Rail staff - what's your pet hate?

[grumblingalong]

I was wondering today as I muttered under my breath about the lady who presented me her railcard all nicely folded up in its national rail holder what my staff colleagues on here have as their pet hate? As mentioned mine is railcards/tickets/passes handed over folded up.....like they're above opening it.....

 

[EM2]

More than anything? Colleagues that don't answer their radio!

 

[razor89]

Customer: "Hi, could I have a RTN to XXXX please?"

Me: "Hi there, no problem, that will be £XX.XX then please."

Customer: "Oh yeah and I've got a railcard..."

I can't really explain how irritating that becomes after 20+ different people have done this to you in a single shift...

Another pet hate of mine is when customers are paying for their tickets and they're half way to dropping their cash in the tray, so naturally I issue the tickets for cash. They then go "oh actually I think I'll pay on card" which means you have to re-enter their origin/ destination etc., issue new tickets for card and then non issue the originals.

 

[ANorthernGuard]

A Minority who try to either hide or alter dates on Railcards/Tickets etc. Then the look of fake shock when I point out the fact that they are in deep doo doo and will be reported.

 

[SJN]

People trying to buy a ticket off me whilst talking on their mobile phone. Really annoys me. Also people who ask me if the train going to xxx. I say yes/no then they go and ask about three other people.

 

[breadfan]

What's my pet hate?

When the vet sticks a thermometer up its jacksie, of course......

 

[321446]

The backbiting BS.

Yes, we are lucky that we are all adult enough to cope with it in the most productive way possible but it still bothers me. Maybe because it's the only thing that REALLY gets to me.

I find it annoying that I'm expected to be Professional at ALL times, even when I'm not at work, but there are some who couldn't manage their way out of the toilet without blaming someone else.

It's the same in all industries I'm sure.

 

[313103]

When someone ask's you a question IE: Does this train stop at So and So and you give them the answer and then they say 'Are you Sure'? No of course it doesnt i wouldnt tell if it did is what i would like to reply. I have often said No i am not sure, you better go and ask someone else.

 

[HLE]

People trying to buy a ticket off me whilst talking on their mobile phone. Really annoys me. Also people who ask me if the train going to xxx. I say yes/no then they go and ask about three other people.

I'll make sure I'm on my phone next time i buy a ticket off you then !

 

[father_jack]

This came around on faceache a while back, I doubt if the atuhor will mind it being shared............

"Train Travel for Dummies

(All the things you wish you could say to a customers face, but can‘t)
Compiled by a friend of mine who works in a booking office.

• ‘Single’ means one way. NOT one person. If you want a ticket for one person say ‘one ticket’ or just ‘a ticket’. DO NOT ask for a ‘single return’ This is a contradiction in terms.

• You go TO, not FROM a place! Please ask for a return TO somewhere. If you ask for a return FROM somewhere, you’ll get a ‘backwards’ ticket (which is probably about right actually).

• If you ask us when the next train is and we tell you, DO NOT ASK IF THERE IS AN EARLIER ONE or if there is one that stops there sooner. If there was, it WOULD be the next train, STUPID!

• Plan your journey before turning up at the station. What’s the point in moaning (and tutting) about having to wait 40 minutes if you didn’t check the timetable. Duh!

• You don’t have to ask us for the CHEAPEST ticket. We know you want the BLOODY CHEAPEST ticket. That’s why we’re here (though we wish we weren’t). If we spend ten minutes looking for a cheap ticket to London for you and offer the best we can find, DO NOT THEN SAY “what about those £7 tickets” - what the bloody hell do you think we’ve been doing for the last ten minutes??!! Playing Space Invaders?!!

• Mind your manners. Please don’t throw your money at staff or push in before we’ve finished serving another customer. Finish your phone call before approaching the window and pay attention to what you’re being asked. Mind your P’s & Q’s and don’t rush the Travel Advisor. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you tell the member of staff to “hurry up”!! Woe betide those who do.

• Please be aware that Travel Advisors do not set the prices, neither do we make them up as we go along. Do not UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES try to barter with us or ask us WHY the fare is the price that it is. We don’t know why. It just is. Pay up or don’t go.

• When you pay by card, please note, the ‘chip’ in your card is that thing that looks (funnily enough) like a chip. It is not a hologram. Oh and by the way, WE KNOW the payment authorises quickly, thanks for informing us. Tell us something we don‘t know.

• Ask for the destination you require, NOT the destination of the train you’re getting on.

• Do your own homework! Know where you want to go and find out the name of the nearest station or bus link to that place. Do not expect us to know how to get to ‘Nowhere Lane’ in Newbury, or ‘Somewhere Street’ in Stoke On Trent. In the same respect, we do not know where buildings and businesses are located in places we have never been to.

• Navigate your way around a train station by reading the signs. There are lots of them and they are VERY BIG. It’s not exactly difficult.

• For obvious reasons (not so obvious to some) do not ask for Scotland or Wales - these are countries. They are big places, like England. Similarly, do not ask for counties, i.e. Kent, Suffolk, Cornwall etc. These too are fairly large areas comprising of many towns and cities.

• Do not use the name of the member of staff who is dealing with you. It is rude and patronising. Thanking them by their name at the end of the transaction is an exception only if said in the correct tone.

• Don’t try to be a clever clogs and book on the internet. ESPECIALLY if it’s a walk up fare. (Meaning a ticket that you can buy for the same price on the day) You’re bound to make a mess of it and create more hassle for yourself (and us) in the long run. Similarly, please don’t book on the telephone.

• Occasionally there will be engineering works and you may have to catch a replacement bus service. Yes, a bus, you know, four wheels, travels on the road, a bit like a car but it carries lots of people. Sound familiar? If there is a bus replacement this means that there are no trains, I repeat NO TRAINS!! And NO you don’t need to go to the bus station - it’s a RAIL replacement bus service - it goes from the RAILway station. And for goodness sake, please don’t ask which platform it goes from.
• Please note: ARRIVALS are trains arriving into the station, and DEPARTURES departing! Make sure you are looking at the right board.

• The thing on which you stand to catch your train is called a PLATFORM. NOT a stand, gate, station, terminal, line, landing, track or anything else - just a PLATFORM.

• We are not psychic and do not have fortune telling powers. Please do not ask us whether the train will be on time or whether we are expecting delays……oh, I know, I’ll just get my crystal ball out shall I?

• Do not use ticket names i.e. Saver, Open, etc, unless you are confident you know what you’re talking about. Tell us when you’re travelling and let US decide what you need.

• A Family Railcard CANNOT be used by adults travelling without children. Otherwise every adult in the country would have one! DUH!

• Do not attempt to alter the date on your ticket or Railcard. It’s pretty obvious and though you might be stupid, we’re not.

• Display your Railcard IMMEDIATELY on approaching the ticket office. We’re not mind readers, nor do we have x-ray vision. Do not ask us the price of a ticket, wait for us to reply, and then say “oh, I have a Railcard”. It ****es us off.

• If you forget your Railcard, TOUGH. You cannot get a refund later, and NO, THERE’S NO RECORD OF IT IN THE BLOODY SYSTEM!!

• If the Travel Advisor has their blind half way down, displaying POSITION CLOSED. Guess what? It means POSITION CLOSED!! Do not approach that window - go to one that‘s open!

• If the blind is up and we are sat at our desk doing nothing, do not ask if we are open. Of course we’re BLOODY open!

• We are not baby sitters. We cannot hold your hand and take you to the platform. You’ll have to learn to do it all by yourself.

• We are NOT Tourist Information or a Travel Agents, neither can we tell you how much it would cost to get a bus instead. Ask at the BUS station.

• Believe it or not, you cannot get a direct train to every destination in the country. It would be nice wouldn’t it, but I’m afraid you’ll have to CHANGE trains. Let me explain…….. Step 1. Get off the train. Step 2. Locate the customer information board. Step 3. Find out which platform your next train is going from. Step 4. Get on that train. You see? Easy isn’t it?

• Sorry - what was that? More than one change? Goodness me! What will you do? I know, why don’t you repeat steps 1-4 for every change you make? Simple!

• Please be specific about the time you want to travel. Don’t be shocked if you ask us what time the earliest train is and we say 0603. That’s what you asked for! If you then reply with “well haven’t you got one around 0900” you’re not going to be very popular I can tell you.

• Similarly, when a Travel Advisor asks you “What time would you like to travel?” DO NOT reply with “what times do you have?”. You’re really starting off on the wrong foot with that one.

• Make sure you are in the correct queue. TICKETS FOR TODAY means, yes you’ve got it, TICKETS FOR TODAY!! Move over!

• If you lose your ticket, TOUGH. It CANNOT be replaced. We don’t care if you have a receipt or can show us the debit on you bank statement. Would you go to Argos with a receipt for a TV and say “I bought a TV last week and now I can’t find it. Can I have another one please?” I DON’T THINK SO! You’d be laughed out of the shop.

• Yes, I’m afraid there is a £10 administration charge for refunds. You’re lucky you’re getting anything at all to be quite honest. If it was a ticket for the theatre they’d tell you where to get off. In any case I wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve actually used it.

• When you walk up to the ticket office please tell us what you would like, don’t make us do all the work. It’s not a game of 20 questions. Tell us: A. Where you’re going. B: Whether it’s a Single OR Return. And C: if it is a return, when you are returning. That’s all. Not much to ask is it? Thank you for making our lives easier. No, really, thanks.

• Please don’t give us your life story or go to great lengths to explain why you’re making the trip. We don’t care. Just tell us what you want so we can get you sorted and move on to the next person.

• Don’t approach the ticket office until you are good and ready with money in hand. Rooting around in your luggage doesn’t go down well with the people behind you and it doesn’t endear you to the Travel Advisor either.

I love customers really, honest......"

 

[Holly]

...
• You don’t have to ask us for the CHEAPEST ticket. We know you want the BLOODY CHEAPEST ticket. That’s why we’re here (though we wish we weren’t). If we spend ten minutes looking for a cheap ticket to London for you and offer the best we can find, DO NOT THEN SAY “what about those £7 tickets” - what the bloody hell do you think we’ve been doing for the last ten minutes??!! Playing Space Invaders?!!
...

In my experience, at Manchester Airport, if you ask for "A single to Chester" you will always be sold the more expensive "any permitted" ticket and never the cheaper "via Crewe" ticket.
And certainly not the cheaper still option of two tickets - one single for Manchester Airport to Liverpool Lime Street and a second ticket Liverpool Lime Street to Chester.

 

[Aeion]

I hate it when you announce tickets and passes please. The girl at the end of the carriage clocks you, see's you checking everyone else's tickets, watches you walk up to her and then spends the next 5 minutes routing around in her giant suitcase of a bag for her ticket. Winds me up no end.

 

[455driver]

Pax- Is this the London train?
Me- Yes it is.
Pax- does it stop at <I interrupt>
Me- sorry you only get one question.
I then walk away!

Ask for where you are going, where the train goes after that is irrelevant to you!

 

[yorksrob]

Ask for where you are going, where the train goes after that is irrelevant to you!

Not necessarily. I might be splitting my ticket !

 

[455driver]

In my experience, at Manchester Airport, if you ask for "A single to Chester" you will always be sold the more expensive "any permitted" ticket and never the cheaper "via Crewe" ticket.
And certainly not the cheaper still option of two tickets - one single for Manchester Airport to Liverpool Lime Street and a second ticket Liverpool Lime Street to Chester.

I will give you your first point but you are wrong about the second, you asked for a ticket to Chester and were sold the cheapest ticket for immediate travel to Chester, if you wanted a ticket to Liverpool LS and another ticket from Liverpool LS to Chester then bloody well ask for it! Or are you one of those that expects the ticket office staff to know every split in the Country, they are under no obligation to offer splits, in fact they have been explicitly told not to offer them!

Re the first point, if you want to go via Crewe you might have to wait 45 minutes for the train, which some people might think excessive just to save £4, I don't know how much you value your time but to me 45 minutes (actually 52 minutes using the arrival times) is worth a lot more than 4 measly quid!

 

[grumblingalong]

Oh this is brilliant. Sure I'm not the only reading this and thinking thank god it's not just me!

Anyone else have problems with our Senior population? Yes I can see you're old enough to be eligible for a railcard but I can't see that you've purchased one until you SHOW ME THE RAILCARD. And no I am not a jobsworth for asking, it is not pointless bureacracy and actually the youth of today have far more manners than you lot.

 

[455driver]

Not necessarily. I might be splitting my ticket !

So ask for the splitting point then!

 

[185143]

...
• You don’t have to ask us for the CHEAPEST ticket. We know you want the BLOODY CHEAPEST ticket. That’s why we’re here (though we wish we weren’t). If we spend ten minutes looking for a cheap ticket to London for you and offer the best we can find, DO NOT THEN SAY “what about those £7 tickets” - what the bloody hell do you think we’ve been doing for the last ten minutes??!! Playing Space Invaders?!!
...

In my experience, at Manchester Airport, if you ask for "A single to Chester" you will always be sold the more expensive "any permitted" ticket and never the cheaper "via Crewe" ticket.
And certainly not the cheaper still option of two tickets - one single for Manchester Airport to Liverpool Lime Street and a second ticket Liverpool Lime Street to Chester.

Or the cheaper still option of a single to Newton-Le-Willows and a Merseytravel saveaway...

 

[grumblingalong]

Or the cheaper still option of a single to Newton-Le-Willows and a Merseytravel saveaway...

Might be worth continuing this one in the fares section!

 

[yorksrob]

So ask for the splitting point then!

What if trains to different destinations call at that station. Surely its better to ascertain that the train's actually going where you want to go first ?

 

[455driver]

What if trains to different destinations call at that station. Surely its better to ascertain that the train's actually going where you want to go first ?

Then I will tell you which is the next train to it, of course if you are so clever that you have sorted out a 6 way split to save 50p then you should be able to find your own train, or are you just being deliberately obtuse just to try and make a point!

 

[scott118]

Then I will tell you which is the next train to it, of course if you are so clever that you have sorted out a 6 way split to save 50p then you should be able to find your own train, or are you just being deliberately obtuse just to try and make a point!

Thank you driver....

 

[yorksrob]

Then I will tell you which is the next train to it, of course if you are so clever that you have sorted out a 6 way split to save 50p then you should be able to find your own train, or are you just being deliberately obtuse just to try and make a point!

Clearly no more obtuse than you are to the passengers

Seriously though, with the mixture of stoppers and routes around here to Manchester Vic for example, it can get quite complicated when you need a particular destination and stopping point.

 

[Holly]

Or the cheaper still option of a single to Newton-Le-Willows and a Merseytravel saveaway...

Might be worth continuing this one in the fares section!

I think we have made the point that although there are perhaps a dozen different ways to ticket a single journey from Manchester Airport to Chester, you will always be sold the most expensive ticket unless you know exactly what routing and ticketing to ask for. And that may be why some people ask about cheaper options when quoted the price.

Last time I was there I stood behind a young man who asked for a single to Leasowe. When quoted the price he was smart enough to quickly change his request to become a ticket to Liverpool. He knew the Liverpool-Leasowe prices as it was a frequent journey for him.

 

[fowler9]

I am not railway staff myself so apologies for gegging in but I always find the staff more than helpful when I tell them where I want to go when it comes to offering possible cheaper options than what I have asked for. I find it helps that I am a regular at most of the stations I buy tickets from and am (I hope) always polite and friendly. Most recent was when I was buying a single from Liverpool South Parkway to Lime Street. The guy selling instantly offered me possible cheaper options not knowing I already had a bus ticket for my journey not knowing I already had a bus ticket for the journey home but was happy to splurge on the single to get where I was going quicker. I appreciate that kind of thing, keep up the good work folks.

 

[ComUtoR]

Signals going back

 

[razor89]

I think we have made the point that although there are perhaps a dozen different ways to ticket a single journey from Manchester Airport to Chester, you will always be sold the most expensive ticket unless you know exactly what routing and ticketing to ask for. And that may be why some people ask about cheaper options when quoted the price.

Last time I was there I stood in front of a young man who asked for a single to Leasowe. When quoted the price he was smart enough to quickly change his request to become a ticket to Liverpool. He knew the Liverpool-Leasowe prices as it was a frequent journey for him.

Retail staff are not supposed to offer splits, but can sell them if asked for by the customer. The splits mentioned are therefore irrelevant and the issue is simply about the routing of the ticket. Clearly you have had a different experience but I find it hard to believe that not a single member of staff at Manchester Airport will ever ask which way the customer intends to travel when selling an Airport-Chester ticket...

 

[sheff1]

• Occasionally there will be engineering works and you may have to catch a replacement bus service. ... And NO you don’t need to go to the bus station - it’s a RAIL replacement bus service - it goes from the RAILway station. And for goodness sake, please don’t ask which platform it goes from.

In Sheffield, rail replacement buses do go from the bus station. Said bus station (officially known as an Interchange) is not visible from the railway station entrance and the signposting is not obvious. If you do find your way to the Interchange, it is no use asking anyone there which stand the rail replacement bus goes from as they will have no idea.

 

[Carntyne]

My pet hate is the insinuation that rail staff don't care or have any interest in making the railway better for passengers when the reality couldn't be further from the truth.

 

[Llanigraham]

Signals going back

Tough!! You know we do it on purpose!!

Idiot drivers who don't understand that flashing red lights mean STOP!!!
Idiot drivers who complain the barriers are down when there is a train approaching.
Idiot drivers who think I should stop the trains so they can drive without stopping.