No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

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hopeful traveller
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No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by hopeful traveller »

The new Central Line WTT, effective 26 Jan, has this proviso on page 4:

"A Hainault-Woodford shuttle service (formed of 4 cars of 1992 stock) has been introduced replacing through trains to/from Woodford via Hainault. This service will reverse via platform 1 at Hainault with most London-bound trains departing from platforms 2 and 3."

This is quite sad, as it now means that this has become even more of a pain in the arse, and you will always have to change at either Woodford or Hainault now.
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EastActionWoman
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by EastActionWoman »

More info on the changes, we only have to wait until 2023 for the full service to be reinstated:
Dear ----,

We contacted you in November to advise of changes to Central line services from Sunday 26 January 2020. Whilst the changes to the service will provide benefits to many of you, we do recognise that there will be a service reduction for some customers, particularly for those of you using the eastern part of the Central line.

We are sorry for the impact on your journeys but this work is necessary in order to provide some much needed benefits to the Central line as a whole.

Following the completion of these works and the restoration of the full Central line fleet in 2023, we expect to be able to deliver improvements for Central line customers as part of a new timetable.

What we’re doing
We’re investing about £380 million to improve the Central line. The benefits of these works include:
  • Replacements for old motors - meaning fewer broken down trains and a more reliable service
  • More space for wheelchair users and improved audio and visual passenger information - improving on-board accessibility
  • Added CCTV for a safer journey
Unfortunately, this work can’t be done during overnight engineering hours so some trains will be taken out of service. Morning and evening peak services will be reduced at Debden, Theydon Bois and Epping stations from the 11 peak hour trains that we currently run from Debden, to nine trains an hour (and ten down to eight at Epping). There will be enough capacity for all customers to board the trains at these stations.

Woodford and Hainault Train service
We will introduce a shuttle service between Woodford and Hainault. Over the next couple of months this will start to be operated by four-car trains. When there are four-car trains, all customers will have sufficient room to board. The service will still run three trains per hour. Currently each week day morning there are three trains which run from Grange Hill via Woodford through to central London, and these will continue as eight car trains under the new timetable.

Central London services
The new timetable also allows us to make improvements on the busiest section of the line through central London, between Leytonstone and White City. There will be improvements over this section, with more services running on Monday to Friday early mornings, Monday to Saturday late evenings, and Sunday early evening.

You can use Journey Planner to check the first and last train times for your station or visit the Timetables webpage.

Yours sincerely,

Dale Smith
Head of Line Operations
Central and Waterloo & City lines
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dstock17
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by dstock17 »

hopeful traveller wrote: 20 Jan 2020, 19:18 The new Central Line WTT, effective 26 Jan, has this proviso on page 4:

"A Hainault-Woodford shuttle service (formed of 4 cars of 1992 stock) has been introduced replacing through trains to/from Woodford via Hainault. This service will reverse via platform 1 at Hainault with most London-bound trains departing from platforms 2 and 3."

This is quite sad, as it now means that this has become even more of a pain in the arse, and you will always have to change at either Woodford or Hainault now.
I think ur find the more pain will be at epping
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Lunaticonthegrass
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by Lunaticonthegrass »

Was it like this historically though? Looking at old tube maps, before the mid-1990s the layout seems to indicate that went to Hainault via Newbury Park, Hainault via Woodford, or Epping. OK, so that's not a shuttle service but it does invlve always having to change at Hainault.

I don't think it will make masses of diference anyway. And we may find that the shuttle trains are timetabled to allow for smooth connections at Hainault. (As happens with the MHE branch at Finchley Central... in theory at least!)

As an interesting point, on the one FNC I did I had a half-hour wait at Woodford for a Hainault train. I'm guessing that the train we would have got was severely delayed and so terminated early. If there was a shuttle service in place we would have left Woodford after only 10 minutes. (Although arguably we would have then been stranded at Hainault.)
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by jrparkin »

If I understand this right in order to get to Roding Valley now you must change trains onto a shuttle service from Hainault
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trains 500
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by trains 500 »

Are 4 carriage units running this yet??
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ANDY_JS
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by ANDY_JS »

On some of the journeys I've checked from Hainault to Woodford the fact that it isn't a direct service isn't making any difference to the time you'd arrive at Woodford, which is a good thing I suppose. You just have to wait for a few minutes at Hainault. I don't know whether you have to get off one train and get on another one at Hainault, or whether it's still the same train.
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by tangy »

ANDY_JS wrote: 23 Oct 2020, 17:32 On some of the journeys I've checked from Hainault to Woodford the fact that it isn't a direct service isn't making any difference to the time you'd arrive at Woodford, which is a good thing I suppose. You just have to wait for a few minutes at Hainault. I don't know whether you have to get off one train and get on another one at Hainault, or whether it's still the same train.
The Woodford- Hainault shuttle is just that, two trains just going back and forth between Woodford and Hainault most of the day. You need to physically change trains at Hainault to continue the journey. The shuttle trains usually use platform 1 and the London trains platforms 2/3 (nearest the depot) so requires changing platforms via the underpass.
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This is a Central line train to "Woodford via Hainault"- sadly, not no more!

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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by RJSRdg »

ANDY_JS wrote: 23 Oct 2020, 17:32 On some of the journeys I've checked from Hainault to Woodford the fact that it isn't a direct service isn't making any difference to the time you'd arrive at Woodford, which is a good thing I suppose. You just have to wait for a few minutes at Hainault. I don't know whether you have to get off one train and get on another one at Hainault, or whether it's still the same train.
The trouble is, it's not (as far as I know) a guaranteed connection - so if the train from London to Hainault is late, you could have quite a long wait at Hainault.
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trains 500
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by trains 500 »

the central line timeable changes leaflet does NOT mention a guaranteed connection at hainault
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Steeevooo
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by Steeevooo »

Why would it be a guaranteed connection though? They are two, distinct timetabled services. Hold the shuttle departing Hainault to wait for an incoming service could result in platforming and turnaround issues at Woodford, which in turn could impact Epping line through services, and before you know it you've created a problem.
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Re: No more direct Woodford via Hainaults

Post by trains 500 »

if the shuttle is on a 20min freq then their would not be a guaranteed conection as their is more than one train every 20 mins from central london which goes to hainault
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