Thread: New Year, Same Old Sh*t!

Good old British Rail, who can always be relied upon to burst any New Year euphoria due to their total incompetence.

It was bad enough that our journey up to Glasgow consisted of a train to Northampton, then a bus to Coventry (complete with a busload of testosterone fueled pre-pubescent chavs), and then another train to Glasgow (and the tickets were £99 each). However we're now trying to get back from Edinburgh to Glasgow and they've decided to choose today to work on the line - and no trains are running!

But never fear, there is a replacement bus service that goes as far as Motherwell... except that there isn't! Due to a quite astonishing admin cock-up, no buses have turned up since 7:30am and they have now stopped selling tickets for the non-existant bus service, leaving queues of several hundred people at the freezing Edinburgh Train station. If a coach holds 60 people, then they're going to need at least 10 coaches to clear the backlog of people.

The characteristically unhelpful ticket staff suggested that we should get a taxi from Edinburgh to Glasgow - normally about £70, but because it's New Years day, it's double charges and will be about £140 - which is a lot more than the £9.20 it should normally cost. Not that there are any taxis either because they've all been taken by other people trying to get to Glasgow!

At this juncture, I would like to thank Gypsy Charms who, despite missing last nights New Year festivities with raging flu, has offered to drive us to where we need to get to. Kittie and I are now sitting in a pub - eating cheesy chips. Each time I bite into a chip, I am imagining that I am biting the head off a British rail employee!

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
:censored:

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Poor mob ma and pa. Glad to know your all wrapped up and warm now, bloody trains.

Checked on line and the services were as normal with a few late starters.
Bloody virgin trains, i was desperate to get home as my friends gone into labour and text me in the wee hours not expecting i would drop everything to get to bunley.
what should have been a two and a half /3 tops journey was seven hours.

Feeling your suffering im gonna make some chips x x x

Now you know James why I don't travel by train to venues.Nothing but trouble.Go by National Coach instead as its cheaper and you get there overnight to prepare for the next day.x.

LOL - if you're talking about National Express coaches, these are the same coaches that never turned up to ferry all the stranded train passengers to Glasgow!

This is why I bought a big people carrier which normally does the job. It's just typical that the time I decide to take public transport, it comes round to bite me on the arse!

Anyway, Kittie and I are now at our destination - I just feel really sorry for the hundreds of people that don't have a friend like Gypsy.

Oh noes!!! thats horrible. AND. the price of a london rail card now is stupid. :censored: :censored: well. ay for gypsy xx

Simialar thing happened to me. Flew to Manchester from Ireland to find there were no trains from the airport and I had to get a bus to Manchester Piccadilly except they failed to mention the hour and a half wait! Not as bad as your story James but I was still most angry!

No point in blaming British Rail - that company was privatised out of existance a long time ago, replaced by companies whose first loyalty is to their Shareholders and maximising profits - they know that people will continue to use their shoddy services because they have no viable alternative. And if you think only the worst Train companies lose their franchises then you'd be wrong, South West Trains were far worse than Connex South Central and Connex South Easten, but due to some well placed donnations and the right people on the board of directors, SWT outlived both the other companies.

Political rant over.

Originally Posted by Gehenna

No point in blaming British Rail - that company was privatised out of existance a long time ago, replaced by companies whose first loyalty is to their Shareholders and maximising profits - they know that people will continue to use their shoddy services because they have no viable alternative. And if you think only the worst Train companies lose their franchises then you'd be wrong, South West Trains were far worse than Connex South Central and Connex South Easten, but due to some well placed donnations and the right people on the board of directors, SWT outlived both the other companies.

Political rant over.

When I said British Rail, I was using it as an umbrella term for all the rail companies involved in my journey up to Glasgow. It just seemed quicker than saying Southwest Trains, Virgin Trains, National Express Coaches, Railtrack and Scottish Rail!

Fair point MoBfather.