Island Line

[Andrea506]

I'm just back from a holiday on the Isle of Wight. I can't help thinking that after all the money that was spent on improvements to the electric railway, the service is no better if not worse than previously. In August at the peak of the holiday season the train service during the day is just hourly and several terminate at Ryde Esplanade leaving two hour gaps in service at the Pier Head. They were running just one 2 coach train which was rammed full when I used it to get to the steam railway, while three train sets were idle in the sidings. 

I mentioned this in the hotel where I stayed and their opinion of the Island Line was "rubbish". 

Meanwhile Southern Vectis run four buses per hour between Ryde and Shanklin, which while slower at least I could sit down, and use a rover ticket valid all around the island (except on the trains!).

 

 

[Fishoutofwater]

3 hours ago, Andrea506 said:

leaving two hour gaps in service at the Pier Head

There are two hour gaps in the Fastcat service so no need to go up the pier.

[Andrea506]

Yes I can see your point but that doesn't account for the poor service on the rest of the line.

[keefer]

 Pages of this thread discuss the relevant service provision etc, although it's been a wee while since it was active

[EmporiaSub]

The service isn’t wonderful, but it certainly isn’t rubbish, unless you want to believe the local press.

An hourly service outside the peaks is all that you’re likely to get, and there are only a handful of services a year where it warrants either more than a 2 car or an increased frequency.

Don’t forget the units were ordered pre-Covid, hence the number of units.

Whilst there might be 4 buses an hour between Ryde and Shanklin during the daytime (the Number 2 service doesn’t run in the evenings), the buses are totally unsuitable for anyone with luggage.

 

[hexagon789]

Once the performance issues with the new infrastructure can be resolved, it is planned to return to twice hourly off-peak on an even 30-min frequency. (The paths are all still in the electronic WTT.)

 

That compares to the previous skewed 20/40-min frequency under the 483s.

 

Or going back to when the Brading-Sandown section was still double track - every 20 mins...

 

Progress, eh? ;)

[John M Upton]

2 hours ago, EmporiaSub said:

The buses are totally unsuitable for anyone with luggage.

 

 

I would argue that the vast majority of trains in service today, not just on the Isle of Wight but across the National Rail Network are totally unsuitable for anyone with luggage.  Mind you it would probably help if people did not insist on bringing a suitcase the size of a shipping container just to spend the weekend with their granny...

[Reorte]

12 hours ago, John M Upton said:

 

I would argue that the vast majority of trains in service today, not just on the Isle of Wight but across the National Rail Network are totally unsuitable for anyone with luggage.  Mind you it would probably help if people did not insist on bringing a suitcase the size of a shipping container just to spend the weekend with their granny...

 

If that's what people bring regularly then that's what a service needs to cater for. Of course there are real world limitations on that ideal but I did find it a bit ludicrous once when I saw signs asking people to try to keep the amount of luggage down - on a Manchester Airport service.

[Andrea506]

On 22/08/2022 at 19:50, EmporiaSub said:

The service isn’t wonderful, but it certainly isn’t rubbish, unless you want to believe the local press.

An hourly service outside the peaks is all that you’re likely to get, and there are only a handful of services a year where it warrants either more than a 2 car or an increased frequency.

Don’t forget the units were ordered pre-Covid, hence the number of units.

Whilst there might be 4 buses an hour between Ryde and Shanklin during the daytime (the Number 2 service doesn’t run in the evenings), the buses are totally unsuitable for anyone with luggage.

 

The island was very busy with holidaymakers while I was there, the buses were full and the one train running was "standing room only" when I used it. I would say things are more or less back to normal now so why not run a second train during the day? Or is the long term plan to make the railway so unattractive that it can be closed altogether in a few years time?

[EmporiaSub]

17 hours ago, Andrea506 said:

The island was very busy with holidaymakers while I was there, the buses were full and the one train running was "standing room only" when I used it. I would say things are more or less back to normal now so why not run a second train during the day? Or is the long term plan to make the railway so unattractive that it can be closed altogether in a few years time?

The level of service, considering what the train service levels elsewhere in the UK often are, is more than adequate for the traffic, except for one month a year. And it similar with the buses, though if there are coach parties in town, then often on their free day, they go out for a bus ride elsewhere on the island.

 

[Reorte]

2 hours ago, EmporiaSub said:

The level of service, considering what the train service levels elsewhere in the UK often are, is more than adequate for the traffic, except for one month a year. And it similar with the buses, though if there are coach parties in town, then often on their free day, they go out for a bus ride elsewhere on the island.

 

At what point should there be spare capacity sitting around that isn't used most of the time? "Never" appears to be the current view, and in the past there were sidings full of coaches used once a year, both of those seem to be going too far to one extreme or the other, although how things currently are makes having that spare capacity more difficult and expensive (price you pay for it being less difficult and expensive most of the time).

[Trevellan]

As a local I should perhaps point out that the loss of a second train has most recently been down to staff shortages. Rather ironically, I know of at least two former Southern Vectis bus drivers who now work for Island Line. One is a signalman and the other a driver.

 

If reliability can be restored with a two-train service it is likely that ridership will improve, even out of season. Uncertainty about service levels doesn't exactly engender confidence.

[EmporiaSub]

7 hours ago, Trevellan said:

 

Uncertainty about service levels doesn't exactly engender confidence.

Aided by the local press and those who repeat what they say.

There are a minority on the island that love to denigrate anything here.

[EmporiaSub]

Currently there are 2 trains each hour between Shanklin and Ryde Esplanade, 7 days a week.

10th July is the current date for services to resume to and from the Pier Head, but still only one an hour, 

connecting in and out of the FastCat, with an average 4 minute turn-round.

[lmsforever]

On 25/08/2022 at 08:39, EmporiaSub said:

The level of service, considering what the train service levels elsewhere in the UK often are, is more than adequate for the traffic, except for one month a year. And it similar with the buses, though if there are coach parties in town, then often on their free day, they go out for a bus ride elsewhere on the island.

 

When we were on the island in May on our coach drivers day off we went on an excellent boat trip around Portsmouth harbour very interesting .coach from hotel to Cowes driven by a very interesting American Southern Vectis driver .IOW is a lovely place for a holiday  recommend it to all ,we went backe a week later to Warners at Bembridge going again in September.

[EmporiaSub]

Passenger services resumed to and from the Pier Head today.

I was on the pier on Thursday when crew refreshing trains were running.

[Wickham Green too]

Ah - I see the new walkway where the tram should be !

[EmporiaSub]

Not going well on the island, though SWR are being vague about the issues.

Staff say there’s issues with the wheels…..

 

[John M Upton]

Another day, another shambles...

[Mike_Walker]

On 01/03/2024 at 21:05, EmporiaSub said:

Not going well on the island, though SWR are being vague about the issues.

Staff say there’s issues with the wheels…..

 

According to a senior SWR manager on Monday, the issue is with unexpectedly heavy wheel wear which requires several wheel sets to be replaced.  The reasons causing this are unknown but are being urgently investigated by specialist engineers.

 

[EmporiaSub]

9 hours ago, Mike_Walker said:

According to a senior SWR manager on Monday, the issue is with unexpectedly heavy wheel wear which requires several wheel sets to be replaced.  The reasons causing this are unknown but are being urgently investigated by specialist engineers.

 

Whilst my sources tell me the heavy wheel wear is partly down to the nature of the track bed, being not quite the same as mainline standards. But then island folklore starts to take over after that…..

[uax6]

Thats sounds familiar. Way back when the 1938 stock was taken over there, our family took advantage of a Network Day (remember them?) and went from King's Lynn for a day trip to the IoW. We were lucky to get a 1923 stock train to Shanklin, and after a quick wander around the return train was a set of 1938 stock. Dad got talking with the crew and it turned out that the old stock was being kept in service as the new stock had got serious bogie cracks appearing, owing to the track being on shingle, not ballast.....

 

Andy G

[90136]

On 03/03/2024 at 20:07, EmporiaSub said:

Whilst my sources tell me the heavy wheel wear is partly down to the nature of the track bed, being not quite the same as mainline standards. But then island folklore starts to take over after that…..

The track bed is shocking. The track is almost floating. I loathe doing walks over there. You can feel the bogies hunt as they go, definitely not going to help wheel wear. 

[John M Upton]

Worth a read, an embarrassing shambles if ever there was one!

https://iwobserver.co.uk/5-trains-have-become-4-and-swr-are-buying-wheels-from-a-scrapyard/?fbclid=IwAR1vry428gKVn5e5B_fLS9Zgih7fOtsEbXcLYgEyPueZe6O9afJifGoRrN8