So just for fun I did this trip on the 10.45 cruiser kings Cross-Cambridge this
morning -

By chance, it was held up behind a slow train for 5 minutes, and yet arrived on
time, this _despite_ a stop outside kings cross (bottleneck: simply
because of 4 tracks from 11 platforms to get out) and coming into cambridge
(bottleneck: due to only 1 stupid platform for 3 trains requiring extreme caution
in correct use of semaphors for 2 sets of points), AND a stop at hitchin (as
northbound trains to cambridge cross the fast line, there's always a good chance
that there's some southbound GNER in the way...)

On the topic of ENgland's longest platform - someone tried to sing its praises
as oh so friendly to disabled people (no bridge or underpass or lift to
negotiate to get to the other platform) - well as a person still on crutches
after my bike accident, I can tell you that if you have to navigate from
platform 4 to 1 on the uncertain surface (and lets say that for some unusual
reason it is slightly damp too), it is not at all friendly to disabled people
at all.

Anyhow:

I would say that if the slow train (which the driver told us was not according
to schedule) had not been there, the cruiser could have been in cambridge in 40
minutes, (I checked the times on each section, but cannot speak for the speed of
the train). If the other bottlenecks were not there, the journey would have taken
approx 38 minutes. Admittedly, the 2 or 3 other bottlenecks wouldbe expensive to
remove and make safe alternatives.

I have no idea about the theory, but this was an empirical result

(actually I've been on the cruiser one or two times when its taken 42 minutes
platform to platform outside of busy times....)

oh, I dont suppose now is the time to complain about the lack of safe places to
put bikes (someones bike fell over as we went around the curve after hitchin - i
--
Jon Crowcroft