Public transport...

[TW]Fox · 25 Jun 2007 at 13:44

Tute said:
Gawd, what company is that with?

For the majority of the trip, Virgin Trains. There is a power socket at every table.

[TW]Fox · 25 Jun 2007 at 13:45

tomwalker said:
Speaking of trains...I tried to get from Birmingham to Leeds today. I paid £51 for my tickets so I got to New Street station ready for my train which arrives perfectly on time which was great.

However when we reached Derby we were told we had to get off as the train wasn't able to go all the way to Leeds due to the bad weather. So I then have to wait for another train which is only going to Sheffield. 30 minutes later this train arrives and then sets off for Sheffield.

About 10 minutes into the journey the train stops and over the tannoy comes a message about a tree on the line and signal problems. 45 minutes later still in the same position and a good 1 hour at least to Leeds another message is read out saying that the train is heading back to Derby and a recommendation to not travel today.

So having wasted a good 6 hours today trying to get to Leeds, here I am back at home. Also to top it all off I tried to ring customer support at Virgin for a refund only to be told there is technical problems and to call back in a couple of hours.

You can hardly blame them, can you? We've got some pretty awful weather at the moment, what did you expect them to do, run the train into the tree?

tomwalker · 25 Jun 2007 at 13:46

[TW]Fox said:
You can hardly blame them, can you? We've got some pretty awful weather at the moment, what did you expect them to do, run the train into the tree?

Maybe tell us before we get on the train at Derby in the first place...or even put on a bus to go to Leeds. I sat on that train for about an hour in which time I could have got back to Birmingham instead of wasting time.

[TW]Fox · 25 Jun 2007 at 14:07

tomwalker said:
Maybe tell us before we get on the train at Derby in the first place...or even put on a bus to go to Leeds. I sat on that train for about an hour in which time I could have got back to Birmingham instead of wasting time.

Where does the bus come from? Magic it out of thin air? Do you think they've got hundreds of buses just hanging around 'in case'?

tomwalker · 25 Jun 2007 at 14:14

I don't know, maybe the bus depot? Have you never seen a bus that says "Rail Replacement Service"

Whitestar · 25 Jun 2007 at 14:17

[TW]Fox said:
Where does the bus come from? Magic it out of thin air? Do you think they've got hundreds of buses just hanging around 'in case'?

Actually yes they do. Well bus companies do anyway.

[TW]Fox · 25 Jun 2007 at 14:21

tomwalker said:
I don't know, maybe the bus depot? Have you never seen a bus that says "Rail Replacement Service"

Rail Replacement Services due to engineering works are booked long in advance, and fleets are managed to ensure availability. There isn't a ready made fleet just sitting around ready to be outside the station within a moments notice of a tree on the line.

You guys think the whole industry is simple - it's infact massively complex. You can't just get buses, let alone the 7-12 buses that would be required to take a full length train of passengers at a moments notice.

tomwalker · 25 Jun 2007 at 14:24

[TW]Fox said:
Rail Replacement Services due to engineering works are booked long in advance, and fleets are managed to ensure availability. There isn't a ready made fleet just sitting around ready to be outside the station within a moments notice of a tree on the line.

You guys think the whole industry is simple - it's infact massively complex. You can't just get buses, let alone the 7-12 buses that would be required to take a full length train of passengers at a moments notice.

great but it's not that which I'm really bothered about. Its the fact they could have told us about the situation (in which there was already a large backlog of trains in the queue ahead of us) before we got on the train.

Glaucus · 25 Jun 2007 at 14:46

tomwalker said:
great but it's not that which I'm really bothered about. Its the fact they could have told us about the situation (in which there was already a large backlog of trains in the queue ahead of us) before we got on the train.

The trains can be re-routed through other lines, trees ect are not usually a problem they can be cleared within an hour, even flooding in common areas can be pumped. It's a huge complex industry.

Lord_Kokain · 25 Jun 2007 at 15:49

Even in London where its been used by lots of people, its become pretty scandalous imo that public transport is that costly(or if it isnt, they make sure it does by raising prices each year). Every time I go to another country on the continent, I could not help it thinking how it is if we are to look at the price/quality ratio. Surely I have seen some pretty poor public transportation systems there but at least they charge peanuts, hence probably the main reason for it being poor.

Up until recently, I used to be eligible for student discount for which however, I had to go through an application process each year for mere 30% off given that at many prices students are automatically handed cards for free transport and even in the case of Germany, a friend of mine that studies there is allowed to use any kind of transport within a certain region(not just the city) for as long as his study continues. He said he had to pay about 100 Euro for it but its hell of a deal given the amount that I pay for weekly travel card in London.

Anyway, just my rant about it...I know there are some good points of the transport in the UK(especially in London) but then I would have been gutted if they didnt get to offer such given the prices that are charged.

Le_Petit_Lapin · 25 Jun 2007 at 15:54

I reckon I save money driving (including the cost of tax, petrol and insurance, as well as parking charges) than using public transport and taxi's to get about.

No waiting about either, just get up and go.

Vixen · 25 Jun 2007 at 15:59

trojan698 said:
The problem with public transport outside the city is not enough people use it. If they did, it would be more timely and less costly. But it's a catch 22 situation really, people wont use it when it's expensive and rubbish, so it'll just continue to be crap.

It's the city centres that are good, not the whole city. I live near the start of the M8, and the other day my boyfriend had to get a bus into town and another back out to go to the Royal Highland Show (which is <5 minutes away by car).

bikerdude1982 · 25 Jun 2007 at 16:02

Markatomic said:
People are always saying use public transport, for which there are many reasons not to...

Im sticking to my own transport.
mark

Here Here

i dont have a car yet and to get to my late grandads its a 30min drive door to door via public transport it take me 2 hours door to door its madness

[TW]Fox · 25 Jun 2007 at 16:09

bikerdude1982 said:
Here Here

i dont have a car yet and to get to my late grandads its a 30min drive door to door via public transport it take me 2 hours door to door its madness

You are neive if you think public transport will ever be quicker than personal transport - how many other people wish to get from your house to your late grandfathers? Nobody. Why would there be a dedicated express bus?

bikerdude1982 · 25 Jun 2007 at 16:12

yes true but the town hes in is a nightmare to get too even if u live near it (Wallington Surrey)

LizardKing · 25 Jun 2007 at 16:14

Devons stagecoach is horrendous! For 2 people to get a return to our local town it costs 8.50, thats roughly 3-4 miles and takes 30+mins, by taxi its 4 each way, a saving of 50p and its door to door and no waiting at a urine infested bus stop.

Its no wonder the bus's are always empty or full of OAP's who get there tickets free

Tute · 25 Jun 2007 at 16:50

[TW]Fox said:
For the majority of the trip, Virgin Trains. There is a power socket at every table.

Hmm... well... unfortunatly FGW don't provide anything like that on their services.

Glaucus · 25 Jun 2007 at 16:50

Tute said:
Hmm... well... unfortunatly FGW don't provide anything like that on their services.

fgw suck though.
virgin trains are so much better than fgw in every aspect. still get overcrowding problems though.

Dj_Jestar · 25 Jun 2007 at 17:11

In London it's a nigh necessity to use Public Transport. I'm "lucky" though in that I have a tube station at the end of my road (which also has it's drawbacks.)

Gigi · 25 Jun 2007 at 17:14

I have to say that Edinburghs Bus Service is pretty damn good, fair enough you get the odd 3 buses at once and yes buses are late, but now with the Bus Tracker system, you know exactly how long the bus will be (well selected buses involved in the Bus Tracker scheme)