Booking Bikes on Virgin - Easy

Tony Raven opined the following...
As my SO says, the main problem with public transport in the UK is the
public (after she and the children shared a carriage with a stag party
on their way to Blackpool)

Not strictly fair, PT doesn't often hold up too well on the transport
front either! ;-)

Jon

On Sat, 24 Jul 2004 17:42:11 +0100 someone who may be Tony Raven
wrote this:-

No but I've had trains with no supplies, trains with no catering staff,
trains which were so crowded there was no point in trying to get there
and yesterday a train without any change so it was credit card for a coffee.

I tend to take my own drink along. However, in my experience of such
trains the conditions you describe are rare.

What you mean they were finding 4+1 = 3?

They found that the leasing costs of the extra coaches were not
covered by extra income. Blame the party politicians for setting up
the passenger rolling stock leasing system.


--
David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E
I will always explain revoked keys, unless the UK government
prevents me using the RIP Act 2000.

David Hansen wrote:

They found that the leasing costs of the extra coaches were not
covered by extra income. Blame the party politicians for setting up
the passenger rolling stock leasing system.


It usually is the case that transporting people packed in like cattle is
cheaper than giving them all a seat.

Tony

Tony Raven wrote:

David Hansen wrote:

They found that the leasing costs of the extra coaches were not
covered by extra income. Blame the party politicians for setting up
the passenger rolling stock leasing system.


It usually is the case that transporting people packed in like cattle is
cheaper than giving them all a seat.

Or as in my case last night, not even a train.

My last train home was due to depart at 2259.
The Board said delayed to 2334 which changed to 2345 then back to 2339
before announcing it had been cancelled.

In brief...

Numerous calls to NRE solicited no help.
They said a bus was on its way.
I asked when it would arrive and was told it would be up to - yes you've
guessed - SWT.
Could I have their number?
"No, we are not allowed to give that out". Incredible.

By 1200 I'd got through to SWT who didn't even know their train had been cancelled.
They knew nothing about a bus.
"I'll have to check with the platform staff" came the reply.

1210 they said they'd send a taxi from 20 miles away, even though I was
standing right outside another taxi companies office.
No they couldn't use them.
And no, if I used them, I couldn't claim the cost as it would be unauthorised.

After many calls and being passed from prat to prat a taxi was arranged
and it arrived at 0110. It came from a company 100 yards from where I
was waiting.

It dropped me off at home before taking another passenger 60 miles to London.

By 2am I was in bed. I had to be up at 6.30 for an audax (see elsewhere).

SWT - You are the Sh*ts.

end rant

John B

On Sun, 25 Jul 2004 12:13:53 +0100 someone who may be Tony Raven
wrote this:-

It usually is the case that transporting people packed in like cattle is
cheaper than giving them all a seat.

Only in the short term.


--
David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E
I will always explain revoked keys, unless the UK government
prevents me using the RIP Act 2000.

Tony Raven wrote:
Jon Senior wrote:



I once travelled in the same carriage as a pair of train guards who
(With regard to Virgin) remarked: "Who wants to use a train service
that doesn't go all the way?".

Jon


Well I'm just in the middle of my Virgin journey. No first class seats
left when I booked earlier in the week so I got a normal seat
reservation. Sat here cramped up for five hours in a seat which has a
socket to power my laptop but not enough room to open a laptop up!.
Train is packed and many are standing all the way. So for twice the
price of doing the same journey by car I have a cramped uncomfortable
noisy seat instead of a comfy car seat where I can relax, listen to the
radio, stop when I want to have a coffee (no chance here, too crowded in
the aisle to get there and they are announcing they have no change in
the on-board shop so no payment with notes)

This is one of the new Voyager trains so we can't expect the situation
to improve with new rolling stock

Ah well, never again

Tony



Well now on my return journey on Sunday. Train arrived half an hour
late. The bad news/good news is the carriage where I had a reserved
seat is like a sauna but the good news is that nobody wants to stand
here because its like a sauna. For the rest of the train they are
apologising for the overcrowding and broadcasting requests for people to
rotate seating with those standing. Just passed Basingstoke and we are
now 40 mins late. Looking on the bright side at least I have a seat and
this one has more leg/laptop room than the one on the way up.

Fortunately I am used to hot climates so the sauna doesn't bother me too
much - thank goodness its a cold wet day and not mid summer as the
internal temperature must be in the mid 30's.


Tony

Jon Senior wrote:
In article , richard2002
@ntlworld.com says...

somewhere aroundabout 80% of trains arrive at their destination
within 10 minutes of the scheduled time.

snip

Also, why "within 10 minutes"? This definition implies that within 10
minutes is considered to be "on-time". Given that the trains travel a
known route and have known capabilities with regard to performance,
why
do they not run perfectly to a known schedule. If the schedule is
unobtainable then they should allow for that in the scheduling.

The schedules are obtainable, but only if everything is running fine and
there are no problems. However if there is a broken rail or a lorry strikes
a rail bridge or whatever, the train in question can be delayed to some
(sometimes significant) extent. You can't allow for these problems in the
schedules between every stop, as at most times they don't happen and thus it
would take forever to get anywhere because you would be subjected to lengthy
station stops you didn't need on every journey.

The schedules do have some slack (typically up to five minutes per hour of
journey time, or thereabouts) built in to allow recovery from minor delays,
but the major delays can't be added into the schedule easily. To make a
comparison with the roads, it might usually take an hour to get from A to B
on a motorway, but if you get stuck in a traffic jam due to an accident for
three hours there isn't much you can do about it. However in a similar way
to the rail example you can't really allow three hours extra in your day
just in case you get stuck in that major traffic jam.

--
David


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David Peters opined the following...
The schedules are obtainable, but only if everything is running fine and
there are no problems. However if there is a broken rail or a lorry strikes
a rail bridge or whatever, the train in question can be delayed to some
(sometimes significant) extent. You can't allow for these problems in the
schedules between every stop, as at most times they don't happen and thus it
would take forever to get anywhere because you would be subjected to lengthy
station stops you didn't need on every journey.

The schedules do have some slack (typically up to five minutes per hour of
journey time, or thereabouts) built in to allow recovery from minor delays,
but the major delays can't be added into the schedule easily. To make a
comparison with the roads, it might usually take an hour to get from A to B
on a motorway, but if you get stuck in a traffic jam due to an accident for
three hours there isn't much you can do about it. However in a similar way
to the rail example you can't really allow three hours extra in your day
just in case you get stuck in that major traffic jam.

When every long-haul train you catch over a five year period bar two is
delayed, you do start to wonder how infrequent these infrequent
incidents are. Also a number of the delays began as 5 minute delays but
rapidly escalate.

Jon

On 26/7/04 11:43 pm, in article ,
"Jon Senior" jon_AT_restlesslemon_DOTco_DOT_uk wrote:

When every long-haul train you catch over a five year period bar two is
delayed, you do start to wonder how infrequent these infrequent
incidents are. Also a number of the delays began as 5 minute delays but
rapidly escalate.

As I have rarely been delayed on a train, please could you post when you are
next planning to travel so I can avoid that train. Thanks.

...d

David Martin wrote:

On 26/7/04 11:43 pm, in article ,
"Jon Senior" jon_AT_restlesslemon_DOTco_DOT_uk wrote:

When every long-haul train you catch over a five year period bar two is
delayed, you do start to wonder how infrequent these infrequent
incidents are. Also a number of the delays began as 5 minute delays but
rapidly escalate.

As I have rarely been delayed on a train, please could you post when you are
next planning to travel so I can avoid that train. Thanks.

You clearly never travel SWT or Virgin then.

John B