46
|
All across the Great Western territory / Introductions and chat / Station facilities in The Baltics
|
on: April 07, 2024, 06:22:05
|
Greetings this lovely Sunday morning from a station with ... ... an open staffed ticket office ... an excellent choice of coffees ... an arrivals and departures board showing everything on time ... and enough platforms to cope with all the trains that are around For sure, I will admit that they have issues here too - like at home - with a train service that is far too thin. So thin, in fact, that yesterday's train to the next place on my tour was fully booked and I had to wait here for a day.
|
|
|
48
|
All across the Great Western territory / The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom / Re: Short railway journeys: now disproportionately expensive?
|
on: April 07, 2024, 04:42:01
|
And there's always the risk of being accosted by females of flexible morality. (Is that a plus or minus?)
Accosted you should not be ... but you bring back a conversation I had last week when I checked into a hotel with the chap behind the counter. Vivid memory with a chat that would have been worthy of us sitting in the bar and putting the world to rights. Quite extraordinary and one of the subjects we briefly touched on was women's safety, man's drive, and whether easier access to the services of females with flexible "morality" would reduce the level of unwanted forced attention by men on women. We touched on war and refugees, the environment, employment rights and finding the right staff too. Like I say, quite extraordinary. There's the occasional spark on trips like these that will be in my memory for years - the dutch backpacker on his way to Vilnius, and the lady in the train on Friday who was so "hyper" in her own business ... and we ended up having a brief few minutes, but fascinating, conversation as we approached the intermediate stop where she got off. So - who have YOU met for fascinating conversation in your travels? I will split the thread if people pile in answers!
|
|
|
51
|
Journey by Journey / TransWilts line / Re: 2024 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury
|
on: April 06, 2024, 12:24:18
|
Please be advised the driver booked to work the following services has fallen ill this morning resulting in their cancellations: - - 07:45 Westbury to Swindon - CANCELLED. - 08:45 Swindon to Westbury - CANCELLED.
Personal opinion, but I sincerely hope the driver did fall ill - and was not intimidated into not booking on. I did wonder. Some of the long serving staff at Westbury talk of how memories have not faded (nor attitudes totally changed) between those who joined previous strikes and those who did not.
|
|
|
52
|
Journey by Journey / TransWilts line / Re: 2024 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury
|
on: April 06, 2024, 07:27:36
|
I wonder when Melksham last had more planned departures than Swindon?
I say planned - the first of the two round trips has been cancelled.
It may still be the case that actually happens - if this afternoon train runs. Not really anything to celebrate for Melksham - the service today has been reduced to useless, and it's another own goal by the rail industry as a whole. This is not the thread, though, to look at our archaic system of industrial relations.
|
|
|
53
|
All across the Great Western territory / The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom / Re: Short railway journeys: now disproportionately expensive?
|
on: April 06, 2024, 07:16:22
|
The Independent has featured "10 journeys that cost more that £1 per mile" this morning ... I have hummed and haaaed and decided that's a related but separate thread - started at http://www.passenger.chat/28618But the £2.70 Ty Glas to Birchgrove is featured: These are not the priciest journeys per mile in the UK▸ : most of those are for extremely short journeys that travellers would not normally make. The most expensive of all in pounds-per-mile is the link from Ty Glas in the northern suburbs of Cardiff to Birchgrove, which is less than a quarter-mile. The fare increased earlier last month to £2.70, taking the price-per-mile to £12.70. This confirms, sadly, that I am not "normal". But then it was a journey I walked and didn't take the train. I got off the train from Cardiff at Ty Glas, walked to Birchgrove while the train went up to Coryton and came back ... The short journey from Hamilton Square (Birkenhead) to St James (Liverpool) does feature in the article as a short journey that people will take at over £1 per mile due to it being a long way to walk round - the Mersey is in the way!
|
|
|
54
|
All across the Great Western territory / Fare's Fair / Breaking the £1 per mile fare barrier
|
on: April 06, 2024, 07:07:05
|
From The IndependentBritain’s biggest rail rip-offs: 10 journeys that cost £1 per mile or more
As passengers from Edinburgh to London are told they must pay £200 for a one-way, standard-class ticket during a rail strike, The Independent has identified other eye-wateringly expensive train fares.
Ten journeys that cost £1 per mile can now be revealed.
[snip]
£3 Liverpool James Street to Birkenhead Hamilton Square £3.60 for 1.2 miles £2.10 Hayes & Harlington to Heathrow Central: £7.40 for 3.5 miles £1.35 London St Pancras to Stratford International: £8.10 for 6 miles £1.31 Stansted airport to Stansted Mountfitchet: £4.60 for 3.5 miles £1.27 Didcot Parkway to Swindon: £30.50 for 24 miles [etc] All fares are standard anytime tickets, researched at National Rail. Distances calculated from RealTimeTrains data.
|
|
|
55
|
Journey by Journey / TransWilts line / Re: 2024 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury
|
on: April 06, 2024, 04:04:07
|
Due to industrial action, the only trains scheduled to run today are: Services at 07:45 and 16:23 from Westbury to Swindon Services at 08:45 and 17:35 from Swindon to Westbury All 4 trains calling intermediately at Trowbridge, Melksham and Chippenham at which they are the only passenger trains scheduled to call today.
Complete timetable for Westbury: 07:45 to Swindon (starts here) 08:10 to Salisbury (from Castle Cary) (09:26 arrival from Swindon) 10:57 to Frome (from Salisbury) 11:43 to Southampton Central (from Frome) 16:23 to Swindon (starts here) (18:18 arrival from Swindon) 19:58 to Yeovil Junction (from Salisbury) 23:12 to Salisbury (starts here)
Complete timetable for Swindon: (08:28 arrival from Westbury) 08:45 to Westbury (17:08 arrival from Westbury) 17:35 to Westbury
|
|
|
56
|
All across the Great Western territory / The Wider Picture in the United Kingdom / Re: Short railway journeys: now disproportionately expensive?
|
on: April 05, 2024, 20:04:41
|
Hear are some "short hop" fares below the Olddield Park to Bath Spa ones:
Lelant to Lelant Saltings - £1.00 off peak day single (that's after 05:00). Culrain to Invershin - £2.00 anytime day single Ryde St Johns Road to Esplanade - £2.00 anytime, £1.10 evening or Sunday out Wrexham General to Wrexham Central - £2.00 anytime day single Aberdovey to Penhelig - £2.10 anytime day single Keyham to Dockyard - £2.20 anytime day single Llanrwst to North Llanrwst - £2.20 anytime day single Kirby to Headbolt Lane - £2.30 anytime day single Maghull to Maghull North - £2.30 anytime day single Reading to Reading West - £2.40 anytime day single Grimsby Docks to New Clee - £2.50 anytime day single Yetminster to Thornford - £2.50 anytime day single Severn Tunnel Junction to Caldicot - £2.60 anytime day single Birmingham Moor St to Bordesley - £3.00 anytime, £2.90 evening
Wales Valleys seem to have a minium fare of £2.70 for "quicker to walk" journeys such as Rhiwbina to Whitchurch and Barry Island to Barry. Barry Island to Barry Links if £279.00 anytime single.
Edit - I keep finding more low fares and editing them in ..
|
|
|
58
|
All across the Great Western territory / Fare's Fair / Re: Interrail class 1 = GWR first class?
|
on: April 05, 2024, 15:25:33
|
Hi - we've got a train-based holiday in Italy coming up which includes Interrail passes, and have been told to use them for the initial leg from Chippenham to London Paddington. The passes are marked 'class 1'. Might be a daft question, but can use them to travel first class on the GWR▸ service? John
If they are global (all country) passes then yes, but remember that you get just two days UK▸ - "inbound / outbound' is the intent - in your own country. Chippenham - Paddington (1st Class), Elizabeth line to Farringdon, Thamelsink to St Pancras all included as (but with a "seat reservation" fee that feels more like a supplement) is Eurostar and provide you start all legs of the journey in the UK in the same day, it's just one day off your pass. Example - Lisa and I the other week, Melksham to Swindon to London and onward to Brussels and Frankfurt in a single day. 1st class included coffee and snack on GWR, and gets you standard premier on Eurostar which include our lunch.
|
|
|
59
|
Journey by Journey / TransWilts line / Re: 2024 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury
|
on: April 05, 2024, 09:39:04
|
06:35 Salisbury to Worcester Foregate Street due 09:47
06:35 Salisbury to Worcester Foregate Street due 09:47 is being delayed at Ashchurch For Tewkesbury. This is due to a points failure. Technically a disruption to one of the trains that's scheduled / travelled our line, though I suspect that the number of passengers from south of Swindon to north of Cheltenham Spa on board was/is limited.
|
|
|
60
|
Journey by Journey / TransWilts line / Re: 2024 - Service update and amendment log, Swindon <-> Westbury
|
on: April 04, 2024, 16:18:26
|
17:50 Gloucester to Salisbury due 20:06 17:50 Gloucester to Salisbury due 20:06 will be started from Westbury. It will no longer call at Gloucester, Stonehouse, Stroud, Kemble, Swindon, Chippenham, Melksham and Trowbridge. This is due to a fault on this train.
17:50 Gloucester to Salisbury due 20:06
17:50 Gloucester to Salisbury due 20:06 will be reinstated and will now run as scheduled.
|
|
|
|