Trains AAAAAARRRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!

[appollo1]

Ok bear with me on this one please....


Yesterday I travelled home from Stafford by train as my wife and kids are staying at her mums for a couple of weeks and she's got the car.

I had 2 changes to make first at Crewe then at Edinburgh. Got on the train at Crewe and headed up the track. At Preston we got delayed for 45 minutes due to "engineering works". Not too bad I thought and was advised to get off at Haymarket to catch a connection. I get of the train at 4.45pm to find that all trains north are cancelled due to signal failure. The station staff are really apologetic and as usual thank everone for their patience and will let us know as soon as possible what is happening blah blah blah..

At 6pm passengers travelling to Perth are asked to get on the bus in the car park. Not the way I'm heading so I wait. I ask what is happening as there has been no announcement for almost an hour. The staff are unable to contact the main office as the phone line is permanantly engaged. I ask about buses and get told that there are none available as they are all getting used for the T in the Park Festival near Perth.

At 7pm I am starting to get really pi**ed off as Haymarket is a small station with only 4 platforms and hardly any seats. I ask the station supervisor to pay for a taxi to take me home as it's only about an hour away (60 miles approx) and he tells me he can't authorise it.

Understandably I'm getting more pi**ed off at the lack of information being given. At 8pm I ask for a taxi again and am still told no. I ask the station supervisor to get someone to the station who can authorise a taxi. Nobody available is the reply.

Next minute the police turn up and I'm starting to think that I might get a lift with them for the wrong reasons.


At 8.30pm I am about to start getting myself in trouble as I have not eaten for a while and should have been home 3 hours previously. I ask again about a taxi and surprise surprise a bus is suddenly available.

Bus departs at 9pm and goes the long way via Perth to Dundee and then finally to Leuchars. I finally walk through my door at 10.50pm almost four and a half hours late. No offer of refreshments or drinks all day and one really pi**ed off traveller.

I am due to make the return journey to pick my wife up in 3 weeks and not looking forward to it.




Sorry for the rant and rave but I've had a few hours to calm down now and just had to get this off my chest.

sounds like you had an bad day for sure m8 have a beer and chill

I'm pretty sure that, as a ticket holder, you're entitled to alternate transport if the rail network cannot provide this. I'm unsure of the timescale that this has to be actioned in - it may be the case that the bus-service counts, even though it took a long time to get there.

I was told this one time when I got stuck at a station which didn't announce a platform change to the train I was waiting for because it was the last train of the evening, and the guys on duty couldn't see anyone on the CCTV cams because I'd gone for a wander to stretch my legs, so assumed nobody was waiting for it. Station gave me a taxi home at a cost of £40 to Northern Rail.

[tigersaw]

I got a taxi from Crewkerne in Somerset to East Grinstead west sussex once, about 150 miles and it actually beat the train I should have been on had they not cancelled it.

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by tigersaw

I got a taxi from Crewkerne in Somerset to East Grinstead west sussex once, about 150 miles and it actually beat the train I should have been on had they not cancelled it.

Holy cr*p how much did that cost ?

You should be entitled to a refund, at the very least I would have thought. Get printer ink to paper!!

[tigersaw]

Originally Posted by fizzwheel

Holy cr*p how much did that cost ?

No idea, train company picked up the tab

[Jayneflakes]

Being mildly disabled makes train travel quite entertaining.

My last big visit was to see a medical specialist in Brighton. I booked my train tickets six weeks in advance and turned up at the station.

My train was delayed and it finally stopped at Reading! Platform staff were rude and very unhelpful.

I use a walking stick quite a lot and I was using it a lot that day. The Staff finally started to help me when I just gave up and sat down on the platform and declared I would not move until they ordered me a Taxi.

The Taxi drove me from Reading to Brighton and then got lost trying to find the station, driving past my hotel.

My letter to the Train Provider listed every fault they made, every rude comment made to me and every sexual innuendo made to me by the Taxi driver.

The letter I got back was filled with apologies and a voucher for further travel (the cost of my ticket back again!) which I used to go and see friends a few weeks later.

Damn train companies and the managers deserve to burn in hell, covered in turds.

Did I mention the fight I had with the Station Manager at Plymouth when I had to wait for over an hour to buy a ticket? He told me that I should buy my ticket from a machine and proceeded to show me how until I told him it was an advance ticket. The machine did not do advanced tickets. He just sighed and slumped. It would have been kinder to put a bullet between his eyes!

Originally Posted by Neeja

I'm pretty sure that, as a ticket holder, you're entitled to alternate transport if the rail network cannot provide this. I'm unsure of the timescale that this has to be actioned in - it may be the case that the bus-service counts, even though it took a long time to get there.

Being a Control Manager the railway Bylaws say we have to get you to your destination, there is no time limit on it, but the passenger charter means we have to make reasonable alternatives if advertised(or wrong information is given) to get people to their destination. Have had to authorise all sorts including overnight accomodation for people who have missed connections or flights due to problems with our service, some of which have been outside our control.

Janey if you have those problems again please contact ATOC as they have all sorts of ways of penelising for train comp[anys that act that way.

[Jayneflakes]

Originally Posted by the_runt69

Janey if you have those problems again please contact ATOC as they have all sorts of ways of penelising for train comp[anys that act that way.

Thank you for the tip. However once I pass my DAS, I am planning to never use a British Train again...

Ever ever again.

I would rather crawl!