Saturday 29th November 2025
It’s time for another round up of month end miscellany including items I’ve spotted during November’s travels but not featured over the last month’s blogging.
The Bluebell Ice Queen
And first up is a seasonal shout out to the Bluebell Railway which I visited with family last weekend to sample its annual pre-Christmas Steamlights event featuring a steam train decorated with lights taking passengers on a return trip from Sheffield Park to Horsted Keynes and enjoy a number of track side light displays.
Life’s not easy for heritage railways these days so festive events such as this help bring in the cash at an otherwise barren time of year and the Bluebell Railway is just one of many taking advantage of the potential offered by festivities, lights and Santa.
It’s not cheap though with prices starting at around £35 for an adult or child over three years old occupying a seat increasing to £38.50 closer to Christmas, but it was good to see forward dates next month are mostly sold out.
They put on a good show for the money and I was amazed how they’d managed to get remote sections of countryside alongside the track lit up in different themes and all narrated by the Ice Queen over the PA on the train who also put in an appearance at Sheffield Park to countdown switching on the lights on the outside of the train itself. Well done to the Bluebell and all heritage railway staff and volunteers.
Four more thoughts from OXF
Four things I didn’t include in the recent blog about Oxford’s Temporary Congestion Charge include this minibus providing a facility aimed at those with accessibility needs, but not exclusively so, who find the long walk from bus stops on Botley Road through the closed section under the railway bridge to reach the city centre a challenge.
The very limited service is being paid for by Network Rail with three Mondays to Saturdays return journeys (10:00, 12:00 and 15:00) and one on Sundays picking up from three bus stops on the western stretch of Botley Road then scooting around the A34 Western By-pass and into the city centre along Woodstock Road to the Westgate Centre.
I couldn’t see any information about the service in bus stop panels so not sure how those that don’t know about it can find out it runs.
Meanwhile over at the very centrally located car park in Worcester Street those who choose to park there can face charges as high as £15.60 for up to four hours parking at weekends or even as high as £41.60 for over eight hours.
No wonder there weren’t many takers when I passed through on a Saturday mid morning.
Thirdly a shout out to Oxford Bus for not only having a fairly centrally located Travel Shop…
… but also a fine display of timetables and printed information including booklets for sister company Thames Travel. I just wish staff at those bus companies who reckon there’s no call for printed information would get out more.
And finally for those who think buses and pedestrianised city centres can’t mix (eg in London’s Oxford Street)….
… please take a look at Queen Street by the Westgate Centre in Oxford which proves they can happily co-exist without buses having to be banished to far away streets.
Why are Cross Country still running two-coach trains on its busiest corridor?
There were chaotic scenes at Birmingham New Street station yesterday following a day of disruption with a number of incidents impacting the wider regional network: signal problems between Rugby and Coventry, cross city train services disrupted, a deer on to the railway somewhere else and a person being hit by a train. But as staff were dealing with those matters, passengers were faced with the ridiculous spectacle of three and even two coach trains on the busy Birmingham to Derby corridor from Cross Country trains. Every train from around 15:00 and well into the evening was full and standing leaving passengers behind. Frustratingly, the platform for every train was switched at the last minute too.
It’s not as though Cross Country’s capacity problems have not been known about for ….. literally years. The DfT has been in charge, calling all the shots on investment in new rolling stock throughout this period so it does make for cynicism about the Great British Railways “coming soon” slogan resolving such matters.
To add to the melee, the RMT have called its members working for Cross Country out on strike each Saturday next month.
A Way Out notice at LBG
I’m sure the member of staff who annotated this directional sign at the top of the Jubilee line escalators at London Bridge had good intentions, but it just looks a bit of a mess. Still, Great British Railways is coming soon which will sort out things like different brand names for railway companies, which will be a pity.
Still no takers at CLJ
I highlighted the crazy decision to install these retail units on the busy footbridge at Clapham Junction back in January’s round up. So busy is the footbridge, it’s suggested passengers avoid it at peak times.
Interestingly, having all been completed since April, over six months later they’re still all unoccupied.
In number order
I meant to mention in the blog about Bury St Edmunds that when seeing Coach Services bus arrive I just wanted to change the vinyl round so the orange panel was on the left of the red panel and therefore in numerical order. But my frustration at seeing that soon dissipated when I spotted this fantastic network map the company has produced and displays in the bus station. Well done guys.
Stowmarket’s new footbridge
After my ride on bus route DB1 from Bury St Edmunds I caught a train back from Stowmarket and was interested to see the work going on to install a new footbridge with lifts at the station.
You get an idea from the extensive work why infrastructure like this costs so much – £5.5 million in this case. The project also includes a temporary footbridge while the construction takes place.
Graffiti special
I hesitate to include photographs of graffiti to not want to give any satisfaction to the criminals who perpetuate this moronic activity but once again the toilet cubicles on every Thameslink train have been covered making for a very unpleasant and threatening atmosphere.
Worryingly, the graffiti has spread into some train interiors too.
For a short while Thameslink managers seemed to get on top of things but now it’s worse than ever. This criminal activity doesn’t just happen in minutes. It must take some time to vandalise the five cubicles in a 12 coach train as well as inside the train interior itself. I thought trains were all kept in CCTV covered secure sidings these days so why haven’t the management team and British Transport Police been able to catch the perpetrators? It really needs a higher priority.
As does the epidemic on Central line Underground trains.
It really is out of control and makes for a very unpleasant journey when complete carriages are covered in the stuff.
Again, such acts must take time and planning to do and I can’t understand why TfL, Underground and BTP staff don’t deal with it.
And it’s not just graffiti.
The seats are frankly a disgrace. This needs sorting.
Wonky Greenford
Not only is Greenford Underground station famous for its incline lift to the platforms it also has a rather unusual Roundel station sign as well as a reference to British Rail including misleading information that GWR’s Greenford branch line train continues to Paddington. At least it just needs a ‘Great’ to be added once “coming soon” is here.
May be reserved later
On a recent journey on LNER I noticed there were no green coloured ‘available’ seat reservation lights when boarding the train at Bradford Forster Square. The lights were either red or orange, the latter indicating you might get turfed out of your seat later in the journey. I know LNER don’t like passengers like me who just want to turn up and get on a train, but during the journey to King’s Cross I noticed in the carriage I was in many of the red (reserved) seats remained empty let alone the orange ones none of which changed colour. It’s such an unfriendly and unwelcoming policy which goes hand-in-hand with its unfriendly and unwelcoming fares and ticketing policy. Many of those orange lights could have easily been displayed as a welcoming green.
Incidentally, it’s noteworthy this week’s fares freeze announcement for March 2026 doesn’t apply to LNER now the company has done away with all its regulated off-peak fares in the name of simplification. Passengers only have the choice of unregulated sky high Anytime fares or journey specific fares. Simplification eh? Careful what you wish for.
Bond Street’s wonky adverts
There’s a gradual slope at the top of the Jubilee line escalator at Bond Street Underground station but the poster cases for adverts needlessly exaggerate this by how they’ve been positioned. Such an arrangement doesn’t apply on the escalator itself which is even steeper, so why on this stretch of walkway are they at a ridiculous angle? It just looks stupid.
Escalator leads the wrong way at Leeds
It’s another example of one escalator out of action (and looking as though it’ll be for a long time too) yet Network Rail run Leeds station has chosen to keep the one working escalator for passengers going down meaning everyone has either to struggle up the long flight of stairs to access platforms 9-16 or queue for the lift. Why not switch the working escalator to up only? Just like happens to all the other platforms where you walk down the stairs and take the escalator up.
I also noticed the most up to date Train Performance poster was dated July with some rather horrendous reliability for the train companies, particularly Cross County and TransPennine Express. I wonder why it takes so long to update such information.
More from Runcorn
It’s quite some time since the Runcorn Station Quarter project seemed to be completed but I noticed the smart bus shelter close to the station has already lost all its glass panels although at least the roof was still in place.
Also still in place in the High Street bus station is this wonderful machine once seen as the future of ticketing.
And I noticed the Council has found a way of dealing with the graffiti blighted signs at the bus stops on the Busway telling you where you are – just remove everything including the name of the bus stop.
Receipts left behind
I noticed these two ticket machines at Paddington both had the receipts from previous transactions in the slot and watching for some time it was obvious there’s too long a delay between tickets being dispensed and then the receipt plopping down, as passenger after passenger left their’s behind – having scooped up the one left by the previous passenger.
KGX toilet lights
This month’s toilet news is back at King’s Cross where the green lights would indicate six of the eight cubicles were free. Yet there was a queue of three people waiting and it became obvious the lights aren’t properly coordinated with the locks making the system useless. Still, at least LNER doesn’t oversee this otherwise they’d be orange indicating the cubicle might be reserved later (while you’re in it).
Goodbye to route 15
Readers may recall my attempt at travelling on one of Britain’s most expensive tendered bus routes back in July. It’s Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority’s £180 per passenger journey (£360 per passenger) subsidised once-a-week route 15 operated by A2B Travel between Hastingfield and Royston. News comes this week the Mayor run Authority has finally agreed to end the subsidy with the route (along with another costly route – the 8A between March and Milton Park & Ride) finishing as soon as the 112 days’ contractual notice has been given. But the good news is Combined Authority officers “told the board the loss of the 15 service would be mitigated through the expansion of the Tiger On Demand service in South Cambridgeshire. They said an agreement had been reached with South Cambridgeshire District Council to use money provided by developers to fund the expansion of this service” according to the BBC News report. So that’s all good then.
First Kernow RIP
The First Bus announcement last week it’s given notice the company will be pulling out of Cornwall next February won’t have come as a surprise to blog readers who may recall my blog back in October predicting exactly that.
London Transport Museum ignores those with a serious interest
I know the LT Museum must face financial challenges occupying prime commercial space in Covent Garden as it does, and its range of branded goods obviously brings in a valuable source of income but please, please please don’t ignore those of us with a serious interest in transport. I’d have thought one of the prime aims of a museum was to create interest for serious study. So why oh why has the management banned Mike Harris’s bus map from being on display at the cash tills on the ground floor? Presumably so it can give even more space to the branded tat?
The downside to this is it impacts Mike’s sales and has now put the printed map’s future in serious doubt as explained by Mike in a recent post on his Facebook page. A lot of sales came from impulse purchases through this product placement which have now been lost.
Copies are still displayed on the first floor which previously was a very useful facility to browse and buy from an extensive range of books. Not any more. The number of books has reduced considerably making for a very poor experience for the serious transport student.
Shame on you LT Museum.
But a shout out to Mike Harris who does a fantastic job with his range of maps and to highlight he’s offering a 10% Black Friday discount deal on all online purchases including all his excellent historical maps throughout this weekend and Monday. Use the promotional code BLACK25 at the checkout and please support Mike.
That’s all for this month. Watch out for the BusAndTrainUser Annual Review of the Year, the BusAndTrainUser Quiz of the Year and the all important announcement of the much coveted BusAndTrainUser Awards 2025 all “coming soon”.
Roger French
Blogging timetable: 06:00 TThS
BusAndTrainUser 
To add to the withdrawal of FirstBus from Cornwall following the steady encroachment by GoAhead, news comes of Carousel registering a new Route 458 from Slough to Uxbridge in January 2026.
This adds to the assault by Thames Valley on the FirstBus Maidenhead to Heathrow corridor recently.
Might this be the end of First in Berkshire? I reckon that Route 8 to Heathrow via Staines is the only route remaining that First have (mainly) to themselves now.
More to come of interest here in 2026 !!
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Does anyone understand how the Go Ahead business model works?
If you search for the BidCo on Comapnies House the takeover in 2023 and susequent expansion has been funded by expensive debt, over 8% pa (consdiering a person’s mortgage is around 4%) and this debt is over 80% of total equity & debt. Like buying your house with not much deposit.
Next year they wil lose their ‘free money’ from management charges for ‘running’ train companies and have been very agressive in courting BSIP money which won’t last forever.
Places like Cornwall and Carousel don’t seem like highly profitable opportunities.
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This link takes you to the latest (but soon to be superseded) Slough bus map – https://www.slough.gov.uk/downloads/file/5615/slough-windsor-bus-routes-december-2025
As you say there are few corridors on which First is the sole operator – probably only Britwell and Burnham to the town centre – although the “competition” is often limited in nature. Thames Valley’s 704 only runs hourly along the Bath Road from the west (and not at all on Sundays) compared to First’s far more frequent offering on the A4. The 8 really only has the road to itself between Windsor and Englefield Green. Thames Valley, Reading Buses and Carousel fight for custom between Slough and Windsor, White Bus 441 covers the Englefield to Staines stretch and Staines to Heathrow T5 is served by Carlone’s excellent X442 along with the 442 for those who prefer a “scenic” trip via Stanwell and the Moor!
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I think the First Slough depot also operates the Rail Air Link from Reading to Heathrow. Wouldn’t surprise me if that was paying a big chunk of the bills.
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First still have the Railair RA1 route from Reading to Heathrow (as well as having dramatically improved the Railair RA2 route from Guildford and Woking). But I guess Reading Buses would leap in immediately to replace the RA1 if First decided to abandon it.
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Pedestrians and Buses never mix well because the pedestrians are too distracted or not concentrating on the environment around them. When I used to drive through Eastbourne past the Beacon there would often be near misses due to these factors. I personally don’t think these risks are worth the fancy pavement. Why should a driver have to live with giving possible life changing injuries to someone. It happened recently in Brighton, again, near St Peters Church with someone stepping out on their phone and hit by a bus. And that’s a normal road! Pedestrianised streets with traffic should at the very least have a clear indications of where vehicles will move.
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There is a good youtube video (I think on the Not Just Bikes channel) pointing out that trams and pedestrians mix well – because it is blindingly obvious where the trams will run (on the rails). Perhaps in the case of buses in pedestrian areas a painted track would help.
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Most trams I have seen street running in Europe are generous with use of their audible warnings. These are usually bells but other noises are available (as in Manchester). The horns normally fitted on buses are effectively for emergency use only and are loud and scary. Those habitually mingling with pedestrians also need a gentler friendlier alternative which drivers should not be shy about using.
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Electric buses in Europe tend to use a soft bell sound as an audible warning as demonstrated at 0.44 in video below. I much prefer this than the silly continuous droning sound favoured by TfL that someone had to invent from scratch.
Peter Brown
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LNER, the state-run train operator that services London King’s Cross, has seen its losses and taxpayer subsidies doubled despite an increase in passengers.
New figures from the Office of Rail and Road show LNER recorded an £88million operating deficit in 2024-2025, and received £93million in net taxpayer subsidies.
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It took me a while to find the commentary on this in the LNER accounts at Companies House, but the reasons they cite are pay rises, increased extenral costs, electricity costs and a reduction in performance incentive payments from Network Rail (I believe this refers to Schedule 8 payments).
The big identifable swings in Note 3 of the accounts are staff costs (up £21m), finance costs (up £13m), the reduction in performance incentive payments from NR (down £46m) and energy costs (up £18m). There is also a massive £44m increase in “Other external charges” which I can’t see an explanation of, but the only major cost line not itemised is leasing costs for the rolling stock.
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If National Rail are paying less, then that is more money in National Rail – and if both state owned its a “books only” movement netted to nil in any government consolidated account ?
JBC Prestatyn
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The lease costs for the LNER Azuma trains were a national embarrassment when first revealed. The whole thing was a DfT shambles as they specified the trains and organised the financing. Virgin East Coast was the victim at the time and threw the towel in not long after.
But that doesn’t excuse LNER’s habit of running trains with acres of empty seats, all due to worship of their weird ticket pricing model. I know that “deeply inefficient” BR would have got bums onto those seats and encouraged people to use the trains that they were paying for through their taxes.
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I have stopped using LNER as their new pricing policy equates to about 50% more than car fuel costs. Once you add extra passengers, the train becomes uncompetitive. Previously advance ticketing could be attractive and even unplanned journeys could be made off peak at reasonable price. Add in eye watering parking charges at their stations and it feels as though LNER have given up on the leisure market along most of the route.
Gareth Cheeseman
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More Rail Nonsense
Soon-to-be-axed 7am Manchester-London train will still run – but without passengers
What will heap on frustration for passengers, as well as the operator, is that the exact same train service will continue to run between the stations from 7am each weekday: crewed, fast and empty.
The train and staff still need to travel from Manchester as they are rostered to operate subsequent services out of Euston
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That appears to result from a ruling from the Office of Rail and Road, to make way for an Open Access operator to run services on the West Coast Main Line: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/nov/29/avanti-axed-7am-manchester-london-train-will-run-without-passengers
I do struggle to see the logic that the train can still run, but is not allowed to carry passengers.
Malc M
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The decline in standards at TfL is becoming very obvious now as assets start to seriously decline. Leaving aside the graffiti, where not just TfL but many London councils have been caught flat footed, station fabric, publicity and the interior condition of trains are all getting noticably worse.
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Central line apart the cleanliness of tube trains has definitely taken a turn for the better on the past couple of months after the dark days of the summer, and the graffiti outburst on the Bakerloo line is clearly being dealt with.
Steve
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“Bradford Foregate Street” ???
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Doh! I must have imagined I was in Worcester. Now corrected. Thanks.
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Quite impressive to confuse Bradford with Worcester!
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A very interesting selection. Interesting to note that even though LNER continues to increase fares the deficit on the line has doubled year on year, whereas West Coast has doubled the surplus returned to the Treasury.
Go Ahead clearly think they are on a roll against First who look like they could roll over in Slough, but it seems Reading Buses are made of sterner stuff. I bet all three are losing money at present so definitely watch that space.
And numerous examples of the continuing lack of management on the Railway network
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How New York dealt with graffiti, courtesy of AI on my phone.
John Nicholas
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The Central line trains are indeed a disgrace not just plagued by graffiti but scraffiti on the windows too and more recently acid etching.This has now spread to other lines too and even buses are suffering. At least the blitz on the Bakerloo line has had some effect. TfL don’t take this seriously and the problems are rarely mentioned in their reports. After all it’s not active travel . The BTP are under resourced so not much chance of catching anyone. To their credit London Assembly Members have raised the issue. If the Mayor travelled on the tube rather than in his diesel limousine he would see for himself the state of the capital’s declining tube network. TfL have the resources. They just choose to spend them on campaigns and directors bonuses. Hardly a transport of delight.
Martin W
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I am sure Sadiq Khan would be happy to travel around incognito on London’s buses and trains. However he has been advised by the Security Services of real and credible threats to his life from extremists if he does so. There are people who believe that being Muslim whilst Mayor of a major Western City is sufficient justification for an assassination attempt.
Julian Walker
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I wonder if Sadiq’s limo was covered in graffiti (not that I am advocating it in the slightest), how long would it be before it was removed?
MotCO
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Surely Khan knows a terror threat is just part of living in a big city? After all, he’s said it himself! The real question is why he is so unpopular compared to his predecessors.
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He just won a convincing reflection after an election campaign noteworthy for its spectacular racism and dishonesty by the main opposition candidate. Your question shouldn’t be why is he unpopular, but why in two of the last three Mayoral campaigns have the Tories resorted to race baiting and pandering to the wilder elements of the social media fringe, much of which appears to be based overseas. Given the overt hostility of the Tory election manifesto to public transport I’d expect better on here.
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In a word , ULEZ. something that may have noble aims but probably didnt need to be done, new vans and cars are compliant anyway and the number of older vehicles would pass out of use , the big polluters – mainly van conversion caravans live in Zone 6 anyway and only use irregulary a few hundred yards of London roads before off to the Kent villages or south coast. I doubt the moaners of Khan really care about levels of bus service provision or tube services as such and love instead to gripe about woke overground line names . Cutbacks to policing of course wont win friends either
JBC Prestatyn
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He also received death threats from Islamists for voting for gay marriage when he was an MP, so coming from multiple sources.
Peter G
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Where is the proactivity from TfL? We hear about 2
1000s of tags being removed, what about the arrests? How many covert police operations are there? BTP observing car interiors from the rear and middle cabs on trains etc. OK – maybe do not disclose tactics, but at least announce the successes. Managed decline under Khan’snplaceman Lord.
Kim
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The notice on the footbridge at Clapham Junction is a relic from Covid. Talking of which SWR clearly think that no one is travelling because they’re still running what is essentially a Covid tinetable, which must suppressing demand.
Steve
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SWR don’t have any enhancements in the December timetable and cancellations continue on a daily basis. Once the 455s are gone it will probably get worse until enough drivers are trained on the Arterios. All nationalisation has achieved so far is cost cutting. Where are the benefits for the passenger ?
Martin W
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Its a bit rough to blame recent nationalisation on SWR’s poor performance. It was there well before the change of ownership, and has a lot to do with Network Rail failings. As for the Arterios, they are entirely the creation of First Group, and there is now real progress in their introduction.
As a regular user of SWR I have seen the really quite dramatic change of pattern of use since Covid. In spite of campaigns against Working From Home, Friday commuting has just about vanished. Meanwhile Saturday demand is astonishingly high.
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South Western was well ahead of the curve, having taught a large proportion of its commuters that they could work at home just fine during the Waterloo Platform 1-6 upgrade back in 2017!
I agree with you, the difference between Fridays (and too a lesser extent Mondays) and mid-week is huge. Financially this must be dire, since the same service has to be offered across. the week.
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Roger,Another enjoyable month’s round-up.I have been a Friend of the LT Museum for a number of years with frequent visits to the shop for books. I now rarely go as like you I now find the available selection very poor. I feel that the shop is now very much aimed at youngsters and not the serious enthusiast. Also, probably more profit in the tat than in books.On escalator direction being reversed, another culprit is the entrance/exit to Liverpool Street to/from Bishopsgate. When the up escalator is out of use the down is not reversed. there is a lift alternative but that is not by the escalators and involves a walk back across about half of the concourse.Yours,Barry Coppock
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Regarding the LT Museum I noticed the decline in availability of both books & models some time ago whilst browsing on-line. It’s a shame the old Ian Allan bookshop in Lower Marsh St, Waterloo closed as this was an excellent place to spend some time while waiting for the train home.
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Apart from the London “Tourist” shops which sell “models” of London related things made rather too cheap in China by the bulk there are a few places still trading around the LPTB area. Falconwood Books had just about one of every bus or train title in stock – or could order it in – the last time I looked There are also a regular Saturday transport fairs at Enfield , Theydon Bois and Epsom through the year plus the odd Garage open days where traders sell (along with Brooklands and LT Depot open days)
There should be a few new models and a selection of older ones at the Potters Bar (Sunday) Bromley (Sunday) and Theydon Bois (one this coming Thursday) Toyfairs ukmodelshops website holds details for most. There is expected to be a sell out of Books on bus and rail subjects at Theydon Bois as one trader is retiring.
JBC Prestayn
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…there are a few places still trading around the LPTB area.
I think you mean the TfL area. The LPTB was superseded by the LTE on 1st January 1948….
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The most overcrowded train experiences of my life were when London Underground was 100% strike bound, and I needed to travel from Richmond to Highbury & Islington. The single unit Class 313 three car train, on the North London Line, struggled with its enormous load. A “one off” was the Gala Day when the direct line between Tonbridge and Hastings was electrified. The 4-CEP trains that day needed to do two stops at each station as gangway use was impossible due to train loadings. I understand that when stations ran out of the Gala tickets, travel was free from around mid-afternoon. It took me a full five minutes to leave Hastings Station. As to down only escalators: two spring to mind in retail units, both in Kingston upon Thames: Waitrose (under John Lewis) and TG Jones (formerly WH Smith)!
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Cross-Country at Birmingham same shambles last Saturday. Half the trains on Birmingham-Cardiff cancelled as well, and not a dispute day, to my knowledge. Plus single-unit Voyagers on the Birmingham-Bristol corridor. Chronic dwell times at stations because they’re so full. And this is the operator that’s had its no-bigger-trains/no-new-routes vanilla franchise extended at least twice. I assume there’s absolutely no incentive now to improve matters.
Sholto Thomas, Gloucester
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TfL are proposing significant changes to key bus routes in North London
Route 259 proposed restructure
Current Route: Operates between Edmonton Green and King’s Cross.
Proposed Route: Re-structured to run between Ponders End and Holloway, Nag’s Head.
Route 279 proposed restructure
Current Route: Operates between Waltham Cross and Manor House Station.
Proposed Route: Re-structured to run between Waltham Cross and Stamford Hill.
Route 349 proposed withdrawal
Current Route: Operates between Ponders End and Stamford Hill.
Proposal: Withdraw the route entirely.
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X1 (Boxing
Day Only)
Southend Travel
Centre – Lakeside Bus
Station
Ensignbus
Boxing Day only service. Revised
timetable. Hourly service between
0745-1745 from Southend.
26/12/25
X2 (Boxing
Day Only)
Southend Travel
Centre –
Upminster Station
Ensignbus
Boxing Day only service. Revised
timetable including a 30 minute
frequency between Upminster and
Basildon. One bus per hour continues
beyond Basildon to Southend. One bus
per hour terminates at Basildon but with
most journeys connecting with X1
departures.
26/12/2
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This round up nicely illustrates a country in decline.
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If Carousel are planning a Slough/Uxbridge service perhaps TV should consider extending their 53 from Wexham Park Hospital (Slough) to Uxbridge.
New links to the hospital plus a direct service to the Underground for Maidenhead, Burnham and Britwell residents and only 1 bus required to maintain an hourly service over the extended route!
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Eagerly awaiting the on time arrival of all those end of year goodies “coming soon” from “the Great British BusAndTrainUser”…
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Your comment about LNER fares being effectively excluded from the freeze is interesting, and something that hadn’t occurred to me. I wonder if anyone has told the Labour MPs along the East Coast Mainline who have been boasting about a fare freeze for local rail users…?
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Well the PEAK regulated fare is frozen
Which might help some
JBC Prestatyn
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Ask Question of an MP or In Parliament
Can the Minister confirm no rail fare from March 2026 will be higher than it was in the corresponding month in 2025 ?
JBC Prestatyn
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It’s one of the most egregious points about the LNER fares scam – there is absolutely no transparency or accountability over their prices, no way of knowing what the average fare paid for a journey is or how it is changing over time. It’s disgusting that a nationalised operator could be allowed to treat the public with such contempt 😡
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The Runcorn station quarter improvements are a huge missed opportunity creating what is essentially a large paved area with a few benches , and even the roadway to the station entrance is coned off , seemingly permanently.
There is a lovely covered bike rack , but no shelter whatsoever for those waiting for a taxi . The open space could surely have been for better purposes ?
There are still hardly any buses serving the station ( and they are Arriva with their appalling website ) and the car park is £12.50 weekdays all day with no afternoon or evening reductions which hardly encourages use of the train .
Personally if the wife and I fancy doing some shopping in Liverpool One , or a night out in Liverpool, we take the car as so much cheaper given the ridiculous parking charges (and the car park’s not full with one large car park been placed out of use for years)
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When isn’t there chaos at New Street (Birmingham)? I cannot actually remember the last time I used it without problems. Apart from constant platform alterations, now made ever more difficult to access/change after the station was “zoned”, the over-crowding on most regional journeys would certainly put off all but the dedicated. These days, certainly for me, the simplest solution when making journeys to London is to walk the five minutes to Moor Street. Bliss compared with “Grand Central” and what lies underneath.
And yes, when an escalator is out of action, why oh why is the other not switched to “up”? I encountered exactly the same just last week.
Regarding an earlier comment about the Rail-Air Reading-Heathrow service, operationally it is run by Slough, but the vehicles garaged in Reading. I doubt if First may be tempted to cut and run with yet another assault by Go-Ahead just yet, as I imagine the heavy subsidies Heathrow Airport pay to run most of their Slough garage services would be too good to lose.
TfL certainly seems to be “losing its way” to put it politely. “Shoddy” is possibly the best description. Certain sections of the population travel freely about the system, simply crashing through Railway ticket barriers, walking past Bus Drivers (the Youth ZIP card system appears to be purely optional now), and until TfL enforce proper revenue protection once more, the situation will deteriorate further. Small wonder graffiti is in the ascendancy.
Terence Uden
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In Yeovil town centre a 30mph speed limit still applies along the one way roads. The road/pavement kerb is only 50mm high except for ‘dropped kerbs’. A large area is signposted as a pedestrian/cycle zone, buses, deliveries, taxi’s and disabled drivers are permitted, delivery vehices however have to park on the pavement to stay clear of the road as the roads were narrowed as part of the regeneration scheme.
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I remember the late Professor Hibbs telling us it was easier to manage decline. It seems now that decline is just left to get on with it without any management at all!
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Here in Devon, Go Ahead are also expanding. After losing a few routes a while ago, their Dartline subsidiary are in January gaining a number of routes from Stagecoach.
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You can not change the direction of the escalators at Leeds, they are of the old design which only allows for 2 way running for no more than one cycle of the escalator steps, newer models can however allow for 2 way running.
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Many thanks for this explanatory information.
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Hi Roger
A very fair round up as always, and thank you for the plug. I’ve just seen the ‘consultation’ about carving up yet more long-standing routes – the 19 and 39 – so I am depressed even more. It seems that the planners at TfL are hell bent on destroying all the traditional established routes, and the links they provide. If the 19 is so unreliable, then give it more stand or running time. Why would the new 10 run any better? I do get so angry!
All the very best
Mike
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I’m assuming that the Rail/Air link from Reading to Heathrow is tied to the GWR franchise.
So that’s why it’s always been run by First, but when it’s nationalised presumably it will go out to open tender? I’m sure First have made many millions out of this over the years and that needs to end.
This also applies to Rail Replacement in general, each rail franchise could give what work they wanted to their bus operator division. This will presumably change which will be a further knock in profit to three of the big bus operators who have/had rail franchises?
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There were proposals to provide a direct rail link to Heathrow from the West Country and South Wales
You can almost wave to Heathrow on the way into Paddington
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A proposed rail connection between Reading and Heathrow Airport could help end “ridiculous” long-winded journeys for passengers travelling from the South West and Wales, according to Slough MP Tan Dhesi.
The scheme, which would include a stop in Slough, was put on hold indefinitely in 2020. Heathrow unveiled its £49 billion expansion and modernisation plans over the summer, with a potential third runway backed by the government.
The cost would be modest but the benefit high
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Western Rail Approach to Heathrow – Wikipedia
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I don’t think it ever had anything to do with First winning GWR as the Reading RailAir predates railway privatisation and has always been run by the predecessors of First Berkshire – it may even date back as far as the original Thames Valley (Wikipedia suggests 1967 for start date) and it definitely predated bus privatisation. I think it is basically a commercial operation but the established relationship with through rail ticketing probably makes it a difficult flow to break into.
Dwarfer
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You’re absolutely right Dwarfer. The original Reading to Heathrow coach service was introduced in 1967 by The Thames Valley Traction Co.Ltd using if I recall correctly, Bedford VAM/Duple coaches in a dedicated maroon livery.
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Should TfL start fitting platform gates at undergrounded stations as standard
It seems to be silly that TfL will not be fitting platform gates to the stations used by the new Piccadilly line or at least fit them at the busiest stations
Quite why TfL use over engineered full height gates is strange half height would be lower cost and easier to fit
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What would be the justification for the expense of platform gates? LuL paints its yellow “stand behind” lines at a distance that would give all national rail operators heart attacks, but doesn’t seem to have a safety record that’s any worse than theirs, and in terms of casualty per passenger journey, is probably a lot better.
Platform gates cost a lot to install and maintain. What would the risk reduction per pound amount to?
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When TfL painted yellow lines on tube platforms they were further back which resulted in a more dangerous situation where passengers in a hurry walked between the newly painted yellow line and an incoming train which was more dangerous than not having a line at all.
The yellow line was therefore moved closer to prevent impatient passengers from doing this on congested platforms. Staff also man busy platforms and make announcements to encourage passengers to move and also warn of approaching trains.
I personally just use the adjacent platform, or at Victoria when I used to arrive back from Brighton nip down to Pimlico and come back, although these days the Victoria line is so reliable trains just hoover people up and they are off.
The current Victoria line timetable is an operational masterpiece. Doors close 10 seconds before trains are due to depart.
John Nicholas
P.S. I once heard an announcement to stand behind the yellow line on an Elizabeth Line platform as the train approached despite there being platform edge doors.
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I have recently been travelling on Thameslink (in preference to EMR due to lower prices and the absence of lower fares on EMR) and have noticed the grafitti in the toilets, although had not appreciated it to be in every cubicle. Perhaps this is something to do with the result of the lack of staff on Thameslink trains. Other operators, such as EMR on parallel lines, have onboard staff but Thameslink seem to lack this and this the result.
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Thanks Roger for a considerable round-up of things that annoy all of us. I would have made a response to individual points, but there are just too many that hit the spot. However, I will say that I’m shocked at the toilet graffiti on Thameslink. I use their trains weekly but only on short runs so didn’t realise the horrors that lurked behind those doors.
Stuart S
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Made a fair few journeys back to Slough on the old 458 after watching football at Honeycroft or Church Road (neither ground still with us). Although the journey took longer than the 457/A main road route, as in those days it went via Cowley, RFs always seemed more cosy on a chilly winter’s evening than RTs. Pleased to see the route number revived.
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Heathrow Airport funded a route 458 between Iver, Langley and Heathrow for a while, in 2019/2020 I think. Roger did a post on it. It was operated by Thames Valley Buses.
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This was the 459.
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If LNER want to allow passengers to reserve a seat after the train has started its journey – and potentially kick someone out of their seat if they have sat in an unreserved seat – then they must provide an easy way for a passenger sitting in an unreserved seat to immediately reserve it for the remainder of their journey.
But they won’t do it because, as we will know, LNER couldn’t give the tiniest toss about passengers, it’s all about the money money money.
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Once the state Great British Railways (GBR) has taken over all the passenger franchises issues like the woeful lack of capacity on Cross-Country, the delays and train fleet issues on GWR ( previous blog ) and Thameslink graffiti / vandalism will all disappear ….. then I woke from dreaming.
I constantly ponder how the whole rail system ( number of trains, capacity of each train, suitability of each train for the route, service frequency, fares …. ) would be if the system immediately before the breakup for privatisation had continued. Chris Green promoted to overall ‘leader’ chairman?, Adrian Shooter in a senior role, Ian Yeowart also in a senior role as against open access to name just three out of a group that understood the requirements.
For the fares charged we ought to be able to do much better. I totally can not understand that LNER make a significant loss when Lumo on the same route using the same family of trains charge less and make a profit. Yes there are differences e.g. LNER running early morning and late evening trains that are likely to be mostly moving fresh air for at least a significant part of the route but if they can not break even the shortfall as a proportion of turnover ought to be small.
Regarding Thameslink services are most if not all Driver Only Operated? CCTV is no use if not monitored live for vandalism – toilets of course can not have CCTV inside but entry / exit can be. Once the culprits are off the train too late to do anything.
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I’ve often pondered this on Thameslink. You could have cameras outside each toilet, but you still wouldn’t know for sure which passenger had actually used a spray can?
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I could be mistaken, but I have a feeling the franchised/GBR Train Operating Companies pay higher track access charges (a fixed element for the access rights plus a variable element which is per train) whereas the Open Access operators pay only the variable element (as Network Rail is selling spare capacity).
Happy to be corrected if my understanding is not correct.
Malc M
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You have to give it to Stagecoach, they know how to make a funny advert. It runs a bit like this. There’s a Dad making a packed lunch for himself while his son is in the kitchen. It looks a miserable lunch. Suddenly the Dad says something like “You know what, tomorrow I’m not going to pay expensive car parking charges in Oxford, and I’m certainly not paying the congestion charge. With the money saved going in on the Stagecoach bus, I’m going to buy myself a super fancy lunch. Here son, here’s your packed lunch tomorrow”, and pushes the food across the table. And then the “Stagecoach, we’ve got you” notification. (CH, Oxford)
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One piece of news for Seen Around.
As Diamond Bus West Midlands continues its rise & rise in the West Midlands County it looks like the end of road for National Express West Midlands after over 100 years of service based in Brum.
Mobico PLC I understand have put West Midlands Travel Limited up for sale & given Transport for West Midlands are moving to a franchise based network it will be fascinating to see what happens next.
Given West Midlands Travel was once the most profitable bus company in the world with its mouthwatering profit margins and monpolost travel card its downfall is nothing short of spectacular.
West Midlands Travel used to be such a colosus any competition was crushed however given its 40 years next October since deregulation wouldn’t it be ironic if in its 40th year Diamond Bus outlived National Express West Midlands as the regions locally based bus operator………….
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As the West Midlands is being franchised both Diamond and National Express West Midlands might be a thing of the past in the area. As for rise and rise of Diamond there is the recent loss of 5 TfWM tenders to other operators. Rotala’s annual results have recently been published which show an excellent 15% margin for their north west operation, an increase in profit in the West Midlands where they have no doubt benefited from NXWM’s woes and an £800k loss on the former Midland Classic East Midlands operation. Their high profit level in the North West can be contrasted to Go Ahead’s poor result in the area, results from other franchised operators are not yet available
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As a footnote the recent Dudley Tenders were let by Transport for West Midlands on a package price covering a number of services. Rotala dont usually bid on package prices that don’t not reflect the true write down costs of vehicles , fleet rewal costs or offer a sufficient margin for profitability on the contract. They bid sucessfully on single contract tenders from TfWM and will be taking over Services 19, 27, 98 & 99 in 2026.
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TfL has formally bid to take over the Great Northern inner suburban lines out of Moorgate to Welwyn Garden City and Hertford North.
https://www.ianvisits.co.uk/articles/tfl-bids-to-take-over-moorgate-mainline-with-plan-to-increase-great-northern-services-85918/
Peter Brown
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