Slack in timetables...

John J · 27-07-2006, 19:15

Is anything going to be done about the level of slack in Irish Rail timetables? It has surely gone beyond a joke since the end of last year.
This is something that really pisses me off as this slack costs me up to an hour and a half per week.

For example, I caught the 17.00 Connolly-Sligo this evening as far as Longford. First stop was Mullingar. Used to the long spells of hanging around, I decided I'd keep an eye on my watch.

It arrived in Mullingar at 17.58, but the scheduled departure time isn't till 18.06. Cue a 10 minute wait until the eventual departure at 18.08.
Next stop Edgeworthstown, where we waited 3-4 minutes.
The train also sat in Longford for quite some time.
I was well out of sight by the time it left for the rest of its trip to Sligo, which it would complete at the lightning fast average speed of 40mph.

I can see why Irish Rail might want to add slack at the end of a journey, but surely adding these lengths throughout the schedule is totally inexcusable?
The Sligo line was faster last year with loco-hauled stock and token exchange.
In fact, the best end-to-end speed declined from 45.5mph to 43.8mph.

I can only speak for the Sligo line - is this widespread elsewhere? And if so, what is going to be done about it?

Mark Gleeson · 27-07-2006, 19:24

This is the now standard punctuality standard crap, Sligo of course has the most reliable service in the country, that said its taking at least 15 minutes longer than it should

29000 railcars are mean machines when driven hard and will outrun anything they will make up huge chunks of time, you will get slack with single lines thats always been the way

I keep saying Thurles Dublin 64 minutes flat in the old days was a repeatable time, best time currently is north of 75 minutes and they have trouble making that

Derek Wheeler · 27-07-2006, 19:50

John,

Your issue is one that is being covered in P11's forthcoming version of what the IE customer charter should be like. We are also working on a legal method of obtaining punctuality statistics from IE. The "padding" in the timetable is purely a method of ensuring close compatibility with promises in the current passenger charter. In simple terms, a con job, that doesn't push the railway to obtaining a level of service, that justifies two things...

1. The investment made

2. A modern 21st service.

Thomas J Stamp · 27-07-2006, 20:34

Oisin88 · 27-07-2006, 20:51

Funny thing, the Galway-Dublin timetable padding is mostly in the Tullamore/Portarlington bit. Traditionally it is 10 minutes late (consistently) at those stations.

Last few weeks they have been making it on time. Then they hand around the scenic inchicore "semi-tunnel" for 10-15 minutes. The announcer let us know last week that they had to wait because they arrived ahead of schedule.

Derek Wheeler · 27-07-2006, 20:58

[quote=Oisin88]Funny thing, the Galway-Dublin timetable padding is mostly in the Tullamore/Portarlington bit. Traditionally it is 10 minutes late (consistently) at those stations.[quote]

Thats probably because, this section has to allow for the padding on services operating on the Cork line.

Let one pad go and the other pad in and we aaalllllllll paaaadddddd together!

Get Paul Mcartney and the frog on the case.

Its actually becoming a real bone of contention for customers. They've started noticing it and maybe we'll go to town on it.

27-07-2006, 19:15	#1
John J Regular Poster Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Longford Posts: 50	Slack in timetables... Is anything going to be done about the level of slack in Irish Rail timetables? It has surely gone beyond a joke since the end of last year. This is something that really pisses me off as this slack costs me up to an hour and a half per week. For example, I caught the 17.00 Connolly-Sligo this evening as far as Longford. First stop was Mullingar. Used to the long spells of hanging around, I decided I'd keep an eye on my watch. It arrived in Mullingar at 17.58, but the scheduled departure time isn't till 18.06. Cue a 10 minute wait until the eventual departure at 18.08. Next stop Edgeworthstown, where we waited 3-4 minutes. The train also sat in Longford for quite some time. I was well out of sight by the time it left for the rest of its trip to Sligo, which it would complete at the lightning fast average speed of 40mph. I can see why Irish Rail might want to add slack at the end of a journey, but surely adding these lengths throughout the schedule is totally inexcusable? The Sligo line was faster last year with loco-hauled stock and token exchange. In fact, the best end-to-end speed declined from 45.5mph to 43.8mph. I can only speak for the Sligo line - is this widespread elsewhere? And if so, what is going to be done about it?

27-07-2006, 19:24	#2
Mark Gleeson Technical Officer Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Coach C, Seat 33 Posts: 12,669	This is the now standard punctuality standard crap, Sligo of course has the most reliable service in the country, that said its taking at least 15 minutes longer than it should 29000 railcars are mean machines when driven hard and will outrun anything they will make up huge chunks of time, you will get slack with single lines thats always been the way I keep saying Thurles Dublin 64 minutes flat in the old days was a repeatable time, best time currently is north of 75 minutes and they have trouble making that Last edited by Mark Gleeson : 31-07-2006 at 10:13.

27-07-2006, 20:34	#4
Thomas J Stamp Chairman/Publicity Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: The Home of Hurling Posts: 2,708	__________________ We are the passengers

27-07-2006, 20:51	#5
Oisin88 Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Dublin Posts: 608	The Slack is Hitting Back! Funny thing, the Galway-Dublin timetable padding is mostly in the Tullamore/Portarlington bit. Traditionally it is 10 minutes late (consistently) at those stations. Last few weeks they have been making it on time. Then they hand around the scenic inchicore "semi-tunnel" for 10-15 minutes. The announcer let us know last week that they had to wait because they arrived ahead of schedule.

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27-07-2006, 19:50	#3
Derek Wheeler Registered user Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Kildare Posts: 1,555	John, Your issue is one that is being covered in P11's forthcoming version of what the IE customer charter should be like. We are also working on a legal method of obtaining punctuality statistics from IE. The "padding" in the timetable is purely a method of ensuring close compatibility with promises in the current passenger charter. In simple terms, a con job, that doesn't push the railway to obtaining a level of service, that justifies two things... 1. The investment made 2. A modern 21st service.

27-07-2006, 20:58	#6
Derek Wheeler Registered user Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Kildare Posts: 1,555	[quote=Oisin88]Funny thing, the Galway-Dublin timetable padding is mostly in the Tullamore/Portarlington bit. Traditionally it is 10 minutes late (consistently) at those stations.[quote] Thats probably because, this section has to allow for the padding on services operating on the Cork line. Let one pad go and the other pad in and we aaalllllllll paaaadddddd together! Get Paul Mcartney and the frog on the case. Its actually becoming a real bone of contention for customers. They've started noticing it and maybe we'll go to town on it.