London Midland Trains

[Bob]

I remember when the Hednesford line opened Tony in 1989 the trains were never overcrowded like now. We had a better bus service then and the M6 wasn't as bad. We no longer have a bus and haven't for years and the M6 is now like a car park every day. So the train usage has increased massively, I wouldn't call it a success. People don't use this rubbish service in droves cos they love standing on dangerously overcrowded hopelessly inadequate trains, they do it cos they've no other choice. The train service hasn't responded to the extra demand. Can you tell me what choice etc privatisation has given chase line users? None. And never will. Private monopolies are bad ( see arriva in cannock ) so it may as well be in public ownership. 

[Tony]

I remember when the Hednesford line opened Tony in 1989 the trains were never overcrowded like now. We had a better bus service then and the M6 wasn't as bad. We no longer have a bus and haven't for years and the M6 is now like a car park every day. So the train usage has increased massively, I wouldn't call it a success. People don't use this rubbish service in droves cos they love standing on dangerously overcrowded hopelessly inadequate trains, they do it cos they've no other choice. The train service hasn't responded to the extra demand. Can you tell me what choice etc privatisation has given chase line users? None. And never will. Private monopolies are bad ( see arriva in cannock ) so it may as well be in public ownership.

BR ran an hourly service only between Hednesford Walsall using a Motor+Trailer 2 car DMU for the first few years which regularly failed or missed the connection at Walsall leaving you with nearly an hour connection. No wonder it wasn't full. It did fill when BR starting using the two car 150s and running peak only trains through to Birmingham. There is currently far more capacity provided than BR ever did.

London Midland are far from perfect and do make some strange decisions as well as have staff problems, but no-one will ever convince me that my journies on that line from 1992 until 1997 were better than either Central Trains 1997-2006 or LM 2007-date

[Bob]

Well I don't think standing pushed to the doors on a peak time two car 170 is an acceptable or safe standard. Again if the line is so busy there should be enough rolling stock but there isn't so somethings tits up somewhere. But why run bloody 3 or 4 carriage electric trains to Walsall that are half empty??? & a two car diesel on the far far busier service? Run one of the walsall as an express to free up capacity?

[Bob]

There's far more capacity cos there's no other bloody way into brum! Not cos it's a good service!

[Tony]

Well I don't think standing pushed to the doors on a peak time two car 170 is an acceptable or safe standard. Again if the line is so busy there should be enough rolling stock but there isn't so somethings tits up somewhere. But why run bloody 3 or 4 carriage electric trains to Walsall that are half empty??? & a two car diesel on the far far busier service? Run one of the walsall as an express to free up capacity?

Because there are no 2-car overhead electric units in existence, and for another 14 months it would be difficult to run the 3 & 4 car electrics past Walsall

[Bob]

Run a 4 car electric to Walsall as an express to take the pressure off the Chase line trip a couple of minutes before or after. Maybe elderly people might get a seat then. It's disgusting Tony.

[Tony]

Run a 4 car electric to Walsall as an express to take the pressure off the Chase line trip a couple of minutes before or after. Maybe elderly people might get a seat then. It's disgusting Tony.

Yes, paths are available for extra trains? units are available in the peak to do that?

Of course, no problem

[Stu]

Bob, the thing is its not just on your Chase Line; while I'm sat on the 900/957 buses into work in the morning, I see 5 car trains alongside Small Heath Highway pulling into Small Heath station that are absolutely rammed full, and I've had the misfortune to catch one myself the once from Spring Road to Small Heath.

[Tony]

Bob, the thing is its not just on your Chase Line; while I'm sat on the 900/957 buses into work in the morning, I see 5 car trains alongside Small Heath Highway pulling into Small Heath station that are absolutely rammed full, and I've had the misfortune to catch one myself the once from Spring Hill to Small Heath.

And LM aren't even the worst, try catching Trans-Pennine in the peak, or when I was in Huddersfield  a couple of weeks ago, a pacer left there that was as bad as any train I've seen

[Justin Tyme]

As I see it, the two main problems are worsening traffic congestion driving people onto trains, and there seems to be no incentive for train operators or ROSCOs to order additional carriages or new trains to meet the increased demand.

When there was a consultation about the new LM franchise earlier this year, I suggested that there should be some kind of incentive for the TOC to buy extra carriages or trains if demand (and therefore fares income) increased beyond a set level.  Perhaps I should have said it louder!

[the trainbasher]

Bloody Snow Hill Lines playing stupid tonight. The 1953 ex Moor Street to Malvern cancelled, 2018 to Stourbridge looking like it'll be 15 down based on it's back working.

Why can't Chiltern just run some of their Saturday Evening Snow Hill terminators to Stourbridge? At least it'd be more rreliabl on a evening

[Roy]

Bloody Snow Hill Lines playing stupid tonight. The 1953 ex Moor Street to Malvern cancelled, 2018 to Stourbridge looking like it'll be 15 down based on it's back working.

Why can't Chiltern just run some of their Saturday Evening Snow Hill terminators to Stourbridge? At least it'd be more rreliabl on a evening

The 2018 was cancelled at Rowley Regis due to "disorder".  It was 19 down at the time.  This meant that there were no trains (apart from the non-stop XC diverted services) south of Rowley Regis for 90 minutes.

I know that the Stourbridge Line User Group complained to Chiltern at a public meeting that 3 of their trains terminate at Birmingham on a Saturday evening and then run ecs to Stourbridge Depot.  This means that they run into platform 2 at Stourbridge Junction to reverse.  SLUG believes that these trains should run in service.

[D10]

Snow Hill line chaos continued all last night to end of service from my observations: at Moor Street the 2231 to Stratford was 30 minutes late, the 2301 to Leamington was cancelled.

The 2257 to Worcester started at Moor street rather than Dorridge and was 2 carriages rather than 5 and a fight nearly broke out due to the overcrowding  :o . Ending up 15 minutes late at Kidderminster

[the trainbasher]

The 2018 was cancelled at Rowley Regis due to "disorder".  It was 19 down at the time.  This meant that there were no trains (apart from the non-stop XC diverted services) south of Rowley Regis for 90 minutes.

I know that the Stourbridge Line User Group complained to Chiltern at a public meeting that 3 of their trains terminate at Birmingham on a Saturday evening and then run ecs to Stourbridge Depot.  This means that they run into platform 2 at Stourbridge Junction to reverse.  SLUG believes that these trains should run in service.

Yeah I didn't get to Stourbridge town until 2148, 70 minutes later than planned.

[T840MAK]

And LM aren't even the worst, try catching Trans-Pennine in the peak, or when I was in Huddersfield  a couple of weeks ago, a pacer left there that was as bad as any train I've seen

Not just in the peak, on Saturday morning I had a TransPennine which was six carriages instead of three, all six were full & standing.

Seriously, stop complaining or complain to London Midland, ranting on the forum is going to do nothing to getting anything sorted out. It's not helped you're living in a fantasy world like most other commuters who don't realise that pathing and rolling stock are the biggest constraints to putting more carriages on a certain route.