I'm in Essex today and tomorrow and I was chatting with one of the people I'm working with who was born and bred near Southminster at the end of a branch line off the Liverpool Street to Southend route.   I had always wondered why one of the trains ran "Thursdays excepted" and learnt that it was to allow the flask for the local nuclear power station to use the loine.

Anyway - the reason for my post.  There was a proposal a couple of years back to take OFF the rushhour train and replace it with a bus, but leave the train on for the rest of the day - in other words, to eliminate the busiest train.   Why?  Because they were short of stock in the rush hour for other trains and were proposing to use a bus.   Daft idea, protest, and it didn't happen.

But isn't it very odd indeed that we have something of the reverse case - First must provide a train in the rushhour, but the rest of the time when stock is less limited they probably won't be,  It strikes me that the rules go one way then the other to suit the person who's making them.  Me wonders if our First rush hour train might, on occasions of stock shortage, turn our to be a First rush hour bus.

Eight rush hour cancellations in July so far ... Eight weekday rush hour trains already marked down for bustitution in August ... looks like I was nearer the truth than I had hoped ...