RollingJ 2,042 #13 Posted August 17, 2019 4 minutes ago, Annie Bynnol said: There are line closures right up 'til Christmas for electrification work south of Loughborough. Mainly late/early/weekends Through trains will take a lot longer and sometimes buses replace the trains. The 'booking engine' tries to book you the fastest routes. I'm well aware of that @Annie Bynnol, but as you say, these engineering works are usually 'overnight', so unless you try travelling either very late, or very early, you would still expect to go via the Derby/Leicester route. blackydog didn't specify a departure time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Annie Bynnol 612 #14 Posted August 17, 2019 (edited) 24 minutes ago, RollingJ said: I'm well aware of that @Annie Bynnol, but as you say, these engineering works are usually 'overnight', so unless you try travelling either very late, or very early, you would still expect to go via the Derby/Leicester route. blackydog didn't specify a departure time. All day line closures on Saturdays and Sundays on dates in October, November and December for electrification, junction, bridge, station work. Diversions fewer trains via Corby so less capacity so fewer Advance tickets and significantly faster journeys via Doncaster Saturday 31st August - Sunday 1st September Sunday 8th September Sunday 29th September Sunday 6th October Sunday 13th October Sunday 10th November Saturday 2nd November - Sunday 3rd November Saturday 16th November - Sunday 17th November Sunday 1st December Saturday 21st December - Saturday 28th December No assumptions-facts. Edited August 17, 2019 by Annie Bynnol Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
blackydog 40 #15 Posted August 17, 2019 21 minutes ago, RollingJ said: I'm well aware of that @Annie Bynnol, but as you say, these engineering works are usually 'overnight', so unless you try travelling either very late, or very early, you would still expect to go via the Derby/Leicester route. blackydog didn't specify a departure time. Both changes are at Donny OUT Thu 12 Sep 2019 Sheffield to London Kings Cross 10:11 12:30 2h 19m, 1 change Price£27.00 Only 2 left Price£182.50 IN Fri 13 Sep 2019 London Kings Cross to Sheffield 14:03 16:21 2h 18m, 1 change Price£48.05 Price£148.00 Only 2 left Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
RollingJ 2,042 #16 Posted August 17, 2019 1 minute ago, Annie Bynnol said: All day line closures on Saturdays and Sundays on dates in October, November and December for electrification, junction, bridge, station work. Diversions fewer trains via Corby so less capacity so fewer Advance tickets and significantly faster journeys via Doncaster Again - I know, but as said above, blackydog has not specified a day/time of travel, so we are both making assumptions. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
RollingJ 2,042 #17 Posted August 17, 2019 (edited) 19 minutes ago, blackydog said: Both changes are at Donny OUT Thu 12 Sep 2019 Sheffield to London Kings Cross 10:11 12:30 2h 19m, 1 change Price£27.00 Only 2 left Price£182.50 IN Fri 13 Sep 2019 London Kings Cross to Sheffield 14:03 16:21 2h 18m, 1 change Price£48.05 Price£148.00 Only 2 left Try specifying Sheffield to London St Pancras International - direct trains from Sheffield are available. Which site did you use to obtain these times/prices?? Edited August 17, 2019 by RollingJ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
blackydog 40 #18 Posted August 18, 2019 Trainline. Changing to St Pancras route shows no changes. The options for Kings Cross or St Pancras are very similar. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Eddie_shef 10 #19 Posted August 18, 2019 On 16/08/2019 at 21:27, bluecanary said: Thanks for this info. I have to admit, am rather mystified by the whole rail franchise system. If a company loses a franchise and does not have significant non rail-related operations (e.g. Stagecoach) does the company simply go out of business? Does the whole of East Midlands Trains (aside from the staff magically transferred to EMR) go out of operation overnight? Seems like a very odd way to run a key national transport infrastructure, but maybe that's just me. On 16/08/2019 at 22:49, Andy C said: East Midlands Trains as a company will cease to exist after the franchise changes as it was purely set up to bid for and operate the franchise, however the parent company Stagecoach Group will still be around. In Sheffield Stagecoach will still operate buses (registered as The Yorkshire Traction Co Ltd) and trams (registered as South Yorkshire Supertram Ltd). The East Midlands Trains staff transfer to the new Abellio owned company under TUPE arrangements. The actual national rail infrastructure (track and signals) is operated by Network Rail which is publicly owned and the rolling stock is leased. The passenger trains are run as franchises under contract to the Department for Transport. Thank you Andy C for this. I'm also still a bit confused by why having a franchise system in this case would yield any benefits. It will be the same staff on the same trains, running on the same infrastructure. Price and service can change with a different company, but it seems a bit less likely given the specific restrictions of a national rail system. I don't know much about the pension details, but it seems removing a supplier/vendor due to pensions is quite an ethical move - fantastic, but this seems to be there to protect employees instead of customers. I'm not against that at all, just wondering. I guess the franchise model is there to prevent an incumbent from resting on their laurels, which should be applauded. Although presumably this could be done with having a set of national standards and a service contract that maintains prices/salaries etc. I guess both exist, although I really don't know much about the current rail system in the UK. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
iansheff 88 #20 Posted August 18, 2019 (edited) Marvellous how a state owned Dutch company can see the money to be made from taking on EMT yet our Government can't and continue to let foreign companies have a big say in this country's infrastructure. Edited August 18, 2019 by iansheff Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Blue Day 10 #21 Posted August 18, 2019 29 minutes ago, iansheff said: Marvellous how a state owned Dutch company can see the money to be made from taking on EMT yet our Government can't and continue to let foreign companies have a big say in this country's infrastructure. I saw a graphic last week (can’t remember where). It showed that the majority of our rail franchises are government owned, just not our government. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
BigAl1 143 #22 Posted August 18, 2019 I am hoping for a step change in customer service the last time I used the first class it was far far below the expected standard (seats were the same true) with no service at all because it was a weekend service lets hope the new guys deliver on their promises and that any new trains have the interior designed around the customer with comfortable seats and window alligned Ownership is irrelevant what matters is the management and the actions/inactions of the department for transport but the MD has long experience of working on the railway in the UK Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
Saben 10 #23 Posted August 18, 2019 Foreign owned rail companies give the UK the most expensive rail fares in Europe. Do our fares subsidize continental fares ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...
RollingJ 2,042 #24 Posted August 18, 2019 4 hours ago, blackydog said: Trainline. Changing to St Pancras route shows no changes. The options for Kings Cross or St Pancras are very similar. OK - that explains a lot. Speaking as someone who uses the rail network frequently, I would never use Trainline to book - there is a booking fee added to the ticket cost, for one negative. They are OK to find prices, but personally that is ALL I would use them for. For actual booking, I would always go direct to the operator (if I knew who it was), or to the official National Rail site if I didn't - they automatically redirect you when you have decided on your route/ticket option, and no operator charges a booking fee. 5 minutes ago, Saben said: Foreign owned rail companies give the UK the most expensive rail fares in Europe. Do our fares subsidize continental fares ! Proof? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites Share this content via...