Great Western Coffee Shop

For members who are facing overcrowding on trains into BRISTOL from the Westbury(and others) direction... news from the West Midlands that you're not alone.

Saturday night I staying in Coventry, looking to catch an early train up to Birmingham International to see the Model Railway show there.

SUNDAY morning at Coventry Stations... and we still have some TOCs not even starting service until late morning

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/lnwr_20191124_00.jpg)

OK... so I did sleep in a bit, and went to catch the 10:00 LNWR service for the one stop to International.    Chance would be a fine thing!

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/lnwr_20191124_01.jpg)

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/lnwr_20191124_05.jpg)

And those pictures are AFTER people were advised to switch to the 10:11 on the opposite platform as the 10:00 was "full and standing".   Actually not as bad as I've seen on the TransWilts 17:36 when it was a 153 (with train manager banging on the windows and telling people to move up inside, which COULD have fitted more people) but then this was Sunday morning!

The 10:11 – staring from Coventry – was not quite so packed...

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/lnwr_20191124_02.jpg)

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/lnwr_20191124_03.jpg)

... and there were still the expensive seats available (yes, same train!)

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/lnwr_20191124_04.jpg)

Both trains pictured, 4 carriages.   I suspect that the TOC has more available but feels that the extra costs of running them if not contracted to do so would be more than the income – hardly surprised bearing in mind the cheapness of my ticket compared to anything I can buy in Wiltshire.

I do wonder – when First and Trenitalia take over the West Coast, does their SLC require them to run an earlier London – Coventry – Birmingham train on a Sunday morning.  That would have been a welcome queue buster.

Oh – and what the announcer at Coventry told us, advising passengers to travel on the 10:11, didn't include was that the 10:00 was none-stop to International, whereas the 10:11 had calls at Canely, Tile Hill... on the way.  Only got to International 5 minutes ahead of that Virgin train (if it was on time) anyway!

Judging by the demographic mix (or not) of those travelling, I suspect many of them were headed to the same place as you were. So maybe not entirely representative of a normal Sunday morning.

A bit like those round here that complain that the trains to Cardiff are always packed, but then they only ever go when there's a match on in Cardiff.

Can't speak for the 10:00 .... at International, far more people stayed on the 10:11 than got off (70/30?) and the Railway show contingent was not huge from them.    The motor cycle show was far FAR bigger and I suspect of the 30, 20 were for that - again, can't speak for the 10:00

But good thought / question.

I suspect that people going to the motorcycle show had filled the 10:00 train, and most people at the railway show had driven there in a car!   ;D ;D

P.S. overhead - '''it's "always" like this on the first Sunday train from London. You would have thought they know by now''' - by, I think, someone who uses it as their regular Sunday commute.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if some people went to both shows.