Archive for the ‘News’ Category
A further brief has been issued in regards to the anticpated plan for Tuesdays services, it also contains an updated service plan for Tuesday.
Tonight 6th September 2010:
- Jubilee and Northern lines: will operate as normal until 22:00 with services winding down and stopping at 23:00
- Piccadilly line: will operate as normal until 21:30 with services winding down and stopping at 22:30
- Bakerloo: from 17:00, will only operate on the Queens Park to Elephant & Castle section, with service set to stop at 23:00
- Central: services will start to wind down from 17:00 and will stop at 23:00
- District: a greatly reduced level of service will run in the evening peak
- Hammersmith & City/Circle: services will start to wind down during the afternoon, becoming sparse after 17:00 with all service stopping at 23:00
- Victoria: normal service until 21:30; then only operating between Seven Sisters and Victoria.
Tomorrow 7th September 2010:
- Bakerloo: a reduced service will operate between Queens Park – Elephant & Castle ONLY
- Central: a greatly reduced service (train every 15 minutes) will operate at the western and eastern ends of the line. There will be NO SERVICE on the central section between Leytonstone and White City.
- District: a greatly reduced service between Barking – Wimbledon. No Ealing Broadway service.
- Hammersmith & City/Circle: a greatly reduced service, starting 30 minutes later than usual, prioritising serving stations between Hammersmith and Edgware Road but hoping to run services on the rest of the line as well.
- Jubilee: a reduced service operating over the whole line.
- Metropolitan: a very reduced service. Watford branch closed. Services running from Amersham/Uxbridge to Baker Street.
- Northern: a greatly reduced service operating over the whole line.
- Piccadilly: very limited services only between Heathrow to Hammersmith and between Arnos Grove and Cockfosters. NO SERVICE on central section.
- Victoria: a greatly reduced service between Seven Sisters & Victoria only.
- Waterloo & City: NO SERVICE
Following a further internal conference with Train Operators and London Underground a new revised service plan has been released. This information has been taken from an internal brief sent from First Capital Connect.
The full brief can be read on our strike update page.
This service plan is as follows.
London Underground currently anticipate being able to run the following levels of service:
- Northern line: 70% service
- Jubilee line: 50% service
- Bakerloo line: 50% service
- Metropolitan line: 40% service
- Hammersmith & City line: 30% service
- Circle line: 30% service
- District line: 25% service
- Victoria line: 25%
London Underground intends to prioritise running Tube trains to stations which have an interchange with First Capital Connect services.We are having a planning discussion with London Underground on Monday and will advise of any updates following this meeting.
Latest information will be posted on this blog and on this specially set up page as and when we get it.
Please note that as with all strike plans, this information could change at very short notice, and has already changed several times, or even a completely new plan could be implemented without further notice. Check the TfL website before you travel.
This information has now been in part superseded by new information located here.
An internal TfL document has been Emailed to us some moments ago in regards to a confrence involving London Train Operators and London Underground.
Latest information will be posted on this blog and on this specially set up page as and when we get it.
Please note that as with all strike plans, this information could change at very short notice, or even a completely new plan could be implemented without further notice. Check the TfL website before you travel.
It is understood that service frequencies will be as follows:
Monday 6th September
- Bakerloo Line
No services north of Queens Park from approx 22:00
Close down of service from 17:00 but 50% of normal service expected until 23:00. - Central Line
Close down of service from 17:00 with no predicted service. Around 2 or 3 trains after 23:00. - Circle / Hammersmith and District Lines
Good service until 20:00 and then close down with last trains at 23:00. - District Lines
Close down of service from 17:00 with less the 15% of normal service until 23:00 - Jubilee Line
Close down of service from 17:00 with no predicted service. Last trains at 23:00 - Metropolitan Line
Close down of service from 17:00 with no predicted service. Last trains at 22:00 - Northern Line
No information at present, predicted service not stated. - Piccadilly Line
Close down of service from 17:00 with no predicted service. Last trains at 22:00 - Victoria Line
Predicted service not stated, however services will not run along side National Rail services. - Waterloo and City Line
Last services 17:00. - DLR and London Overground
Normal service with no proposed alteration to timetables. Services which connect with a London Underground station maybe affected.
Tuesday 7th September
- Bakerloo Line
No services north of Queens Park all day.
25-50% of normal timetabled services between Queens Park and Elephant and Castle. - Central Line
No services between White City and Woodford (Central London).
25-50% of normal timetabled services between West Ruislip/Ealing Broadway and White City
25-50% of normal timetabled services between Woodford and Epping. - Circle / Hammersmith and District Lines
A reduced service of 15-25% will operate. - District Lines
A very limited service of 5-10% of normal timetabled services will operate. No service off-peak. - Jubilee Line
No service in Central London. - Metropolitan Line
No service between Aldgate and Baker Street.
No service between Uxbridge and Harrow on the Hill.
No service on Chesham branch.
A very limited service will operate on other portions of the route. - Northern Line
Service likely to be completely suspended or run at 5-10% of normal timetable at peak time. - Piccadilly Line
Awaiting information. - Victoria Line
Awaiting information. - Waterloo and City Line
No service all day. - DLR and London Overground
Normal service with no proposed alteration to timetables. Services which connect with a London Underground station maybe affected.
Latest information will be posted on this blog and on this specially set up page as and when we get it.
Strike goes ahead.
The strike by RMT and TSSA union members will go ahead on Monday after talks failed and broke down.
Latest information will be posted on this blog and on this specially set up page as and when we get it.
London Underground will run the best service they can. It is advised that you check before you travel via tfl.gov.uk.
Disruption is likely to most journeys, but London Underground will run as many trains and keep as many stations open as possible.
Volunteers will be on hand at key stations to give alternative travel options and otherwise assist passengers.
London buses operate around 700 routes with services being boosted with extra buses on key routes on strike days
Extra staff are being deployed to hubs to focus on customer service and information.
DLR and London Overground services are expected to operate as normal. Some stations where there is an interchange with London Underground may be affected
Tramlink services are expected to operate as normal
The 5,000 Barclays Cycle Hire bikes will be available to members of the scheme, although demand is likely to be high, and cycles harder to access during peak times
Londoners who own a bike are encouraged to cycle to work.
Guided rides will be provided on the morning of 7 September.
Cycle Parks at Finsbury Park and London Bridge will be making it easy for new users to turn up, register, and leave their bikes
River services, which have been recently improved, will be running as normal. Larger boats will be used where possible to boost capacity and an additional 500 capacity shuttle service is also being provided between Tower, Westminster and London Eye Piers. This will operate 06.30 – 10.00 and 16.00 – 20.00 on Tuesday 7 September
This service will be priced at £3 for a single, with all concessions – including those with Travelcards – charged at £1.50
National Rail will be operating as normal during the strike with some possible exceptions where stations are run by LUL.
Between 06:30 and 10:30 on Tuesday 7 September 2010 taxi drivers will be operating a marshalled taxi service for central London destinations at five major London rail stations – Waterloo, Liverpool St, King’s Cross, Charing Cross, and Marylebone. In addition, the fixed-fare taxi sharing schemes at Euston Station and Paddington Station are expected to operate as normal
Walking maps will be provided, in bus, rail, and Tube stations in Zone 1 and other key outer London stations, with volunteers helping people plan their routes around the city.
The Congestion Charge will remain in operation throughout the strike
The two biggest rail unions are informing their members to prepare for strike action starting Monday 6th September 2010.
London Underground had asked ACAS to enter all parties into constructive talks however TfL refused to back down over their safety cutting proposal and the talks broke down.
The strike which will affect all London Underground lines will commence for front line staff (including revenue, ticket office staff, platform staff and station staff) at 21:00 on 6th September and will last for 24 hours. Maintenance workers will be instructed to withdraw their labour from 17:00 on 6th September again for 24 hours.
Strikes are also planned for October 3, November 2 and November 28.
Please remember to check before you travel as to the current status of all the lines. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/livetravelnews/realtime/tube/default.html
Latest information will be posted on this blog and on this specially set up page as and when we get it.
We will update you as to any news we get.
Major overhead wire equipment problems are causing misery for rail passengers travelling on the East Coast Mainline today.
According to our internal industry sources and the internal train tracking and monitoring systems it seems that the problems have been occurring since the first FCC train of the morning from Peterborough at 03:44 this morning. This train lost 44 minutes between Peterborough and Huntingdon.
Subsequent trains were either cancelled from Peterborough, instead starting from Huntingdon or ran with major delays upwards of 2 hours late.
EastCoast Services are being affected and some trains are being terminated and started at Peterborough.
Grand Central trains both to Sunderland and Bradford Interchange; and First Hull Train services to Hull, and return to London Kings Cross are being affected with delays upwards of 90-120 minutes.
East Coast are advising passengers not to travel at all, or if you must travel to travel via an alternative route.
Alternative routing / Ticket Acceptance
Grand Central and Hull Trains customers may use East Coast trains.
Customers travelling between Peterborough and London may use CrossCountry trains to Cambridge, to connect with First Capital Connect trains to London Kings Cross. Alternatively customers may use CrossCountry or National Express East Anglia trains to Ely, to connect with National Express East Anglia trains to London Liverpool Street. Customers may also use CrossCountry trains to Leicester to connect with East Midlands Trains to London St Pancras.
Customers travelling between York / Leeds / Doncaster and London may use CrossCountry or First TransPennine Express trains to Sheffield, to connect with East Midlands Trains to London St Pancras.
Customers travelling between Newcastle and London may use Northern Rail trains to Carlisle, to connect with Virgin Trains to London Euston. Alternatively, customers may use CrossCountry trains to Sheffield to connect with East Midlands Trains to London St Pancras.
Customers travelling between Edinburgh / Glasgow and London may use Virgin Trains to London Euston.
East Coast and Hull Trains customers with Advance Tickets who choose to travel today should travel on the next available train, or travel via an alternative route. Customers who choose not to travel today may use their ticket on Wednesday 1 September, travelling on the same time train as their booking for today.
FCC statement:
** Line problem in the Peterborough area. – Train services between Hitchin and Peterborough are being disrupted due to overhead wire problems in the Peterborough area.
Engineers are working as fast as possible to restore services to normal. Short notice alterations, cancellations and delays of up to 30 minutes can be expected.
**CSL 2**. Trains on the move @ Holme Lodge CCTV south of Peterborough but with severe delays. Some FCC services will terminate at and start from Huntingdon. **
East Coast statement:
East Coast are advising customers not to travel to / from London Kings Cross today if possible. Customers who do need to travel should use an alternative route where available.
The following East Coast trains are cancelled:
- London Kings Cross to Leeds, departing from London Kings Cross at 10 minutes past each hour.
- Leeds to London Kings Cross, departing from Leeds at 40 minutes past each hour.
Grand Central statement:
Overhead wire problems are causing disruption between London Kings Cross and Doncaster / York.
Because of this, there are delays of up to 90 minutes between London Kings Cross and Doncaster / York. These delays are expected to last for the rest of the day.
First Hull Trains statement:
Due to overhead wire problems between Stevenage and Peterborough, some First Hull Trains services are being delayed this evening. A full schedule of services is in operation.#
Customers are advised to report to departure stations and obtain updated information from station staff.
Customers who choose not to travel today may use their First Hull Trains ticket for travel on Wednesday 1 September.
We apologise for any delay caused to your travel today.
======
An internal FCC and Network Rail document titled DMP 41 or Disruption Management Plan 41, states the following [some information has been edited for obvious reasons]:
All Lines Blocked: Trains Unable to Access Peterborough
What has happened?
Trains are unable to run between Huntingdon and Peterborough. Services to Peterborough from London are starting and terminating at Huntingdon. All other FCC GN route services are unaffected.
How will this affect our customers?
Customers travelling to or from Peterborough will experience delays to their journeys of 50 minutes or more and will need to take a rail replacement bus service between Peterborough and Huntingdon.
What stations does this affect?
Huntingdon: No northbound FCC services from this station. A rail replacement bus service is in operation between Huntingdon and Peterborough. Southbound services starting and terminating from here;
Peterborough: No FCC service from this station. A rail replacement bus is in operation between Huntingdon and Peterborough. National Express services also likely to be affected, and are likely to provide a rail replacement bus service from Peterborough to Stevenage; and
Stevenage: National Express may operate a rail replacement bus service between Peterborough to Stevenage if their services are also affected.
What do we tell our customers?
“Customers are advised that owing to Electrical Power Supply Problems between Huntingdon and Peterborough, FCC trains are unable to run between Peterborough and Huntingdon. Services between London and Peterborough will terminate and start at Huntingdon. A rail replacement bus service is in operation between Huntingdon and Peterborough. Peterborough customers should allow an additional 50 minutes to their journey time. All other FCC GN route services are operating normally. We are sorry for any problems this may cause you. Staff can provide further information and assistance.”
Train Plan
3 trains per hour to and from King’s Cross and Huntingdon; and
Taxi service provision for FCC drivers between Huntingdon and Peterborough.
What alternative routes are available to our customers?
[...] to advise East Midland Trains so that customers can use the Peterborough to Ely Line should they wish to but FCC will not direct customers to this route due to journey time (an additional 1.5 hours)
Rail Replacement Bus arrangements will be:
First Rail Replacement Priority.
20 buses between Huntingdon and Peterborough.
Does this affect other operators?
National Express East Coast: At FCC stations where NXEC trains call [...] will advise of the NXEC contingency plan and advice for customers. [Its called EastCoast now - Ed]
Ticket validity
Our tickets will be accepted by:
National Express East Coast
and East Midlands Trains.
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Rail unions RMT and TSSA have announced that their members will be instructed not to book on for shifts commencing between 17:00 6th September and 17:00 7th September 2010.
The strikes will involve two separate sets of workers, the maintenance and engineering staff will start their strikes at 17:00 for 24hours, with the other staff starting strike action at 21:00 through till 21:00 the next day.
Similar action also set to start at the same time on Sunday October 3; Tuesday November 2, and Sunday November 28.
The Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) union and Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) said they would take the action until plans to reduce ticket office opening hours were withdrawn.
Members of both unions have voted in favour of strike action over 800 proposed job cuts and reduced ticket office opening hours.
Most of the proposed job losses are among ticket office staff, although 50 management and administrative posts could also be axed.
RMT Leader Bob Crow said:
“These shocking figures underline why RMT has told LU that its plan to slash 800 Tube station staff is unacceptable. These cuts would leave stations and platforms unstaffed and would remove the very people who are trained to deal with emergencies.”
TSSA Leader Gerry Doherty said:
“These cuts are being driven by the Government as much as by Boris so our battle is with Downing Street as much as TfL. We want to serve notice on David Cameron that we are not going to sit idly by while he starts cutting jobs and services in London in the run up to the Olympic Games.”
Eurostar the company which provides services from London St Pancras to European destinations such as Paris, Brussels and Disneyland® Paris, have tried to impose extra duties of self dispatch on Guards which work trains out of Paris.
Train Managers belonging to rail union RMT have voted 24 to 1 in favour of taking action over the imposition of these extra duties.
The RMT rail union has instructed train managers to refuse to carry out train dispatch duties that the union argues are a cost cutting and unreasonable extension of already heavy responsibilities.
Bob Crow, RMT general secretary, said:
“Eurostar failed to guarantee that it will not impose self-dispatch, either at Paris or elsewhere on the Eurostar network.
Our members have delivered their decisive verdict and the union has instructed them not to carry out self-dispatch duties.
The company tried to hoodwink our members by claiming falsely that their French colleagues had already agreed to self-dispatch, and that is no way to try to conduct industrial relations.
This a purely cost-cutting exercise that would load additional safety-critical responsibilities on to train managers and we will not stand by and watch the levelling-down of standards.
We will work closely with our French and Belgian colleagues to defend the safety of Eurostar services and to ensure that the company does not impose working practices that have not been negotiated or agreed.”
Another rail union have also balloted their members over the same issue and have not yet released the results of this ballot.
A Eurostar spokesman said:
“We are aware of the vote in favour of action which falls short of a strike. Eurostar has robust contingency arrangements in place and currently we are confident that there will be no disruption to our services or our customers.
This new process is commonly used in France and is a normal part of the safety duty for our French team. Ahead of the planned action we will continue to seek to reach an agreement with the RMT.
Disabled mother, Diane Holyoake, was told by First Capital Connect staff she could not board the train with her scooter.
Diane was meant to catch a First Capital Connect train from East Croydon to London Bridge on her way to Norfolk for her summer holiday.
However when her son rang FCC to order a ramp for his mother so she could wheel her scooter on to the train and have some assistance he was told in no uncertain terms she would not be able to board the train without a permit.
First Capital Connect demanded that Diane needed a permit that included a passport photo of her and one of her scooter, including details of its size, weight, colour and technical details.
Mrs Holyoake said:
“It’s discrimination, it’s ridiculous and it makes you feel self-conscious, They are actually going to forbid people on scooters from getting on the train unless they have a pass. What if you forget it? What if you don’t know you need one? The train company said if I didn’t show one I’d have to get off at the next stop. I’d be booted off the train.”
Because Mrs Holyoake did not have the required FCC permit, she had to catch a later train with another train operator who do not have such a draconian and discriminatory policy to reach her intended holiday destination.
Rodney said:
“My mum will have to carry this pass about all the time, just in case she needs to use a First Capital Connect train, It’s not even properly advertised. The only reason we found out was because I asked about a ramp.”
PFAS has asked FCC to comment, but to be honest we doubt we will get an official comment from their External Communications Manager, Gareth Beazant.
Comments Closed
The 17:31 (headcode 2T27) Sudbury to Marks Tey service has been derailed. The train derailed after colliding with a sewage tanker on a user-worked level crossing at Sewage Works Lane between Sudbury and Bures.
We have been advised that 21 people have been injured in this incident, 1 seriously who is now in intensive care. The driver of the train (Class 156, 2-car SuperSprinter) is suspected to have suffered a fractured vertebrae, and is now being treated at Colchester General Hospital.
Our thoughts are with the family of those injured and involved with this incident.
The crossing is a user-worked crossing with gates and telephone. Network Rail have stated that the signaller did not receive a phone call from the user of the crossing. The driver (38) is now under arrest on suspicion of Dangerous Driving.
British Transport Police are on the scene and Suffolk Police have described it as a “major incident”. Fire crews are also at the scene.
National Express East Anglia have advised that buses will replace trains between Marks Tey and Sudbury and journey times are expected to be extended up to 30 minutes.
British Transport Police Inspector Ian Smart based at Liverpool Street said: “We have got up to 20 casualties sitting in the fields next to the railway track awaiting treatment for injuries which I would described as the walking wounded.”
“There is a fleet of ambulances coming in from across the region to attend to the victims. Two casualties received serious injuries. One was airlifted to Colchester Hospital and the second serious casualty is now at Colchester Hospital.”
“The tanker carrying the sewage appeared to have been split in two. The front carriage has been derailed and is hanging over the edge of a small bridge.”
He added: “This train will not be moving anywhere for at least two days while investigations into the collision take place.”
It is not known at this time if the Rail Accident Branch is on the scene.
Please check back for further updates as we receive them.
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