2012 TBEL charters from Poole.

In comparison to last year the 2012 TBEL charters from Poole are unfortunately turning into a disaster. In 2011 the trains to Bristol were fully booked and additional trains were added. A quick glance through my diary has produced the following:

18th April to Bath & Bristol CANCELLED
2nd May to Oxford CANCELLED
16th May to Bath & Bristol CANCELLED
6th June to Windsor RAN!!
20th June to Bath & Bristol CANCELLED (71000 FTR failure)
15th August to Bath & Bristol CANCELLED
15th August to Oxford 71000 failed en route.

<BJ>

 

Shortage of motive power was a factor with the early season trains, although obviously 71000's problems haven't helped. I hope they persevere with them next year. I believe that the early trips were selling very well before they were pulled. By 2013, hopefully 34046 will be available, and who knows, maybe even 35027. I've always been convinced that a prime holiday area like the Bournemouth/Poole/new Forest area ought to be a good place from which to run main line steam. I hope that I'm proved right, but it certainly hasn't been very successful this year so far.

 

Loading on the two trains that have run have been lower than last year as well - this morning's trip out of Poole only had load 8 Dick

 

But it was full of passengers! Surely TBEL could've added an extra coach? With an engine of 71000's power, surely 9 wouldn't be THAT much of a struggle on Parkstone and US banks?

James at SVN

 

Thanks for that James - couldn't really tell looking over the bridge - if full then that is something positive and suggests that there is a market there Dick

 

Too many trains for a too small catchment area in my opinion, nothing wrong with starting charters at Poole if they are occasional, but that many seems overly ambitious.

 

agreed

 

Don't get me wrong, im all for charters starting at places outside the M25, but at places like Poole, say once every 6 months is much more sensible than a programme of six plus, Really only big cities like Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool etc or places within easy reach of them, can sustain a programme of charter pick ups outside of London, places like the North East, South Coast and Wales will support the occasional charter providing the market isn't flooded.

I do wonder if convenience comes into it to a certain extent with Poole, given the stock is stabled nearby at Eastleigh.

 

Has the advantage of picking up at Bournemouth as well as Southampton, so a fair catchment area - last years seemed to be popular and some of those cancelled were fully booked - perhaps just a sign of the times? Dick

 

But Bournemouth, Poole, New Forest area + Southampton is a far larger catchment area than Fort William, which runs daily steam in the summer (or the North Wales area, where the Cambrians were doing pretty well until stupid ERTMS messed them up). These trains run through a good tourist area, and it would be interesting to know what percentage of those booked on TBEL's trains from Poole have been local people and how many have been holidaymakers. I would guess that if the Swanage Railway could access the Furzebrook site and install their turntable once the Motala-Worgret track upgrade and the Dorset Coast re-signalling is complete, these trains might start from Swanage, which would further increase the number of holiday areas to tap en route. Anyway, the people who are running these trains have had quite a bit of experience with the Torbay Express. I doubt if they would have embarked on this expansion without some careful market research first

 

I don't think that is really a fair comparison. Bournemoth etc has a far larger resident population that Fort William, but it's the holidaymakers that fill The Jacobite, and whilst Borunemouth is holiday area, the visitors to that area are probably looking to stay at the seaside rather than spend most of the day on a train to Bristol or passing through the scenic delights of Basingstoke etc. By contrast, vistors to the Fort William are there to enjoy the Highlands and The Jacobite allows them to do so with a more sociable start and finish time than the TBEL trips.

 

True, and no one is suggesting running daily steam from Poole as per the Jacobite. However, add all the resident population of the area from Poole to Southampton together, tack on SOME tourists that MIGHT be tempted by a steam train, and you have something comparable to, say Bristol. which seems to be able to support two steam trains on summer Sundays. I guess only time will tell whether optimists like me are right, or whether TBEL have been over-ambitious. I do agree that 8.05 from Poole is rather an early start. The RTC Cardiff trip on 29th September leaves at a far more civilised hour, according to their website.

 

Poole/Bournemouth/Southampton ought to be a very good catchment area for starting tours. Not only is it a very popular holiday district, it also has a large, relatively wealthy population with quite a high average age - ideal rail-tour customers! The details of the tours on offer may need some refinement, but then it's a matter of good marketing and building up a reputation for quality and reliability.

TBEX are right to try to maximise use of the locos and rolling stock employed on the Torbay Express on Sundays, so long as that doesn't draw passengers away from the core Sunday trains. A progamme or tours starting from Poole ought, on the face of it, to be the ideal compliment to the Bristol operation.

 

Bath Travel are involved with these trips as well and they are still advertised on their site - in fact updated a few days ago. News
Enjoy the recording as well if you follow the link - sounds like the A4 climbing!
Dick

PS The RTC Welshman is now redated on their site to 22092012 and shows an 0830 start from Poole - previous trips have started up to 2 hours earlier!

 

Having listened to the link again I am now not sure whether it is the A4 or the Duke! I thought it was the A4 first time round

 

It's a great recording. Very evocative. If it was one of TBEX/Bath Travel's tours, then it must be the A4 since I don't think DoG has worked one of them before this week. Britannia and Bittern handled all of last year's Poole-Bath tours, IIRC. I guess it's recorded around Dilton Marsh / Upton Scudamore. The loco's obviously working hard, almost certainly climbing. It's somewhere away from roads and chatty on-lookers, and away from photographers with their clattering shutters and aluminium ladders. ;-)

 

Dark side of the moon!!!!!!

 

According to UK steam tomorrow's trip to Windsor is also cancelled. Is this due to the industrial dispute between DBS and ASLEF or is 71000 still not well?

 

I understand 71000 will not be used at moment by TBEL from comments seen elsewhere but whether the industrial issues played any part is not known to me. Hopefully all will be sorted ready for Sept 5th when I understand 70000 Britannia is rostered to Bath and Bristol and train is reported to be booking well.
Dick

 

71000 is due to visit Swanage for theri gala and then has a run scheduled with Steam Dreams from Salisbury the following week. I hope all will be sorted by then,

It's encouraging that all the problems with these trains so far have not deterred customers. It would be good if the 5th September train ran without any problems.