"Adrian Auer-Hudson" wrote in message
oups.com...

You are probably right. Although, I am not entirely sure why. I am a
lifelong GC fan who grew up near Aylesbury. And, I have a soft spot
for the old met. So from a nostalgic perspective I hate to see any
more dismantling of the old order.

I can understand that viewpoint. The old Metropolitan Railway was a special
beast. The LUL Metropolitan Line, OTOH, is nothing special! I would like to
see the line running as close to mainline standards as possible, rather than
the current excuse for a service.

However, let us look at this from Chiltern's viewpoint. By stealth
Chiltern have acquired a main line from London to Birmingham. The
development potential on that line is immense. Chiltern's investment
thus far is paying off. They have a loyal and satisfied customer base.

As indeed they do on the Aylesbury line. The fact that they can now run (and
fill) trains which run non-stop between Great Missenden and Marylebone (and
that quite a number of former LUL passengers drive to Great Missenden to use
these, in preference to LUL Amersham services) is testament to that. There
is great potential for further enhancements in the area north of Amersham
(even north of Aylesbury), as the number of people choosing to live (or only
being able to afford to live!) that far out from London steadily increases.

By comparison to Chiltern's Birmingham route, the Aylesbury "branch"
must be a nuisance. For a major portion of their journey Chiltern's
trains have to share inferior standard track with subway trains.
Chiltern's engineers have to be familiar with two different signaling
systems.

A problem - but one which they have been capable of coping with for many
years.

Moreover, TfL's electrification is wasted on Chiltern's diesel fleet.
I would suggest there is room for some strategic planning here. If
Chiltern lost the Aylesbury route it could be a gain for them.

From over fifteen years commuting experience on the line, my feelings are
the opposite. I strongly feel that the solution should be for LUL to operate
the Uxbridge and Watford (Junction, ASAP) branches, with the current fast
lines to Amersham and beyond transferred to Network Rail control, where they
can be upgraded to proper main line standards of minimum 75mph, as opposed
to the present stagger. The two systems would then be entirely segregated.

The arguments about through running to the City are spurious. When I first
started commuting, all off-peak services terminated at Baker Street in any
case and it is only in recent years that through running throughout the day
has recommenced. In spite of that, the numbers of passengers that do travel
through off-peak is negligible and could easily be catered for by a
cross-platform transfer to a Watford or Uxbridge service at
Harrow-on-the-Hill. Many City passengers already use Chiltern into
Marylebone and transfer to LUL services there, due to the quicker journey
times (11 minutes Harrow to Marylebone, as opposed to 20 minutes to Baker
Street - or longer in the rush hour when it is not uncommon to sit
stationary on the Met line between Preston Road and Baker Street!).