It's a quarter past seven in the morning,
of Monday the 25th of November.
It's still dark outside.
Hello winter.
The big winter coat is on.
The light is coming in the sky.
I'm on a GWR train heading west, just left Slough
heading to Reading to put some purple into my life.
So today's mission is quite simple.
A few weeks ago, maybe a few months ago now,
several headlines online that said
that TFL rail services between Paddington
and Reading would commence on a Sunday, December the 15th
ie, PurpleTrains out all the way to Reading
likely to appear on the tube map.
That was the date, mid-December.
- [Train Announcer] You're now approaching
your next station call, which is Reading.
- Until word got out.
And it was confirmed that today,
they might be running six services a day,
slightly early, like a warmup.
So we're gonna go and see if we can be
on the very first one.
(train door beeping)
It's on the board, 7:32,
and it's doing that trick where it says
it's only going to Ealing Broadway
but we all know it's going to Paddington.
Platform 15.
There's clearly some staff on board.
There we go.
That's your first Purple Train
pulling in with all the TFL Rail logos
even though it's actually a GWR service,
we will discuss this on board.
It's still GWR for the next three weeks,
pulling in on platform 15.
(people chattering)
- [Platform Guard] Using public service,
it's the first one that's come in a funny colour.
- Did he say funny colour?
It's not a funny colour, it's delightful purple.
There's a definite mix of bewildered passengers
and people who knew that it was coming.
And I've just got enough time to run down the front
and get a picture.
(wipers swooshing)
(people chattering)
(train doors beeping)
- [Train Announcer] This is the TFL Rail service
to Paddington.
Next station, Twyford.
- Now there were some confused looking commuters
this morning when they got on
expecting their normal GWR green train
and instead they got a purple one.
One of those was Keiran.
Where are you going?
- Southall, good morning.
- This is Keiran.
This is normally a green GWR train.
Were you confused when you got on this morning?
What happened?
- I was confused and quite surprised, yeah.
- [Geoff] Okay, you're going to Southall, you say.
- [Keiran] Yeah.
- [Geoff] And the test will be, is that
you're saying this is...
- Yeah so...
- It's quite busy by Southall.
- Oh yeah, it's completely packed.
- So it'll be interesting to see
will this be as packed or yeah.
- Yeah, 'cause there seems to be
a lot more standing room.
- Less seats I think, but more standing room.
Okay.
(train doors beeping)
- Twyford.
(train engine humming)
- [Train Announcer] Next station, Maidenhead.
(train engine humming)
- [Geoff] Here's a man I recognise.
(train doors beeping)
Daniel!
Nice shirt, why you wearing that?
Dan's turned up.
- All the better for being on a Purple Train.
That, you should get that on a T-shirt.
- A lot of these people getting on here
will be off at Slough or Langley
or West Drayton.
- [Geoff] Obviously not going to Paddington then.
- No.
(train doors beeping)
- Morning.
- [Geoff] How do you like your new train?
- Yeah.
(train doors beeping)
- Right, so my ticket's only to Slough on purpose
'cause I wanna bounce back and see some other stations.
So Keiran, have a great day.
- You too.
- Chris, see you later on the return.
Dan, you're gonna be my test control.
- I am.
- And I'll see you on the way back.
- Yes.
- Tell me how busy it got.
And I'm gonna bail here at Slough.
- Rightio.
- See you in a bit.
- Yeah, see you later.
(train doors beeping)
- I want to check out some of the stations
in between Slough and Maidenhead.
(train engine humming)
So I bailed at Slough on purpose because I wanna see,
I'll get another train down to either like
Taplow or Burnham and pick up the return
to Reading on the way back.
I wanna see how purple it is.
See if the stations have been purple-fied.
Except I kind of already know the answer.
They won't be purple-fied properly until December 15th,
which is when all-day TFL Rail services start.
If you're confused as to what this is,
what's going on is that this is a Crossrail train,
what TFL call Elizabeth Line,
what I call the Purple Train.
On December 15th, TFL rail take over
the stopping services that GWR run,
except for some of the peak, but definitely
all the off-peak services will become Purple Train services
but they're running like a preview now just six trains.
It allows GWR and TFL to get their stock,
the trains into position and just warm up
and maybe just sort of break the general public
into the fact that they're now riding Purple Trains.
The Purple Trains this morning, by the way
that was a seven car train.
They will in future be nine car,
but the GWR trains that they replaced did have toilets,
did have table seats, did have plug sockets.
The Purple Trains don't have that.
But what they do have of course
is more space 'cause there's more standing room.
So that train will get really busy
as it gets to like West Drayton onwards
stopping at Ealing Broadway and Southall,
going into London Paddington.
So it will be interesting to hear.
Dan, as my correspondent will let me know,
just like did it soak up the passengers or not?
I've got about an hour here in Slough.
I should get some breakfast
and then get a train heading back to Reading.
(train engine humming)
(train doors beeping)
- [Train Announcer] This is a Great Western Railway
service to Reading.
- Yeah, the next stop is Burnham.
I wanna pop down to see how purple-fied it's become,
like is there any TFL branding?
Have they put any tube maps out on the racks?
I just spent the half an hour in the Tesco Extra Slough,
having my breakfast with my purple pen
cheekily drawing in purple lines out to Reading
because come December, TFL I assume, hello
will put the TFL Rail on the tube maps.
So there'll be like, they'll squeeze it in.
What's more interesting is the bigger paper fold out map
which you get, which looks like this.
And on here, it's interesting to note
that this map here, where TFL Rail goes out
to Shenfield, out east,
it means that the centre area,
if you look at like the bottle shape of the circle line
that is slightly left of centre of this whole map
to allow all the railway to the right, to the east
of the map to be squeezed in on.
On the left-hand side it very clearly gets chopped off
at West Drayton.
So somehow, are they?
They're going to have to squeeze in the bronze
to Reading there.
So that'll be interesting, not just the TFL map
of services, tube map, but how this,
I believe they're calling it
"London's Rail and Tube Services Map",
how that will look in December.
So keep an eye out for new tube maps and
"London Rail and Services Maps" with TFL Rail added
come December.
Remember until December 15th, they're just TFL trains
running GWR services.
And then they do take over the GWR services all day off-peak
and then in the peak.
But there are some GWR stoppers
in the peak as well.
So there will still be some non Purple Trains,
but this one I'm on now,
this is a 387 with the table seat and the toilets.
This is what the Purple Trains are replacing.
(train breaks screeching)
So I'm at Burnham, off camera
I'm speaking to a lovely member of staff.
She said that here, there was that beautiful moment
which all commuters do here at Burnham this morning
where the Purple Train rolled in
and there was a visible confusion on people's faces.
They were like, "What is our train?"
'Cause some people like to sit in the same seat
in the same spot every day.
And there's a poster here, it says,
introduction to TFL Services.
And the big day it's saying is Sunday, the 15th of December.
So that's when it all happens.
Until then there are just six a day,
three in the morning, three in the evening.
I will run through the times shortly, but it's coming next.
This is the 9:16 to Reading and Dan will be on it.
And we'll go back to Reading.
Thank you.
(train engines humming)
I'm down in the ticket hall area of Burnham.
There's no maps up.
There is this poster saying about the services.
There's two Oyster pads, except they don't accept Oyster.
It's gotta be contactless only.
Says sorry not in use, a new asset is coming.
'Cause this will be,
see this video here for how everything
beyond West Drayton is going to be bank contactless cards
but not Oyster in terms of pay as you go.
You can still use paper tickets as normal.
But the display board I noticed is a TFL Rail style board.
So I can't find any tube maps though,
I was gonna, I was hoping for a rack
with timetables and tube maps.
I was gonna put all my tube maps
with all the purple lines I've added in
in on the tube racks, but I can't find it.
Finally, I've seen something, a sign that is correct.
'Cause down there it says it's TFL Rail,
up on the dot matrix it says it TFL Rail,
but on the more traditional displays
it says it's a GWR service operated by TFL Rail.
(train engine humming)
(train doors beeping)
- [Train Announcer] Next station, Taplow.
- These are the people you need to speak to.
Station manager for TFL there
and the lady driver who drove the first train in.
(train doors beeping)
- I'm surrounded by several MTR staff,
by some revenue protection people,
by what looked like some land train, land sheriffs.
Right, up there there's a poster.
And it has given a clue as
to what the tube map might look like.
Between Iver and Reading,
there's a sign saying
"Outside fare zones, check tfl.gov.uk fares",
and that's to do with the whole contactless bank cards
are valid, but Oyster cards aren't.
(train engine humming)
We got to Reading,
we've come in on platform 13
there's a Cross Country in on 15,
I'm trying to work out whether we'll go back out on 13.
Will it sit here or will it...?
Does anybody know what time back out it's at?
(train doors beeping)
(train engine humming)
(train doors beeping)
It's gonna stand here for just a few minutes
and go back out.
I think it's the nine...just the dot matrix says
either the 9:48 or 9:49.
And I will ride it all the way back to Paddington.
(train doors beeping)
- [Train Announcer] Next station, Maidenhead.
Change for National Rail services.
- So back on the Purple Train,
the third one of the day
there were three in the morning and three in the evening.
Let me explain with my bit of paper.
I should put up an on the screen graphic now as well.
So until the 15th of December for the next three weeks
it's three in the morning off of Reading
and I've got the 7:32 this morning,
I got off at Slough, came back again.
And I'm now on the 9:48 out of Reading
back down to Paddington.
And this evening, it's interesting to note
that the one out of Paddington only goes as far
as Maidenhead, then back to Paddington
and then goes all the way through to Reading.
So those are the six.
But then as I say, as of Sunday, December the 15th onwards
it becomes proper TFL Rail
and TFL Rail and the Purple Trains take over
all the stopping services except for in the peak,
there will still be some additional,
I think two an hour in the morning peak
and two in the evening run by GWR.
(train engine humming)
So we're on the approach, it's 10:38.
We're arriving into Paddington.
I'm not gonna do the three this evening.
I'm gonna to go home and snooze
and have an edit of this video.
Arriving into...
Are we on time, chaps?
Are we on time?
There's some people here checking the times.
Are we on time?
Quick, check all the apps.
You think we're coming on nine.
We think we're coming in on platform nine.
- [Man] Apparently six minutes early.
- Six minutes early, what?
And we're at Paddington.
How was it?
- [Man] Yeah, all good.
- All good.
So that is it.
That's your first ever Purple Train service
in service running today, Monday the 25th of November
three in the morning, three in the evening.
And then on Sunday, December the 15th,
there'll be all day, every day,
Crossrail, Elizabeth Line, Purple Train.
It is coming, slowly.
This is one step further towards it getting there.