Packed 4-coach 22k this morning

[DundalkStudent]

All trains moved slowly yesterday evening. My dart to Pearse took an age between stops and all trains out of there were running late. Maybe there was a message out to all drivers to go slow in the windy weather.

[James Howard]

I thought that the trains appeared to be very slow approach Edgeworthstown from Longford which is on a descent when they are 4 car 22Ks. But it was only an impression - I didn't time it.

The formations seem to be stabilising a bit - we now seem to have 7 cars instead of 6 for the 0545 from Sligo. The 1805 to Longford was an 8 car! 29k on Tuesday which was about 10% loaded past Mullingar but still as uncomfortable as ever. Quite how this is saving them money is beyond me as running 8 cars of 29k flat out for long stretches can hardly be saving fuel over running 6 cars of 22k at a relatively normal pace.

[DundalkStudent]

There's some good info from Inishkeen on the up to date travel info thread on slow trains: looks like it's variations in driver training/capabilities to handle the adverse weather combined with varying levels of sanding equipment installed on the trains themselves.

[Mark Gleeson]

The equipment is not the issue here, staff training and experience is the real problem.

Modern trains, just slam the brake on and let the computer do its thing, some drivers get ridiculously over cautious and aggressively try to modulate the braking effort.

The biggest delay generator is actually the failure to depart on time, I can see what time the train arrived into the platform, routinely see trains leaving 1-2 minutes late for no reason

[DundalkStudent]

You see quite a lot of people running up to the train at the last second and pushing the button for doors to open. The 2nd or 3rd openings per stop can add delays. Plus sometimes if a driver sees you running or at a turnstile they'll try to wait for you.

I don't want to give out about the above as it's saved my bacon a few times. Especially in contrast to the Enterprise when they don't care who you are or where you're going, departure time is departure time.

I'm not saying the first way is right and the 2nd way is wrong but we're not the British or the Germans, obsessed with punctuality as a culture. And (especially the British) angry when people can just show up late and swan on with special treatment. I don't see this as a bad thing. The understanding and compassion displayed by us as a culture is a very positive feature that I hope we don't lose.

Still, I got sick of the potential stress of running between dart and train so now I take an earlier dart to give myself extra time and aim to be at train station 10 mins before in the morning (actual = 5 min).

[James Howard]

I frequently see drivers having a nice little chat with the station attendant (whatever they are called now) at Edgeworthstown blithely ignoring the timetable. I get a strong impression that a lot of delays are generated by staff not being bothered. When is the last time you've seen a driver run while changing ends of a train that has just arrived in late for its next run? Similarly, while it is charming, there is more than a hint of the "Are you right there Michael" about trains closing up, pulling off and then stopping to pick up a late passenger.

I think that this year it is particularly bad for some services and they have scored a spectacular own-goal by reconfiguring the rolling stock during peak leaf-slip season. Mercifully for me, the Sligo line has been relatively unaffected by delays largely thanks to the demise of the 1700 up-train.

[ACustomer]

Poor adhesion in the leaf-fall season is not just a matter of wheelslip on acceleration, it's also a matter of reduced braking effectiveness. While modern anti-slip devices can prevent skidding and wheelflats, if the rails are slippy, then stopping distances are longer, just as a wet runway degrades the stopping performance of the most sophisticated braking systems found on airliners.

You can't beat the laws of physics.