Chiltern Railways is to be taken over by Deutsche Bahn

According to a report on the BBC website, the sale process of the Chiltern Railways franchise by Laing Rail appears to be drawing to a close. Formal approval is required from all and sundry, but I reckon it'll happen.

In theory nothing much will change- the trouble is that Chiltern Railways are highly regarded and generally thought of as being just about the best reailway company. 'Best' costs money (or good management) and these things are often in short supply after a corporate takeover. We'll just have to see how things shape up.

By the way, the Central Line is an absolute bloody nightmare at the height of the morning peak. No problems with how it runs, there are just too many people. Roll on the Olympics.

A Happy Ending

First of all a very Happy New Year. I hope you and yours had an enjoyable Christmas.

Tonight I was at a quiet country station in Buckinghamshire waiting to catch a train home to somewhere even quieter, when a youngish man tried to engage me in conversation. The trouble was he couldn't engage in a proper conversation because he appeared to have some form of learning disability. He was carrying a small bag with some clothes but did not seem to know where he was, where he was going or how he got there.

Eventually, after a lengthy conversation he showed me a tag around his neck which had his home address and telephone number printed on it.

Using the Help Point on the platform I was able to contact the Chiltern Railways control centre who were in turn able to contact the man's parents. His Father then set off on a journey of over 80 miles down from Birmingham to collect him. S was left in the safe company of the parking attendant in a warm and cosy hut. I suspect the parking attendant will be having a late night and S & his family an even later one.

I can't even begin to imagine the worry his parents must have been going through. Hopefully S will get home all right - well done to the lady at Chiltern Railways for taking ownership of a really human problem, and to the parking attendant for doing the right thing.

The original title of this post was "A Sad Tale" but, with hindsight, it is always better for the glass to be half full, rather than half empty.

Happy Christmas

Best wishes to everyone. Thank you for reading my blog.

I must confess to just a little bit of recycling in respect of this post. The sentiments do however remain genuine.

There is apparently no chance of a White Christmas in my part of South East England, so I thought I would once again share with you my idea of how Christmas might appear in warmer climes.

I took this picture on Mt Kinabalu, Borneo, a couple of years ago. You may spot a little bit of post production. I like it, so I serve it up on a plate once again.

Do please have a very Happy Christmas and a peaceful and prosperous New Year.

Liverpool Street Main Line Station - Christmas Closure

Liverpool Street (London) main line station will be totally closed from Sunday 23rd December 2007 through to Tuesday 1st jauary 2008, to allow engineering works to take place.

The One Railway website has full details of alternative arrangements here.

There is a clickable map of the One Railway network which is quite whizzy.

The Central Line will still be calling at Liverpool Street and, apparently, off-peak services on the Central Line will be increased to 30 trains per hour.

A Change of Scenery

I had to go to Wrexham today for family stuff. It wasn't really practical to do the return journey by train, so 340 miles of driving later, and I am a tad tired!
View Larger Map

The icing on the cake was having to sit on the M40 this evening for over 1/2 an hour, with the engine off, while the emergency services dealt with a fire. I am glad I don't drive every day for a living.

I guess today must be a manic late night shopping/ party night in London as my local station car park is still half full. Usually by now there will only be one or two cars still there. I wonder how many will still be there in the morning? Edit: Answer = "Lots"

The trains were noticeably quieter than usual on Monday and Tuesday, so hopefully loads of room to spread out tomorrow!

A summary of Chiltern Railways' train services over the holiday period, including downloadable pdf files, is available here.

Train Shortage on the Central Line

I have just received a text message advising that there are minor delays on the Central Line due to a lack of available trains.

Is it just me, or is what work Metronet are/ were doing deteriorating? There seem to have been an increasing number of infrastructure breakdowns over the last few weeks.

Lack of trains on a frosty morning? Looks to me as though the trains feel like me today - cold and tired. Still, at least when it rains, I don't leak.

Tesco really are trying to change things too much

I have this morning received an email from Tesco.

The first sentence reads:

"With Christmas less than a week away, its time to think about all those last-minute buys."

Now, I know I am a bit slow at getting started with my Christmas shopping, but moving Christmas nearer is not going to win brownie points for anyone.

I have used a number of reference points and am fairly confident that Christmas Day is on 25th December. Today is 12th December.

Grotty mornings on the Underground

Monday morning wasn't a good start:

Unusually, my Chiltern Railways train got in to Marylebone ten minutes late. The Bakerloo Line was suspended due to a broken down train at Oxford Circus. I then walked to Baker Street but could not get to the Jubilee Line due to overcrowding. I then stood on a Metropolitan Line train which was terminated after ten minutes (without going anywhere). It then took six or seven minutes to even get off the platform due to the number of passengers, so I walked to Soho. I should have done that in the first place. Very wearing.

Thursday wasn't particularly good:

There was absolutely no way I could get on the first Southbound Bakerloo Line train that arrived. I waited ten minutes for the next one- I suspect crowd control must have been in place at Paddington, because when it came in I was able to get a seat. I was at the back of the train- things must have been really bad in the middle of the train, because passengers were stood several layers deep as we left the station. At Oxford Circus I changed to the Central Line for one stop- really bad move. I got on the seventh train that came. It would have been way quicker to walk.

I am usually the train geek at work. On these two days I did not initiate the water cooler conversations.

Day off tomorrow. Yippee!

So where did November go?

So, here we are one month on from the clocks going back, and it's just as dark again at silly o'clock in the morning. It is tipping it down with rain and there is bad weather due for tomorrow. Yum yum.

Actually, I've been feeling a bit guilty of late. What blogging there has been has been mostly off topic, and there has been a definite rationing of mentions of the Central Line.

Today was a bit strange in London- there just didn't seem to be many people about. Our office had less than 1/3 of the usual bums on seats and this seemed to be reflective of how busy it was on the streets and underground.

I caught a Metropolitan Line train from Baker Street towards Aldgate at about eight o'clock this morning. There was hardly anyone on the platform and the train was half full (or half empty).

This evening the Central Line platform at Tottenham Court Road had only a smattering of the usual gormless tourists people in the way and my big Chiltern Line train home had plenty of seats.

I can't fathom it out- where is everyone?

The Bakerloo Line was suspended a few minutes ago between Elephant & Castle and Queens Park. However I was long gone and it seems to have sorted itself out now.

Apart from the aforementioned lines I have, this week, been on the Docklands Light Railway, The Jubilee Line and The Northern Line. All without problem or hassle. Just how it should be.

While I remember, I did have a bit of a 'mare on the DLR last Thursday (22 Nov) when it took half an hour in the evening from Bank to Westferry. Never mind, I was on the way to the pub, hence why I had almost forgotten.

That's me caught up for now- hopefully (?), December will be a bit more interesting.

I always thought I was in the wrong job...

Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0 created with QuizFarm.com

You scored as Indiana Jones Indiana Jones is an archaeologist/adventurer with an unquenchable love for danger and excitement. He travels the globe in search of historical relics. He loves travel, excitement, and a good archaeological discovery. He hates Nazis and snakes, perhaps to the same degree. He always brings along his trusty whip and fedora. He's tough, cool, and dedicated. He relies on both brains and brawn to get him out of trouble and into it. Indiana Jones 63% The Amazing Spider-Man 63% James Bond, Agent 007 63% Lara Croft 58% Neo, the "One" 54% The Terminator 54% Captain Jack Sparrow 54% Batman, the Dark Knight 50% William Wallace 50% Maximus 46% El Zorro 42%

Apathy is not good - Wear your poppy with pride

Today is Remembrance Sunday, when the nation commemorates the sacrifices made by Britain's war dead.

Over the last few days I have carried out a very simple straw poll of people's attitude towards Remembrance Sunday and also towards The Royal British Legion's Poppy Appeal:

• Number of people I have spoken to who watched Panorama last Monday- a topical programme about what our troops are currently doing in Afghanistan: None
• Number of my work colleagues observed to have been wearing a poppy last week: Less than one in seven
• Number of people that I know personally (outside of my family), who have today participated in any formal act of remembrance: Three

One observation I have would be that the likelihood of participation in any act of remembrance appears, among the general population, to increase with the distance you live from a major city centre.

Remembrance Sunday is not about glorifying war. It is about commemorating those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of our country. You may not agree with war, you may not agree with some of the things our armed services are currently being asked to do, but please do remember all of those who have not come back and who may yet not come back.

Many of those who do come back have (and will) bear terrible scars. Some of those scars are all too obvious to see, while many are not.

All of these people and their families need active support to help them through their difficulties.

Please wear your poppy with pride and do as much as you can to support those who suffer in the name of your country.

Later:

I was pleased to see a one minute silence at Vicarage Road (Saracens -v- Glasgow Warriors). You could have heard a pin drop as the seven thousand strong crowd stood and paid their respects.

A bit over the top

Chiltern Railways appear to have installed a new automated announcement system at Beaconsfield.

Tonight:

"I am sorry to announce that the 18:41 train to London Marylebone is running approximately one minute late. I am sorry for the delay to your journey. Please listen for further announcements."

This was about 90 seconds before the train appeared.

A similar announcement then came on the opposite platform for a different train, with the delay being three minutes, rapidly increased to four minutes then reduced to one minute.

It might be a new toy, but passengers will rapidly get frustrated by announcements that are too frequent. Chiltern usually operate like clockwork, but are they being a bit OTT?

An interesting couple of days for Chiltern Railways

Last night, just after 18:30, there was a fatality in the Wembley Stadium area.

This brought total chaos to all Chiltern Railways' trains out of Marylebone and many people in Buckinghamshire were hours late in getting home.

This morning's train into London had an air of people just getting on with their commute. Not a bunch of happy campers.

Tonight saw a signal failure in the Neasden area- a few cancellations, delays and no doubt quite a few people again late.

To top that, I have just got off a train, where the driver appears to be trying to do a Lewis Hamilton. If you don't believe me, look at this screen grab from the online train tracker....

I hope no-one missed their train.

Not Living Along the Central Line

There are pros and cons about living in the Buckinghamshire countryside and having to commute into London every day.

I took this picture at seven thirty this morning from my study. Other than changing its size for uploading, the photograph is unaltered. I don't recall a similar view from my flat Along the Central Line.

Definitely one of the pros of living in the country.

One of the cons is that I am almost at the stage of giving up on the idea of getting on the Central Line (eastbound) at Oxford Circus in the morning rush hour. It is a total pain and I usually end up letting at least one train go.

When I lived out at the Western extremities of the line, I had a simple rule- if I couldn't get a seat, I didn't get on. In more years than I care to think about, you could count on your fingers the number of times I let a train go, so as to not break my little rule.

Sliced, diced or squashed?

Last night I managed to catch a fast train out of London Marylebone, first stop High Wycombe.

We were haring along between Beaconsfield and High Wycombe when the train suddenly decelerated rapidly and came to a stop. It was a strange place to stop - regular commuters on any line get a feeling for these things.

After about three minutes the train started to move again.

As we approached High Wycombe, the driver advised us over the intercom that he had felt it necessary to stop the train, because three boys had been stood between the rails on the opposite line throwing stones. Unbelievable!

Trains often travel a 75 miles per hour along that stretch of line. If you get hit by a train, the train will always win.

And to think, the school half-term holiday had only started a couple of hours before.

Abandoned Station

Well, it is now a couple of weeks since all the fun of the royal visit to my local station. All that new paint, fresh posters and general spit & polish.

Would it surprise you to know that every single poster relating to weekend engineering work is now out of date? No, I thought not.

Clearly every bit of budget that Chiltern Railways allocate to this corner of Buckinghamshire was spent in all the excitement of trying to impress.

Well that was a waste of time

This morning the Central Line was suspended between Ealing Broadway and North Acton, first thing.

In my little mind that says that the service oughtn't to be disrupted too much for the rest of the line, as trains can reverse as required at White City, North Acton or Northolt.

I knew about the suspension before I left home out in the sticks.

By the time I got to Marylebone, the earlier problems had been resolved, but the service was now suspended Westbound Only between Leytonstone and Liverpool Street. Now that is (in my view) more serious as not only is that stretch of line used by tens of thousands of people at around 9.00 am, but it is relatively slow to reverse trains at Liverpool Street. Big gaps in the service were therefore therefore likely to occur in the central area, particularly Westbound.

So... why the flipping heck did I even bother to catch a Bakerloo Line train to Oxford Circus with a view to changing onto the Central Line. It was chaos. I ended up emerging into the daylight, mole like, at Oxford Circus and continuing my journey on foot at street level.

My journey from Marylebone to work took me 35 minutes. Any other variation of public transport would have been quicker, as would walking the whole way. I knew there were problems, so why the flipping heck did I even try?

Pillock.

And the Reason for all the Housekeeping...

Most of the commuters who use my local station will have been totally unaware of the reason for all the tidying up....

Well yesterday afternoon there was a visit from The Duke of Gloucester who formally opened the station museum (which is actually the waiting room on the London bound platform).

There is an account of the visit in one of the local papers and, by all accounts, His Royal Highness seemed to be genuinely interested in the community work in and around the station. I have previously met the Duke (and separately the Duchess) so, whatever your views on the Royal Family, my personal view is that they work incredibly hard to support local communities around the UK.

The Station Museum waiting room at Saunderton does tend to be locked outside of the morning peak hours. If anyone wants to have a look at the information boards etc I should be able to make contact with someone to arrange to open up for you, obviously with advance notice. I hope I don't live to regret this offer! I may be contacted at centraluseratgooglemail[changetheobvious]dotcom.

Perhaps our rural stations could be improved across the network by somehow arranging regular royal visits.

Be warned, there is only one train (Chiltern Railways) an hour in each direction at the weekend and no public facilities. There are however loads of walks in the area and a reasonable pub just down the road.

Well, that's my life of incognito blogging well and truly blown!

Circle Line & Hammersmith & City Line both Suspended

This morning the Circle and Hammersmith & City Lines are each totally suspended. In addition there is no service on the District Line between High Street Kensington and Edgware Road.

This blog is not constantly updated, so please visit the tfl website for up to date information.

The Real Time Map shows the huge impact of these suspensions.

It is apparantly all down to 'Health & Safety'. The BBC website states the issue as being around the "Traction Brake Controller". I don't work on the railway, so may be wrong, but I think this is (or is connected to) the "Deadman's Handle".

It looks as though I may be on the Central Line today!

What's to be done about the Jubilee Line?

When I first moved to London, I used to commute in every day from Stanmore which is at the Northern end of the Jubilee Line. My Father would go all the way to the other end (Charing Cross) while I would get off at the penultimate stop, Green Park. The service was good.

Please note: The Jubilee Line does not go to Charing Cross anymore (unless you are Jason Bourne). The line has now been extended on from Green Park to Stratford via Canary Wharf (and lots of other interesting places).

I should point out that I am talking ancient history here. The Docklands Light Railway had not yet opened, London City Airport had not opened and not a brick or girder had been laid at Canary Wharf.

Now, I quite regularly have to go to Canary Wharf. If I am going from home, I will pick up the Jubilee Line from Baker Street. Quite frankly traveling from the West End to Canary Wharf sucks.

This morning I was at Baker Street by 7.25am and the Jubilee Line was packed. I've done the same journey loads of times this year and it is always heaving. Yuck.

The problem is, there are just too many people using the Jubilee Line at peak hours. It isn't going to get any better, because they keep on putting new buildings up in Docklands. More buildings = more commuters.

I don't know what the answer is, but it must get worse before it gets better.