunday 25/11/07 saw another example of a Weymouth-Waterloo service axed between Weymouth and Bournemouth due to no crew.
FURIOUS FIRST CLASS SEASON TICKET HOLDERS
* Some Winchester commuters who boarded the 05.45 Poole-Waterloo on 12/11/07 stormed off again when they found no seats were available. Presumably they didn’t want to pay Stagecoach 80% extra for the privilege of standing in first class accommodation. On 18/12/07, those who couldn’t get a seat in the front carriage walked back 5 carriages to find that the other first class area was painfully overheated, presumably due to a duff thermostat.
WAITING ROOM TOO COLD TO USE
* On 11/12/07 an elderly couple, the man with a stick, were freezing on a bench at Totton station at 06.00 because the relief booking clerk could not find the waiting room key. He eventually found it but they used the waiting room for only a couple of minutes, saying it was warmer in the open air, despite the severe overnight frost.
DRIVEN TO DISTRACTION BY SWT’S AUTOMATED VERBAL DIARRHOEA (“e-MOTION”?)
* In the November 2007 edition of RAILNEWS, Keith Farr of Cholsey complained that “At Reading and at Basingstoke, admittedly busy stations, there is hardly a moment’s peace, often with announcements made simultaneously, with unintelligible and deafening results”. He concludes, “Yes, information is desirable and some is even necessary. A few [announcements] are Health and Safety orientated, but the irony is that nobody seems to care about the mental health of passengers, let alone the sanity of the employees who are subjected to such bedlam all day and every day”.
* In the December edition, R E Seymour of Gosport refers in detail to the bedlam which SWT inflicts on its long-suffering passengers:
“Some of the things that I’d rather not hear about
On the subject of unnecessary announcements, I totally agree with Keith Farr in November’s Platform. I occasionally travel on the South West Trains’ service from Portsmouth & Southsea to Southampton, a journey that is spoiled by the constant stream of messages.
Firstly, the “Welcome aboard the … calling at …” followed by “The next station is …”.
Then there is a choice of, and sometimes all, of the following: “Safety notices are displayed…”, “CCTV cameras are in use …”, “If you see anything suspicious…”, “Please do not leave luggage …”.
Then “We are now approaching …”, together with “Please mind the gap …” and then round the loop again.
The passenger is subjected to this audio assault at and between the 15 stations on the route. I counted 8 announcements between Portsmouth Harbour and Portsmouth & Southsea, a distance of under a mile. Southern is not so bad but …”
* This is not only stressful but at times risible. Has anyone travelled on a train from Waterloo which splits at Southampton without having heard one or more incorrect announcements? Passengers having suffered the stress of endless announcements, including in the ludicrously named “quiet” zone, then have the stress of being told the next stop is Bournemouth when in fact it is Totton. Could such announcements, along with the often gushing, but grossly biased and misleading, articles in SWT’s oddly named “e-MOTION” magazine be the reason for the magazine’s name – simply a confession of automated verbal diarrhoea?
FARES ISSUES / SWT PROFITEERING FROM RIPPING OUT PERMIT MACHINES
* When the penalty fares system was introduced, permit to travel machines (no doubt provided at taxpayers’ expense) were considered an important safeguard for people who had difficulty getting a ticket from a machine, or who could not get a ticket because someone else was having difficulty getting one from a machine. To maximize income from penalty fares, SWT ripped out virtually all its permit to travel machines. The effects are dramatic. Stewart Palmer has admitted in a letter to Mrs Sandra Gidley MP that, in one 4-week period, SWT had issued over 8,000 penalty fares and over 500 notices of prosecution.
* By 14/10/07, long-neglected Swaythling had at last been painted (passing the baton of dereliction one station down the line to St Denys), and provided with two rat traps for passenger safety and comfort. There were plenty of warning notices about having to have a ticket before boarding or being liable to a penalty fare, and automatic pre-recorded announcements uttered similar threats. Yet the booking office was locked up, there was no ticket machine, and the permit to travel machine had been rendered inaccessible with 2-metre-high spiked railings.
* SWT Managing Director Stewart Palmer, justifying penalty fares for passengers making journeys into SWT territory after being misinformed by another company’s staff: “I would however, like to take this opportunity to point out that Walthamstow is not operated by South West Trains and we cannot be held responsible for any incorrect advice given by staff working at the station”. But they do take responsibility for profiting from that wrong advice, by issuing penalty fares unless you demand that the police be called. [Note: Compare cover of the Summer 2007 National Rail Timetable: “National Rail: Britain’s train companies working together”.]
* The Evening Standard of 01/11/2007 reported that Stagecoach’s revenue protection exercise on SWT had helped boost the company’s UK rail profits for the last six months to 16% more than in the corresponding period of 2006. As usual, Brian Souter and Ann Gloag would be the principal beneficiaries of any new dividend pot.
* The Evening Standard of 05/12/07 reported that the latest figures from Stagecoach indicate that soaring numbers of people getting on trains and buses, despite rising fares, has more than offset a Government clampdown on profiteering on the railways. “Stagecoach today reported a like-for-like increase in revenues from its bus services around the country, a 9.5% increase from its Virgin Rail joint venture on trains out of Euston, and a huge 15% increase on South West Trains. Passenger numbers on SWT are up 7% but revenues at £322m have grown at more than twice that rate on the back of rising fares and a “multi-million pound crackdown on fare-dodgers”. Profits from South West Trains will not be so great in future as Stagecoach has agreed to pay back nearly £1.2bn in excess profits to the Treasury over the next 10 years. SWT profits in the last 6 months fell 20% to £25m, but Stagecoach hopes its new East Midlands franchise will make up the shortfall; it is expected to make a profit of £10m in its first 6 months. The interim dividend, more than a quarter of which goes to Brian Souter and his sister Ann Gloag, is up 12.5% to 1.35p.
* From the New Year, season tickets on SWT will increase by 4.8%. SWT day trippers will see some of the highest annual increases in Britain, because the January rises will be on top of the mid-year 20% increases introduced to profiteer on routes where there is no competition.
* There have also been the usual concerns about some train operators profiteering in the run up to Christmas, through cheap tickets having been sold out. The Evening Standard of 20/12/07 reported, for example, that a ticket from London to Bournemouth would cost £35 on the 21st and 24th of December, but £17.80 on the 31st. Gerry Doherty, general secretary of the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association, is quoted in the Metro of 20/12/07 as saying: “Rail companies are always claiming cheaper tickets are available if only you book ahead. But many people trying to book online are finding these so-called deals are a mirage… The truth is no one knows how many cheaper seats are being sold because the rail companies will not tell us.”
* In addition, Kingston and Surbiton MP Ed Davey has pointed out that, from 2010, many commuters in the Greater London area will pay hundreds of pounds more because of the introduction of zonal fares. [Their introduction on tickets other than seasons resulted in a ‘cheap’ day return from Surbiton to London soaring from £4.20 to £5.70]. In line with the familiar but stultifying ‘blame game’, SWT immediately blamed the Government for setting the zones. Liberal Democrat Mayor of London candidate Brian Paddick has promised an immediate redrawing of zonal boundaries, if he is elected, to remove anomalies and provide equity. (Evening Standard 12/11/07 and 28/12/07)
* The bubble may yet burst. The Evening Standard of 13/12/07 reports that on South Eastern, as on SWT, profits are being fuelled more by rising ticket prices than by greater patronage.
NEW FOREST EAST PUBLIC TRANSPORT CRISIS
* The New Forest East constituency includes the heavily industrialized west bank of Southampton Water (The Waterside), Totton (the fourth largest town between Southampton and Weymouth), and large villages like Ashurst and Lyndhurst (“capital” of the New Forest). Its population has spread and grown relentlessly. Just the kind of area where public transport could relieve road traffic and environmental pressures, especially given that nearby Southampton is now the major population growth hotspot south of a line from London to Bristol?
Not quite:
In 2004, Stagecoach slashed the standard train service from Totton station, which serves some 60,000 residents in Totton and the Waterside, from 5 departures an hour to 3.
In 2005, evening bus services between Southampton, Totton, Ashurst, Lyndhurst and Lymington were axed.
In 2007, buses from Southampton to the Waterside via the centre of Totton were reduced from half-hourly to hourly. Train departures from Totton station were reduced by a further third, and a particularly trash Stagecoach timetable slowed off-peak and Saturday services to and from London by 30 minutes and introduced westbound schedules of 16-19mph across the New Forest to the next sizeable centre of New Milton.
2008 starts with the slashing of the X35 Southampton-Totton South-Ashurst-Lyndhurst-Ringwood-Bournemouth bus service to just one service each way between Southampton and Ringwood in the morning and evening peaks. We understand this is in part due to withdrawal of subsidy by Dorset County Council.
Totton station is neglected and it is doubtful whether the booking office ever now meets the required number of weekly opening hours which, in any case, only cover Monday-Friday mornings.
Meanwhile, there are concerns that loss of rail custom from the trash new service at Ashurst would be exacerbated by loss of parking space through New Forest National Park planning application 07/92303 for 3 pairs of semi-detached houses, with access and parking, adjacent to the station.
CROSS COUNTRY - VIRGIN GOES WITHOUT SPEAKING THE NAME OF THE SCOTTISH PLAYER
* The end of Virgin Trains’ operation of the Cross Country franchise was marked by a special edition of their Hotline magazine which encapsulates the history of Cross Country operations, and in which Virgin comes across as a company at ease with itself, its staff and its customers. It’s all there from the original Manchester-Brighton service of 1905 and Newcastle-Bournemouth service of 1910 to the transfer of the Cross Country franchise to Arriva. There’s the grouping of the private companies, nationalisation, privatisation, British Rail, Network Rail, Bombardier who built the Voyager Trains. There’s Sir Richard Branson, Managing Director Chris Gibb, Railways Minister Tom Harris, industry partners whose train services interface with Cross Country, customers, business leaders, local government and public service chiefs, managers, train crews, customer service staff. Then there’s stations, places to visit, performance improvements, service patterns, passenger flows, green issues, ethical sourcing.
* With thespian sensitivity, just about everyone and everything is referred to except the Scottish player: ethically-limited Stagecoach, holders of a 49% share in Virgin Trains and, in the eyes of many rail users, bearers of ill fortune. Could it be that the Scottish player (though surely more MacDuff than ------- given its operations on SWT?), which portrays its customers as cheats, rips out permit-to-travel machines and grabs more penalty fares off them, is not much to Sir Richard Branson’s taste? When the Portuguese police were treating Mr and Mrs McCann as suspects in the disappearance of their daughter, Sir Richard was generously supportive.
CROSS COUNTRY – ARRIVA ARRIVES WITH IMMEDIATE BENEFITS
* The Group was grateful for the opportunity to attend one of Arriva’s stakeholder meetings which, from experience of the stakeholder meetings they convened when bidding for SWT, was the friendly and businesslike affair one would expect of the company.
* Arriva start with the problem of the revised Cross Country map drawn up by the Department for Transport. Cross Country’s former boss, Chris Green, once started a presentation by displaying maps of Cross Country and of the motorway system side-by-side, and declaring that the former was basically an enhanced version of the latter. The DfT has now axed the top half of Cross Country’s M6. This limits operations into Scotland and excludes places like Preston and the Lake District in succession to Liverpool.
* Between Birmingham and Bournemouth, the draft service for 2009 is not much changed from that which operates at present. The 05.15 from Southampton to Manchester Piccadilly will go, but (thanks to an enhancement offered by Arriva) there will be an additional Bournemouth-Newcastle train leaving Southampton at 06.45. Evening southbound trains will no longer be given a 10-minute slack between Brockenhurst and Bournemouth to manipulate the performance regime. All Sunday trains will run via Winchester without the crew familiarisation detours through Romsey and Andover.
* Under the existing service, many of the trains from Bournemouth and Hampshire stations go through to Edinburgh. In the 2009 timetable, apart from the Newcastle train, there will be an hourly service just to Manchester Piccadilly. Northbound, there will good connections at Birmingham New Street with trains to Edinburgh. In the opposite direction, the Bournemouth train departs from Birmingham each hour just before the train from Edinburgh arrives. This is due to the Department for Transport’s service specification.
* Arriva sees no possibility of interchange between Bournemouth and Edinburgh Cross Country trains anywhere other than Birmingham New Street, but the station will become a massive building site in the medium future as the concourse is redeveloped to cope with growth in passenger numbers. That means that for passengers between Hampshire or Dorset and Edinburgh, travel via National Express East Coast could look the best option. The Guardian of 10/12/07 reports that immediate strenuous efforts are underway to improve punctuality on that route, in addition to the franchise commitment to increase capacity.
* How to get from Hampshire or Dorset to Scotland, other than via London? Glasgow passengers are likely to be routed via Cross Country services to Birmingham New Street and then Virgin West Coast services. Edinburgh passengers are likely to be routed via Cross Country services throughout, despite the connectional problems at New Street. To avoid New Street, it will be possible to travel via Manchester Piccadilly – there will be several direct trains a day from there, with some going to Glasgow and some to Edinburgh. Using the Bournemouth-Newcastle train and changing at Newcastle on to an Edinburgh service is a good, though limited, option. Finally, there are the First Great Western services to Bristol Temple Meads or, at certain times, Cheltenham, for Cross Country trains to Edinburgh or Aberdeen (though Southampton-Bristol services are notoriously prone to overcrowding).
* Much better news is that Arriva is to focus on on-board service, with a team of 3, including the refreshment trolley attendant, on the busier services. They will concentrate on helping passengers and, for example it will be possible to change reservations after boarding. Real time and platform information will be available on board to passengers changing at Birmingham New Street. More seats are be provided by removal of the shop from the Voyager trains. An on-line system will enable passengers to print tickets themselves, though only for journeys wholly by Cross Country services.
* The Evening Standard of 17/12/07 reports that, in the first 4 weeks of operation by Arriva, performance was better than in the corresponding period of 2006. A hopeful indication that this will be a continuing trend is that Arriva Trains Wales has the most improved performance over the past year of any franchise. It is hugely creditable that Arriva has in just four weeks recorded 86.3% punctuality on a franchise stretching from Aberdeen to Bournemouth and Penzance, while Stagecoach’s SWT has in the same period achieved only 83.7% on its mainline services between Waterloo and Portsmouth, Weymouth and Exeter.
* During the Christmas and New Year period, many Cross Country trains to and from Bournemouth were increased in length to 8 or 9 coaches. This simply didn’t happen when Virgin and Stagecoach were operating the service.
[Many thanks to Gavin Bostock, Cross Country’s External Relations Manager, for providing some of the information used in this article]
NETWORK RAIL ISSUES – SOUTHAMPTON TUNNEL AND WATERLOO INTERNATIONAL
SOUTHAMPTON TUNNEL
* The upgrade of the rail route from Southampton Western Docks to the Midlands, at a cost of £43m is good news. Without it, freight trains could not carry the new generation of larger containers. The percentage of containers leaving the docks by rail has already fallen from 35% to 28% (255,000 a year). The aim is to increase rail’s share to 40% (400,000 currently but possibly increasing to one million following port expansion).
* Whilst this is good news for the environment and particularly for the city of Southampton, there must be concerns about the remaining 60% of containers which will not travel by rail. On these figures, this could be 1.5 million a year in the future.
* There are also concerns, expressed for example in the Southern Daily Echo of 31/10/07, about disruption for passengers while the floor of Southampton tunnel is lowered. Network Rail’s route utilization strategy commented that similar work in the short tunnel west of Ipswich station required its closure for 8 weeks. Given the frequent chaos of replacement bus services and similarly frequent overruns, during weekend engineering works, the prospects do not look good. At the very least, Weymouth-Bournemouth-Southampton line commuters will expect London services to be diverted via Romsey and Chandlers Ford or Andover. Or will we now be told that the bargain-basement Desiros cannot be worked by diesel locomotives?
* Presumably the objective is for containers to travel via the shortest route, but there are 5 tunnels between Southampton Western Docks and Basingstoke via Southampton Central, and none via Romsey and Andover. It also needs to be remembered that reconfiguring tunnels can lead to disaster. Roof-raising work on a tunnel on the East Coast Main Line in Scotland led to its collapse, with an engine buried with its crew and the line subsequently diverted.
WATERLOO INTERNATIONAL
* There has been significant media criticism about Waterloo International being left unused until December 2008. Thanks to Robin Gisby, Network Rail’s Director of Operations and Customer Services, for writing to us about plans for the station. He says:
“We are working closely with the DfT to reconfigure these international platforms for domestic services. We expect to be able to bring at least one platform into limited use by the end of 2008, and are working with the Government on plans to bring all platforms into use as soon as possible.
We are also working up detailed, long-term plans for the station. These will look to improve capacity and facilities for passengers at Waterloo, as well as interchanges to other modes of transport. We also hope to support the continued prosperity of the South Bank area, helping to regenerate this important part of London. In order to do so, Network Rail is working in partnership with DfT, Transport for London, the London Development Agency and Lambeth Borough Council, to secure the best solution for everyone.
We will keep you updated on this development as it progresses, If in the meantime, you would like to discuss any issues relating to Waterloo, or would find it useful to meet with us to discuss the long-term future of the station, please do not hesitate to contact either myself or our Communications Manager for Waterloo, Dominic Pendry on 0207 557 8592.
[Address 40 Melton Street, London, NW1 2EE. Tel: +44 (0) 20 7557 8154]
[See also our News Miscellany (30/10/07) about the Mayor’s plans for the area]
NATIONAL AUDIT OFFICE EXPOSES UNLEVEL PLAYING FIELD FOR TRAMWAY SCHEMES
* Modern Railways magazine, January 2008 issue, highlighted the National Audit Office’s critical report on the Government’s failure to fund the Leeds and South Hampshire schemes. The revised funding required for the Leeds supertram was £500m in 2004, and funding for The South Hampshire tram was £270m in 2005. However, the Department for Transport said the costs were £1,313m and £674m respectively. These amounts were reached by including the capital costs of interest charges over 30 years. In stark contrast, the cost of Phase 3 of Manchester Metrolink was £520m in both July 2004 and 2005, because no additional interest charges were added.
* The Southern Daily Echo of 12/10/07 reports that Hampshire County Council is now looking at the possibility of First Group FTRs on the Portsmouth-Gosport corridor. These are essentially high-quality bendy buses with streamlined tram external styling and improved internal layout. Something is better than nothing but, also during October, the Evening Standard reported that a petition had gone to the Government seeking withdrawal of bendy buses from London’s streets because of the number of accidents, including fatalities, they had caused.
WITHDRAWAL OF ROMSEY-WINCHESTER LINK & OTHER STAGECOACH BUSES CAUSES FURY
AXING OF THE STAGECOACH IN HAMPSHIRE 6A SERVICE
* Two Second World War veterans and 40 pensioners from Hyde staged a protest in Winchester to vent their anger at the axing of the 6A bus. The Southern Daily Echo of 13/10/07 quoted one of the veterans as saying, “We’re very disappointed that widows of veterans are treated in such a despicable way. I feel so strongly. It’s the last few years of our lives and we have to worry about having a bus service”.
WATERLOOVILLE-CLANFIELD SERVICE
* A Cowplain resident complained in the Portsmouth News of 04/10/07 about people who live between Waterlooville and Clanfield being ignored in terms of public transport provision: “The totally unreasonable Stagecoach company has reduced its bus numbers and is now using old buses which are unable to be boarded by persons with young children or elderly with walking aids. What about overcrowding? Now Stagecoach has reduced a service to one an hour, it’s forcing elderly and infirm passengers to stand, or endeavour to climb steps up to the top deck. Where have all the single-deck buses gone?”
ROMSEY-WINCHESTER RAIL-BUS LINK
* Presumably Stagecoach was running down services in the Waterlooville area, as above, because it saw its prospective Petersfield-Waterlooville rail-bus link as potentially more profitable. During October, the home page of SWT’s website was boasting of the new link, whilst the Southern Daily Echo of 19 October reported fury that the similar Romsey-Winchester rail-bus link was to be withdrawn, depriving the inhabitants of Woodley, Ampfield and Hursley of a popular service. So, in effect, two services were going and only one service replacing them.
HAMPSHIRE CHRONICLE ARTICLE ABOUT ROMSEY-WINCHESTER BUS LINK
* “A CAMPAIGN has been launched to save South West Trains' Romsey-Winchester rail-bus link from the axe.
South West Trains say the 11-year-old service between Romsey bus station and Winchester rail station calling at Woodley, Ampfield and Hursley will be given the chop in December because of falling passenger numbers but users of the bus are fighting back.
An angry Matt O'Connor is organising protests at South West Trains decision and he says he will do whatever it takes to keep the Monday to Saturday service, launched in February 1996 to convey rail passengers from Romsey to Winchester to catch London-bound trains.
"As a dedicated campaigner, I have already started recruiting campaigners to join our Mutiny on the Buses' protests which will see us take dramatic action, even arrests, to stop a decision that could have a grave impact on Romsey," said Mr O'Connor, who is behind the Fathers' for Justice Campaign.
Mr O'Connor added that he first found about the planned axing of the rail-bus link from a driver. "All users of the service are naturally up-in-arms, not least because of the timing and secretive nature of the decision. At a time when we are supposed to be greener and the use of public transport, South West Trains will effectively severe a major artery running between Romsey and Winchester and in turn London where many people commute to. This will cut off the lifeblood from Romsey as a commercial centre and isolate it further as a commuting base. The alternatives are frankly pathetic. Let's be honest, it's cost-cutting, not about improving services," said the irate bus passenger.
Another protester, Nadine Taylor said a petition has been launched calling for the retention of the service.
Nadine said the decision to axe the bus link had been taken in "secret" by South West Trains and Hampshire County Council. Romsey's MP Sandra Gidley has promised to take up the issue with SWT and in the House of Commons.
Mrs Gidley said: "I am very concerned about this. It will mean more cars on the road and people will be struggling for car parking spaces. I am not sure whether this is allowed within SWT's franchise and I will be taking it up with ministers: This is showing all signs of the train operator taking the money and running. SWT ought to have done something to promote the service. I hope SWT will give it a stay of execution."
A South West Trains spokesman said the company took the decision to axe the bus because of a decline in patronage. He said about 60 passengers use the service daily and it was not financially viable to continue it. And he also pointed out there were other bus links between Romsey and Winchester that people can use instead.
Romsey 2020's chairman Rod Simpson said the group, which has been campaigning for improvements to the public transport network in and around the town, was appalled at the decision.
"Cutting this service is really bad news for Romsey. If Romsey is to survive as a vibrant market town, it is essential that it has good commuting services to the major adjacent cities. Removal of the rail-link to Winchester without the instigation of other truly comparable services has to be something about which we should all voice our opinions," said Mr Simpson.
Hampshire's Romsey division member Mark Cooper said he was "shocked" to hear the service was being cut without consultation. "I have asked officers and the cabinet member responsible to give me the current information on this issue," said Mr Cooper.” (19 October 2007)”
CAMPAIGN CONTINUES
* On 22/11/07, following a number of high-profile public protests, and with the support of Romsey MP Sandra Gidley, a petition with over 1,000 signatures went to 10 Downing Street. Stagecoach claims that the service loses £100,000 a year, but it has been running for 11 years and effectively put Woodley, Ampfield and Hursley on the rail map. Users claim that the service needs better promotion. As a compromise, Stagecoach has introduced some additional services on its parallel X66 route until July 2008. Users say the new services do not meet the needs of passengers and do not always run. Instead of undertaking to put things right, the responsible Stagecoach manager has placed the onus on users to report problems. (Southern Daily Echo, various dates)
SIEMENS SHAMED
To travellers in South Hampshire, the name Siemens is synonymous with the construction and maintenance of SWT’s Spartan and unreliable Desiro trains, and the 9-month overrun of re-signalling work in the Portsmouth area. But note this item in the Evening Standard of 10/12/07:
“SIEMENS SQUIRMS AS NIGERIA TAKES MORAL HIGH GROUND
How humiliating is this? Nigeria, hardly squeaky-clean in the world corporate corruption stakes, has cancelled contracts with Siemens because of the electrical giant’s slush fund scandal.
Among the cancelled contracts is one worth £533,000 for the supply of circuit breakers and other power generation accessories.
Siemens was found guilty of paying bribes to Nigerian officials and fined £122.3 million by a Munich court in October. A Nigerian anti-corruption agency has since begun investigating former ministers alleged to have taken back-handers. Until this affair is cleared up, Nigeria says it will have “nothing further to do” with Siemens.
Nigeria, so corrupt that its name is used to describe a particular type of fraud (the one where you get a letter or e’mail inviting you to share a pot of money, in return for your confidential bank details) has a new President, Umaru Yar’Adua, who has pledged to clean up its act. Among his first steps was to demand a probe into allegations that Siemens paid £7.2 million in bribes to officials, including ministers, in Nigeria between 2001 and 2004.
The mighty Siemens, embarrassed by Nigeria over sleaze – who would have thought it?”
FEET ON SEATS - TARGETING ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR OR TARGETING YOUNG PEOPLE?
It is an immutable rule that any new restriction or penalty is likely to be socially acceptable so long as it’s seen as being targeted on young people. Perhaps we should rename the numbers “eleven” to “nineteen” to become “ten-one” to “ten-nine”, thus usefully exterminating teenagers.
These thoughts arise from the widespread publicity about Merseyrail having prosecuted 250 passengers for putting their feet on seats. The issue came to light when Chester magistrates discharged a nineteen-year-old student who had sat with her flip-flops on a seat, and severely criticised the operator for taking the case to court. The case could have jeopardized her intended career in teaching and, whatever the circumstances, the operator’s action does seem hugely disproportionate. Public opinion in the press was mixed, but one wonders what those who disagreed with the magistrates would have said had the accused been 89.
To be fair, South West Trains appears less aggressive on this issue. The combination of requiring passengers to keep their luggage with them for security reasons, and lack of under-seat storage space on the trashy Desiro trains, often forces shorter people to stand on the seats and heave their heavy luggage on to the racks. Not a very safe practice, but clearly no one cared when the specifications for the trains were drawn up. They were cheap trains, and that was it.
However, rail and Tube passengers in the London area are to face fines of up to £80 for putting feet on seats. Some judged to be acting “thoughtlessly” rather than “deliberately offensively” will be let off with a warning the first time. Presumably they will have their names recorded on a register, otherwise they could drift into a life of serial “thoughtlessness” with impunity. The fines will also apply to playing music too loudly (typically a young person’s sin), but apparently not to shouting into mobile phones (typically the sin of self-important middle-aged businessmen).
So what are the issues? Clearly nobody wants to sit on a seat which has had wet or dirty shoes on it, or indeed shoes which have been cleaned with black shoe polish. On the other hand, flip-flops are dry-weather plastic footwear, very unlikely to carry loose dirt. Similarly, sitting with the back of a dry canvas shoe on the seat opposite is not likely to cause much harm – all clothing attracts dust and dirt over time and not many will want to travel naked.
Where do you draw the line between “thoughtless” and “offensive”? You can bet that young people talking in animated fashion will be deemed to be behaving offensively if they rest a soft shoe on a seat. Interestingly, the British Transport Police assistant chief constable – referring to loud music as well as to feet on seats - said “Such thoughtless, anti-social behaviour is particularly intimidating if those involved are part of a large group. [Evening Standard, 11/10/07].
Ah yes, “large group” sounds like young people. And, yes, he seems to have lumped thoughtlessness with anti-social behaviour, which is surely more akin to deliberate offensiveness. The development of the semantics on this issue should be worth following.
Elderly people who rest a shoe on a seat will no doubt be deemed to be behaving thoughtlessly --- well, the mind deteriorates with age, doesn’t it? Of course, if they become so forgetful through age that they do it again, their “criminal record” will catch them out and they will be fined.
And are feet the problem or shoes? What about bare feet, socks and stockings on seats, or even shoes with a newspaper placed underneath? The most persistent offenders are probably parents who let their toddlers snuggle against them with their small feet on the seats. That sight will presumably be driven into history in the cause of political correctness.
So, if your feet are tired, don’t even think of putting them on a train seat, even with your shoes removed, or with a newspaper underneath. If this is frustrating, you can still safely relieve the tension by putting your used chewing gum on the underneath of the train table so that it glues itself steadfastly to the next commuter’s trouser knees – this obnoxious act takes so little time to perform that the chances of being caught are negligible.
ROBIN GLOAG OBITUARY – A CAUTIONARY TALE FOR THE SEASON OF CHRISTIAN GOODWILL
On 14/12/07, as the Christmas spirit was affecting people throughout the Christian world, the Telegraph reported the premature death of a Stagecoach founder:
“Robin Gloag, who died in a road accident on December 5 aged 64, co-founded the Stagecoach transport empire in the early 1980s with his then wife Ann, a former nurse, and her younger brother Brian Souter, but missed out on becoming one of Scotland’s richest men when he fell out with his fellow directors; as his marriage foundered he set up a rival enterprise and launched a fares war in head-to-head competition with Stagecoach.
Inevitably it ended in tears. When Gloag launched his firm, Highwayman, with a service between Perth and Errol, a 15-minute journey, his wife launched a service on the same route – timetabled to arrive a minute or two earlier. When he cut his fares by 10p, she slashed hers by 50p, forcing him to follow suit. She halved the fares, then stopped charging altogether; Highwayman went bust and Stagecoach snapped up most of the business, leaving Gloag with a residual coach hire company which now runs 13 coaches.
The battle earned Ann Gloag a reputation for ruthlessness, and the story of the merciless aggression with which she saw off her former husband became a business legend. “It makes me sound awful”, she once admitted, “bit I can’t deny it was the truth.” Robin Gloag, though, never really recovered from the humiliation.
Robin Nicol Gloag was born in 1943 and, after leaving school, worked as a petrol station manager. He met the young Ann Souter, a nurse at Bridge of Earn Hospital, Perth, when he came in to be treated for a torn cartilage. They married in 1965 and had a son and a daughter.
Finding it hard to make ends meet, in 1976 they founded a caravan hire business as a sideline. The expansion into buses came by accident when they spent £650 on a second-hand bus, intending to drive it to China. The plan failed because of visa problems, but when a local construction firm asked if it could hire the vehicle to take workers to a building site, they found they had a profitable business.
Eventually the couple brought Ann’s brother Brian, a chartered accountant, into the company.
The turning point came in 1980, when they invested their savings and the £12,000 redundancy money of the Souters’ father, himself a bus driver, in two old buses. On October 11 1980, two days after a new transport act came into effect, allowing anyone to run bus services over distances of more than 30 miles, the first of the family’s “Gloagtrotter” services set off from Dundee to London – at almost half the price of its competitors.
Robin was the driver and bus maintenance man, while Ann and her mother made sandwiches and tea and Brian Souter took bookings. The business was blessed from the beginning – its launch coincided with a national rail strike. Their service destroyed the competition, though the real money came five years later when a further round of bus deregulation allowed the company (by now renamed Stagecoach) to buy up small firms all over Britain.
By this time Robin and Ann had parted company. Robin Gloag was by all accounts happier under a coach repairing it than he was running a company, and his wife and her brother soon decided that he would have to go. “The two of them would act as though I didn’t even exist,” Robin Gloag recalled. “They would talk across the room as though I wasn’t there. I felt like saying ‘Hello, Hello, I’m in the room as well’… I was surplus to requirements.”
In 1983 brother and sister summoned Robin to a meeting and told him they wanted to buy him out; Ann Gloag always insisted it had been a business decision. He was paid off with £8,000 redundancy and two buses. The couple subsequently divorced.
While his wife became Scotland’s richest woman, Robin Gloag eked a living running a coach hire service from a garage at his home village of Errol, Perthshire. He lost contact with his family and when, in 1999, his 28-year-old son Jonathan hanged himself in a Perthshire wood, he heard about it from the police, not his family.
In recent years Robin Gloag had had a number of run-ins with the traffic commissioners over safety standards. Last year he had two vehicles suspended from his fleet after faults, including defective brakes, were found. Earlier this year two minibuses were damaged in a fire at his depot.
Relations with his former wife remained hostile. Of the oft-repeated saga of Stagecoach’s turbulent early years he commented: “I wish the story would die, and them with it” – though he took a little comfort from the fact that he still owned one Stagecoach share: “They tried to get me to sign it away, but it’s still in my name… They didn’t push hard enough and I didn’t fall off a cliff.”
Robin Gloag is survived by his second wife, Shirley, and by his daughter with Ann Gloag.”
[The Guardian’s obituary of 18/12/07 pointed out that Mrs Gloag’s tactics against her husband were reflected in Stagecoach’s destruction of the Darlington bus company, condemned by the Monopolies and Mergers Commission as “predatory, deplorable and against the public interest”.]
DIARY OF A TOTTON-WATERLOO COMMUTER –14
As an addendum to the previous diary entries, I noticed that between 12 and 22 August I was receiving spam emails sent to email addresses that I have never sent emails from but have only ever used to enter SWT competitions (eg. swt@mydomain.com and swtcompo@mydomain.com). Perhaps SWT had a security breach or virus infection on some of their machines?
01/10/07 Totton ticket office was open at 0645 but the automatic ticket machine was showing "Out of order". Hopefully it will get fixed before the ticket office closes either at 1215 or any arbitrary time before then (given the total lack of commitment SWT has to keeping to the advertised opening times), as SWT has removed the "Permit to Travel" machine from the station. On the 0646 from Totton, the guard was joined by two revenue protection officers. 5 minutes late at Waterloo. On the 1835 from Waterloo, there were no working toilets in the rear 5 carriages.
02/10/07 Totton ticket office was open at 0640 with temporary staff. Waterloo & City line was closed due to "staff shortages" and there were signal problems on Bakerloo line. Waterloo & City line was closed this evening due to "signal failure". Chaos at Waterloo due "earlier security alert". Stock for the 1835 from Waterloo was shown as arriving at 1855 and stock for the 1905 was shown as arriving at 1928 (although this service was also shown as departing from platform 11 where class 444 stock was already standing). The platform for the delayed 1835 was eventually shown immediately prior to the stock arriving, leading to a potentially dangerous movement of a large number of people just as the carriages were pulling into the station and also some difficult for passengers trying to get off the incoming service. Alas, only 5 carriages appeared which were shortly full and standing in the vestibules and aisles. The guard then announced that those passengers "expecting" to travel to Totton, Ashurst, Brockenhurst [etc] will have to change trains at Southampton Central and gave the reason for the half-length trains as "stock displacement due to the problems we have had at London Waterloo". As we pulled out of Waterloo at 1903 we had the automated announcements "this train is now approaching London Waterloo - change here for London Underground services" and "please remember to take all your belongings with you when you leave the train" before having the "Welcome aboard the South West Trains service to Weymouth" played twice. The guard later announced "if you have any questions I am in the rear of this train" - but you couldn't get past the other passengers without a lot of squeezing. Had to change at Southampton Central, but happily a replacement 450 unit pulled into the station shortly afterwards to run through to Poole. 30 minutes late at Totton where the 1905 from Waterloo followed 5 minutes later.
03/10/07 Did not travel
04/10/07 On the 1805 from Waterloo there was no buffet in front 5 carriages. The guard apologised "for the delay here at Southampton Central, we are just waiting for the signalman to give us the road". 3 minutes late at Totton.
05/10/07 Totton ticket office was lit but locked at 0640. The guard on the 0646 from Totton announced that "unfortunately there has not been any catering on this part of the train". On the 1835 from Waterloo a woman insisted on loudly reading and singing an entire nursery rhyme / story book to a child with full character voices on this busy commuter train. Waited at Southampton Central for a late running Virgin service to go ahead of us. At Totton station there are a very large number of cigarette butts by the entrance to the up platform - this cannot have been cleaned now for many days. Oh, and my much-replaced season ticket has stopped working the London Underground ticket barriers again.
08/10/07 Totton station was a disgraceful rubbish tip this morning. The ticket office is still lit but locked. A notice on the platform ticket machine warns that police will be informed if "petty vandalism" of the credit card slot continues. The 0707 from Totton to Weymouth left before its scheduled departure time. The 0719 from Southampton Central to Romsey left before its scheduled departure time. On the 0730 from Southampton Central to Waterloo, a passenger asked if there was a doctor or nurse in the carriage before an announcement "can the guard contact the driver in the centre of the train". The guard then announced "we will be making a small unscheduled stop at Farnborough due to a passenger being taken ill". However we waited over 30 minutes at the station "waiting for the ambulance to arrive". Once moving again, the guard apologised "for the slow line speed" as "we are not in our normal slot". Arrived at Waterloo 46 minutes late, with the guard reporting no problems on the Underground. Found instead that the Bakerloo line was having serious delays. On arrival at Totton this evening found that the station had been only superficially cleaned.
09/10/07 Totton ticket office open at 0645 with temporary staff. Drains smell in subway underneath the platforms at Waterloo. On the 1805 from Waterloo, the guard apologised for the delay after Winchester "due to a late-running preceding service caused by a earlier failed train in this area" - 6 minutes late at Totton.
10/10/07 Totton ticket office was closed at 0645. The 0646 from Totton had passengers standing in the aisle from Southampton Parkway onwards - slow running up to Winchester. The 3 screens remain stubbornly blank on ramp down to the Waterloo & City line, hardly ever having been working since they were installed during the long shutdown of the line in mid-2006.
11/10/07 On the 0646 from Totton, passengers were shouted at over the intercom at Southampton Central - "please stand clear of the doors while this train attaches to another one". Apologies for delay due to "late running services" and "congestion" due in turn to "signalling difficulties at Surbiton". 12 minutes late at Waterloo. Totton very untidy again this evening.
12/10/07 Nothing to report
15/10/07 Totton ticket office open with a temporary staff member at 0650 - apparently expecting the "permanent" ticket office staff to be "on rosters" at Southampton Central until the end of the year. 0730 from Southampton Central was 5 minutes late at Waterloo - no reason given. The 1835 from Waterloo was delayed due to "speed restrictions".
16/10/07 Totton ticket office was open with a temporary staff member at 0640. In a straw poll of Travelcard ticket holders at Totton this morning, 0 out of 3 of us have tickets that successfully operate the ticket barriers in London. The 0646 from Totton left 6 minutes late. The delay was apparently due to problems splitting a 10 car unit at Bournemouth, but the guard thought we would still leave Southampton Central on time. 4 minutes late at Waterloo due to "technical problems at Bournemouth".
17/10/07 Totton ticket office was closed at 0640 with the queue for the ticket machine on the platform being 4 deep. The 0646 from Totton was delayed due to "signalling problems in the Wimbledon area" and was 35 minutes late at Waterloo.
18/10/07 The 0646 from Totton was 5 minutes late at Waterloo. This evening the Waterloo & City was not working due to faulty communications equipment and then a faulty train. The 1835 from Waterloo was 9 minutes late at Totton due to "points problems down the line" at Southampton Airport Parkway.
19/10/07 Totton ticket office was closed at 0645.
22/10/07 - 29/10/07 Did not travel.
30/10/07 As the 0646 from Totton reached London Waterloo, the guard apologised for the overcrowding and also for "some carriages being cold".
31/10/07 My current season ticket (4th to be issued so far for the same travel year) does not work the Southampton Central ticket barriers (where it was issued) as well as the London Underground barriers, showing "code 99". On the 0730 from Southampton Central to Waterloo, the guard asked passengers to ignore the automated announcements as he had "just reset the system" and it "should be rebooted by Winchester". Approaching Waterloo, the guard apologised for "slow running between Basingstoke and Woking". Stopped outside Waterloo "awaiting signal to proceed". Arrived at Waterloo 13 minutes late.
01/11/07 At 0655 platform indicators on platforms 2 and 3 at Southampton Central were blank.
02/11/07 1805 from Waterloo was 8 minutes late at Totton - no reason given.
05/11/07 In the queue for the (occasionally open) Totton ticket office, a passenger was reporting that the ticket machine had stolen 50p of his money. On the 0646 from Totton, a fellow passenger asked the guard whether the service would be stopping at Ashurst from the December timetable revision as local press had suggested that it would not - guard did not know and did not know how to find out (also mentioning she had heard things about the tunnel at Southampton but did not have any details about that either) "I don't know anything about the December timetable", "we are always the last to know". I directed the passenger to that National Rail website suggesting he put in a travel date for after the timetable change. 5 minutes late at Waterloo - no reason given. 1805 from Waterloo was 5 minutes late at Totton - no reason given.
06/11/07 Totton ticket office was closed at 0645. 0700 from Southampton Central was 10 minutes late at Waterloo - no reason given.
07/11/07-08/11/07 Did not travel.
09/11/07 Fellow passenger observed that one of the local residents has taken to sitting in her car until the 0646 from Totton has departed to prevent the space on the public road outside her property being used by commuters. The 0646 from Totton was slow running into Southampton Central. Guard announced that there would be a delayed start from Southampton Central due to "signalling problems in the Millbrook area", but the platform indicators at Southampton Central were still showing the departure time as 0700. Left Southampton Central 7 minutes late. Only one buffet trolley was on board due to "staff shortages". Guard apologised for "slow running between Winchester and Micheldever" as we are following a freight train which had a "brake problem at Winchester". Arrived at Waterloo 23 minutes late. On the 1835 a fellow passenger narrowly avoided sleeping through Totton, but he did admit to visiting Pokesdown inadvertently on Tuesday!
12/11/07 0646 was 16 minutes late at Waterloo - with absolutely no reason given to passengers. Where has the "As soon as we know, you'll know" approach gone (where guards were supposed to give reasons for delays of more than 3 minutes) - or was that possibly just a cynical pre-franchise PR exercise? The Waterloo & City line closed this evening and I just managed to get the 1835 from Waterloo by sprinting to the platform (and not getting a seat until Winchester).
13/11/07 Passenger information displays at Totton are not working this morning. 0716 from Totton was 11 minutes late at Waterloo - no reason given. 1705 from Waterloo was 4 minutes late at Totton due to "slippery rails at Winchester".
14/11/07 Southampton Central "premium" car park is still very poorly marked, well after passengers were threatened with clamping if they do not park in the (hardly) marked bays. 0730 from Southampton Central was 5 minutes late at Waterloo - no reason given. No platform numbers displayed for departures on the information screens in the subway under the platforms at Waterloo - but regular commuters had already started boarding the train standing at the normal platform, which was indeed the 1835 departure.
15/11/07 0646 from Totton was 7 minutes late at Waterloo due to "signalling problems".
19/11/07 1905 from Waterloo was 6 minutes late at Totton.
20/11/07 0901 from Winchester to Reading arrived at Reading 12 minutes late due to "delays before Fareham". 1604 from Reading to Brighton was at its platform at 1545 but was not cleaned before departure. 1650 to Poole service did not appear on departure indicators at Basingstoke until the departure of the 1637 to Gillingham & Salisbury as the scrolling feature for the next 2 departures does not appear if the destination takes 2 lines on the indicator. 4 minutes late at Totton, where I counted 51 passengers getting off this service which disappears from December (the vast majority of whom were on foot from the station rather than using the small station car park).
21/11/07 1845 from Reading to Bournemouth arrived at Southampton Central at 1957, alongside the 1955 from Southampton which was waiting for the CrossCountry service o precede it down the line. As passengers from the CrossCountry were on the footbridge, the 1955 left the station shortly followed by the CrossCountry. Everyone knows that the 1955 would wait at Millbrook for the CrossCountry to go ahead, so no time would have been saved for anyone on the 1955 but by sending it off instead of waiting the few seconds for CrossCountry passengers to reach it, it just meant that they had to wait unnecessarily for half an hour for no-one's benefit. "I have to follow the rules" said the station staff who waved the 1955 off - after 10 years of operation, such a massive improvement on British Rail, and for only 3 times the cost to the country!!!
22/11/07 0700 from Southampton Central was 12 minutes late at Waterloo with the (non-)reason given as "delays earlier in the journey". 1805 from Waterloo was 9 minutes late at Southampton Central with the guard making the risibly uninformative announcement that this was due to "problems earlier on today".
23/11/07 Totton ticket office was closed at 0645. On the 0646 from Totton, I had to sit with one foot twisted to avoid my leg being burned on the heaters. 7 minutes late at Waterloo.
26/11/07 The 0646 from Totton was 10 minutes late at Waterloo due to "following a stopping service between Winchester and Basingstoke".
27/11/07 Totton ticket office was closed at 0640. On the 0646 from Totton there was only one buffet trolley on the 10 carriage train. 5 minutes late at London Waterloo. Waterloo & City link was closed this evening with a station announcement at Bank requesting the attendence of British Transport Police due to passengers refusing to leave the platform. A fellow commuter advised that the closure was due to a failed train. The 1905 from Waterloo was 4 minutes late at Totton.
28/11/07 0730 from Southampton Central was 10 minutes late at Waterloo.
29/11/07 The local resident waited for the 0646 to arrive before leaving the parking space on the public road outside their property - but a late arriving commuter managed to grab the space immediately and jump onto the train! On the 0646 from Totton there was only one trolley from Southampton Central. 3 minutes late at Waterloo - fellow passengers commented that it was almost on time for the first time this week.
30/11/07 Waterloo & City closed at 0820 due to "signal failure at Waterloo".
03/12/07 No detailed timetables for the December timetable changes are available at Totton. Tried to get one at Southampton Central but the queue for tickets was out of the door. The 0646 from Totton was 6 minutes late at Waterloo due to "following a slow moving train between Woking and Wimbledon".
04/12/07 - 07/12/07 Did not travel.
10/12/07 - 14/12/07 Did not travel.
17/12/07 Totton ticket office was closed at 0645 and there was lots of litter on the station, including around the rat trap on the platform to catch the vermin that SWT blames rather unfairly (given the state of the station) on its neighbours. After Winchester on the 0645 from Totton, the guard apologised that "due to staff shortages" there was only one buffet steward on this 10 coach train. Waterloo & City line was suspended at 0820 - no reason given. The 1835 from Waterloo treated its customers to four renditions of "you must buy a ticket to travel on one of our trains" before they had left the station. The automated announcements in the rear half of the train omitted any mention of Totton or Ashurst New Forest. 5 minutes late at Totton - no reason given.
18/12/07 Totton ticket office was closed at 0640 and still lots of litter on the station - looks like there has been no station cleaning done since the weekend (at least). 5th carriage (on unit 444 029, counting back from the 1st class carriage) was without heating on the 0645 from Totton, although fellow passengers commented that their journey yesterday evening was in a carriage that was baking hot, which the guard said he could not do anything about as it was "controlled by a computer" and he didn't know where it was. Feet like ice by the time we reached Waterloo.
19/12/07 Totton ticket office was closed at 0710 and although most of the litter has gone, the station is far from clean. As no staff are on the station, no salt had been put down on the icy, slippery platform. 0707 from Totton to Weymouth was shown as running late at 0711 even at 0715. On 0715 from Totton there was no heating in 5th carriage (unit 444 029 again - obviously not having had any maintenance attention overnight). At Southampton Central, all the platform indicators showed "We regret that owing to a fault no information can be displayed at present". 12 minutes late at Waterloo due to "congestion".
20/12/07 - 21/12/07 Did not travel.
24/12/07 Totton station very untidy but salt had been spread on the platform. Travelled on the 0622 from Totton to Waterloo (the 0630 from Southampton Central) which managed to include a Totton stop on a Saturday - today being a Saturday timetable - but does not manage the same on Mondays to Fridays when it would be more useful.
25/12/07 - 28/12/07 Did not travel.
29/12/07 Renewed my season ticket, but had to travel to Southampton Central to do it as the Totton ticket office is so rarely open. I wonder how long it will operate the London Underground ticket barriers?
POOR PERFORMANCE, A MAJOR CAUSE OF OVERCROWDING ON SWT
Note: These details are snapshots, based on passengers' own experiences and website information. Delays should be seen in the context that Stagecoach is generally operating the slowest services since steam. Our Group does not have the resources to provide a full picture of the performance shortcomings which passengers suffer. We are able to provide fuller coverage on some days than on others.
Please note that trains can become increasingly late during the course of their journeys, or make up time where stops are omitted and passengers thrown off, so the "minutes late" figures may not represent the position at the end of a journey. On many days the loss of peak seats will significantly outweigh the additional seats which Stagecoach boasts of having introduced, adding to the stress and discomfort caused by the ripping out of seats from suburban trains.
In the 2007 National Rail Awards, SWT won only the award for train maintenance. So the number of train failures recorded below gives a hint of how poor the other facets of its operations must be.
Monday 01/10/07 07.52 Basingstoke-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.59 Aldershot-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.21 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.37 Twickenham-Waterloo AXED. 07.52 Basingstoke-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.52 Waterloo-Weybridge AXED. 21.05 Guildford-Waterloo 7 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Tuesday 02/10/07 04.55 Southampton-Waterloo delayed by engineering work south of Winchester. 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 7 minutes late due to unexplained delay in the Wimbledon area. 07.52 Epsom-Waterloo delayed at Worcester Park. 08.10 Chessington-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 08.21 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. WATERLOO STATION CLOSED IN THE AFTERNOON DUE TO SECURITY ALERT – HUGE DISRUPTION AND MANY TRAINS, INCLUDING ALL DORKING, SHEPPERTON AND HAMPTON COURT SERVICES AXED. A few examples from the start of the evening peak: 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES and 15 minutes late due to slow running. 17.07 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED. 17.37 Reading-Waterloo 47 minutes late; all intermediate stops except Ascot AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 18.37 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED. 19.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 19.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED. 21.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 22.09 Reading-Waterloo 36 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW.
Wednesday 03/10/07 05.12 Yeovil-Waterloo 16 minutes late and REDUCED TO 3 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 05.48 Staines-Waterloo 8 minutes late. 05.50 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth and Hilsea and REDUCED TO 8 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 05.51 Windsor-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 05.58 Waterloo-Windsor 9 minutes late. 06.12 Waterloo-Wareham 15 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 06.12 Waterloo-Shepperton 10 minutes late. 06.23 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 06.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.53 Ascot-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.04 Bournemouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A SUBURBAN UNIT. 07.09 Haslemere-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.10 Havant-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.20 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.24 Basingstoke-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.40 Chessington-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.47 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 08.00 Guildford-Ascot AXED. 08.10 Chessington-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.09 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 09.23 Ascot-Guildford-AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 09.41 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED between Shepperton and Teddington.
Thursday 04/10/07 05.15 Guildford-Portsmouth 9 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 05.58 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.15 Waterloo-Portsmouth 15 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 12.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo 14 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. EXTRAORDINARY SLACK - 14.05 Waterloo-Poole halted at Basingstoke 6 minutes and 10 seconds before departure time. 16.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 16.15 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 19.01 Reading-Brighton 20 minutes late. 19.05 Waterloo-Poole 18 minutes late. 19.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 10 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. Passengers on the 20.00 Guildford-Ascot THROWN OFF at Aldershot DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 20.40 Fratton-Southampton 9 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.09 Waterloo-Dorking 9 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.23 Ascot-Guildford AXED between Ascot and Aldershot DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.51 Windsor-Waterloo 14 minutes late. 22.22 Waterloo-Weybridge 11 minutes late.
Friday 05/10/07 Passengers on the 01.05 Waterloo-Southampton THROWN OFF at Eastleigh. 04.24 Surbiton-Waterloo AXED. 04.40 Southampton-Eastleigh AXED. 06.49 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.15 Southampton-Waterloo 8 minutes late. 10.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.33 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 20 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Twickenham AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 17.42 Waterloo-Shepperton AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.22 Waterloo-Weybridge 8 minutes late.
Saturday 06/10/07 06.13 Brockenhurst-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 06.25 Southampton-Brockenhurst 23 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 06.33 Woking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. Person hit by train: passengers on the 06.30 Waterloo-New Milton THROWN OFF at Eastleigh; 06.54 New Milton-Waterloo “delayed”; 07.00 Southampton-Waterloo 42 minutes late and stops at Southampton Airport, Fleet, Farnborough, Woking and Clapham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE; 07.35 Waterloo-New Milton 21 minutes late; passengers on the 07.41 Brockenhurst-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Southampton; 07.55 Southampton-Waterloo 61 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Woking DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.55 Southampton-Waterloo 14 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 09.39 Waterloo-Southampton AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke. 10.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 10.35 Waterloo-New Milton “delayed” DUE TO NO CREW. 17.25 Waterloo-Reading 13 minutes late. 18.12 Waterloo-Shepperton 30 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Teddington. 18.25 Waterloo-Reading DIVERTED DUE TO OPERATING INCIDENT. 18.28 Waterloo-Windsor DIVERTED DUE TO OPERATING INCIDENT. 18.30 Windsor-Waterloo AXED between Windsor and Staines. 18.33 Waterloo-Guildford 10 minutes late. 18.38 Barnes-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 18.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Wokingham. 19.11 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED between Shepperton and Teddington. 18.55 Waterloo-Reading 17 minutes late. 19.43 Barnes-Weybridge AXED. 19.50 Waterloo-Salisbury 13 minutes late. 19.51 Windsor-Waterloo AXED between Windsor and Staines. 20.12 Waterloo-Shepperton 21 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Norbiton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 20.38 Barnes-Kingston AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 20.42 Waterloo-Shepperton 17 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Norbiton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 21.03 Weybridge-Barnes AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 21.07 Kingston-Barnes AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 21.38 Barnes-Kingston AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.07 Kingston-Barnes AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.24 Hampton Court-Waterloo AXED. 22.38 Barnes-Kingston AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 23.07 Kingston-Barnes AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Sunday 07/10/07 12.52 Reading-Waterloo 52 minutes late due to passenger being taken ill. 17.35 Waterloo-Brockenhurst 10 minutes late. 18.52 Barnes-Reading 17 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 21.16 Basingstoke-Waterloo AXED between Basingstoke and Woking.
Monday 08/10/07 06.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 15.09 Reading-Waterloo 9 minutes late; stops at Egham, Feltham, Twickenham, Richmond and Clapham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.54 Poole-Waterloo 19 minutes late. 18.05 Waterloo-Aldershot 28 minutes late. 18.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 14 minutes late. 18.20 Waterloo-Reading 17 minutes late. 18.35 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES.
Tuesday 09/10/07 04.57 Poole0Waterloo 16 minutes late; stops at Eastleigh, Winchester and Woking AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 05.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Ascot DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 05.45 Poole-Waterloo left Southampton on time; it was 6 minutes late at Waterloo, where the delay was blamed on a track circuit failure at Bournemouth. 06.38 Aldershot-Guildford AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth 25 minutes late; whistles being furiously blown at Winchester while passengers were trying to alight and board. 17.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 5 minutes late.
Wednesday 10/10/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 10 minutes late. Vauxhall stop of 06.50 Waterloo-Guildford AXED. 08.20 Waterloo-Exeter 13 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.25 Exeter-Waterloo 14 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 09.45 Salisbury-Waterloo 16 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.05 Waterloo-Poole 5 minutes late. 16.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 5 minutes late. 17.50 Waterloo-Woking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.05 Waterloo-Aldershot AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. DUFF STOCK on the 21.24 Hampton Court-Waterloo; train failed at Surbiton.
Thursday 11/10/07 All stops of the 05.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth, between Clapham Junction and Guildford, AXED. 06.09 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Ascot. 15.00 Weymouth-Waterloo 24 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK; passengers THROWN OFF at Wareham. 15.59 Wareham-Winchester 10 minutes late. 16.25 Waterloo-Alton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 16.40 Exeter-Honiton AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.32 Honiton-Exeter AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.23 Waterloo-Alton delayed at Farnham. Passengers on the 23.24 Portsmouth-Winchester THROWN OFF at Eastleigh. Passengers on 23.39 Waterloo-Southampton THROWN OFF at Winchester.
Friday 12/10/07 Passengers on the 00.05 Waterloo-Brockenhurst THROWN OFF at Winchester. 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 06.56 Reading-Brighton AXED between Reading and Basingstoke. 07.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.15 Waterloo-Havant REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth seriously overheated DUE TO DUFF AIR-CONDITIONING. 17.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. Passengers on the 17.31 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Kingston. 17.45 Waterloo-Havant REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 18.00 Romsey-Totton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 18.01 and 18.31 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Kingston. 17.41, 18.11 and 18.36 Shepperton-Waterloo had all intermediate stops between Fulwell and Clapham Junction AXED. 19.01 Totton-Romsey AXED between Totton and Southampton DUE TO NO CREW. Passenger hit by train: 17.48 Plymouth-Waterloo 42 minutes late. 18.10 Exeter-Waterloo 60 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Woking. 19.00 Weymouth-Waterloo 60 minutes late. 19.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo 61 minutes late; Weybridge, Walton-on-Thames and Surbiton stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Passengers on the 20.35 Waterloo-Weymouth THROWN OFF at Woking. Passengers on the 20.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Winchester. 21.05 Waterloo-Poole “diverted” with no further details advertised. 21.30 Southampton-Waterloo AXED. Winchester and Southampton Airport stops of the 21.35 Waterloo-Weymouth AXED. Farnborough, Fleet, Basingstoke, Micheldever and Winchester stops of the 21.39 Waterloo-Southampton AXED. Brookwood, Farnborough, Fleet, Winchfield, Hook and Basingstoke stops of the 21.42 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 22.20 Waterloo-Salisbury AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 22.23 Waterloo-Alton AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 22.35 Waterloo-Poole 30 minutes late.
Saturday 13/10/07 05.25 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 05.30 Windsor-Waterloo 22 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Kingston and Waterloo AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.41 Brockenhurst-Waterloo AXED between Brockenhurst and Southampton DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.39 Reading-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 13.55 Waterloo-Reading 17 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.39 Waterloo-Southampton 25 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 15.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Basingstoke DUE TO NO CREW. 17.39 Reading-Waterloo 14 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.39 Waterloo-Southampton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 20.55 Southampton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 21.44 Alton-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Woking DUE TO NO CREW. 23.12 Waterloo-Basingstoke 25 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 23.29 Portsmouth-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Winchester. 23.48 Waterloo-Basingstoke AXED DUE T NO CREW.
Sunday 14/10/07 Passengers on the 00.31 Brockenhurst-Winchester THROWN OFF at Eastleigh. Passengers on the 01.05 Waterloo-Southampton THROWN OFF at Basingstoke. Passengers on the 01.42 Waterloo-Twickenham THROWN OFF at Wimbledon DUE TO NO CREW. 07.54 Staines-Woking 31 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 09.13 Ascot-Guildford 35 minutes late. Weymouth-Poole trains around 12 minutes late all date DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.26 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Monday 15/10/07 14.00 Weymouth-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 16.15 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.05 Guildford-Waterloo 15 minutes late; all intermediate stations from and including Wimbledon AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Passengers on the 18.57 Brighton-Reading THROWN OFF at Havant. 20.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth 19 minutes late.
Tuesday 16/10/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 6 minutes late. 06.04 Bournemouth-Waterloo “delayed”. 06.08 Salisbury-Exeter 21 minutes late. 06.20 Honiton-Waterloo 13 minutes late. 06.41 Exeter-Waterloo 14 minutes late. Passengers on the 12.35 Paignton-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Salisbury. 14.25 Portsmouth-Waterloo 48 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Guildford DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 14.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Guildford. 15.15 Alton-Waterloo AXED. 15.33 Woking-Waterloo AXED. 15.50 Waterloo-Woking AXED. 16.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 16.00 Guildford-Ascot AXED between Guildford and Aldershot DUE TO NO CREW. 16.01 Honiton-Exeter AXED. 16.03 Woking-Waterloo AXED. 16.20 Waterloo-Woking AXED. 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth 5 minutes late. 17.48 Plymouth-Basingstoke 48 minutes late; Teignmouth and Dawlish stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 18.24 Hampton Court-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 20.11 Shepperton-Waterloo 15 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Kingston and Clapham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE.
Wednesday 17/10/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 25 minutes late. 06.20 Honiton-Waterloo 14 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Basingstoke DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 06.29 Haslemere-Waterloo 16 minutes late. Passengers on the 06.33 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Kingston. 06.34 Guildford-Waterloo 19 minutes late. 06.41 Shepperton-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 06.54 Hampton Court-Waterloo 23 minutes late. Passengers on the 06.55 Portsmouth-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Woking. 07.20 Teddington-Waterloo AXED. 07.32 Woking-Waterloo AXED. 07.39 Waterloo-Guildford 23 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Effingham Junction AXED. 07.42 Waterloo-Shepperton 15 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Norbiton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.53 Waterloo-Alton minutes late. 19 Passengers on the 07.54 Portsmouth-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Guildford. 08.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth 15 minutes late. 08.03 Waterloo-Guildford AXED. Passengers on the 08.03 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Kingston. 08.54 Hampton Court-Waterloo AXED. 09.06 Waterloo-Hampton Court AXED. 09.27 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED between Waterloo and Kingston. 09.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 09.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Guildford. 09.50 Waterloo-Salisbury AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke. 09.53 Waterloo-Alton AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 09.54 Hampton Court-Waterloo AXED. 14.47 Plymouth-Waterloo AXED between Plymouth and Exeter. 16.00 Romsey-Totton 7 minutes late. 16.15 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. Passengers on the 17.40 Exeter-Axminster THROWN OFF at Honiton. 17.58 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 18.11 Shepperton-Waterloo 17 minutes late. 18.23 Axminster-Exeter AXED between Axminster and Honiton. 18.24 Hampton Court-Waterloo 17 minutes late.
Thursday 18/10/07 06.49 Weymouth-Waterloo delayed DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.47 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth 7 minutes late. 19.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 20.01 Totton-Romsey AXED between Totton and Southampton.
Friday 19/10/07 06.27 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 25 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Norbiton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 06.49 Weymouth-Waterloo 18 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW; Woking and Clapham Junction stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.24 Hampton Court-Waterloo 14 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Berrylands AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.33 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED between Waterloo and Twickenham. 08.03 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 18 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Richmond AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Passengers on the 14.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth THROWN OFF at Fratton DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth and Hilsea DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 20 minutes late. Passengers on the 21.12 Waterloo-Basingstoke THROWN OFF at Woking DUE TO NO CREW.
Saturday 20/10/07 07.28 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.35 Guildford-Waterloo 7 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.55 Southampton-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 09.50 Waterloo-Woking AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 11.35 Guildford-Waterloo 8 minutes late. 12.00 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 12.07 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 12.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 12.16 Waterloo-Chessington AXED DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 12.23 Ascot-Guildford THROWN OFF at Aldershot DUE TO NO CREW. 12.50 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 12.55 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 13.10 Chessington-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 13.30 Guildford-Ascot AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 14.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 14.53 Ascot-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 15.20 Salisbury-Waterloo 9 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 16.20 Waterloo-Reading 14 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.00 Guildford-Ascot AXED between Guildford and Aldershot DUE TO NO CREW. 17.31 Poole-Wareham 18 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.00 Guildford-Ascot AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 19.00 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 19.10 Exeter-Gillingham AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 19.23 Ascot-Guildford AXED between Ascot and Aldershot DUE TO NO CREW. 21.18 Gillingham-Exeter AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 21.56 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.30 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 23.26 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Sunday 21/10/07 07.24 Epsom-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 08.16 Wimbledon-Guildford AXED DUE TO CREW. 08.45 Waterloo-Reading 7 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. Suburban unit on the front of the 13.35 Waterloo-Weymouth. 14.52 Barnes-Reading AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 15.35 Woking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 16.21 Reading-Barnes AXED between Reading and Staines DUE TO NO CREW. 18.00 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO CREW. 18.50 Basingstoke-Waterloo 9 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.35 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 21.09 Brockenhurst-Waterloo AXED. 21.40 Waterloo-Woking AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 23.05 Woking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Monday 22/10/07 05.05 Waterloo-Reading DELAYED DUE TO NO CREW. 05.30 Waterloo-Weymouth 25 minutes late. Passengers on the 05.40 Basingstoke-Weymouth THROWN OFF at Southampton DUE TO NO CREW. 05.47 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 05.47 Staines-Weybridge AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 05.50 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 06.06 Hampton Court-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 06.09 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. Passengers on the 06.20 Waterloo-Guildford THROWN OFF at Woking DUE TO NO CREW. 06.33 Weybridge-Waterloo AXED between Weybridge and Staines DUE TO NO CREW. 06.42 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 06.54 Hampton Court-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.04 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.20 Teddington-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.30 Southampton-Poole REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN. 07.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.47 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 08.03 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.53 Bristol-Salisbury AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 08.54 Poole-Waterloo REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN. 09.28 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 14.01 Poole-Waterloo 9 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 10 minutes late. 15.57 Brighton-Reading AXED between Brighton and Havant DUE TO DUFF STOCK. Passengers on the 16.42 Waterloo-Basingstoke THROWN OFF at Woking DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 18.24 Waterloo-Dorking THROWN OFF at Epsom. 19.01 Reading-Brighton AXED between Reading and Basingstoke DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.33 Dorking-Waterloo AXED.
Tuesday 23/10/07 07.47 Woking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.20 Yeovil-Waterloo 6 minutes late. 14.10 Exeter-Waterloo 12 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.15 Portsmouth-Waterloo 9 minutes late; Woking stop AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.02 Waterloo-Guildford 5 minutes late. 19.07 Weybridge-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Wednesday 24/10/07 Passengers on the 00.05 Waterloo-Brockenhurst THROWN OFF at Southampton DUE TO NO CREW. 06.23 Portsmouth-Waterloo 13 minutes late. 06.28 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. All intermediate stops of the 06.45 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo between Hounslow and Barnes AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 06.51 Fratton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO OPERATING INCIDENT (usually this means a train smash in depot). 07.10 Havant-Waterloo AXED between Havant and Woking DUE TO NO CREW. 07.47 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.53 Ascot-Guildford AXED DUE TO OPERATING INCIDENT. 08.06 Hilsea-Waterloo 23 minutes late; Farnborough stop AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.30 Waterloo-Fratton 22 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 09.00 Waterloo-Fratton AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 10.00 Guildford-Ascot delayed DUE TO NO CREW. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING 4 COACHES OF SUBURBAN STOCK. 20.11 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 23.09 Southampton-Salisbury AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Thursday 25/10/07 04.10 Woking-Waterloo 39 minutes late. 05.12 Waterloo-Shepperton AXED. 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 6 minutes late. 06.11 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED. 15.18 Petersfield-Waterloo 19 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW; all intermediate stops between Haslemere and Guildford AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.02 Southampton-Wareham AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.30 Waterloo-Petersfield REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN. Poole portion of the 17.05 from Waterloo 7 minutes late from Southampton DUE TO NO CREW. 17.09 Reading-Waterloo 125 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK; all intermediate stops after Ascot AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 18.09 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Bracknell DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 18.35 Waterloo-Reading 37 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN; passengers THROWN OFF at Wokingham DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 18.39 Reading-Waterloo 50 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN; all intermediate stops between Staines and Waterloo AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 18.50 Waterloo-Reading 27 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 19.05 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 19.09 Reading-Waterloo 17 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN; all intermediate stops after Ascot AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 19.20 Waterloo-Reading 35 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 19.50 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 20.09 Waterloo-Dorking AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 20.09 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Bracknell DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 20.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 21.22 Waterloo-Weybridge 21 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW; all intermediate stops before Hounslow AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 21.23 Waterloo-Alton 25 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 21.35 Dorking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 21.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 22.30 Guildford-Aldershot AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Friday 26/10/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 5 minutes late. 06.10 Honiton-Waterloo AXED between Honiton and Salisbury DUE TO NO CREW. 14.20 Petersfield-Waterloo 10 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Haslemere and Guildford AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 14.20 Waterloo-Paignton AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.20 Fareham-Waterloo 9 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 14.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth 12 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.47 Plymouth-Waterloo 21 minutes late. 15.06 Petersfield-Waterloo 12 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.39 Waterloo-Southampton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES.
Saturday 27/10/07 06.25 Southampton-Wareham 16 minutes late. 07.14 Basingstoke-Yeovil AXED between Basingstoke and Salisbury DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 12.48 Petersfield-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Guildford DUE TO NO CREW. 14.15 Waterloo-Petersfield AXED between Waterloo and Woking DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 14.39 Waterloo-Guildford THROWN OFF at Worcester Park. 15.30 Waterloo-Petersfield 9 minutes late. 17.50 Waterloo-Reading 13 minutes late. 20.27 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 6 minutes late; stops at Clapham Junction, Earlsfield, Wimbledon and Raynes Park AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 20.39 Waterloo-Guildford 12 minutes late. Passengers on the 21.42 Waterloo-Fareham THROWN OFF at Eastleigh. Passengers on the 22.00 Waterloo-Petersfield THROWN OFF at Haslemere. Passengers on the 22.30 Waterloo-Petersfield THROWN OFF at Haslemere. 22.38 Aldershot-Guildford AXED. 23.28 Fareham-Southampton AXED. 23.35 Petersfield-Waterloo AXED between Petersfield and Haslemere. 23.46 Petersfield-Guildford AXED between Petersfield and Haslemere.
Sunday 28/10/07 13.18 Exeter-Waterloo 50 minutes late.
Monday 29/10/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 20 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 06.06 Totton-Yeovil 12 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.10 Havant-Waterloo AXED. 07.13 Portsmouth-Waterloo 45 minutes late. 07.15 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 07.36 Portsmouth-Southampton 47 minutes late. 07.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo ‘delayed’. 07.50 Brighton-Basingstoke AXED between Brighton and Hove. 08.05 Portsmouth-Reading ‘delayed’. Disruption at Winchester due to a fatality. 14.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke. 14.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED. 15.00 Weymouth-Waterloo 25 minutes late; Hamworthy and Poole stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 15.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 15.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 15.57 Brighton-Reading 13 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Havant. 16.00 Romsey-Totton AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth ‘delayed’ DUE TO NO CREW. 16.15 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 17.01 Totton-Romsey AXED between Totton and Southampton DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth 30 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK; passengers in the Poole portion THROWN OFF at Southampton DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.12 Waterloo-Basingstoke REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.53 Waterloo-Basingstoke REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 18.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth 15 minutes late. 18.39 Waterloo-Southampton 19 minutes late. 19.01 Reading-Brighton AXED. 19.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 12 minutes late. 19.54 Poole-Waterloo AXED between Poole and Bournemouth DUE TO DUFF STOCK; passengers THROWN OFF at Southampton. 20.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo 29 minutes late. 21.40 Brighton-Salisbury AXED between Brighton and Southampton. 22.39 Portsmouth-Southampton AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Tuesday 30/10/07 06.42 Hilsea-Waterloo 12 minutes late; Liss and Liphook stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Passengers on the 07.12 Waterloo-Brighton THROWN OFF at Basingstoke DUE TO NO CREW. 10.57 Brighton-Basingstoke AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 14.10 Exeter-Waterloo REDUCED TO 6 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.47 Plymouth-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT, YET AGAIN; to make matters worse many seats were reserved for a party from Poole grammar school and some commuters had to stand to Winchester. 17.23 Waterloo-Basingstoke 19 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 18.20 Waterloo-Exeter REDUCED TO 6 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.23 Waterloo-Basingstoke REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 18.24 Waterloo-Dorking AXED between Waterloo and Raynes Park. 19.55 Southampton-Waterloo delayed DUE TO DUFF TRAIN; Woking and Clapham Junction stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Passengers on the 19.58 Waterloo-Windsor THROWN OFF at Staines. 20.03 Weybridge-Waterloo 30 minutes late. 20.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo ‘delayed’. 20.20 Waterloo-Reading 28 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Wokingham DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 20.21 Windsor-Waterloo 28 minutes late. 20.33 Weybridge-Waterloo 17 minutes late. 20.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 21.21 Windsor-Waterloo AXED between Windsor and Staines. 21.28 Waterloo-Windsor 20 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Staines AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 21.42 Waterloo-Portsmouth 15 minutes late. 22.09 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Bracknell.
Wednesday 31/10/07 04.40 Southampton-Eastleigh AXED. 05.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo diverted via Guildford. 06.12 Waterloo-Shepperton 17 minutes late. 06.20 Honiton-Waterloo 18 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.20 Yeovil-Waterloo REDUCED TO 3 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 07.58 Weymouth-Waterloo 47 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.07 Twickenham-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 10.20 Waterloo-Exeter REDUCED TO 3 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 10.01 Totton-Romsey AXED between Totton and Southampton DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 10.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 14 minutes late. 13.20 Waterloo-Yeovil 24 minutes late. 13.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 13 minutes late. Passengers on the 14.00 Weymouth-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Dorchester DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.39 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 16.28 Guildford-Waterloo 16 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Epsom, except Clapham Junction, AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 16.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 30 minutes late. 16.50 Waterloo-Yeovil REDUCED TO 3 COACHES. 16.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo 29 minutes late. 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth 10 minutes late DUE TO STOCK OF PORTSMOUTH AND WEYMOUTH TRAINS BEING SWITCHED. 17.20 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.43 Waterloo-Shepperton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES.
Thursday 01/11/07 Passengers on the 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth THROWN OFF at Poole DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.39 Reading-Waterloo 30 minutes late; Stops at Bracknell, Martins Heron, Feltham, Twickenham, Richmond and Clapham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 18.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 18.09 Reading-Waterloo16 minutes late. 18.37 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF TRAIN.
Friday 02/11/07 06.23 Portsmouth-Waterloo 8 minutes late. 07.29 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth and Fratton DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 07.50 Brighton-Basingstoke THROWN OFF at Shoreham DUE TO NO CREW. 12.10 Exeter-Waterloo 18 minutes late. 12.35 Paignton-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 14.27 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO CREW. 16.04 Reading-Brighton AXED between Reading and Basingstoke. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT; MASSIVE OVERCROWDING. 17.30 Guildford-Ascot 25 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW; all intermediate stops between Guildford and Aldershot AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 18.02 Waterloo-Woking REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 19.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 19.10 Paignton-Basingstoke 24 minutes late. 20.42 Waterloo-Shepperton 15 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Norbiton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 21.36 Portsmouth-Southampton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.42 Southampton-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Saturday 03/11/07 Passengers on the 14.12 Winchester-Poole THROWN OFF at Bournemouth DUE TO NO CREW. 14.36 Portsmouth-Southampton AXED between Portsmouth and Fratton DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 16.53 Eastleigh-Brighton THROWN OFF at Havant DUE TO NO CREW. 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth 16 minutes late. 17.42 Winchester-Wareham AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 18.57 Brighton-Eastleigh AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 20.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 21 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 21.09 Waterloo-Dorking AXED DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 22.05 Waterloo-Weymouth AXED between Bournemouth and Weymouth DUE TO NO CREW. 22.35 Dorking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.35 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Sunday 04/11/07 07.32 Woking-Portsmouth 42 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK; stops at Farncombe, Godalming, Milford, Witley, Liphook and Liss AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.52 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. North Sheen and Mortlake stops of the 10.18 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED. Twickenham and Richmond stops of the 10.20 Weybridge-Waterloo AXED. Richmond stop of the 10.32 Windsor-Waterloo AXED. 12.18 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 21 minutes late. 12.27 Hampton Court-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 12.40 Waterloo-Guildford AXED. 13.24 Epsom-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 14.45 Alton-Waterloo 9 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. Passengers on the 21.54 Waterloo-Weymouth THROWN OFF at Bournemouth DUE TO NO CREW.
Monday 05/11/07 06.42 Hilsea-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.10 Havant-Waterloo 15 minutes late; Witley and Milford stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Ascot DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.20 Waterloo-Honiton 20 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.55 Reading-Portsmouth AXED between Reading and Basingstoke.
Tuesday 06/11/07 06.42 Portsmouth-Waterloo 14 minutes late; Liss, Liphook and Guildford stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Passengers on the 07.03 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Kingston DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 18.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 19.27 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 20.03 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 18 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW; all intermediate stops between Kingston and Clapham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Passengers on the 20.56 Salisbury-Bristol THROWN OFF at Westbury. 22.25 Bristol-Salisbury AXED between Bristol and Westbury.
Wednesday 07/11/07 12.00 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES and 13 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. Passengers on the 13.20 Waterloo-Yeovil THROWN OFF at Salisbury DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 16.20 Yeovil-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Salisbury DUE TO NO CREW. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 25 minutes late and REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 17.00 Weymouth-Waterloo 25 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Bournemouth and Waterloo AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke DUE TO DUFF STOCK; passengers THROWN OFF at Fratton. 17.45 Waterloo-Havant REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 18.30 Guildford-Ascot AXED DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 18.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 18.52 Reading-Ascot AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.30 Guildford-Ascot AXED DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 19.53 Ascot-Guildford AXED between Ascot and Aldershot DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 20.00 Guildford-Ascot delayed DUE TO NO CREW. 20.53 Ascot-Guildford AXED between Ascot and Aldershot DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. Passengers on the 21.40 Brighton-Salisbury THROWN OFF at Southampton DUE TO NO CREW.
Thursday 08/11/07 MASSIVE DISRUPTION TO MORNING PEAK SERVICES DUE TO A FATALITY AT WEST BYFLEET – WHOLE TRAINLOADS OF PASSENGERS DUMPED AT WOKING. BY WAY OF EXAMPLE, THE 05.45 POOLE-WATERLOO WAS 103 MINUTES LATE, SO AN ESPECIAL PITY THAT THE ADVERTISED BUFFET SERVICE WAS NOT AVAILABLE. PROBLEMS CONTINUED ALL DAY. 12.20 Waterloo-Plymouth AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke. 12.35 Paignton-Waterloo AXED between Paignton and Exeter. 13.50 Yeovil-Waterloo AXED between Yeovil and Gillingham. All intermediate stops before Haslemere of the 15.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 15.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth 10 minutes late. 15.58 Waterloo-Windsor 11 minutes late. 17.23 Waterloo-Basingstoke REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 18.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 18.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 8 minutes late. 18.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 18.57 Brighton-Reading AXED between Brighton and Hove. 19.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth 30 minutes late. 19.01 Reading-Brighton AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.15 Waterloo-Portsmouth 30 minutes late. 19.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 21.40 Brighton-Salisbury AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.42 Southampton-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Friday 09/11/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 8 minutes late. 05.50 Portsmouth-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 06.04 Bournemouth-Waterloo 11 minutes late. 06.15 Portsmouth-Waterloo 9 minutes late. 07.21 Reading-Waterloo 9 minutes late and AXED between Reading and Wokingham. 07.53 Waterloo-Alton 18 minutes late. 08.05 Waterloo-Poole 10 minutes late. 14.00 Weymouth-Waterloo AXED between Bournemouth and Weymouth DUE TO NO CREW. 16.15 Gillingham-Waterloo 23 minutes late. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 16.50 Waterloo-Reading 26 minutes late. 17.05 Waterloo-Aldershot 16 minutes late. 17.50 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.52 Waterloo-Weybridge 11 minutes late. 18.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 18.09 Reading-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 18.16 Waterloo-Chessington AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.55 Waterloo-Alton AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.02 Waterloo-Woking 21 minutes late. 19.10 Chessington-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 20.44 Alton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Saturday 10/11/07 09.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth and Hilsea. Passengers on the 10.02 Reading-Brighton THROWN OFF at Havant DUE TO NO CREW. TWO-HOUR GAP IN THE ENGINEERING WORK TIMETABLE BETWEEN WATERLOO AND SOUTHAMPTON WHEN THE 10.35 WATERLOO-WEYMOUTH VIA GUILDFORD WAS REVISED TO RUN AS A WINCHESTER-WEYMOUTH SERVICE; EXTRAORDINARILY, IT STILL MANAGED TO BE 12 MINUTES LATE. 11.24 Basingstoke-Brighton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 12.57 Brighton-Reading AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 13.57 Brighton-Basingstoke AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 14.24 Basingstoke-Fareham AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 21.50 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.50 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 23.12 Waterloo-Farnborough AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Sunday 11/11/07 07.45 Fareham-Portsmouth 12 minutes late. 11.48 Waterloo-Shepperton 23 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.24 Eastleigh-Portsmouth 23 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.17 Portsmouth-Eastleigh 11 minutes late. 16.05 Bournemouth-Winchester 29 minutes late due to delay on previous journey; passengers THROWN OFF at Eastleigh. 17.48 Portsmouth-Waterloo 24 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 20.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth 17 minutes late. 20.40 Waterloo-Guildford 20 minutes late.
Monday 12/11/07 06.20 Honiton-Waterloo 11 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.20 Yeovil-Waterloo REDUCED TO 6 COACHES and 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.34 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 07.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 14 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Norbiton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.11 Shepperton-Waterloo 12 minutes late; Teddington and Hampton Wick stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.12 Basingstoke-Waterloo 12 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 08.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. Emergency engineering work caused huge delays in the Wimbledon area. 14.20 Waterloo-Paignton AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke. 14.39 Waterloo-Guildford 37 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Epsom and after Effingham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 14.47 Plymouth-Waterloo 17 minutes late. 14.50 Waterloo-Salisbury AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke. 15.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Woking. Farnborough stop of the 15.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 15.20 Waterloo-Yeovil AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke. Weybridge, Walton-on-Thames and Surbiton stops of the 15.24 Basingstoke-Waterloo AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Farnborough and Fleet stops of the 15.39 Waterloo-Southampton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 15.39 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 15.44 Alton-Waterloo 15 minutes late; West Byfleet, Surbiton and Clapham Junction stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 15.50 Waterloo-Gillingham AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke. 15.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo 20 minutes late; Farnborough and Woking stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.09 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 16.11 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED between Shepperton and Teddington. 17.45 Salisbury-Waterloo 38 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.48 Waterloo-Southampton AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.45 Salisbury-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth 16 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 20 minutes late; Mortlake and North Sheen stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE.
Tuesday 13/11/07 04.40 Southampton-Eastleigh AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 05.05 Eastleigh-Southampton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 06.06 Totton-Yeovil AXED, PRESUMABLY DUE TO NO CREW. 06.04 Bournemouth-Waterloo 12 minutes late. 06.21 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.44 Alton-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.58 Waterloo-Windsor 10 minutes late. 08.07 Waterloo-Reading 10 minutes late. 08.10 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 11 minutes late. 08.20 Guildford-Waterloo AXED between Guildford and Clapham Junction DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.40 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 14 minutes late. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.00 Romsey-Totton AXED between Romsey and Eastleigh. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 17.53 Waterloo-Basingstoke REDUCED TO 8 COACHES AND THEN AXED DUE TO NO CREW. Great evening for Windsor lines commuters; first Richmond line trains diverted via Brentford due to a fatality at Twickenham and then Brentford line trains diverted via Richmond due to duff points at Kew Bridge. 18.13 Waterloo-Shepperton AXED. 18.23 Waterloo-Basingstoke 15 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 18.37 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 32 minutes late. 18.45 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 33 minutes late. 18.58 Waterloo-Windsor AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 19.01 Totton-Romsey AXED between Totton and Southampton DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.23 Waterloo-Surbiton AXED. 19.52 Waterloo-Weybridge AXED. 20.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 33 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 20.20 Waterloo-Reading 65 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Wokingham. 20.21 Windsor-Waterloo AXED. 20.22 Waterloo-Weybridge AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 20.28 Waterloo-Windsor 28 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 20.42 Southampton-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO NO CREW. Worplesdon and Woking stops of the 21.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED. 21.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Bracknell. 22.09 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Wokingham. All stops, before Surbiton, of the 22.20 Guildford-Waterloo AXED. Woking stop of the 22.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 22.35 Guildford-Waterloo AXED between Guildford and Surbiton. 22.45 Waterloo-Fratton AXED between Waterloo and Guildford. 23.03 Weybridge-Staines AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Wednesday 14/11/07 06.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 06.50 Southampton Airport-Waterloo REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 07.02 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.32 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.39 Reading-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.50 Brighton-Basingstoke 13 minutes late. 08.05 Portsmouth-Reading 14 minutes late. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. FROM THE 09.09 WATERLOO-PORTSMOUTH AND 09.51 PORTSMOUTH-WATERLOO, PORTSMOUTH VIA BASINGSTOKE TRAINS DIVERTED VIA NETLEY UNTIL MID-AFTERNOON WITH HEDGE END AND BOTLEY STATIONS TRAINLESS DUE TO SIGNALLING PROBLEMS. SOME READING/BASINGSTOKE-BRIGHTON TRAINS AXED AND OTHERS CURTAILED OR DIVERTED: WHEN TRAINS DID RUN THEY WERE GENERALLY AROUND 40 MINUTES LATE. 11.05 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 11.50 Waterloo-Reading 27 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK; passengers THROWN OFF at Staines. 11.53 Waterloo-Alton DELAYED DUE TO NO CREW. 13.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 16.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.12 Waterloo-Shepperton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.24 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.45 Waterloo-Havant REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 17.55 Waterloo-Alton REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 18.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 18.35 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Thursday 15/11/07 05.20 Waterloo-Portsmouth delayed DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.09 Reading-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.15 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.15 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 06.21 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.23 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 06.30 Waterloo-Weymouth delayed by signalling problems. 06.39 Reading-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. All intermediate stops after Raynes Park AXED from the 07.09 Waterloo-Epsom DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.20 Poole-Waterloo REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 07.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.30 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.50 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.58 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.58 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 08.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 08.13 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.20 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES and 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.50 Waterloo-Woking 25 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.22 Reading-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 10.00 Weymouth-Waterloo 31 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Bournemouth. 11.00 Weymouth-Waterloo 21 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Bournemouth and Waterloo, except Southampton Central, AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 11.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 13.00 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 26 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK; all intermediate stops before Southampton Central AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo 17 minutes late; Worplesdon, Woking and Clapham Junction stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Poole portion of the 17.35 Waterloo-Weymouth AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Friday 16/11/07 05.30 Waterloo-Weymouth delayed at Poole. 05.38 Salisbury-Totton 15 minutes late. 06.20 Honiton-Waterloo 12 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.21 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.40 Chessington-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.41 Exeter-Waterloo 15 minutes late and REDUCED TO 3 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.49 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 07.24 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.32 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.46 West Byfleet-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.58 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 08.00 Shepperton-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.31 Dorking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.34 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 19.01 Reading-Brighton 20 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Hove. 19.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo 35 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 20.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 21.40 Brighton-Salisbury AXED between Brighton and Hove.
Saturday 17/11/07 10.50 Waterloo-Reading 6 minutes late. 11.50 Waterloo-Reading AXED between Waterloo and Staines. 08.20 Waterloo-Exeter 24 minutes late. 10.02 Paignton-Brighton 19 minutes late. 10.05 Waterloo-Reading 8 minutes late. 12.10 Exeter-Waterloo 18 minutes late. 18.33 Woking-Waterloo 12 minutes late. 18.35 Dorking-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 18.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 15 minutes late. Passengers on the 21.35 Waterloo-Weymouth THROWN OFF at Bournemouth DUE TO NO CREW.
Sunday 18/11/07 09.48 Weymouth-Waterloo 56 minutes late due to signalling problems at Redbridge. 14.12 Chessington-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.40 Romsey-Totton AXED. 15.55 Totton-Romsey AXED between Totton and Southampton. 12.48 Weymouth-Waterloo 29 minutes late. 19.48 Portsmouth-Waterloo 25 minutes late. 21.52 Woking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Monday 19/11/07 05.10 Exeter-Waterloo 16 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 05.12 Salisbury-Waterloo 21 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Basingstoke and Waterloo AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 06.08 Salisbury-Exeter 41 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN; passengers THROWN OFF at Central station in Exeter. 06.21 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.02 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.03 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.10 Exeter-Waterloo 14 minutes late. SIGNALLING PROBLEMS IN THE PORTSMOUTH AREA. 07.13 Portsmouth-Waterloo 54 minutes late. 07.20 Yeovil-Waterloo AXED between Yeovil and Gillingham DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.29 Portsmouth-Waterloo 45 minutes late. 07.36 Portsmouth-Southampton AXED. 07.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 46 minutes late. 07.47 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 07.50 Brighton-Basingstoke 73 minutes late. 07.52 Portsmouth-Waterloo 42 minutes late; Farnborough and Woking stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.13 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED. 08.20 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.25 Exeter-Waterloo 58 minutes late and AXED between Exeter Central and Exeter St David’s; passengers THROWN OFF at Basingstoke. 08.32 Portsmouth-Southampton AXED between Portsmouth and Fareham. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth Harbour and Portsmouth & Southsea. 09.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED. 09.42 Southampton-Portsmouth AXED. 09.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo 13 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Woking AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 09.57 Brighton-Reading 13 minutes late; all intermediate Sussex stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 10.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth 40 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Fratton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 10.04 Reading-Brighton AXED between Reading and Basingstoke. 10.15 Waterloo-Haslemere AXED. 10.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth 20 minutes late. 10.39 Haslemere-Waterloo AXED between Haslemere and Guildford. 11.39 Haslemere-Waterloo AXED. 12.20 Waterloo-Plymouth AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke. 12.24 Basingstoke-Brighton AXED between Basingstoke and Havant. Passengers on the 14.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth THROWN OFF at Basingstoke DUE TO NO CREW. 15.54 Hampton Court-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.57 Brighton-Reading 16 minutes late. 16.01 Totton-Romsey AXED between Totton and Southampton. 16.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO 5 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.20 Waterloo-Exeter 8 minutes late DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 16.39 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 17.13 Waterloo-Teddington AXED DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 17.32 Waterloo-Guildford REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.35 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO DUFF TRAIN. 18.54 Poole-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 21.59 Brockenhurst-Lymington AXED. 22.14 Lymington-Brockenhurst AXED.
Tuesday 20/11/07 04.52 Twickenham-Waterloo AXED between Twickenham and Strawberry Hill. Passengers on the 05.12 Waterloo-Shepperton THROWN OFF at Teddington. 05.23 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED between Shepperton and Strawberry Hill. 06.42 Hilsea-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 07.41 Shepperton-Waterloo delayed. 08.00 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED between Shepperton and Strawberry Hill. 08.11 Shepperton-Waterloo 5 minutes late. 08.12 Waterloo-Shepperton; all intermediate stops before Norbiton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth 15 minutes late. 12.10 Exeter-Waterloo 30 minutes late. 12.20 Waterloo-Plymouth 38 minutes late. 12.35 Paignton-Waterloo 23 minutes late. 14.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 10 minutes late. 17.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.55 Southampton-Waterloo 29 minutes late; Clapham Junction stop AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 20.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo 25 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Woking AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE.
Wednesday 21/11/07 05.13 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.21 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.02 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 08.05 Waterloo-Poole 13 minutes late. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 13.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 11 minutes late. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.18 Waterloo-Haslemere 12 minutes late. 18.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 19.07 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 17 minutes late; all intermediate stops from Twickenham to Mortlake inclusive AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 19.09 Reading-Waterloo 21 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Staines AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Late evening level crossing problems at St Denys; some trains between Portsmouth and Southampton diverted via Eastleigh.
Thursday 22/11/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 12 minutes late. 06.41 Exeter-Waterloo delayed at Salisbury DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth 11 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.01 Poole-Waterloo 30 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Bournemouth. 14.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 14.50 Waterloo-Reading 12 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.55 Southampton-Waterloo AXED between Southampton and Basingstoke. 14.59 Wareham-Southampton AXED. 15.24 Basingstoke-Brighton AXED between Basingstoke and Havant. 15.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 15.42 Southampton-Portsmouth AXED. 16.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 16.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 17.01 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.32 Portsmouth-Southampton AXED between Portsmouth Harbour and Portsmouth & Southsea. 17.37 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 12 minutes late. 17.39 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 17.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 16 minutes late and diverted via Brentford. 18.21 Windsor-Waterloo diverted via Brentford and passengers THROWN OFF at Barnes. 18.30 Waterloo-Epsom REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.51 Windsor-Waterloo diverted via Brentford. 19.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES.
Friday 23/11/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 15.36 Portsmouth-Southampton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 16.20 Waterloo-Exeter 13 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 15 minutes late. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.35 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 18.15 Waterloo-Fratton REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 18.35 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.58 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES.
Saturday 24/11/07 06.15 Salisbury-Paignton 12 minutes late. 06.55 Weymouth-Waterloo 39 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW; Woking stop AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.00 Guildford-Ascot 35 minutes late; stops at Ash Vale, Frimley, Camberley and Bagshot AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.28 Guildford-Waterloo 14 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.35 Guildford-Waterloo 14 minutes late. 09.30 Guildford-Ascot 20 minutes late. 09.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 20 minutes late. 15.41 Shepperton-Waterloo 13 minutes late DUETO DUFF STOCK. Evening service between Brockenhurst and Lymington disrupted DUE TO DUFF SLAM-DOOR TRAIN. 21.23 Waterloo-Alton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 23.15 Alton-Woking AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Sunday 25/11/07 07.49 Woking-Alton 45 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Farnham. 08.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth 20 minutes late. Passengers on the 08.05 Hampton Court-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Surbiton DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.13 Ascot-Guildford AXED. 08.15 Alton-Waterloo AXED between Farnham and Alton. 08.17 Guildford-Ascot AXED between Guildford and Aldershot and 25 minutes late. 08.43 Weymouth-Waterloo AXED between Weymouth and Bournemouth DUE TO NO CREW. 08.45 Alton-Woking 21 minutes late. 08.49 Woking-Alton 20 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 08.57 Waterloo-Hampton Court AXED between Waterloo and Wimbledon DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 10.17 Guildford-Ascot 18 minutes late. 16.39 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.21 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.39 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.21 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 22.39 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Monday 26/11/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 6 minutes late. 06.42 Hilsea-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 07.20 Yeovil-Waterloo AXED between Yeovil and Salisbury DUE TO NO CREW. 07.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth 10 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.55 Southampton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Tuesday 27/11/07 05.00-Waterloo-Portsmouth 16 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Surbiton and Woking AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 05.05 Waterloo-Reading 11 minutes late. 07.20 Waterloo-Reading 10 minutes late DUE TODUFF STOCK. 07.30 Shepperton-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.00 Guildford-Ascot AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.34 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.43 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.46 Waterloo-Chessington REDUCED TO 4 COACHES.
Wednesday 28/11/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 24 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.03 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.11 Shepperton-Waterloo 14 minutes late. 06.21 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.33 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.42 Waterloo-Shepperton diverted via Strawberry Hill. 06.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.11 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED between Shepperton and Teddington. 07.12 Waterloo-Shepperton diverted via Strawberry Hill. 07.27 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.11 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED between Shepperton and Strawberry Hill. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 11.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 19.10 Paignton-Basingstoke 17 minutes late. 20.35 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Thursday 29/11/07 06.21 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.59 Aldershot-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.29 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.07 Waterloo-Reading 20 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Staines AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.34 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 12.35 Paignton-Waterloo 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 13.50 Yeovil-Waterloo 35 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Salisbury and Basingstoke AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 15.12 Waterloo-Basingstoke 10 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW; all intermediate stops before Woking AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 15.23 Waterloo-Alton 10 minutes late; stops at Surbiton and West Byfleet AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.45 Waterloo-Havant REDUCED TO COACHES. 18.30 Waterloo-Epsom 6 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 18.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 19.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 21.40 Brighton-Salisbury 15 minutes late.
Friday 30/11/07 06.20 Honiton-Waterloo 11 minutes late. 06.21 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.41 Exeter-Waterloo 9 minutes late and AXED between Exeter St David’s and Exeter Central. 08.34 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED to 4 COACHES. 08.51 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 14.15 Alton-Waterloo 36 minutes late; ALL INTERMEDIATE STOPS AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 14.44 Alton-Waterloo 23 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Woking AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. Passengers on the 17.01 Totton-Romsey THROWN OFF at Southampton DUE TO NO CREW. 17.24 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT – JUST LIKE THE 16.35! 17.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.00 Romsey-Totton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 18.02 Waterloo-Woking REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 18.24 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.01 Totton-Romsey AXED between Totton and Southampton DUE TO NO CREW. 20.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth and Havant DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Saturday 01/12/07 06.53 Waterloo-Alton 15 minutes late. 06.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo 29 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Woking AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.53 Waterloo-Alton AXED between Waterloo and Woking. Passengers on the 12.20 Waterloo-Reading THROWN OFF at Barnes. 17.15 Alton-Waterloo 57 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Woking. 17.28 Guildford-Waterloo diverted due to a fatality. 17.44 Alton-Waterloo 30 minutes late. 17.54 Dorking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 18.12 Waterloo-Basingstoke 6 minutes late. 18.15 Alton-Waterloo 37 minutes late; West Byfleet and Surbiton stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Passengers on the 18.42 Waterloo-Basingstoke THROWN OFF at Woking. 18.44 Alton-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 19.15 Alton-Waterloo 29 minutes late. 19.42 Waterloo-Basingstoke 20 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Woking AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 19.23 Waterloo-Alton 24 minutes late. 19.44 Alton-Waterloo 27 minutes late. 19.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo 10 minutes late; Weybridge and Walton-on-Thames stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 20.15 Alton-Waterloo 13 minutes late. 20.44 Alton-Waterloo AXED between Alton and Farnham. 20.53 Waterloo-Alton 31 minutes late. 21.12 Waterloo-Basingstoke 20 minutes late. 21.54-Basingstoke-Waterloo 14 minutes late; AXED between Basingstoke and Farnborough, and then all intermediate stops except Brookwood, Woking and Clapham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 22.15 Alton-Waterloo 12 minutes late. 22.44 Alton-Waterloo ‘delayed’ and ‘further delayed’. 23.03 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Sunday 02/12/07 06.43 Southampton-Waterloo 24 minutes late. 07.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo 20 minutes late. 07.29 Portsmouth-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 07.42 Portsmouth-Southampton 26 minutes late. 10.32 Portsmouth-Waterloo 80 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Haslemere AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 10.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 65 minutes late. 10.48 Portsmouth-Waterloo 68 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Woking. 11.15 Waterloo-Paignton 23 minutes late. 11.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 34 minutes late. 11.48 Portsmouth-Waterloo 25 minutes late. 12.32 Portsmouth-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 13.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 13.25 Yeovil-Waterloo AXED. 13.35 Waterloo-Weymouth AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 13.44 Waterloo-Windsor 30 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Staines AXED due to operational convenience. 14.26 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.32 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth and Fratton. Passengers on the 19.35 Waterloo-Weymouth THROWN OFF at Portsmouth. 21.40 Romsey-Eastleigh 25 minutes late and AXED between Romsey and Eastleigh.
Monday 03/12/07 Fleet and Farnborough stops of the 04.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo AXED. 06.06 Totton-Yeovil arrived from sidings 3 minutes late for no apparent reason. 06.12 Waterloo-Wareham delayed DUE TO NO CREW. 08.22 Epsom-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 10.05 Fareham-Basingstoke AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 11.24 Basingstoke-Brighton AXED between Basingstoke and Havant DUE TO NO CREW. 15.09 Waterloo-Guildford delayed DUE TO NO CREW. 16.00 Romsey-Totton AXED. 16.39 Waterloo-Guildford REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 15 minutes late. 16.54 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.01 Totton-Romsey AXED between Totton and Southampton. 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth 6 minutes late. 17.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo 27 minutes late; all intermediate stops from Portsmouth Harbour AXED except Havant, Haslemere and Guildford. 17.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 10 minutes late and AXED between Portsmouth and Fratton. 18.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 24 minutes late. 18.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 19.15 Waterloo-Havant 24 minutes late. 19.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth 15 minutes late.
Tuesday 04/12/07 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 15.24 Basingstoke-Brighton AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.20 Waterloo-Exeter 43 minutes late. 16.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 30 minutes late. 16.39 Waterloo-Guildford REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.57 Brighton-Basingstoke AXED between Brighton and Barnham DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.05 Waterloo-Poole 20 minutes late. 18.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth 18 minutes late. 18.45 Salisbury-Waterloo AXED. 18.50 Waterloo-Reading delayed at Twickenham. 21.28 Waterloo-Windsor AXED. 21.33 Weybridge-Waterloo AXED. 21.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Bracknell. 21.50 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.00 Guildford-Ascot AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.11 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.53 Windsor-Waterloo AXED. 22.55 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 23.23 Ascot-Farnham AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Wednesday 05/12/07 05.33 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 16 minutes late; all intermediate stations after Kingston AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 05.39 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 05.50 Waterloo-Reading 6 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.04 Bournemouth-Waterloo 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.23 Portsmouth-Waterloo 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.20 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.35 Waterloo-Weymouth AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 09.09 Reading-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 10.11 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 10.33 Weybridge-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 10.50 Waterloo-Reading 10 minutes late. 11.12 Waterloo-Shepperton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 12.11 Shepperton-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 12.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 21 minutes late. 12.39 Waterloo-Southampton 11 minutes late. 16.05 Waterloo-Poole 11 minutes late. 16.09 Waterloo-Guildford 15 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Effingham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth11 minutes late. 16.50 Waterloo-Woking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.54 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES 17.09 Waterloo-Effingham Junction REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.55 Waterloo-Alton 13 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Thursday 06/12/07 09.20 Waterloo-Plymouth 41 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Exeter. 14.47 Plymouth-Waterloo AXED between Plymouth and Exeter. 12.01 Poole-Waterloo REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 15.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 15.59 Wareham-Winchester delayed at Bournemouth DUE TO NO CREW. 16.05 Dorking-Waterloo AXED between Dorking and Ashtead. 16.09 Waterloo-Guildford 10 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.16 Waterloo-Chessington REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.24 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.35 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.05 Waterloo-Weymouth AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK; then the Poole portion only was AXED and the 17.45 Waterloo-Havant AXED as well. 17.10 Chessington-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.34 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.46 Waterloo-Chessington REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.54 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.55 Southampton-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 18.25 Waterloo-Alton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 10 minutes late. 18.36 Waterloo-Hampton Court REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.40 Chessington-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.46 Waterloo-Chessington REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.50 Dorking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.50 Salisbury-Waterloo 17 minutes late. 18.54 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 19.24 Hampton-Court-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 20.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 20.35 Dorking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 20.50 Waterloo-Woking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 21.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth 21 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. Passengers on the 21.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth THROWN OFF at Clapham Junction DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.36 Waterloo-Hampton Court REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 22.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo 15 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW.
Friday 07/12/07 05.25 Woking-Waterloo 39 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Staines AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. Passengers on the 06.43 Southampton-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Basingstoke DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.05 Waterloo-Poole 30 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Brockenhurst and Bournemouth AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 09.03 Weybridge-Waterloo AXED. 13.01 Poole-Waterloo 20 minutes late. 15.39 Reading-Waterloo 14 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Staines AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.00 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.03 Weybridge-Waterloo 10 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Hounslow and Barnes AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.45 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo 18 minutes late; Farnborough and Woking stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.35 Waterloo-Reading 18 minutes late. 17.50 Waterloo-Reading 13 minutes late. 17.54 Basingstoke-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 18.22 Waterloo-Weybridge REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.41 Waterloo-Basingstoke 13 minutes late. 18.43 Waterloo-Shepperton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 20 minutes late. 19.05 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 19.12 Waterloo-Shepperton 10 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth 16 minutes late. 20.45 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED.
Saturday 08/12/07 09.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES and AXED between Portsmouth and Havant DUE TO NO CREW. 11.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. Passengers on the 11.57 Brighton-Basingstoke THROWN OFF at Eastleigh DUE TO NO CREW. Services suspended between Eastleigh and Fareham during the afternoon due to collapse of signalling. 14.01 Poole-Waterloo 34 minutes late. Passengers on the 14.05 Waterloo-Poole THROWN OFF at Bournemouth DUE TO NO CREW. 14.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth and Fratton DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED. 16.01 Poole-Waterloo AXED between Poole and Bournemouth DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.01 Poole-Waterloo AXED between Pole and Bournemouth DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 17.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth delayed at Guildford.
Monday 10/12/07 05.00 Poole-Waterloo REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 05.30 Waterloo-Weymouth 37 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Dorchester and stops at Totton, Sway, New Milton, Hinton Admiral, Christchurch, Pokesdown, Branksome, Parkstone, Hamworthy and Holton Heath AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 06.19 Woking-Portsmouth 18 minutes late; Micheldever and Winchester stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 06.40 CHESSINGTON-Waterloo REDUCED TO COACHES. 06.55 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.55 Weymouth-Waterloo 26 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 07.10 Waterloo-Paignton 10 minutes late. 07.24 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.30 Aldershot-Waterloo 18 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Staines AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.52 Epsom-Waterloo 12 minutes late. 08.02 Woking-Waterloo delayed; stops at West Byfleet, Hersham and Esher AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.10 Chessington-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.31 Dorking-Waterloo REDUCED to 4 COACHES. 08.37 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.03 Weymouth-Waterloo AXED between Weymouth and Dorchester. 13.50 Yeovil-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 14.47 Plymouth-Waterloo AXED between Plymouth and Exeter. 15.07 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 21 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Barnes and Hounslow AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 15.35 Dorking-Waterloo AXED. Passengers on the 15.54 Waterloo-Dorking THROWN OFF at Epsom. EVENING TRAINS BETWEEN WATERLOO AND DORKING OR EFFINGHAM JUNCTION AXED OR TERMINATED SHORT OF DESTINATION DUE TO ENGINEERING WORK. 17.15 Waterloo-Fratton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.11 Waterloo-Basingstoke REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.39 Waterloo-Guildford AXED.
Tuesday 11/12/07 NO TRAINS BETWEEN WATERLOO AND DORKING ALL DAY DUE TO A LANDSLIP. 07.46 West-Byfleet-Waterloo AXED. 08.42 Waterloo-Basingstoke AXED between Waterloo and Woking DUE TO NO CREW.
Wednesday 12/12/07 STILL NO SERVICES BETWEEN WATERLOO AND DORKING ALL DAY. 05.00 Poole-Waterloo 7 minutes late. 05.19 Portsmouth-Waterloo 19 minutes late. 06.23 Portsmouth-Southampton 12 minutes late. 06.19 Woking-Portsmouth 19 minutes late. 07.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.44 Epsom-Waterloo 29 minutes late. Passengers on the 08.00 Guildford-Ascot THROWN OFF at Aldershot DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.14 Epsom-Waterloo AXED between Epsom and Raynes Park. 08.16 Waterloo-Chessington 15 minutes late; ALL INTERMEDIATE STOPS AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 08.25 Exeter-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 09.23 Ascot-Guildford AXED between Ascot and Aldershot DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.10 Waterloo-Paignton 30 minutes late. 08.20 Yeovil-Waterloo 10 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Tisbury DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.33 Waterloo-Guildford 20 minutes late; all intermediate stops to Wimbledon inclusive AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 14.20 Weymouth-Waterloo AXED between Weymouth and Dorchester. 15.07 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 10 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Barnes and Hounslow AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 15.20 Waterloo-Reading 17 minutes late. 16.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo 36 minutes late. 16.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 56 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Woking DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.54 Portsmouth-Waterloo 34 minutes late; intermediate stops after Basingstoke AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 21 minutes late and REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK; all intermediate stops after Twickenham, except Clapham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 17.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo 40 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK; Godalming, Farncombe, Worplesdon and Clapham Junction stops AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. .17.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 21 minutes late. 18.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 19.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED between Waterloo and Woking.
Thursday 13/12/07 STILL NO SERVICES BETWEEN WATERLOO AND DORKING ALL DAY. 07.23 Ascot-Guildford AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth and Fratton. 07.41 Shepperton-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.02 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 16.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 20 minutes late. 17.31 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.02 Waterloo-Woking REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 18.13 Waterloo-Shepperton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.45 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 18.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 18.54 Portsmouth-Waterloo 16 minutes late. 19.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 19.03 Weymouth-Waterloo 22 minutes late. 19.20 Weymouth-Waterloo 38 minutes late; stops at Winchester, Basingstoke and Clapham Junction AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE.
Friday 14/12/07 STILL NO SERVICES BETWEEN WATERLOO AND DORKING ALL DAY. 05.45 Poole-Waterloo 18 minutes late due to a track defect at Basingstoke; interestingly, the information screens at Waterloo were showing every other arrival as expected on time! 06.43 Southampton-Waterloo 14 minutes late. 06.55 Portsmouth-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 07.13 Portsmouth-Waterloo 13 minutes late. 07.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo 11 minutes late. 07.29 Portsmouth-Waterloo 11 minutes late. 07.30 Shepperton-Waterloo 18 minutes late. 07.38 Waterloo-Poole 22 minutes late; Clapham Junction, Farnborough and Fleet AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.41 Shepperton-Waterloo 12 minutes late. 07.42 Waterloo-Shepperton 12 minutes late. 07.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo 9 minutes late. 08.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth 16 minutes late. 08.05 Portsmouth-Basingstoke delayed at Hilsea. 08.11 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED between Shepperton and Teddington. 08.13 Portsmouth-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 08.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo delayed at Hilsea. 08.32 Portsmouth-Southampton delayed at Hilsea. 08.42 Waterloo-Shepperton 15 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Norbiton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 14.42 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 15.23 Ascot-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 17.05 Waterloo-Aldershot 27 minutes late. 17.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 20 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Barnes AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.20 Waterloo-Reading 19 minutes late. 17.35 Waterloo-Reading 23 minutes late. 17.35 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES, INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN UNIT. 17.37 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 20 minutes late. 17.52 Waterloo-Weybridge 22 minutes late. 17.58 Waterloo-Windsor 22 minutes late. 18.07 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.12 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Bracknell. 18.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 19.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 17 minutes late. 20.20 Waterloo-Reading 16 minutes late. 20.03 Weybridge-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 20.07 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 20 minutes late. 20.12 Reading-Waterloo 32 minutes late. 20.23 Windsor-Waterloo 20 minutes late. 20.28 Waterloo-Windsor 18 minutes late.
Saturday 15/12/07 STILL NO SERVICES BETWEEN WATERLOO AND DORKING ALL DAY. 07.50 Waterloo-Woking delayed. 10.39 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 12.08 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 17.50 Waterloo-Reading 9 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.12 Reading-Waterloo 14 minutes late.
Sunday 16/12/07 07.42 Portsmouth-Southampton AXED between Portsmouth and Fareham; ALL subsequent SWT services between Portsmouth and Southampton DIVERTED to and from Havant. ALL services between Waterloo and Epsom DIVERTED to and from Chessington. ALL services between Waterloo and Guildford via Epsom DIVERTED via Cobham. 07.54 Waterloo-Poole 15 minutes late and REDUCED TO 5 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 10.55 Poole-Eastleigh REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 12.34 Shepperton-Kingston AXED between Shepperton and Teddington. 16.00 Waterloo-Portsmouth 11 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Havant. 17.34 Windsor-Waterloo AXED between Waterloo and Staines DUE TO NO CREW. 19.35 Romsey-Salisbury AXED between Romsey and Eastleigh.
Monday 17/12/07 07.42 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 07.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.55 Poole-Waterloo REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN. 08.00 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.37 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.53 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. Passengers on the 13.39 Waterloo-Poole THROWN OFF at Southampton Central DUE TO NO CREW. 14.50 Waterloo-Salisbury AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 15.20 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN. 15.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 15.39 Waterloo-Brockenhurst AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke DUE TO NO CREW. 15.48 Salisbury-Romsey AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 15.50 Waterloo-Gillingham REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 16.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 17.05 Romsey-Salisbury AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 17.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.45 Salisbury-Waterloo REDUCED TO 2 COACHES. 17.50 Poole-Waterloo AXED between Poole and Southampton DUE TO NO CREW. 18.17 Southampton-Winchester AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 18.35 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.39 Waterloo-Poole REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN. 19.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 19.50 Waterloo-Salisbury REDUCED TO 2 COACHES. Passengers on the 20.35 Waterloo-Weymouth THROWN OFF at Bournemouth DUE TO NO CREW. 23.15 Waterloo-Havant REDUCED TO 5 COACHES.
Tuesday 18/12/07 04.30 Portsmouth-Waterloo 16 minutes late and AXED between Portsmouth Harbour and Portsmouth & Southsea. 05.16 Portsmouth-Southampton 11 minutes late. 06.21 Southampton-Portsmouth 8 minutes late. 07.29 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.39 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.22 Epsom-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.31 Dorking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.37 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.53 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.08 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. Passengers on the 14.54 Portsmouth-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Fratton DUE TO NO CREW. 16.03 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN. 17.17 Portsmouth-Waterloo 35 minutes late; after Haslemere, all intermediate stops except Woking AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 17.36 Portsmouth-Southampton 40 minutes late; passengers THROWN OFF at Fareham. 17.54 Portsmouth-Waterloo delayed. 18.15 Portsmouth-Waterloo 18 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Haslemere AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 18.42 Southampton-Portsmouth AXED between Southampton and Fareham and delayed DUE TO NO CREW. 18.53 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.05 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES INCLUDING A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN. 19.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 4 COACHES and AXED between Waterloo and Woking. 19.58 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.23 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 22.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 5 COACHES. 20.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth 16 minutes late. 20.15 Waterloo-Haslemere 15 minutes late. 20.36 Portsmouth-Southampton 29 minutes late; all intermediate stops between Portsmouth & Southsea and Fareham AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 21.12 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.42 Southampton-Portsmouth 17 minutes late. Passengers on the 22.42 Southampton-Portsmouth THROWN OFF at Fratton DUE TO NO CREW.
Wednesday 19/12/07 05.10 Exeter-Waterloo 10 minutes late. 05.58 Waterloo-Windsor 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 06.23 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.45 Portsmouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 08.37 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.53 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 14.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth 10 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.50 Waterloo-Reading 11 minutes late. 16.05 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth REDUCED TO 9 COACHES. 16.33 Waterloo-Guildford REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 16.45 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 7 minutes late. 16.56 Havant-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 16.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED. 17.03 Portsmouth-Fareham AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 17.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 17.32 Waterloo-Guildford 31 minutes late. 18.05 Dorking-Waterloo 30 minutes late. 18.08 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 18.35 Dorking-Waterloo AXED between Dorking and Leatherhead. 18.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 19.03 Woking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 19.05 Waterloo-Weymouth AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 19.05 Waterloo-Weymouth 17 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 19.09 Waterloo-Portsmouth 16 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 20.22 Waterloo-Weybridge 13 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Thursday 20/12/07 05.16 Portsmouth-Southampton AXED. 05.35 Salisbury-Southampton-Salisbury AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 06.21 Southampton-Portsmouth AXED. 06.23 Portsmouth-Waterloo 37 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Eastleigh AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 06.38 Portsmouth-Waterloo 45 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Eastleigh AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 06.50 Southampton Airport-Waterloo AXED. 07.24 Portsmouth-Waterloo had all intermediate stops after Hilsea AXED. 07.38 Southampton-Waterloo 35 minutes late; all intermediate stops after Basingstoke AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 07.51 Southampton-Portsmouth AXED between Southampton and Fareham. 08.02 Dorking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.05 Portsmouth-Basingstoke AXED between Portsmouth and Fratton. 08.17 Woking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.31 Dorking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.37 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth AXED. 08.51 Portsmouth-Waterloo had all intermediate stops after Hilsea AXED. 08.53 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.42 Waterloo-Shepperton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 19.42 Waterloo-Shepperton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 20.23 Ascot-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 21.30 Guildford-Aldershot AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 22.38 Aldershot-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Friday 21/12/07 04.55 Southampton-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.12 Reading-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.23 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 06.54 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.02 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.28 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.32 Woking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 07.50 Waterloo-Reading REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.02 Dorking-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.12 Waterloo-Basingstoke REDUCED TO 8 COACHES. 08.37 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.53 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.03 Waterloo-Guildford REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.25 Reading-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.46 Waterloo-Chessington REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.58 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 10.28 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 10.40 Chessington-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 11.23 Windsor-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 11.24 Waterloo-Dorking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 11.50 Waterloo-Woking REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 18.23 Ascot-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 18.35 Waterloo-Reading AXED DUE TO NO ROLLING STOCK IN PLACE. Passengers on the 17.50 Poole-Waterloo THROWN OFF at Ashurst DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 20.54 Portsmouth-Waterloo AXED between Portsmouth and Basingstoke DUE TO NO CREW. 21.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 15 minutes late. 21.23 Ascot-Guildford 16 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 21.28 Waterloo-Windsor 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Saturday 22/12/07 11.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 12.33 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 12.20 Waterloo-Plymouth 18 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.15 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo 15 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW; all intermediate stops before Richmond AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE. 16.39 Waterloo-Poole AXED between Waterloo and Basingstoke DUE TO NO CREW. 22.00 Guildford-Ascot AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 23.23 Ascot-Aldershot AXED DUE TO NO CREW.
Sunday 23/12/07 12.39 Waterloo-Reading 15 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.54 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Monday 24/12/07 07.48 Salisbury-Romsey AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 10.35 Dorking-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 10.52 Waterloo-Weybridge AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 11.09 Waterloo-Guildford AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 11.37 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 12.38 Guildford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 13.20 Weymouth-Waterloo 10 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.20 Waterloo-Yeovil 12 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 15.45 Salisbury-Waterloo 10 minutes late and REDUCED TO 3 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Thursday 27/12/07 07.12 Waterloo-Shepperton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 07.41 Shepperton-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 08.24 Basingstoke-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.50 Waterloo-Salisbury AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 08.50 Waterloo-Reading 10 minutes late and REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.52 Waterloo-Weybridge REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 08.58 Waterloo-Windsor REDUCEDTO 4 COACHES. 09.23 Waterloo-Alton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 09.53 Waterloo-Alton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 10.23 Waterloo-Alton REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 10.33 Weybridge-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 10.42 Reading-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES. 12.25 Paignton-Waterloo 9 minutes late. 16.08 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.28 Guildford-Waterloo REDUCED TO 4 COACHES DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.55 Waterloo-Alton AXED between Waterloo and Woking DUE TO NO CREW. 17.42 Waterloo-Shepperton AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 17.45 Salisbury-Waterloo AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 18.03 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 14 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 18.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth 13 minutes late. 19.50 Waterloo-Salisbury AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 20.35 Waterloo-Weymouth 25 minutes late.
Friday 28/12/07 05.38 Weymouth-Waterloo 18 minutes late. Passengers on the 07.22 Basingstoke-Yeovil THROWN OFF at Salisbury DUE TO NO CREW. 09.05 Waterloo-Weymouth 10 minutes late. Passengers on the 10.23 Waterloo-Alton THROWN OFF at Farnham. 12.15 Alton-Waterloo AXED between Alton and Farnham. 17.16 Portsmouth-Waterloo 11 minutes late. 17.52 Waterloo-Weybridge 17 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 18.42 Waterloo-Shepperton 14 minutes late; all intermediate stops before Norbiton AXED DUE TO OPERATIONAL CONVENIENCE.
Saturday 29/12/07 09.20 Waterloo-Reading failed at Vauxhall DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 09.37 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 09.45 Waterloo-Brentford-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 09.50 Waterloo-Reading 17 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 11.12 Reading-Waterloo AXED DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 13.45 Waterloo-Portsmouth 18 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW.
Sunday 30/12/07 08.20 Waterloo-Plymouth 24 minutes late DUE TO DUFF STOCK. Passengers THROWN OFF at Exeter. 10.54 Reading-Waterloo AXED between Reading and Wokingham DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 14.06 Plymouth-Waterloo AXED between Plymouth and Exeter DUE TO DUFF STOCK.
Monday 31/12/07 08.05 Waterloo-Weymouth REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 08.08 Aldershot-Guildford AXED DUE TO NO CREW. 11.20 Weymouth-Waterloo REDUCED TO A 4-COACH SUBURBAN TRAIN DUE TO DUFF STOCK. 16.36 Portsmouth-Southampton 26 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 18.30 Waterloo-Portsmouth 14 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW. 18.36 Portsmouth-Southampton 11 minutes late. 22.27 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 17 minutes late. 22.57 Waterloo-Kingston-Waterloo 13 minutes late DUE TO NO CREW.
NEWS MISCELLANY
Monday 08/10/07 – LONDON TRANSPORT TOPS POLL In a poll by TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel community, London’s public scheme has been voted best in the world for the second year running. London taxis and the Underground were voted best of any among the world’s major cities and the capital’s transport network generally was voted the safest. (Metro)
Monday 08/10/07 – CROSSRAIL’S ABBEY WOOD BRANCH COULD BE DELAYED FOR 3 YEARS Arguments between Government departments over funding for the Abbey Wood branch of Crossrail could lead to it being delayed 3 years, from 2017 to 2020. The branch is one of the most politically sensitive sections of the scheme because it will bring tens of thousands of jobs to poorer areas of London. (Evening Standard)
Tuesday 09/10/07 – SOUTHAMPTON FEARS COST OF PENSIONERS’ BUS CONCESSIONS From April 2008, people over 60 can travel free anywhere in the country after 09.30. The cost of the journey falls to the local authority where a journey ends. This could cost Southampton £1.5m annually, with 375,000 extra trips into the city. Unless the city gets a higher government grant, other services could suffer. (Southern Daily Echo)
Friday 12/10/07 – PLATFORM AT NEW SHEPHERDS BUSH STATION TOO NARROW – EXTRA COST WILL BE £7 MILLION The new Shepherds Bush station on the Clapham Junction-Willesden Junction line has one platform 18 inches too narrow, posing a safety risk. This is likely to cost the developer £7m to rectify. (London Lite)
[Remember Basildon station being built with the platforms too high? The slam door of the inaugural train scraped the platform.]
Friday 12/10/07 – PRIVATE EYE ON OFF-PEAK FARES Umpteen promises to simplify fares have been broken since privatisation. At the Labour Party conference Ruth Kelly pledged to make tickets “simpler and easy to use” so people could be confident of “getting the right ticket at the right price”. But her officials are itching to de-regulate (let train operators scrap) Saver fares. They’ve backed off for now but say that “Customers need to be convinced that change is to their benefit”. They also consider that commuter tickets are too simple and are muddying the peak versus off-peak waters by creating something called “super off-peak” which means whatever train bosses want it to mean for revenue purposes. The concept was piloted by Stagecoach on South West Trains. Next will be the East Midlands franchise which is to go to Stagecoach. Officials won’t frustrate rail bosses’ desire to move even further into airline-style pricing, where customers shop around for fares which fluctuate massively depending on demand. But rail’s chief rival is the car, and the average rail journey in Britain (excluding local railways like the Tube) is 24 miles. People won’t be willing to shop around the internet when they just want to nip into town. If the billions of pounds invested in rail are to cut car journeys, trains must be a convenient alternative, and that implies more regulation of fares to make them simpler. Officials already exploit the messy fare range to understate price rises. In July’s rail white paper they said, “On average, the cost to passengers of rail travel has increased by less than 3 per cent over the last decade”. What they didn’t explain was that the book-ahead fares which pull that average down are of lower value, as well as price, because they limit passengers to specific trains. A like for like comparison of “fully flexible” tickets reveals fares have rocketed by 18% above inflation in 10 years, or 46% for first class. And that was before Labour demanded £4bn a year more from passengers.
Tuesday 16/10/07 – TRAIN BOSSES CALL FOR A WIDER CROSSRAIL A group of rail bosses considers that the £16bn Crossrail project will ‘do so little for so few’ that its routes should be extended to cover all the South East. They want Crossrail services to extend from Basingstoke in the west to Cambridge in the east. (Metro)
Wednesday 24/10/07 – BOOSTS FOR CHANNEL TUNNEL TRAFFIC Eurostar yesterday reported record passenger numbers over the past three months, boosted by an estimated 125,000 fans travelling to the rugby World Cup. Ticket sales revenue rose 13.8% to £148.5m. Meanwhile Eurotunnel is to reduce freight charges. Freight carried through the tunnel had fallen from 3m tonnes in the late 1990s to 1m tonnes. Charge would be by train rather than tonnage, and the average price would reduce from £5,300 a train to £3,000. (Guardian)
Friday 26/10/07 – PRIVATE EYE ON CROSSRAIL FUNDING In the mid-1990s Tories and Labour were convinced of the need for a tunnel between Liverpool Street and Paddington to link railways to the east and west of London, but nobody wanted to pay. In 1994, a committee of MPs rejected a private Crossrail bill because numbers of passengers had fallen in the early 1990s recession and they were unsure how the £2bn for infrastructure would be raised. By 2000, London’s transport was bursting at the seams again. Crossrail’s cost had risen to £3.5bn and Labour’s 10-year transport plan said that Crossrail “is assumed to be financed by the private sector”. Labour then spent years trying to get the private sector to pay, with companies which would benefit from better transport helping to fund the investment through temporary business taxes, as happens in France. But the UK Treasury hates levies which it can’t control. So when Crossrail was approved, the scheme was dumped on Transport for London, so that the Mayor will take the flak for a levy on all but the smallest businesses. Now Crossrail is expected to cost £16bn. Private sector contributions will leave a big shortfall, so taxpayers will pay more than £5bn, and the rest will have to be borrowed by Transport for London and Network Rail. All because £2bn was deemed too much for taxpayers to pay in the mid-1990s, and £3.5bn was deemed too much in 2000. Such is the cost of “prudent” short-termism.
Tuesday 30/10/07 – NEW HOMES AND PARK FOR WATERLOO IN £2BN FACELIFT Waterloo and the surrounding area is to get a multi-billion pound revamp. The Mayor plans to extend the ‘cultural quarter’ further south following the £100m makeover of the Royal Festival Hall. The Imax roundabout will be reconfigured and the underpasses replaced by a park. The Waterloo concourse will be expanded and brought down to street level, while the platforms will be lengthened. Down-at-heel streets will get a facelift. Up to 2,500 new homes will be created, possibly along with 5,000 new jobs in construction, leisure facilities, offices and shops. There will be a new station entrance in York Road. The Camden-Peckham/Brixton tram will carry 66m passengers a year through the area. (Evening Standard)
Tuesday 30/10/07 – RADICAL TRANSPORT OPTIONS UNVEILED A high-speed magnetic levitation rail link giving journeys of under an hour between London and Birmingham, wider motorways, and more congestion charging schemes are among a range of radical options unveiled by the government. Landing slots at airports might be allocated on the basis of airlines’ environmental performance. (Financial Times)
Tuesday 30/10/07 – NO RATIONING OF AIR OR CAR TRAVEL Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly defied environmentalists by saying she would never ‘ration’ air or car travel. She said the Government did want to put carbon costs at the heart of future decisions on airports, roads and railways, but stressed that the best way of helping the planet was to balance growing aircraft emissions by cutting CO2 elsewhere. The Civil Aviation Authority would be given a statutory duty to protect the environment. National Air Traffic Services rules would be reformed to curb stacking and taxi-ing on runways, and there would be backing for green cars with 30% better fuel efficiency. (Evening Standard)
Thursday 01/11/07 – GERMANS TO LAUNCH EUROSTAR RAIL RIVAL Germany’s national rail company has applied to run trains from St Pancras to Cologne (the western hub of the German high speed network) via Brussels. From Cologne, trains operate to destinations including Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Munich, Berlin and Hamburg. (Guardian)
Tuesday 06/11/07 – EMISSIONS TRADING ‘TO BE WORTH £30 BILLION’ New United Nations figures show that rich nations’ greenhouse gas emissions have risen to levels not seen since 1990. This is despite worldwide efforts to reverse the trend, widely blamed for global warming and the problems of floods, droughts, heatwaves and rising sea levels. Worryingly, the figures do not include China, where the economy is growing by 11% a year, or India, another rapidly emerging industrial power. The latest figures show that emissions by 40 leading industrial nations edged up to 18.2bn tonnes in 2005, from 18.1bn the previous year and were just 2.8% below the high of 18.7% recorded in 1990. In the US, which has refused to sign the Kyoto protocol, emissions were up to 7.24bn tonnes in 2005 from 7.19bn in 2004. Russian emissions rose slightly to 2.13bn in 2005, but were still far below the 3bn seen in 1990 before the Soviet Union collapsed. Britain’s emissions remain within its Kyoto cap and they are falling in the European Union and Canada. Carbon emissions trading, the system set up under Kyoto so that rich countries can buy and sell their rights to pollute, will reach £30bn next year, it is claimed. (Metro)
Friday 09/11/07 – PRIVATE EYE ON CROSSRAIL CHAIRMAN’S HISTORY / TUBE FUNDING / ABOMINABLE TREATMENT OF DISABLED PERSON Douglas Oakervee, chairman of Crossrail, was criticised for the disastrous impact of his “poor project management” and “overbearing personality” in an inquiry into problems at a new Hong Kong airport. Failures included lost luggage, unconnected telephones, lengthy flight delays and security lapses. A Hong Kong Legislative Council inquiry said Oakervee had “failed in his job as project director” and “cannot escape responsibility” for much of the chaos. Ominously for Crossrail, legislators singled out his responsibility for the project’s late completion and attacked him for an apparent willingness to mislead the airport authority board. He “frequently provided vague, inaccurate and misleading information, to put forward an optimistic picture to discourage too close probing”, they said, adding: “The select committee was astonished at the small regard he seemed to have about having misled the AA board”. Oakervee works at Crossrail alongside Clinton Leeks who, as spin doctor for the Hong Kong airport, drew criticism in the press for his sunny statements prior to the chaotic opening. Crossrail declined to comment.
Gordon Brown wants to waste more money on his dream of a privatised Tube. Transport for London expects to pick up the pieces of his previous Underground disaster, the collapsed Metronet consortium. However, the Financial Times says the government is unhappy with TfL’s proposed control over maintenance and wants private firms more involved to keep “tight control of costs”. That’s precisely what private firms didn’t do through Metronet. Setting up another costly public-private deal will simply delay Tube renewal again and create scope for new arguments over who pays for what. Such conflict is rife on the mainline rail network, where each delay is attributed to Network Rail or a train operator. Managers check the data and query the delays they don’t think should be attributed to them. Each query triggers further investigation. First Great Western challenged Network Rail 3,800 times over 12 months. It is entitled to do so, especially when Network Rail can’t or won’t sort out the infrastructure, because privatisation was founded on clashing financial interests.
SouthEastern is spending £5m at stations on wheelchair-friendly initiatives to get its disability boxes ticked. Its website claims that “disability awareness training” ensures “all our passenger facing staff have the necessary skills to provide a high service standard. A person paralysed from the waist down always found that the staff at London Bridge promptly fetched him a platform-to-train ramp. Now they tell him to ask for the ramp at the office at the end of the platform, although the extra effort to get there in an unpowered wheelchair can be painful. Two employees at London Bridge told him, without explanation, to wait for the next train but one. He says there was time before the first train for one of them to fetch the ramp. Passengers on board made room for him. Humiliated at not being able to board, he grabbed one of the doors as it was about to shut. He says an employee pulled him away from the train and told him to await the police. Passengers helped him on the next train and off at Charing Cross, without ramps. One advised him to take legal action and offered to act as a witness. He considers it’s a combination of rude members of staff and bad management. The overriding intention is to get the trains to move on time, regardless of who is on them or not.
Friday 09/11/07 – LONDON OVERGROUND The Mayor of London plans a £300m investment in the London Overground (Richmond-Stratford line, Euston-Watford local service, Willesden Junction-Clapham Junction line, Gospel Oak-Barking line and the East London line when it opens in 2010). The lines will be run by Hong Kong-based MTR and Laing, and Transport for London will take 90% of the revenue to pump back into services. Oyster cards will be accepted. (Metro)
Thursday 15/11/07 – SECURITY BARRIERS PLANNED FOR 250 STATIONS As part of a raft of security measures, as many as 250 rail stations could see security barriers and vehicle exclusion zones put in place to prevent potential vehicle bomb attacks. (Metro)
Friday 16/11/07 – NETWORK RAIL MAY CUT INVESTMENT IF RECESSION HITS UK The Office of Rail Regulation said it expected Network Rail to mothball major engineering works if passenger demand falls because of recession caused by the turmoil in the debt markets. Network Rail is seeking £10 billion for improvements to 2014, by which time passengers will be bearing 75% of the railways’ costs. The industry still expects 40% passenger growth between 2005 and 2015, whereas the government expects growth of only 3% a year to 2014. (Guardian)
Monday 19/11/07 – TRANSPORT FOR LONDON TO AXE £150M TUBE COOLING SYSTEM AND DELAY STATION REVAMPS Following the collapse of maintenance company Metronet, the much-heralded £150m water cooling system fur the Tube network is to be axed. The upgrade of stations will be set back years, as will plans to improve accessibility for disabled people. Metronet went bust after a £2bn overspend. (Evening Standard)
Friday 23/11/07 – PRIVATE EYE ON OIL PRICES, HELP POINTS AND BUS REGULATION The National Transport Model uses fuel prices based on crude oil price projections from the Department for Trade (now DBERR). Transport policy is doomed when officials make predictions like crude oil falling from $100 to $20 a barrel by 2010. The predictions allow Labour to “predict and provide” for roads and airports while stifling investment in more energy-efficient alternatives like railways and trams. Bypasses and road widenings can appear unavoidable when the NTM shows how traffic will grow as fuel prices fall (a fat chance). Meanwhile the government forecasts just 22.5% more rail passengers over the next 7 years, and will choke even demand for that by allowing just 10% more carriages. In the world of £1-a-litre-petrol, Network Rail says the government’s plans fall short by hundreds of carriages and train companies predict 40% growth. The officials behind the NTM also produced this year’s 30-year strategy. It admits that electric trains are more efficient than diesel trains, but electrification means spending money and losing tax revenue on oil-derived fuels. Electric trams, which cut congestion and air pollution in cities worldwide aren’t even mentioned. In the unreal world where oil prices are predicted to fall dramatically, new English tram systems are blocked because the benefits don’t outweigh the costs.
Rail passengers might think that emergency help points would get them through to emergency services. No chance at Taplow station, near Reading. When a local resident wanted to find out whether services were running to the unstaffed station as her train hadn’t arrived, the emergency button put her straight through to National Rail Enquiries in … India, who had never heard of Taplow. She asked to be put through to First Great Western who run the trains, but was told she could only be referred to ticket sales. Had there been an emergency, National Rail Enquiries are supposed to put the caller through to the 24-hour emergency service of the train operator concerned. But since they have no idea where Taplow is…
A proposal in the local transport bill that councils could replace failing operators by franchises has upset First Group boss Moir Lockhead. He moaned, “Money to improve public transport would just be absorbed in bureaucracy”, just as he unveiled results for a half year in which his company’s bus service in Bristol was so bad that a public inquiry was held, and two of its rail franchises came bottom in the official passenger satisfaction survey. In that period, First Group made £48m profit on its UK buses (up 21% on last year) and £48m on its trains (up 10%). Mr Lockhead had no complaints about public money that could have improved transport being “absorbed” in profits.
Thursday 06/12/07 – STAGECOACH TAKES ON CAR MAKERS OVER GREEN ISSUES Stagecoach has accused major car makers including Mercedes-Benz and General Motors of hindering greener travel by under-investing in environmentally friendly technology. A spokesman for GM said Stagecoach had singled out the wrong industry. (Guardian) [Does the problem lie with the wonderful old ‘pass the blame’ sport?]
Friday 07/12/07 – PRIVATE EYE ON THIRD HEATHROW RUNWAY Gordon Brown is backing Heathrow’s third runway, ignoring objections from local MP John McDonnell and environmentalists like Friends of the Earth. Ferrovial, the Spanish firm that owns Heathrow, is pulling every string to make sure the Green agenda is junked in favour of its business. It hired Tom Kelly, Tony Blair’s former chief spokesman, to head “communications” for the British Airports Authority, its firm that runs the airport. Gordon Brown’s chief security adviser, Lord Stevens, is also a BAA director. Former Labour Energy Minister, Brian Wilson, is spearheading the lobbying effort as chairman of Flyingmatters, a Ferrovial-funded pro-third runway body. Flyinmatters funded a meeting at the last Labour conference by Brown’s favourite think tank, the Smith Institute. The meeting was nominally on ‘Going Green’ but Wilson spoke, claiming that attempts to limit flying were “impossibilist” and his advocacy of a third runway was compatible with his demands for more action on climate change. This caused incredulity among the audience and his fellow speakers, including Labour’s Lord Whitty and the Environment Agency boss Barbara Young. Wilson’s arguments for a third runway might not have convinced Labour delegates, but they are convincing Gordon Brown and Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly, whose gushing endorsement of the air lobby’s arguments for Heathrow expansion is yet more evidence of the Labour hierarchy’s commitment to tackling climate change. Her consultation document telling people that Heathrow will get a third runway and sixth terminal was published a week after the high speed railway between London and the Channel Tunnel opened, but the 238-page document did not make a single reference to the railway. France’s high speed train system has savaged short-haul air services between key cities and the BAA is determined to avoid that here. Kelly said her priority was to improve the whole experience of air travel; London to Frankfurt took about 5 hours but only 90 minutes of this was in the air. She didn’t mention that the train journey takes 6 hours, plus 30-minute check in, or that the German state railway is reportedly considering direct St Pancras-Frankfurt services. As more people recognise the environmental cost of flying, trains could replace many Heathrow-Frankfurt flights – now about 22 each way per day. Diverting short-haul passengers to trains would allow Heathrow to function without the massive upheaval of a new runway and terminal. But the “consultation” document doesn’t mention Britain’s existing high-speed railway, let alone the proposed north-south line which could reduce the inordinate number of Heathrow slots used for shuttling people around Britain.
Monday 10/12/07 – £70 THAMESLINK STATION OPENS AT ST PANCRAS Today sees the opening of First Capital Connect’s new St Pancras International station, with closure of Kings Cross Thameslink. It is situated alongside the main St Pancras station. Improvements include longer and wider platforms, new lifts and escalators, and state-of-the-art information screens. (Evening Standard)
Friday 21/12/07 – PRIVATE EYE ON FARES The Association of Train Operating Companies claims that the New Year’s fare increases are justified by a higher-performing railway with new, refurbished and more punctual trains and better stations. So why are fares jumping by 9.8% on First Great Western, where new trains are to replaced by Pacer trains based on 1970s bus technology? ATOC said £200m would be spent on new engines and refurbishment for FGW’s high speed (?) train fleet, but FGW says the money will have to cover all its spending on trains, stations and customer services. Apparently passengers must pay higher fares to have worn upholstery replaced. On Northern, fares are increasing by 5.7%, whilst Pacer trains are drafted in to replace newer and better ones, which the government is sending to Scotland. Scotland, home to the Prime Minister, Chancellor, and former transport secretary Douglas Alexander, already has newer and better trains than Northern. New trains are arriving on South Eastern for domestic services on the high speed Channel Tunnel rail link, but passengers who will never use them are being clobbered with 6.8% increases on regulated fares and 14.9% on unregulated fares. ATOC also uses improved punctuality to justify fare increases, but some of the highest increases are on services where punctuality has nosedived. It says revenue from rail fares is spent on better stations. It boasts of new stations on the reopened Ebbw Vale line (funded by taxpayers). Elsewhere, “better stations” means correcting past neglect. ATOC neglects to mention that the rail network costs far more to run than under British Rail, thanks to the current complicated and bureaucratic structure. For instance, rail regulators are now spending 7 months analysing Network Rail’s 12,000 page “strategic business plan”. This massive job creation scheme will be repeated every 5 years. ATOC also forgot to mention that last January’s fare increases helped Go Ahead’s rail profits soar to £66m in the year to July 2007, 55.5% higher than in 2006. In the first half of 2007-08, First Group’s UK rail profits leapt 9.8% to £48m.
Friday 21/12/07 – GOVERNMENT MAY NEED TO PAY MORE OR AXE PROJECTS The Rail Regulator has warned the Department for Transport that the government might need to pump more money into the rail network or cut back on schemes. Network Rail is demanding £24.6bn in funds to run the railway in England and Wales between 2009 and 2014. The ORR says that Network Rail needs £22.8bn at the very most and can keep a much tighter rein on costs. The State is prepared to put up £13.3bn - £200m short of ORR’s toughest forecasts. Farepayers are expected to contribute a further £9bn – nearly double the total over the past 5 years – to Network Rail’s spending plans. (Guardian)
Monday 24/12/07 – CROSSRAIL TO SERVE READING? Extension of Crossrail from Maidenhead to Reading is in the balance. The Department for Transport says the Crossrail bill wouldn’t need to be amended, and it understood that the extension wouldn’t involve a significant cost increase. However, consultant Jim Steer, from Steer Davies Gleave, considers that the extension is not needed because passengers between Reading and London will prefer the much faster First Great Western services. (Guardian)
Friday 28/12/07 – HOTTER SUMMERS ‘COULD KILL THOUSANDS IN BRITAIN’ Dr Richard Horton, editor of the Lancet, will highlight the dangers of extremely hot summers at the Royal College of Physicians’ conference. He will be joined by climate change experts, including the government’s chief scientific adviser, Professor Sir David King. Also present will be health academics such as Professor Ian Roberts of the London School of Tropical Medicine and NHS professionals and emergency planners. The conference will be told that heatwaves of the sort which killed 35,000 people across Europe in 2003 could become the norm. Children and elderly in London and the South East are among those who will suffer most from soaring temperatures over the next 50 years. In London, an estimated 900 people died as a result of the 2003 heatwave, while heat-related fatalities across Britain reached 2,045. The Department of Health has issued a report which finds there is a one in forty chance of a heatwave by 2012. Higher exposure to ultraviolet light from sunshine would lead to an increase in skin cancers, whilst flooding and tick-borne diseases would become more common. (Evening Standard)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
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