On 25/07/18 10:22, Robin wrote:
On 25/07/2018 09:43, Recliner wrote:

but I've been told
they are available from LO ticket machines (I've not put it to the test).

Yep, the "new" (couple of years ago?) LO machines sell tickets from
Boundary Zone 6 (or 5,4,...) to ....

Then I hope somebody at TfL reads this and gets the UndergounD machines
to offer a BZ6 extension to Gatwick. There is no gate-line between
Stanmore and Gatwick on my preferred route. It has been a pain ever
since they closed the ticket office.

MikeR

In message , at 08:01:39 on Wed, 25 Jul
2018, Recliner remarked:
Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 06:59:20 on Wed, 25 Jul 2018,
Recliner remarked:
Basil Jet wrote:

https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/c...srail/crossrai
l-breaks-budget-by-590m/10033487.article

No surprise that the rumours of overspends are true, but it's interesting
that the final spend will actually be below the original budget:

Is it being built to the original spec, though?

I'm not aware of anything that's been dropped or cut back.

Toilets at all the core stations (except Bond Street which never was
planned to have them for some reason). I expect there are many other
"cost cutting" reductions in the spec at stations through the core as
well.

And the route has been extended, from Maidenhead to Reading.

As an aside, although I'll be a beneficiary of the generosity, I can't see
a good reason for London Freedom Pass holders to get free travel all the
way to Reading. It seems to be an unnecessary give-away.

Wouldn't that have to be paid for by the non-London LAs en-route?

Is it possible to use a Freedom pass to Brentwood and Shenfield,
currently? (I'm not following those nuances at the moment).

--
Roland Perry

On 25/07/2018 11:48, Mike Roberts wrote:
On 25/07/18 10:22, Robin wrote:
On 25/07/2018 09:43, Recliner wrote:

but I've been told
they are available from LO ticket machines (I've not put it to the
test).

Yep, the "new" (couple of years ago?) LO machines sell tickets from
Boundary Zone 6 (or 5,4,...) to ....

Then I hope somebody at TfL reads this and gets the UndergounD machines
to offer a BZ6 extension to Gatwick. There is no gate-line between
Stanmore and Gatwick on my preferred route. It has been a pain ever
since they closed the ticket office.


I'd rather [all] the machines at Network Rail stations started issuing
them. I could have sworn I'd used one at Victoria that did but
discovered last year they didn't. Given the length of the queue for the
ticket office I only caught my planned train thanks to a kind employee
sending me to one of the excess fares counters.


--
Robin
reply-to address is (intended to be) valid

In message , at 09:10:19 on Wed, 25 Jul
2018, Recliner remarked:
Enquiring minds wish to know whether its launch in December will be
delayed until next May as a result of the timetable-freeze.

I thought the bit of Crossrail that is scheduled to begin in December
is on dedicated track so doesn't need to coordinate a timetable change
with the rest of the network anymore than the Waterloo & City does.

I think that's correct. The only new track to open will be the central
core, accessed only by Abbey Wood trains.

OK, so that appears to be sufficiently air-gapped off at Abbey Wood
to mean TfL could run that service independently of Network Rail
potentially having to approve any of the timetable from Abbey Wood to
Paddington.

I presume we are all on the same page that NR has no influence over by
whom and when trains are run on that section?

The next round of 'more through running' hailed for May 2019 does
however require route knowledge from Paddington to Shenfield that didn't
previously exist.

GTR's May 2018 timetable flopped in part because the December 2017
timetable didn't include enough ECS or shadow-PAX through-running
route-knowledge services.

How are Tfl expecting to create a big enough route-knowledge base to run
the May 2019 service if the December 2018 lack-of-timetable change
scuppers all the expected Shenfield-Paddington route learning diagrams?
--
Roland Perry

On 25/07/18 14:26, Roland Perry wrote:
OK, so that appears to be sufficiently air-gapped off at Abbey Wood
to mean TfL could run that service independently of Network Rail
potentially having to approve any of the timetable from Abbey Wood to
Paddington.

Operationally, yes. Is there any attempt to provide good connections
for passengers, or are services too frequent for that to be necessary?

In message , at 14:55:14 on Wed, 25 Jul
2018, Certes remarked:

OK, so that appears to be sufficiently air-gapped off at Abbey Wood
to mean TfL could run that service independently of Network Rail
potentially having to approve any of the timetable from Abbey Wood to
Paddington.

Operationally, yes. Is there any attempt to provide good connections
for passengers, or are services too frequent for that to be necessary?

The foot connections at places like Paddington are too tortuous for
anyone to claim that service A (from Abbey Wood) was ever planned to
connect with service B (west from Paddington on the main line).
--
Roland Perry

On 25/07/2018 19:42, Clank wrote:
Robin Wrote in message:
On 25/07/2018 11:48, Mike Roberts wrote:
On 25/07/18 10:22, Robin wrote:
On 25/07/2018 09:43, Recliner wrote:

but I've been told
they are available from LO ticket machines (I've not put it to the
test).

Yep, the "new" (couple of years ago?) LO machines sell tickets from
Boundary Zone 6 (or 5,4,...) to ....

Then I hope somebody at TfL reads this and gets the UndergounD machines
to offer a BZ6 extension to Gatwick. There is no gate-line between
Stanmore and Gatwick on my preferred route. It has been a pain ever
since they closed the ticket office.


I'd rather [all] the machines at Network Rail stations started issuing
them. I could have sworn I'd used one at Victoria that did but
discovered last year they didn't. Given the length of the queue for the
ticket office I only caught my planned train thanks to a kind employee
sending me to one of the excess fares counters.

That's a major regression if so - Southern ticket machines have sold boundary extensions since pretty much forever. I mean since the Connex SouthCentral days level of forever.


Just asked 'er indoors and she's had the same experience with the
machine at Victoria.

--
Robin
reply-to address is (intended to be) valid

Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 08:01:39 on Wed, 25 Jul
2018, Recliner remarked:
Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 06:59:20 on Wed, 25 Jul 2018,
Recliner remarked:
Basil Jet wrote:

https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/c...srail/crossrai
l-breaks-budget-by-590m/10033487.article

No surprise that the rumours of overspends are true, but it's interesting
that the final spend will actually be below the original budget:

Is it being built to the original spec, though?

I'm not aware of anything that's been dropped or cut back.

Toilets at all the core stations (except Bond Street which never was
planned to have them for some reason). I expect there are many other
"cost cutting" reductions in the spec at stations through the core as
well.

And the route has been extended, from Maidenhead to Reading.

As an aside, although I'll be a beneficiary of the generosity, I can't see
a good reason for London Freedom Pass holders to get free travel all the
way to Reading. It seems to be an unnecessary give-away.

Wouldn't that have to be paid for by the non-London LAs en-route?

Is it possible to use a Freedom pass to Brentwood and Shenfield,
currently? (I'm not following those nuances at the moment).

Yup, Freedom Passes are valid on TfL Rail trains only to Shenfield. It's
similar to the situation at Watford Junction, to which Freedom Passes are
valid on LO services only.

Robin Wrote in message:
On 25/07/2018 11:48, Mike Roberts wrote:
On 25/07/18 10:22, Robin wrote:
On 25/07/2018 09:43, Recliner wrote:

but I've been told
they are available from LO ticket machines (I've not put it to the
test).

Yep, the "new" (couple of years ago?) LO machines sell tickets from
Boundary Zone 6 (or 5,4,...) to ....

Then I hope somebody at TfL reads this and gets the UndergounD machines
to offer a BZ6 extension to Gatwick. There is no gate-line between
Stanmore and Gatwick on my preferred route. It has been a pain ever
since they closed the ticket office.


I'd rather [all] the machines at Network Rail stations started issuing
them. I could have sworn I'd used one at Victoria that did but
discovered last year they didn't. Given the length of the queue for the
ticket office I only caught my planned train thanks to a kind employee
sending me to one of the excess fares counters.

That's a major regression if so - Southern ticket machines have sold boundary extensions since pretty much forever. I mean since the Connex SouthCentral days level of forever.

--

Robin Wrote in message:
On 25/07/2018 19:42, Clank wrote:
Robin Wrote in message:
On 25/07/2018 11:48, Mike Roberts wrote:
On 25/07/18 10:22, Robin wrote:
On 25/07/2018 09:43, Recliner wrote:

but I've been told
they are available from LO ticket machines (I've not put it to the
test).

Yep, the "new" (couple of years ago?) LO machines sell tickets from
Boundary Zone 6 (or 5,4,...) to ....

Then I hope somebody at TfL reads this and gets the UndergounD machines
to offer a BZ6 extension to Gatwick. There is no gate-line between
Stanmore and Gatwick on my preferred route. It has been a pain ever
since they closed the ticket office.


I'd rather [all] the machines at Network Rail stations started issuing
them. I could have sworn I'd used one at Victoria that did but
discovered last year they didn't. Given the length of the queue for the
ticket office I only caught my planned train thanks to a kind employee
sending me to one of the excess fares counters.

That's a major regression if so - Southern ticket machines have sold boundary extensions since pretty much forever. I mean since the Connex SouthCentral days level of forever.


Just asked 'er indoors and she's had the same experience with the
machine at Victoria.

Weird; they've reprogrammed or replaced them, then. Since Connex days it's been (digging deep into memory) press small "tickets from another station" button on the first screen, then start typing "bou...", and the various boundary options appear as starting stations.

--