Our New Franchise - TravelWatch SouthWest

Great Western Railway
Our New Franchise
Travelwatch South West update
Ben Rule, Operations Director
October 2015
Overview
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Our new Franchise
The Franchise Aims and Outcomes
South West High Speed Services
South West Local Services
Night Riviera Sleeper
GWR Brand
Stations Investment
Community Rail
Conclusion
“There is a massive programme of infrastructure
and rolling stock investment that is being made by
this Government in the franchise as part of our
long term economic plan…. Having a stable
partner that understands the complexities of this
vital franchise throughout these works will allow for
better value for money during this award and
enable us to get to a “steady state” operating pitch
on which to build the next franchise competition.”
Claire Perry, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for,
October 2014
Our new Franchise
 Brand new franchise
 From 20 September 2015 to 1
April 2019 (3 Years and 7
Railway Periods)
 DfT may extend by up to 1 year
 Covers whole of the existing
Great Western franchise area
 FGW will pay the Government
a premium of around £68
million to operate the franchise
over the core term
Franchise Aims
 To build on our experience and record of delivery to
deliver a thriving franchise, with benefits right across the
region we serve
 To work in close partnership with the rail industry and
key stakeholders to fully realise the benefits of the £7.5bn
Great Western Route Modernisation Programme
(GWRMP)
 To combine infrastructure, station and rolling stock
investment with new timetables (2 major changes: May
2017 and December 2018) to deliver substantial
passenger benefits, with major capacity improvements
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Franchise Outcomes
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New or updated trains in every area of
the network – including a brand new fleet
of privately funded intercity trains for
services to and from Devon and Cornwall
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More direct trains into Devon and
Cornwall, doubling the number of trains
into and out of Cornwall, and reducing
journey times between Paddington and
Penzance by up to 14 minutes
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More seats for local commuters on key
routes across the franchise including
Bristol, Exeter, Cardiff to Portsmouth,
Oxford and Gatwick services. For
example:
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16% increase in peak capacity into London
Paddington
58% increase in capacity across Exeter
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Service Level Commitments
September 2015 (SLC 1)
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Timetable as previous (with West of England service
enhancements introduced in Dec 2014)
May 2017 (SLC 2)
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Some benefits from new and cascaded trains realised
December 2018 (SLC 3)
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Full benefits from new and cascaded trains
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Faster journey times, more seats
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South West High Speed Services
Standard off-peak pattern: 2 tph London to Bristol via Bath and Chippenham, 2 tph London
to Bristol Temple Meads via Bristol Parkway, 2 tph to South Wales via Bristol Parkway, 1 tph
North Cotswolds and 1 tph South Cotswolds
 Increased frequency and
reduced journey times
 Peak service to include a
third Bristol TM service
via Bath and a third South
Wales service
 All peak trains will be
formed of 9 or 10-car
Class 800/801trains
 Some trains from our
West of England fleet will
cover the shortfall on our
North Cotswolds route
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South West High Speed Services (2)
Journey time improvements for long distance services
contemplated by our December 2018 timetable:
Journey
2013
Fastest
December 2018
Improvement
Typical
Fastest
Typical
Fastest
Typical
90 mins
(1hr 30min)
17 mins
(18%)
15 mins
(14%)
London –
Bristol
Temple
Meads
96 mins
(1hr 36min)
105 mins
(1hr 45min)
79 mins
(via BPW)
(1hr 19min)
London –
Cardiff
Central
119
Mins
(1hr 59min)
127 mins
(2hr 7min)
105 mins
(1hr 45min)
113 mins
(1hr 53min)
14 mins
(11%)
14 mins
(11%)
London –
Cheltenham
126 mins
(2hr 6min)
130 mins
(2hr 10min)
115 mins
(1hr 55min)
120 mins
(2hrs)
11 mins
(9%)
15 mins
(7%)
London –
Hereford
183 mins
(3hrs 3 min)
190 mins
(3hrs 10min)
176 mins
(2hr 54min)
180 mins
(3hrs)
7 mins (3%)
10 mins
(5%)
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South West High Speed Services (3)
May 2017 (SLC2)
 Additional service between London
and Penzance
 Earlier direct first inter-city service to
the South West at c.0637 from
Paddington, arriving in Exeter c.0845,
Plymouth c.0945, Penzance c.1140
 More faster trains to South West via
Berks & Hants (e.g. mid-morning
Paddington-Paignton and the 0741
Penzance to Paddington approx 30
mins faster than at present)
 The stops between Weston-superMare and London will be covered with
services via Bath
“The South West is the largest
peninsula, with an equally
significant economy, but is
characterised by large
distances between dispersed
communities. ... Ensuring
faster journey times, with
more opportunities to connect
at both a local and national
level is critical. ”
– Somerset County Council DfT
Stakeholder Consultation
Response, June 2014
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South West High Speed Services (4)
Hitachi Rail Europe to supply
29 new AT300 trains
First has selected the Hitachi AT300 as its preferred rolling
stock for FGW West HSS services. The AT300 is a bi-mode
diesel electric train, closely related to the Class 800, but with
bigger fuel tanks and engines with a higher power output. 29
trains would be built (22 x 5-car and 7 x 9-car)
Deal approved by DfT Summer 2015
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South West High Speed Services (5)
December 2018 (SLC 3)
 Standard pattern hourly service
from London running non-stop
between Reading and Taunton
extending hourly to Plymouth
and 2 hourly to Penzance.
 Two hourly stopping service
between Paddington and
Exeter to provide connectivity
to the intermediate stations.
 Paignton will be served by 3
intercity services each way
(Mondays-Fridays)
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South West High Speed Services (6)
Average journey times to the far South West
Station
Exeter St David’s
Paignton
Plymouth
Penzance
Direction
Up (to London)
Down (from London)
Up (to London)
Down (from London)
Up (to London)
Down (from London)
Up (to London)
Down (from London)
HST
2hr 16
2hr 14
3hr 21
3hr 17
3hr 18
3hr 17
5hr 18
5hr 19
AT300
2hr 13
2hr 09
3hr 16
3hr 11
3hr 13
3hr 11
5hr 10
5hr 05
Improvement
3 minutes
5 minutes
5 minutes
6 minutes
5 minutes
6 minutes
8 minutes
14 minutes
 Fastest journey time London - Exeter 2hrs and London - Plymouth 3hrs 3 minutes
 AT300 capacity :
- 648 seats on a 10-car AT300 v 522 seats on a low-density HST: a 24% increase
- 576 standard seats on a 10-car AT300 v 458 HST standard seats: a c.26%
increase in standard class capacity
 The new trains will be delivered during 2018 and will be built in Japan
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South West Local Services
 Improved rolling stock supporting local
services
 Enhanced services for Transwilts and
Paignton secured
 Increased service frequency Barnstaple,
Paignton, Cornish Mainline
 Working with local partners to bring forward
improvements as part of Metro West and
Devon Metro
 Supporting new stations (Marsh Barton,
Edginswell) and reopening of lines
(Portishead, Tavistock)
 All local services to operate with Wifi
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South West Local Services (2)
Now
December 2018
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South West Local Services (3)
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South West Local Services (4)
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Night Riviera Services
 The future of these services is secured
 Upgrade in 2015 and 2016 funded by
Cornwall Council
 Two additional carriages will be added to
the fleet to enhance seasonal capacity
 The addition of another Class 57
locomotive to improve service reliability.
 New or enhanced waiting facilities at
Penzance, Truro and Paddington
 The platform used by the Night Riviera
services at Penzance will receive a
canopy
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GWR Brand
 Progressive roll out of GWR
 Trains liveried when it makes
good business sense to do so
 New branded uniforms
 GWR brand in marketing and
digital material
 GWR to symbolise high standards
and a re-focus on passengers to
create more enjoyable rail
journeys once more
 GWR to symbolise and crystallise
our unprecedented journey back
to great…
Stations investment
£50m of station and car park investment
with partners, including:
 FGW £3.5m Station Development Match
Fund for station-related works
 FGW £2.5m Access Fund for
accessibility works including Nailsea &
Backwell
 Provision of over 2,000 car park spaces
(planned at 11 locations) including
Tiverton, Taunton and Castle Cary
 New gatelines (Chippenham and Newton
Abbot)
 More CCTV, Customer Information
Systems, Public Address systems
Stations investment (2)
 Upgraded Ticket Machines and ticket
office printers
 Extended gateline operating hours
(Swindon and Bristol Parkway)
 Additional Customer Ambassadors
(Swindon and Plymouth)
 Additional Customer Assist staff
 New Customer Experience training and
more apprenticeships
“Extending the station car park at Tiverton
Parkway is a high priority, needed to avoid losing
passengers as a result of the car park being full.”
– Devon County Council DfT stakeholder
consultation response, June 2014
Community Rail
Investment in Community Rail Partnerships
• Our investment in Community Rail
Partnerships (CRPs) will continue
providing extra funding for core
activities and projects
• Support for local charities and
community outreach
• Support for local businesses – e.g.
local food served on High Speed
trains
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Community Rail (2)
Customer and Communities Improvement Fund
• GWR pioneering approach
• £2.3m fund to support community
projects addressing a social need
• £750k per year for 3 years starting
April 2016
• Over 1,000 organisations
canvassed for ideas and proposals
• Over 100 responses put forward
• Total first year bid value £8million
• Proposals from outreach projects,
promotions, station projects, reusing
old station buildings
Conclusion
”This is a fantastic deal….. Reaching this agreement with FGW marks a
new chapter for the Great Western railway and a step change in
capacity, frequency and the quality of service”.
The Rt. Hon. Patrick McLoughlin, Secretary of State, Department for Transport
Extract from letter to Parliamentary colleagues, 23 March 2015
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We are trusted custodians of the Great Western railway
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The Great Western Route Modernisation Programme will redefine rail’s place in the
market and help capture additional market share
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We need to energise and excite our passengers, delivering tangible benefits to them
throughout this period of great change
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We need to ensure our workforce is equipped for the challenges ahead and deal
sensitively with the changes this will bring
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We are, and need to continue to be, an excellent partner for the Department for
Transport, NR, Hitachi, other key suppliers and our stakeholder community
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We need to help create the environment in which the entire line of route thrives as,
together, we continue Building a Greater West
Any questions?