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Post by cooperman on Sept 1, 2019 23:40:48 GMT
Still no concrete word regarding the service tomorrow, not helped by a very vague message on the Twitter feed! It's going to be a right Nightmare . Well done TFL
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Post by cooperman on Jan 11, 2014 21:17:33 GMT
Monday to Friday Southbound To Baker Street. Depart 1758 ( 2 minutes Earlier)Projected arrival time at say... Finchley Rd is 1844. I'm afraid all of my journeys arrived at 1850, so there's something wrong there me thinks. That'll be train 464, booked to depart Chesham at 1759 and arrive Finchley Road at 1852½. Monday to Friday Northbound to Chesham from Canary Wharf via Baker Street. Depart time from Baker Street 0728 ( Moved forward 6 mins from old T/T). Now here lies the problem , arrival at Chesham is a rather optimistic time of 0824. Well it arrived everyday at 0831. The Chesham train rarely gets to Chalfont and Latimer at its departure time of 0816, but when it did last Friday. The driver informed us that " We our held at a Red Signal awaiting our correct Departure Time " LOL we got back to Chesham at 0829. They must be working on a Different T/T. I agree that this train did arrive late. This does unfortunately happen on the Great British railways. Never will all trains run on time, but thankfully, the majority do. Not sure if serious , but thanks for confirming my theory that the Met T/T to Amersham and Chesham is a work of Fiction.
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Post by cooperman on Jan 11, 2014 10:40:23 GMT
Hello All. Its time again to have another look at the Revised Met T/T dated the 8th of December 2013. Well What's new then ?. Amersham and Chesham have lost there Semi Fast services in the Contra-Peak times ,but the journey times have been reduced by 3-4 mins. Having a look on the Journey Planner, confirmed this fantastic bit of news. Right..... OK then... lets give it a whirl. Oh dear.... Oh deary me, yes i know the Met T/T is only meant to be a guide. But when is a Guide not a Guide ? Answer: When its written by some Walter Mitty character and the document becomes pure Fiction and a grossly Optimistic Fantasy . The reason why i was intrigued by this new T/T is because they (TFL) our Advertising that the All station Chesham to Baker Street/ Aldgate trains will get you there "quicker" then a Semi Fast service . Sorry folks but they don't and this is why:- For the last 7 days while my car has been out of action i used 10 Contra-Peak journeys and 4 off-peak journeys to and from Chesham and Canary Wharf. Monday to Friday Southbound To Baker Street. Depart 1758 ( 2 minutes Earlier)Projected arrival time at say... Finchley Rd is 1844. I'm afraid all of my journeys arrived at 1850, so there's something wrong there me thinks. Monday to Friday Northbound to Chesham from Canary Wharf via Baker Street. Depart time from Baker Street 0728 ( Moved forward 6 mins from old T/T). Now here lies the problem , arrival at Chesham is a rather optimistic time of 0824. Well it arrived everyday at 0831. The Chesham train rarely gets to Chalfont and Latimer at its departure time of 0816, but when it did last Friday. The driver informed us that " We our held at a Red Signal awaiting our correct Departure Time " LOL we got back to Chesham at 0829. They must be working on a Different T/T. Weekend All stations Service worked like Clockwork with no hanging around at stations to regulate the service nonsense. I hope that might explain why people rush around on Platforms. The moral of this story and in life is ' Don't believe everything you read on paper and on the Internet'. Regards Coops ETA No malice intended, just pure Entertainment .
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Post by cooperman on Dec 2, 2013 6:48:56 GMT
But of a rant but I've just spent the best part of half an hour at Croxley waiting. The 9.38 was cancelled. So much for the controllers looking to reduce the gap. It's seemingly easier not to bother. If I'd known I'd have made other plans but they're advertising Good Service north of Baker Street. thanks for missing my appointment this 15 minute interval timetable is a nightmare when trains get cancelled I feel your pain, but what you have to realise is that the Published Met T/T and the TFL website are a work of Fiction. There is Zero communication from the Controllers of the Met to any Stations N/B. This was quite evident in last weeks shenanigans.
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Post by cooperman on Oct 1, 2013 13:26:28 GMT
I think the overcrowding stems from the fact that every Fast N/B Train to Amersham and Chesham now stops at Wembley Park . Probably to stop the overcrowded platforms at Finchley Rd. Also the Seat Fabric on the S Stock is now beginning to Wear out... already.
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Post by cooperman on Jul 22, 2013 9:34:11 GMT
LOL Which Carpark do you think people would use if they wanted to meet people from Chesham Station.? Err... let me think ..Hmm...the one next to the Station possibly ?. Which by the way, does say Chesham Station Car Park. Its irrelevant whether it had CDC signage . It was run by CDC as a Car Park who the majority used to park in, and then catch the train.
Location Yes Function Yes That may be a trainspotter's view but to a "normal" if it has local council signs and local council shoppers car park prices then its a local council shoppers car park with some of those funny trains that their dads used to use to go to the City nearby. Incidentally most meeting and greeting traffic uses the station forecourt or the parking spaces in Station Road. I suspect that a lot of commuters will decide that the extra £10 for a season ticket in the council car park at Amersham is worth it for the extra trains. LOL lets just Agree to Disagree.I think your Mindset is set on TFL's logic to this problem.
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Post by cooperman on Jul 21, 2013 2:34:56 GMT
Location - yes Function - no The clue was the use of Chiltern District Council standard car park signage. LOL Which Carpark do you think people would use if they wanted to meet people from Chesham Station.? Err... let me think ..Hmm...the one next to the Station possibly ?. Which by the way, does say Chesham Station Car Park. Its irrelevant whether it had CDC signage . It was run by CDC as a Car Park who the majority used to park in, and then catch the train.
Location Yes Function Yes
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Post by cooperman on Jul 20, 2013 16:01:38 GMT
Why indeed? Except that for as long as I have lived near Chesham it has just been another town centre car park not a dedicated station car park. I wasn't even aware that LUL still owned it until the recent change. Well i don't know how long you have lived near Chesham, but its always been referred to as the Station Car park. The clue is in its location.
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Post by cooperman on Jun 25, 2013 8:51:27 GMT
The New T/T as from 19/05/2013 shows evidence that some common sense has prevailed . From 0600 to 0930 N/B from Baker ST they have indeed swapped the Amersham Service with the Chesham Service with in that Window.Further more the majority of Chesham Trains from there are Semi Fast at that time. God news for me, being a Night Shift worker, not so good for me as TFL have taken over the Carpark . For years it has always been free from 1830 to 0700. It costs just £1.20p (because i leave at 1800 to catch the Train ) , as from the beginning of last week its £7 for over night parking.Oh well can't have it all your own way.
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Post by cooperman on Apr 16, 2013 16:44:11 GMT
I got on a Chiltern at Harrow on Thursday at 11:49 and it was formed of 5 cars and there were hardly any seats! I still stand by my recommendation that the timetable is revised to: 2tph Amersham-Aldgate (fast) 2tph Chesham-Aldgate (semi-fast) 6tph Watford-Baker St (local) 4tph Uxbridge-Baker St (local) 4tph Uxbridge-Aldgate (local) Ok, so Northwick Park and Preston loose 2tph! 14tph ain't bad! metman Are you suggesting your recommendation as a Seven Day T/T . Or a Weekend T/T ? .
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Post by cooperman on Apr 15, 2013 20:49:06 GMT
LU now saying they have no intention of reintroducing off peak fast services even after upgrade is So, after millions of pounds and years of disruption, it looks like journey times from north of Ricky will be no better than before the upgrade started! For Chesham, which will continue to have 2 tph, there will be no reduction in waiting time; just a more tedious service. TfL will manage Crossrail and want responsibility for other lines which run beyond the GLA...wonder if the residents of Maidenhead are aware of what's going on with the priorities on the Met? Indeed metliner, I had one of those Free Chesham Mags through the door recently . As I'm a Media Hack my self, reading between the lines. It basically says " You should be Lucky we still run a service up to you neck of the Woods Madam " and " Don't Rock the Boat ". So she has been Seduced by the " Look what we have done to Improve the Met Line" . What made me laugh was the reasoning behind the New Met T/T. Quote " The new Met T/T will Benefit the Passengers using the Met as a Whole" . LOL As for the the newish (2011) Met T/T, The Reality is very different . To make the T/T work, every Chesham Train will run 9 times out of 10 Late. Having done a Mini Survey , it seems Punters have no intention of using the Met Peak or Off Peak . This was quite everdant last month when Passengers Crammed them selves into a Chiltern service (1830 N/B) at HTH , when there was a Fast Amersham Service 5 Minutes behind. As for the Chesham Fasts , they just get stuck behind Late running Chilterns as usual at HTH. So.. i stand by Original Post , but i might add 'Ignorance' as well as Arrogance to the Clown who came up with new Met T/T. Happy Days
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Post by cooperman on Jan 19, 2013 17:03:10 GMT
You could well be closer to the truth than you realise. Amersham and Cheshams' locations place them firmly into suburban commuter territory where you expect to speed into London in 30 minutes or so in reasonable comfort - a service that Chiltern provides. LUL is clearly concentrating on its task as a Metro operator, moving high volumes of people over shorter distances in trains designed like cattle trucks. The fact that there is less and less pretense at providing comfort, speed or frequent service to Amersham suggests to me that the decision has already been made behind the scenes. Soon a way will be found to increase the Chiltern capacity and Chesham will be either be served by a Chiltern shuttle or, I fear, closed, and at that point Met services will terminate at Moor Park. Sorry but this does not stack up. Chiltern are currently providing the fast trains and LUL a stopping service which is well used. This is far better than a number of other routes to/from London. New diesel trains will not be sanctioned by the DfT and there are no engines that meet emissions standards for the near future. LUL have taken delivery of more trains than required for the current service. More and faster services will happen. New signalling is being installed which will allow more trains and there should be less signal failures. Not all passengers travel into/from Central London. There will be Met services for years to come. A lot of London money is improving your service but this cannot be done overnight. Hmm ... Crusty54 I understand what your saying. To be fair i don't see the Evidence of that on the MET as a Chesham punter. Picking up a handful of the Passengers on the Slow track,is not a Positive when it puts another 12 mins on my Journey. IMO. I think omhslaw sums it up Beautifully.
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Post by cooperman on Jan 9, 2013 0:27:30 GMT
Can anyone see whether there would be any wider impact of swapping the off peak Amersham and Chesham departures from Chalfont? It looks as if it would be a self-contained change and it would allow Chesham passengers to/from London to use Chiltern to/from Chalfont, knocking about 15 mins off the journey. Good idea, but i think Amersham passengers would complain. Even though they don't mind standing up for their entire Journey on a Chiltern service S/B. I still don't understand why we need one extra Amersham service in the TT . If anyone going to Amersham would have any sense , they would be on the Chiltern service. This is very evident N/B , but of course I'm biased. ;D
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Post by cooperman on Dec 17, 2012 22:28:03 GMT
Surely Angela Beck, as Line Manager, would be at least partially responsible? It's amazed me how they've appeared to do this absolutely without consultation, especially with how vocal Mr Amersham Man has been in the past. Don't think AB is a manager in the sense of overseeing all functions to run the service; rather, she is part of a team who manage the various elements but she is expected to co-ordinate them. My concern is that a member of customer-facing staff will end up getting attacked the way things are now. The poor basic service, the breakdowns and the utterly dire communications (good service on all lines...) seem driven by inflexible policy and dogma of people too far away from the customer. Of course it's the poor station and train staff who end up catching the flack. I hear there was an incident at Harrow last week which turned very nasty. Abusive behavior towards staff is completely unacceptable but it seems Met line management are oblivious to the fact that their policies and practices are provoking it. Yes i heard about that incident , and i totally Deplore that type of Behavior. There has been some Positives to this Timetable. Some Drivers have slowed down the service from Amersham/ Chesham , so we don't have have any Standing time to Regulate the Service. Also I'm now on first name terms with some of the Station Staff. IMO they do a Fantastic job under the circumstances.
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Post by cooperman on Dec 16, 2012 21:45:53 GMT
Which group of people within TfL's management are responsible for making the decision to concentrate on all stations services? Genuine question. The very same group of people who Deceived every one of the Passengers up this end of the woods. Giving us a straight through ( To London) service . Citing that it would be a " Faster Direct no need to Change service into London ". Knowing full well they were going to change the Service to All Stations and it would take Longer to get there Off peak. As for Peak Services , N/B Peak services also stop at Wembley Park now. Not a problem really, but these Trains are often over crowded. Its not always possible to get on one of these very rare Fast Trains at Baker Street. Don't get me started on getting charged a Peak Fair for an Off Peak "All Station "service N/B from Baker St in the Morning. ;D
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Post by cooperman on Dec 12, 2012 17:02:27 GMT
Some good valid points .I think what TFL should be looking at , is the Peak Times of the Met Time Table. What ever people think, the Man/ Woman's working day in the City is a lot longer these days.
As for funneling every Train down the Local lines Off Peak , this simply just doesn't work when there is problem on the Line . This was quite evident last Night, when some Passengers gave up and got a Taxi from HTH to Chesham.
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Post by cooperman on Dec 11, 2012 12:06:49 GMT
I don't really understand why Met-line users think they deserve a service that nobody else gets. Regularly on here we see Met-line customers complaining about reduction in tranverse seats, lack of fast trains etc. But these are luxuries which most of us don't get. For me, as a High Barnet passenger, we have no fast service or tranverse seats, and just have to make do with the service we have (which is perfectly good enough). For everyone other than the small number who use Amersham/ Chesham/ Chalfont, journey times to/ from central London are hardly much longer than they are for me on the Northern, ansd similar to those experienced by District and Central line (Epping) customers. I suggest you do some Home Work. For many years Plebs like me have Enjoyed a Fast service in to London. December 2011 changed all that without any Consultation. How would you feel if your service called at Stations that picked up hardly Nobody and delayed your Journey into London by 10 Minutes . Nuff said
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Post by cooperman on Dec 11, 2012 11:48:54 GMT
It is a recognised psychological trait for people to get so far up the structural greasy pole, that they no longer feel the need to listen, except to their hand picked minions and those at equal height (or above) on another, nearby pole. This happens in banks and politics particularly, and all areas where there are unnecessary levels of "managers" that have built up over the years. Those at the top of the pole have information "filtered out" on its way up by those on the lower strata. rubbish only cascades downwards, so those underneath don't deliver bad news, in order to keep out of the way of any consequential falling rubbish, and the messenger being shot for delivering the message. There is a saying in Latin that translates roughly as, "It is better to be on the balcony with Nero whilst he pi$$es on the crowd, than to be in the crowd" I'm afraid TfL, no longer feel it necessary to give their public what they ask for, just as senior L.T. management did(n't) years ago. Nobody ever got fired for not spending company money, "So why spend money on designing new timetables and train diagrams etc, and upsetting the Pinner MP?" will be the order of the day. Nobody wants to be put back into the crowd after being on the balcony. The Met has a particular problem in that Pinner man (and probably his MP) lives in the GLA area, whilst Amersham and Chesham men do not, and their towns are only served by the Met because of historical circumstances. The filtering process is everywhere. Most MPs have secretaries to filter out their own constituents. Try seeing the actual manager of your local supermarket even. The Pinner MP must be awesome. castlebar How eloquently put sir. Hats off to Chiltern Railways in recognizing that Punters need to get to there Destinations as quick as possible. As for TFL... stick it were the sun doesn't shine. You have single handley Alienated you Customer Base.
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Post by cooperman on Dec 11, 2012 10:04:00 GMT
Oh well.... as TFL are so Arrogant and haven't listened to anyone up this end of the Met. I look froward to another Year of using the Chilltern Turbo to get to work and Back. Muppet's.
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Post by cooperman on Sept 12, 2012 22:30:45 GMT
I've noticed recently that all Northbound Amersham/Chesham trains are running semi fast. Is there a problem with the points somewhere or has common sense prevailed? All very commendable i'm sure if true. Although be aware that there is a danger of sitting at a station (past Ricky) to " Even out the Service" which is longer than the actual journey to the next Station. They (The Management) should be congratulated in Alienating the majority of Passengers they so stride to serve ( sic ). Come on lets be fair , they still think that holding N/B Chesham trains at Chalfont and Latimer for up to 10 mins while the S/B train comes down the single track acceptable .No wonder the Chiltern Train is packed .. Priceless ;D
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Post by cooperman on Jun 6, 2012 19:37:59 GMT
nv147
Superb Summery of this Shambolic T/T. You forgot to mention the Extra Amersham Service they have implemented into the T/T. The Ghost Train as we call it. Runs N/B and S/B with no one on it, (All the Punters are on the Chiltern Service before it) . It just holds up the Chesham service .. Priceless ..... and Don't get me started on the Waiting time at Chalfont and Latimer Station N/B , while we wait for the Single Track Train from Chesham to arrive at Chalfont S/B . Very poor Planning IMO.
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Post by cooperman on Apr 18, 2012 17:27:12 GMT
Just for the Record, there are no really fast Amersham/ Chesham NB trains in the evening. They stop at Wembey now, and you just can't get on them anymore. ( 1730 > 1900 ). I gave up a long time ago. i'd rather get on a Chiltern Service and sit in a waiting room in Little Chalfont.
The Chiltern always get's priority over the Chesham Fasts , even though this may change who knows? . There's nothing more frustrating then seeing 2 Chilterns, and an empty Amersham Train trundle through Little Chalfont delaying the Chesham Fast (ish) by 10mins .
Even the passengers on the Chiltern peaks can't get those either. Standing room only if your lucky.
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Post by cooperman on Feb 13, 2012 21:50:22 GMT
Wow , many thanks for the reply's. It puts my petty ramblings about my long and arduous journey in to London as a Passenger in to perspective.
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Post by cooperman on Feb 13, 2012 21:41:35 GMT
Got to Wembley Park and there where lots of people on the other Platform which was advertising a Semi Fast Amersham service. It duly came and .........yes you guessed , it didn't stop it was a Fast. Left quite a few unhappy passengers and two very embarrassed Station staff. Even the driver looked suprised as he flew past. Not the end of the of the World but. Correct, this timetable won't please everyone i know that, but its upsetting quite a lot to the extent that people are driving to other stations . I know its had to believe but there you go . Carbon Footprint eat your Heart out. Cheers Unfortunately, we generally advise stations south of Harrow to "push" their customers to Harrow. There are many occasions where stopping an ex-depot train (which is what your train in this occasion may have been) will snarl up recovery of the rest of the service, so it is pushed forward to Harrow to enter service. I'm sorry the information on this occasion was wide of the mark. Trust me, head as far as Harrow before changing. Anything going on the branches will either arrive or start there. Management (all the way up) are aware of the choices in front of them with regards to this timetable. They know that they either stick it out and end up with an ultimately more reliable timetable (which it is) or revert to something from before. They have heard the complaints. They know - more than me - how many people are upset and are turning to other forms of transport. I cannot comment further really... Many Thanks for the reply. Also i would like to extend my thanks to you and your colleagues for maintaining the Met, in what can only be described as treacherous conditions on Sunday the 5th of February (4-5 inches of Snow) . Thank you
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Post by cooperman on Feb 10, 2012 15:12:16 GMT
What with all the discussion about the new WTT, and the journey times from Amersham and Chesham etc.
I got to thinking , whats the journey like for the Drivers. So i asked one the other day , they seem a great bunch and always happy to talk. He told me they do a Lap and Half, does this mean for insistence.
Chesham all stations to Aldgate . Walk back up the platform at Aldgate, do another N/B to Chesham . Then go back S/B and finish at Harrow. Excuse my ignorance just interested.
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Post by cooperman on Feb 10, 2012 10:05:06 GMT
Don't forget the track space has been deliberately reduced (outside selected peak services) by taking the fast lines out of service, as has already been discussed at length on this forum. This is part of their "service recovery" plan, the new LU management buzzword, cynically designed solely to save their blushes in the event of service failures during the Olympics caused by them allowing the signalling system to deteriorate so lamentably. Inevitably, this is all at the expense of the service to the core LU customers as you are now experiencing. The fast lines have not been taken out of service - Chiltern and various test trains still use them, as well as late running trains. And of course, they are still used just as they were during peak hours. Using the fast lines as service recovery is a sensible move which utilises a lesser-used and thus less-crowded line to recover time. The fast lines have always been lesser-used. The use of them is a part of our recovery technique and always has been, but is NOT the reason the timetable was introduced. In the words of all good BBC links, "Other recovery techniques are available." The timetable is also NOT Olympics-linked. As far as I'm aware, there are no events taking place north of Harrow. We get people home everyday, and will also get them home during the Olympics. I have draft copies of the Olympics timetables based on WTT329 and WTT331 and in terms of shifting Met-Line customers home, there are minor differences. The signalling system is maintained on all roads in the same way as it was this time last year. Failures are an unfortunate occurance. The new signalling will be available in a few years, but may suffer many initial teething problems which will be slated here. We are a business, and much as the current timetable does not keep everyone happy, it is not our intention to drive people away. Therefore, none of the events that occur are intended to be at the expense of our customers. The service recovery is much welcomed, and appreciated. It would be nice to be told though. A prime example was this morning. No Amersham and Chesham NB trains advertised at Baker St at 0735 . So i took the advice and took the first available Train an UXB All Stations . Got to Wembley Park and there where lots of people on the other Platform which was advertising a Semi Fast Amersham service. It duly came and .........yes you guessed , it didn't stop it was a Fast. Left quite a few unhappy passengers and two very embarrassed Station staff. Even the driver looked suprised as he flew past. Not the end of the of the World but. Correct, this timetable won't please everyone i know that, but its upsetting quite a lot to the extent that people are driving to other stations . I know its had to believe but there you go . Carbon Footprint eat your Heart out. Cheers
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Post by cooperman on Feb 10, 2012 9:38:02 GMT
They don't get cancelled. When 2 all-stations trains turn up together and 1 is running slightly late, 1 is often diverted fast from Harrow to Finchley Road - hence the rather revealing description that the train would not stop at certain stations. . Yes i agree , but they don't tell you that. It was supposed to be a Semi fast 1755 Chesham to Aldgate as per WTT anyway. If your told that the train on the other platform is leaving first which is also an All Stations and that the train you where on was billed as a All Stations instead of a Semi Fast as it should have been, you would change trains no.
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Post by cooperman on Feb 9, 2012 20:37:30 GMT
....The semi fast Chesham train gets reinstated and passes you at Preston Rd , superb..... Was it empty? If they terminate at Harrow, they are very likely to run it empty to Neasden depot. Hi No, as i was leaving HOTH i looked back and it had passengers on it . The Information board on the platform changed to " Not stopping at Northwick P , Preston Road , Wembley Park ". The strange thing was this S Stock i was traveling down from Chesham which i thought was Cancelled , displayed All Stations to Aldgate. My guess is the driver hadn't turned up in time or they suddenly realised they had two All stations trains at HOTH at the same time .This does happen sometimes and they get cancelled. Just unlucky.
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Post by cooperman on Feb 9, 2012 4:00:39 GMT
I did 7 straight 12 hour night shifts last week. So this is what happened.
5 of my S/B journeys started at 1755 from Chesham stopped outside Harrow and Wembley Stations awaiting a Platform to become available . Then we had the Harrow Shuffle as we call it up this end. This is quite funny really, its nice to see this old chess nut has reared it ugly head again. Your S/B train gets canceled at Harrow , you swap platforms and get on an all stations to Aldgate. The semi fast Chesham train gets reinstated and passes you at Preston Rd , superb.
Just one of my N/B journeys up to Chesham in the morning was on time and that was a Sunday with just me and the Driver. So to recap like others , moving trains forward means i miss my connection , back to waiting on platforms again i suppose.
Of course there is a one good thing about this new Timetable , i got 4 Charter refunds last month. ;D
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Post by cooperman on Jan 19, 2012 21:07:58 GMT
Hah! Got my vote! That tickled me ;D ;D ;D ;D
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