Nightmare on the Southern 20 November
This is a story about two business trips in two days.
First one was in Essex. From our house in inner London I got in the car, headed out without any issues (as normal), out to the M25, and arrived nicely when I expected to. No pressures at all. End of the day, same thing coming home.
Today I went the other way, to Reigate in Surrey. I actually could have driven, but for whatever reason I decided to go on the train. There is an 0823 from London Bridge through to Reigate, arrives 0905, which saves the prospect of the First train connection slamming the doors just as 50 connecting passengers emerge from the subway at Redhill. Been there, done that, as have half the population of Reigate it seems ….. so, Underground down to London Bridge, up and buy a ticket. And to the barriers. I’m really early for that 0823, it’s not even 0750 yet.
First thing, looking at the screens, is that half the services that should be leaving in the next few minutes don’t even have a platform up yet, and there is a large (for 0745 leaving London) throng clustered around the barriers. Clearly there has been some issue, no information on what it is, but best at such times is to just keep pushing on by the first train, so I board the 0755 to East Grinstead, one of the few leaving on time, and will change at East Croydon. This rolls along, but I do notice some large crowds on the London-bound suburban platforms we pass. We stop outside Norwood, and then it’s a signal section at a time crawl into Croydon.
East Croydon platforms look like those TV pictures of Indian commuter railways, apart from there being nobody on the tracks – an absolute mass of people. It’s quite difficult to get off. To help, the screen on the platform is showing “due to a failure no information can be shown”. Alongside another one seems stuck at about 20 minutes ago. I just need a train to Redhill, and the platform screens are no use, so I drag up the ramp to the entrance where there’s a big departure board, which is needed because the complex Southern network, and varied calling points, can’t be summarised just by destination, a point which the multi-million pound information system overlooked at the design stage. But when I get up to the top, what a chaos. Two transport police are stopping anyone going down to the central island, while a glance across the barriers shows they have been closed to inward passengers. A huge and growing press of several hundred people fill the booking hall and spill out into the road outside. Clearly this has all been going on for some time. The information display is ridiculous, showing trains which should have gone long ago, and others as if they were running to time, which clearly nothing is. Strangely it’s only the central island which is closed off by the police so I go down now to the western island and press through the crowds to the new footbridge at the north end.
The other notable thing about East Croydon this morning is, despite the huge press of customers who have paid good money, and lots of it, for this third-world experience, a notable lack of trains. I’m used to the normal pace here but there were just one or two in platforms, and soon there are moments with nothing at all. There are announcements about the problems – from what I gather there have been two quite separate sets of overrunning overnight works, one at Selhurst and one down towards Brighton, plus a train failure as well, hence headless chicken mode all around. There are also PA announcements about services to Victoria and London Bridge, but absolutely nothing about Down trains. This continues all the time I am there. So, with some of the indicators displaying they are broken, and others showing nonsense (and changing nonsense, trains appear and then disappear seemingly at random, trains which were next suddenly become 3rd, and then vanish, nothing running to time, and no PA announcements, what do you do? Well, my plan is to stand on the northern footbridge and look up the line for any approaching down train, when each one comes into view (there aren’t that many) I then hotfoot down the steps as it is running in and look at the scrolling destinations on the sides. Well, how else? Just to put the cap on it, the cold wind and rain increases to a driving force sweeping across the platforms, and starts to have hail and sleet mixed in.
My main concern, as I am going to Redhill, is to keep off the Quarry Line and getting overcarried to Gatwick. There’s a Caterham, then two Quarry Line trains, then nothing, and finally what once upon a time (a fairy story phrase seems appropriate) was probably intended to be the 0717 Victoria to Southampton, running the best part of 60 minutes late, comes into view. 4 cars only, inevitably, whereas my previous train to East Grinstead had been 12 cars, and left with a handful in each coach. We all pack in to the doorways, and then stand ….. and stand ….. and stand. Whatever are we waiting for? http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/W72227/2013/11/20/advanced
After about 5 minutes we are off, ever so slowly. It must be about 0845 now, we jog-trot along, barely exceeding 20 mph out to Purley, but the most surprising thing is the opposite direction traffic, there are trains backed up at each signal all the way out to Purley and beyond. What the issue was at East Croydon is now even less apparent. But here’s a real stupidity. Remember that cold rain and sleet at East Croydon? Well, the scrolling display inside the carriage is carrying a message about “when it is very hot weather outside, always have a bottle of water, etc …..”. I don’t know what buffoon has decided to display this in these wintry conditions, and just to make the point it is repeated every two minutes all the way to Redhill. Presumably on hot summer days next August it will show messages to always bring your snowshoes instead!
So to Redhill. Only one more station now. Haha. As elsewhere the station is empty of trains apart from ours, which discharges about 200 passengers, and a DMU over on the other platform. Everyone squeezes off the platform, through the subway, and up, to find the DMU is headed for Gatwick. But the platform indicator says Victoria, so that causes endless confusion to those arriving, which has to be contradicted by PA announcements, which I hope everyone hears. After several minutes of this, and passengers running, getting on, and then getting off again like some Laurel & Hardy film, eventually the platform indicator changes to “Correction”. But of an actual correcting display, there is none.
The line is clear, in fact there are no other trains around at all, the DMU is getting later, but still the signal is red for it. And the 100 or so for Reigate and beyond wait and wait, looking at the summarised (only by final destination screen) display in the “information” shelter. There are various announcements, and after another 20 minutes or so an announcement is made about the next Tonbridge line train. “It’s still at London Bridge”. Time for both the 0901 and 0923 to Reigate comes and goes with nothing turning up. The 0923 is hopefully shown at first as on time, then every few minutes it goes back a few minutes. Meanwhile two Up London trains arrive, then two more arrive to buffer up to full length. They both just sit there, in a reversal of half an hour ago the Victoria is shown on the screens now as being for Reading and again has to be contradicted by PA, and it becomes apparent that they are somehow missing a traincrew member to continue. Eventually one goes, a platform alteration is announced, and the next train to Reigate appears. This is none other than our old friend the DMU that was here when we arrived, which has been down to Gatwick and back, and which quite clearly, as it left here about 20 minutes late, was not going to come back “on time”, as the indicators were showing until after our scheduled departure.
All aboard, we’re off, and everyone arrives for work at Reigate the best part of an hour late. It’s 0945. As for me, I left London Bridge 30 minutes early and am here 45 minutes late.
I’m going off to another office in South London tomorrow. It’s right by a station. But I’m going to drive. Of course.
This is a story about two business trips in two days.
First one was in Essex. From our house in inner London I got in the car, headed out without any issues (as normal), out to the M25, and arrived nicely when I expected to. No pressures at all. End of the day, same thing coming home.
Today I went the other way, to Reigate in Surrey. I actually could have driven, but for whatever reason I decided to go on the train. There is an 0823 from London Bridge through to Reigate, arrives 0905, which saves the prospect of the First train connection slamming the doors just as 50 connecting passengers emerge from the subway at Redhill. Been there, done that, as have half the population of Reigate it seems ….. so, Underground down to London Bridge, up and buy a ticket. And to the barriers. I’m really early for that 0823, it’s not even 0750 yet.
First thing, looking at the screens, is that half the services that should be leaving in the next few minutes don’t even have a platform up yet, and there is a large (for 0745 leaving London) throng clustered around the barriers. Clearly there has been some issue, no information on what it is, but best at such times is to just keep pushing on by the first train, so I board the 0755 to East Grinstead, one of the few leaving on time, and will change at East Croydon. This rolls along, but I do notice some large crowds on the London-bound suburban platforms we pass. We stop outside Norwood, and then it’s a signal section at a time crawl into Croydon.
East Croydon platforms look like those TV pictures of Indian commuter railways, apart from there being nobody on the tracks – an absolute mass of people. It’s quite difficult to get off. To help, the screen on the platform is showing “due to a failure no information can be shown”. Alongside another one seems stuck at about 20 minutes ago. I just need a train to Redhill, and the platform screens are no use, so I drag up the ramp to the entrance where there’s a big departure board, which is needed because the complex Southern network, and varied calling points, can’t be summarised just by destination, a point which the multi-million pound information system overlooked at the design stage. But when I get up to the top, what a chaos. Two transport police are stopping anyone going down to the central island, while a glance across the barriers shows they have been closed to inward passengers. A huge and growing press of several hundred people fill the booking hall and spill out into the road outside. Clearly this has all been going on for some time. The information display is ridiculous, showing trains which should have gone long ago, and others as if they were running to time, which clearly nothing is. Strangely it’s only the central island which is closed off by the police so I go down now to the western island and press through the crowds to the new footbridge at the north end.
The other notable thing about East Croydon this morning is, despite the huge press of customers who have paid good money, and lots of it, for this third-world experience, a notable lack of trains. I’m used to the normal pace here but there were just one or two in platforms, and soon there are moments with nothing at all. There are announcements about the problems – from what I gather there have been two quite separate sets of overrunning overnight works, one at Selhurst and one down towards Brighton, plus a train failure as well, hence headless chicken mode all around. There are also PA announcements about services to Victoria and London Bridge, but absolutely nothing about Down trains. This continues all the time I am there. So, with some of the indicators displaying they are broken, and others showing nonsense (and changing nonsense, trains appear and then disappear seemingly at random, trains which were next suddenly become 3rd, and then vanish, nothing running to time, and no PA announcements, what do you do? Well, my plan is to stand on the northern footbridge and look up the line for any approaching down train, when each one comes into view (there aren’t that many) I then hotfoot down the steps as it is running in and look at the scrolling destinations on the sides. Well, how else? Just to put the cap on it, the cold wind and rain increases to a driving force sweeping across the platforms, and starts to have hail and sleet mixed in.
My main concern, as I am going to Redhill, is to keep off the Quarry Line and getting overcarried to Gatwick. There’s a Caterham, then two Quarry Line trains, then nothing, and finally what once upon a time (a fairy story phrase seems appropriate) was probably intended to be the 0717 Victoria to Southampton, running the best part of 60 minutes late, comes into view. 4 cars only, inevitably, whereas my previous train to East Grinstead had been 12 cars, and left with a handful in each coach. We all pack in to the doorways, and then stand ….. and stand ….. and stand. Whatever are we waiting for? http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/W72227/2013/11/20/advanced
After about 5 minutes we are off, ever so slowly. It must be about 0845 now, we jog-trot along, barely exceeding 20 mph out to Purley, but the most surprising thing is the opposite direction traffic, there are trains backed up at each signal all the way out to Purley and beyond. What the issue was at East Croydon is now even less apparent. But here’s a real stupidity. Remember that cold rain and sleet at East Croydon? Well, the scrolling display inside the carriage is carrying a message about “when it is very hot weather outside, always have a bottle of water, etc …..”. I don’t know what buffoon has decided to display this in these wintry conditions, and just to make the point it is repeated every two minutes all the way to Redhill. Presumably on hot summer days next August it will show messages to always bring your snowshoes instead!
So to Redhill. Only one more station now. Haha. As elsewhere the station is empty of trains apart from ours, which discharges about 200 passengers, and a DMU over on the other platform. Everyone squeezes off the platform, through the subway, and up, to find the DMU is headed for Gatwick. But the platform indicator says Victoria, so that causes endless confusion to those arriving, which has to be contradicted by PA announcements, which I hope everyone hears. After several minutes of this, and passengers running, getting on, and then getting off again like some Laurel & Hardy film, eventually the platform indicator changes to “Correction”. But of an actual correcting display, there is none.
The line is clear, in fact there are no other trains around at all, the DMU is getting later, but still the signal is red for it. And the 100 or so for Reigate and beyond wait and wait, looking at the summarised (only by final destination screen) display in the “information” shelter. There are various announcements, and after another 20 minutes or so an announcement is made about the next Tonbridge line train. “It’s still at London Bridge”. Time for both the 0901 and 0923 to Reigate comes and goes with nothing turning up. The 0923 is hopefully shown at first as on time, then every few minutes it goes back a few minutes. Meanwhile two Up London trains arrive, then two more arrive to buffer up to full length. They both just sit there, in a reversal of half an hour ago the Victoria is shown on the screens now as being for Reading and again has to be contradicted by PA, and it becomes apparent that they are somehow missing a traincrew member to continue. Eventually one goes, a platform alteration is announced, and the next train to Reigate appears. This is none other than our old friend the DMU that was here when we arrived, which has been down to Gatwick and back, and which quite clearly, as it left here about 20 minutes late, was not going to come back “on time”, as the indicators were showing until after our scheduled departure.
All aboard, we’re off, and everyone arrives for work at Reigate the best part of an hour late. It’s 0945. As for me, I left London Bridge 30 minutes early and am here 45 minutes late.
I’m going off to another office in South London tomorrow. It’s right by a station. But I’m going to drive. Of course.
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