Response from Transwilts CIC to South Western Stakeholder Consultation This Is a Response on Behalf of Transwilts CIC That Incorporated the CRP from January 2015
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Response from TransWilts CIC to South Western Stakeholder Consultation This is a response on behalf of TransWilts CIC that incorporated the CRP from January 2015. We represent views from Wiltshire communities using rail passenger transport. The TransWilts CRP has been operating since December 2013 between Swindon and Westbury, with a single carriage, 8 trains per day service (Appendix 1 Wiltshire route map). Passenger journeys have grown from 25,000 to 230,000 by December 2015, increasing by 30% in the last year (see Appendix 5). Melksham Station passenger growth is 7th largest in UK +117%. You have requested evidenced innovative proposals for the new franchise. In summary we are seeking the SW franchise specification to include extending the existing Swindon to Westbury service to Southampton Airport via Salisbury. This provides an hourly service by utilising the Three Rivers CRP service and existing and proposed TransWilts GWR rolling stock. The proposal includes the opening of a park and ride station at Wilton. This new station will serve Salisbury providing congestion relief, and also serve Stonehenge as a sustainable gateway. There is a need for the DfT to facilitate dual franchise arrangements between GWR and the SW franchisee to ensure a proper timetable and connectivity for Wiltshire. Our responses to the consultation questions are listed below: Passenger Satisfaction Q: Do you support the key priorities that have been identified through the Transport Focus research? A: We particularly support the first priority regarding better value for money train tickets. Westbury Station is a hub on the boundary of two franchises GWR Western Paddington routes and the SW franchise. The SW franchise offers an alternative route to London via Waterloo and at lower cost fares. (See Appendix 2). It is essential that the franchising specification continues to provide competitive options in Wiltshire which only receives a comprehensive regional service by being served by two franchises. We are concerned that the pressure for faster services to London from Cornwall does not have the consequence of GWR cutting out stops at Westbury which is a key boundary hub between franchises currently providing connectivity and fare competition to London via Waterloo. Q: Are there other priorities you believe should be included to inform the new franchise specification? A: Connectivity of services is an important issue to our passengers particularly in areas where there are infrequent services. The recognition of essential connections in timetabling and the disproportionate impact of cancelled or missed connections could be usefully included. Franchise Objectives Q: Do you feel that these are appropriate objectives for the South Western franchise? A: In Objective 5 regarding collaborative working, we would strongly seek the inclusion of the franchises that are adjacent to the South Western franchise and those which provide interconnecting services within the franchise area. Q: Are there any further objectives you believe should be included? A: See comment above. Capacity Q: Considering the planned schemes to deliver additional capacity, what are your views on additional opportunities to deliver more capacity elsewhere within the franchise area? A: There are opportunities to make better use of existing rolling stock with relatively low cost changes to infrastructure. In particular at Salisbury Station where trains are split and held because of the current platform arrangements. Excessive train movements and substantial in platform results. Proposals exist for making platform 2 reversible and reinstating platforms 1 and 5 for passenger use. These will enable London Salisbury trains to continue further west to serve Wilton Station within the existing timetable and will permit the Romsey services to travel towards Westbury combining with the TransWilts service. The franchise should include the requirement to bring the existing platforms 1 to 6 into more effective service use, enabling the provision of cross platform connections at platform 2 and 3. Q: Are there particular services or routes where you believe there is a need to introduce additional capacity to address overcrowding? A: No comment. Q: It may be possible to increase overall passenger carrying capacity by introducing different rolling stock that has more standing space and/or modifying the internal configuration of trains, including rebalancing first and standard class seating. Do you have views on these potential rolling stock changes? A: Use of vertical cycle racks combined with large luggage space areas will increase the flexibility of use of rolling stock serving ports and airports. Current cycle storage arrangements are often inadequate and intrusive for passengers on crowded trains. Future impacts on demand Q: What factors may impact on demand for travel on the new South Western franchise, drawing on local impacts in particular? Please provide any evidence you may have. A: Reference to the Swindon and Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership planning shows, a. A high growth economy with large residential developments down the Swindon to Salisbury corridor with a population equivalent to Bristol and Bath. (Appendix 3) b. A significant military presence – 25% UK troops c. National visitor attraction – Stonehenge d. Porton Science Park development Train Service Specification Q: Where, if anywhere, would you like to see any changes to first and last trains on the South Western network and why? Do you have any evidence to support this? A: Services to Southampton Airport should serve the first and last flights, departure and arrival. (Appendix 6) Q: Where, if anywhere, would you like to see any changes to weekend trains on the South Western network and why? Do you have any evidence to support this? A: Evidence from our 2015 passenger survey shows how important weekend trains are to our passengers. Volumes at the weekend are as high as on a weekday. During our on train survey passenger numbers counted on a Saturday were 101% of Monday’s and on Sunday 82% of Monday’s passenger numbers. (Appendix 5) Q: Would you support a specification which is flexible enough to allow the operator to review how station calls are allocated to train paths in order to improve overall line capacity? What impact might this have on passengers? A: The need for flexibility is understood but the impact is determined by the frequency of services and the connections to other services. Station hubs for connections such as Westbury and Salisbury should not have skip stopping. The stopping frequency of alternative services at stations including other franchises needs to be carefully considered to avoid stranding passengers at remote rural stations. Q: Respondents are invited to propose any changes to the current service pattern which they feel should be considered and to explain their rationale, for example by identifying specific local factors which might influence the future level of passenger demand which should be reflected in a revised specification. A: We welcome the extension of services to Frome via Westbury in the December 2015 timetable. We propose to extend the existing TransWilts service, Swindon to Westbury, to Southampton Airport by combining the use of the Three Rivers CRP service and existing rolling stock, which has significant timetable capacity. The combined GWR services and SW franchise service would provide an hourly service Swindon to Southampton Airport. This service incorporates existing infrequent local trains to Salisbury, Warminster and Southampton. The resulting service calling at Dilton Marsh and resolving the current unfathomable Halt timetable to Dilton Marsh, which serves a growing new housing residential area. The new service would also serve a new station at Wilton Parkway, which with other existing GWR and SWT services, would provide a Park and Ride station for Salisbury A36 congestion relief and a station to serve Stonehenge 1.3 million visitors (8 miles to Visitor Centre). The service provides connections for Wiltshire business, access to ports, airports and coast. There are minimal infrastructure changes, signalling at Salisbury station with more flexible platform use and a signal at existing Wilton cross over. These infrastructure changes would facilitate the Waterloo to Salisbury service extending to Wilton Parkway. This service would enable promotion of day trips to Stonehenge from London Waterloo. Q: Respondents who wish to promote service changes should clearly identify these in their response to this consultation, as well as any supporting business case or value for money (VfM) analysis. A: Our extension of TransWilts service proposal substantially improves the utilisation of existing Three Rivers Romsey SW franchise rolling stock. The Wiltshire north-south economic corridor contains a 433,000 population, which is connected to airports and ports by the GWR and SW franchises. (See Appendix 3). Stonehenge is a national and international tourist destination, with 1.3 million visitors in 2014, which would be sustainably connected to visitors travelling from London by a station at Wilton, and to Southampton seaport and airport by rail. Day visits to Stonehenge are easily facilitated from London Waterloo using current and proposed service timetables. The Swindon and Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership - Strategic Economic Plan January 2016 Objective 2, identifies “Transport Infrastructure Improvements – we need a well connected and resilient transport system” to “Deliver packages