Crap day on the rails already.

[Dave]

Serious signalling problems at Chesterfield between Sheffield and Derby have caused huge delays on the MML and Cross-Country routes with delays up to 60 minutes ALL DAY.

Now there's a freight train broken down at Lockerbie between Carlisle and Carstairs, and on the subject of broken down trains, Virgin have had poor reliability today with four or five services cancelled to what the live departure boards put down to a "fault on the train". What a s*** state of affairs today!

Both problems hope to be rectified by 1700 but the MML is crippled already and all services into Scotland are f***.

One Pendolino is 54 late and has only just left Carlisle due to a mysterious 41 minute delay at Preston (and the train was already 14 late then!)

A number of other services are being turned at Preston due to the delays from previous services.

Strange happenings in Preston today. It must be because I'm here...

EDIT: 1S51 0725 PLY-GLC dep Carlisle On Time

Great... Except there's been no report of the train at Beatock South Junction (BEATCKS?) which is where the problem appears to be since no northbound trains have passed there for a while.

Passed Lockerbie 3 late but is 77 minutes overdue to pass Beatock South. To put that in perspective... It passed Lockerbie at 1412 and would then have been due to pass Beatock S at 1424. Still no report.

[Parkey]

Oh goody. I'm travelling this evening, with bicycle, as is my girlfriend.

Hope this jinx doesn't move southwards.

[Dave]

Oh goody. I'm travelling this evening, with bicycle, as is my girlfriend.

Hope this jinx doesn't move southwards.

Are you travelling FGW?

[Parkey]

FGW to Reading, SWT to Clapham Junction, Southern to Brighton.

Takes a while but saves me having to cycle across central London.

[Dave]

FGW to Reading

Delayed.

SWT to Clapham Junction

Fine.

Southern to Brighton.

Fine.

See where I'm going here?

[Dave]

Update

1S51 is now on the move. Passed Beatock South 89 late.

It's been a while since a train has been that delayed on the West Coast, surely.

[Parkey]

(FGW) Delayed

What is it this time? The Asian butterflies are presumably beating their wings again?

[Dave]

Depends where you're going and what time your trains supposedly moving. I could find out for you.

If it's a service from Worcester/Hereford you're f***. FGW services through Worcester are dead. Always.

I believe it's a rare form of glandular fever that only affect train drivers which drive trains that call at Worcester Shrub Hill on the first cusp of a two full moon month or any day other than Sunday. 2B02 Great Malvern-Worcester Shrub Hill (a movement purely for unit positioning) was cancelled this morning due to, and I quote, "earlier delay due to waiting for train crew".

[Parkey]

There are at least four trains an hour between Didcot and Reading so I'm just going to turn up and get on the next one. Any one of them will do as far as I'm concerned. I'm just amused to hear what FGW's excuses are.

I especially like it when trains arriving late into Didcot from the west blame the Reading bottleneck.

[Dave]

The last three trains through Didcot were all at least 5 minutes late including one which arrived 1 early and left 5 late. Love it.

I bet the words "On Time" aren't used at the Parkway much?

Update on the Chesterfield signalling incident - trains were on the move from about 1515 but the residual delays won't be cleared until at least 1700

[Parkey]

I bet the words "On Time" aren't used at the Parkway much?

They are actually, up until the time the train is due. From then on the "Expected" usually matches the clock until a train shows up... maybe.

Well, here goes. Wish me luck!

[Dave]

Another update

1S54 1200 BHM-ABD cancelled past Edinburgh after arriving 100 late.

Brilliant!

[The Irish]

I just hope that Germany doesn't have to face that in future.
With the privatisation looming in the air. I'm really scared that it will end up just like this in Germany, or other continental countries for that matter. It's bad enough with the current strikes.

[Ameecher]

I think Germany has the advantage of being able to look at Britain and see how NOT to do it. That's where Britain fell down because there was it really a pioneer in privatisation of a national railway company.

[The Irish]

If they would only do that
But that seams to be no fact in any discussion I have heard or seen so far...

[andel]

Oddly I was on the 16:30 Reading to Waterloo - everything was fine there, and Waterloo was the usual madness that it is.

Mad day at my end (nothing new)