When crossrail starts with Hex vanish? I can't see any reason for its
continued existence but what would happen to the franchise holders?
Will they get a "cut" in crossrail or will the next (or current?)
contract expire the day corssrail is due to expire?

B2003

"Boltar" wrote in message
ups.com...
When crossrail starts with Hex vanish? I can't see any reason for its
continued existence but what would happen to the franchise holders?
Will they get a "cut" in crossrail or will the next (or current?)
contract expire the day corssrail is due to expire?


HEx will carry on as the non-stop service, and Heathrow Connect will be
taken over by Crossrail. It's all covered on their website, where they
explain how the flyover at airport junction will be altered to provide
separate non conflicting junctions from both the fast and relief lines.

Paul

On Oct 6, 5:39 pm, Boltar wrote:
When crossrail starts with Hex vanish?

Heathrow Express will continue as is, with Crossrail replacing
Heathrow Connect. HEx customers already pay over the odds for a not
particularly convenient journey, and I'm sure they'll continue to.

I can't see any reason for its
continued existence but what would happen to the franchise holders?

Heathrow Express is owned and run by BAA. It isn't a franchise and
I'd imagine they have quite a long term track access agreement with
Network Rail for getting its trains to Paddington, so it can't easily
be shut down by external forces.

U

--
http://londonconnections.blogspot.com/
A blog about transport projects in London

"Boltar" wrote in message
ups.com...
When crossrail starts with Hex vanish? I can't see any reason for its
continued existence but what would happen to the franchise holders?
Will they get a "cut" in crossrail or will the next (or current?)
contract expire the day corssrail is due to expire?

They seem to have no difficulty selling an express train
in Vienna that costs twice the price and only takes 5 minutes
less than the stopper.

tim

On Oct 6, 6:27 pm, "tim....." wrote:
"Boltar" wrote in message

ups.com...

When crossrail starts with Hex vanish? I can't see any reason for its
continued existence but what would happen to the franchise holders?
Will they get a "cut" in crossrail or will the next (or current?)
contract expire the day corssrail is due to expire?

They seem to have no difficulty selling an express train
in Vienna that costs twice the price and only takes 5 minutes
less than the stopper.


And weekend trains to Birmingham at Virgin's weekday prices that take
longer than Chiltern.

MIG wrote:

And weekend trains to Birmingham at Virgin's weekday prices that take
longer than Chiltern.

Not the best time to have posted that, really! The other weekend the
resignalling of the South Midlands and the repositioning of the junctions at
Tyseley (to allow higher speeds for non-stop services) commenced. As a
result, weekend Chiltern services are only running (alternately) to Dorridge
and to Coventry, hourly, on Saturdays and to Dorridge and to Birmingham New
Street (via Coventry) on Sundays until the end of the autumn.

On Oct 6, 6:27 pm, "tim....." wrote:
They seem to have no difficulty selling an express train
in Vienna that costs twice the price and only takes 5 minutes
less than the stopper.

Presumably though that goes to somewhere useful. Paddington was a no-
other-choice option for Hex. When crossrail opens why would anyone pay
more to go to paddington when they could get a slightly slower train
and actually get much nearer to their destination?

B2003

Jack Taylor wrote:
MIG wrote:
And weekend trains to Birmingham at Virgin's weekday prices that take
longer than Chiltern.

Not the best time to have posted that, really! The other weekend the
resignalling of the South Midlands and the repositioning of the junctions at
Tyseley (to allow higher speeds for non-stop services) commenced. As a
result, weekend Chiltern services are only running (alternately) to Dorridge
and to Coventry, hourly, on Saturdays and to Dorridge and to Birmingham New
Street (via Coventry) on Sundays until the end of the autumn.

That notwithstanding, the journey times (even with the change at
Banbury, Leamington Spa or Coventry onto VT services) are *still*
comparable with Chiltern's normal timings.

Weekday Off-Peak: 2 hours 15 minutes (average)
Headline Time (18:00 ex-MYB): 1 hour 59 minutes

Saturday: 2 hours 15 minutes (average)

Sunday: 2 hours 19 minutes (average)

At present, we have the following:

Saturday (change at Coventry): 2 hours 29 minutes

Sunday (direct to New Street): 2 hours 39 minutes

So that's around 10 minutes slower on Saturdays and 20 on Sundays,
mostly (I suspect) due to the single track section between Leamington
Spa and Coventry.

Cheers,

Barry

"Boltar" wrote in message
ups.com...
On Oct 6, 6:27 pm, "tim....." wrote:
They seem to have no difficulty selling an express train
in Vienna that costs twice the price and only takes 5 minutes
less than the stopper.

Presumably though that goes to somewhere useful.

It goes to the same station that the other train goes to.
Which, whilst more convenient than Padd, is not ideal
for everybody.

tim

Mr Thant wrote:
On Oct 6, 5:39 pm, Boltar wrote:
When crossrail starts with Hex vanish?

Heathrow Express will continue as is, with Crossrail replacing
Heathrow Connect. HEx customers already pay over the odds for a not
particularly convenient journey, and I'm sure they'll continue to.

HEx customers would pay over the odds for that journey even if it took
longer than the other options. Actually sometimes it already does and
they do.
--
Michael Hoffman