In message . com,
NewsPosting writes
This is getting close to a subject that I am interested in.... how come
it's not possible to balance the number of trains going to
ealing/richmond/wimbledon?

I use the richmond branch, and it is quite common to have 3-4 ealing
broadway trains go past before we get a richmond train.

Would it not be possible to even out the service at earls court? You
could have two trains at the platform, say one is to ealing, one to
richmond, let everyone swap over, and then release the trains. That way
nobody gets to miss a train to their destination and a better service
frequency is maintained.

The timetable sets the number of trains to each branch and the train
crews are then diagrammed accordingly. When the job is 'up the wall'
(an LU technical term) you don't suddenly magic up an extra two dozen
drivers to ensure balance, so the controller (who deals with the
service) and the train crew Duty Managers (DMTs, who deal with the train
crew provision) have to do the best they can with the resources
available. Much of this is working on the hoof to get the best benefit
out of the available recourse - if you don't have a driver, you don't
have a train!

Travelling times down each branch are different, so a driver who could
do a Wimbledon probably wouldn't have time to do an Ealing. Then there
are things like finishing times, meal breaks, legal parameters to
contend with, so all in all it's all a bit of a black art.
--
Steve Fitzgerald has now left the building.
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