Help needed trying to find station announcement recordings.

[BethLynette]

Hi all, I'm new here and I don't have enough points to post under general discussion, but I'm training to teach English to speakers of other languages and I'd like to do a lesson using a compilation of actual train announcements. I've tried a general search but I'm not getting good results. Also tried Soundcloud which was somewhat overwhelming. Could anyone guide me towards a few minutes' recordings of actual train announcements? Best would be a selection of different voices. Thank you so much for any help. /Beth

 

[MrJeeves]

Hi all, I'm new here and I don't have enough points to post under general discussion, but I'm training to teach English to speakers of other languages and I'd like to do a lesson using a compilation of actual train announcements. I've tried a general search but I'm not getting good results. Also tried Soundcloud which was somewhat overwhelming. Could anyone guide me towards a few minutes' recordings of actual train announcements? Best would be a selection of different voices. Thank you so much for any help. /Beth

I run https://railannouncements.co.uk/ which lets you generate various announcements of your own choice for various trains and stations across the country (and different voices as a result).

Maybe for your situation, the automated real-time "live announcements" would be best, and picking a busy station such as Birmingham New Street would help? This has a male and female voice which it can switch between.

 

[Krokodil]

Hi all, I'm new here and I don't have enough points to post under general discussion, but I'm training to teach English to speakers of other languages and I'd like to do a lesson using a compilation of actual train announcements. I've tried a general search but I'm not getting good results. Also tried Soundcloud which was somewhat overwhelming. Could anyone guide me towards a few minutes' recordings of actual train announcements? Best would be a selection of different voices. Thank you so much for any help. /Beth

Is this of any use? It's a long recording of announcements at Birmingham New Street (from before they were silenced)

 

[Parallel]

There’s also one here which included all the voices that announced on stations at the time.

 

[Taunton]

Is this of any use? It's a long recording of announcements at Birmingham New Street (from before they were silenced)

One really has to wonder whether this is better than "Front two coaches for stations beyond Dovey Junction to Barmouth and Pwllheli; rear two coaches for stations beyond Dovey Junction to Aberystwyth". The fixation with having to announce every single possible point along the line, where the listener, unless they already know the precise sequence, will probably miss their own point anyway, plus the tedious length of the announcement, and that some of these isolated points probably never have a passenger through from Birmingham from one week to the next, really doesn't help things.

Are the trains on this service able to show different final destinations on different cars? That would be more helpful than any of this, but it seems some trains on dividing services were specified incapable of doing this.

 

[Krokodil]

One really has to wonder whether this is better than "Front two coaches for stations beyond Dovey Junction to Barmouth and Pwllheli; rear two coaches for stations beyond Dovey Junction to Aberystwyth".

Are you attempting to apply common sense? Take a cold shower...

Are the trains on this service able to show different final destinations on different cars? That would be more helpful than any of this, but it seems some trains on dividing services were specified incapable of doing this.

No. I don't believe that the 197s have been set up to handle portion-working either.

 

[Taunton]

No. I don't believe that the 197s have been set up to handle portion-working either.

The Southern Railway managed this in the 1930s, with wooden destination boards on the ends of individual emu units which were dividing downroute ...

 

[Krokodil]

The Southern Railway managed this in the 1930s, with wooden destination boards on the ends of individual emu units which were dividing downroute ...

That was back when common sense was still allowed.

 

[TimSpencer]

One really has to wonder whether this is better than "Front two coaches for stations beyond Dovey Junction to Barmouth and Pwllheli; rear two coaches for stations beyond Dovey Junction to Aberystwyth". The fixation with having to announce every single possible point along the line, where the listener, unless they already know the precise sequence, will probably miss their own point anyway, plus the tedious length of the announcement, and that some of these isolated points probably never have a passenger through from Birmingham from one week to the next, really doesn't help things.

Are the trains on this service able to show different final destinations on different cars? That would be more helpful than any of this, but it seems some trains on dividing services were specified incapable of doing this.

Are you assuming that the purpose of the announcements is to convey information to the passenger? Clearly they are ineffective. Either the real purpose of these announcements is to generate noise for the sake of noise or they are intended to irritate and provoke. Either way they are clearly working.

 

[Krokodil]

Are you assuming that the purpose of the announcements is to convey information to the passenger? Clearly they are ineffective. Either the real purpose of these announcements is to generate noise for the sake of noise or they are intended to irritate and provoke. Either way they are clearly working.

Don't be silly. The purpose of announcements is to cheaply tick boxes on forms, so that management can cover their backsides. If anything happens (whether we're talking slips & trips, staff abuse, portion working) then they can say "we mitigated it with announcements and maybe a poster" and all is good.

 

[Sad Sprinter]

I run https://railannouncements.co.uk/ which lets you generate various announcements of your own choice for various trains and stations across the country (and different voices as a result).

Maybe for your situation, the automated real-time "live announcements" would be best, and picking a busy station such as Birmingham New Street would help? This has a male and female voice which it can switch between.

How did you create that?

 

[talldave]

Travelled on a train in Belgium last week. On the train the only announcements were the "next station is ...." ones. Blissful!

 

[tfw756rider]

One really has to wonder whether this is better than "Front two coaches for stations beyond Dovey Junction to Barmouth and Pwllheli; rear two coaches for stations beyond Dovey Junction to Aberystwyth". The fixation with having to announce every single possible point along the line, where the listener, unless they already know the precise sequence, will probably miss their own point anyway, plus the tedious length of the announcement, and that some of these isolated points probably never have a passenger through from Birmingham from one week to the next, really doesn't help things.

Are the trains on this service able to show different final destinations on different cars? That would be more helpful than any of this, but it seems some trains on dividing services were specified incapable of doing this.

A few years back, when I was less of a rail enthusiast and didn't really use Realtime Trains, my Mum and I went to a little information point on Birmingham New Street concourse and asked the man which end of the train was the Aberystwyth end, but it quickly became obvious that, as nice as he was, he was a new guy. The furthest his help got was "yes, it's the Aberystwyth train!" I think the idea of portion working would've made his head explode, so we just politely thanked him

 

[Bikeman78]

A few years back, when I was less of a rail enthusiast and didn't really use Realtime Trains, my Mum and I went to a little information point on Birmingham New Street concourse and asked the man which end of the train was the Aberystwyth end, but it quickly became obvious that, as nice as he was, he was a new guy. The furthest his help got was "yes, it's the Aberystwyth train!" I think the idea of portion working would've made his head explode, so we just politely thanked him

With a reversal en route too.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 14 May 2025 ==

Travelled on a train in Belgium last week. On the train the only announcements were the "next station is ...." ones. Blissful!

Same here. Feels like a different planet. We really have lost the plot here, and the powers that be think that the solution is more and more automated announcements.

 

[Gloster]

Long ago (the end of the 1970s) when I did Sunday morning overtime at Andover the Railman (me) had to do the announcements. It was quite simply the calling points and saying you could change at Salisbury or Basingstoke: nothing about buffet facilities, First Class being available and where in the train, advising you not to forget your luggage, etc.

I could do it now, “The next train at this platform will call at Salisbury, Tisbury, Gillingham, Sherborne, Yeovil Junction, Crewkerne, Axminster, Honiton, Exeter Central and Exeter St David’s. Change at Salisbury for stations to Bristol.”

 

[DJ_K666]

Don't be silly. The purpose of announcements is to cheaply tick boxes on forms, so that management can cover their backsides.

I'd rather cover management in a different way...


With earth.

Oh dear looks like it's 9 o clock and the manager has set off for work.

 

[BethLynette]

Is this of any use? It's a long recording of announcements at Birmingham New Street (from before they were silenced)

Thank you! That is exactly the sort of thing I was looking for. Cheers!

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 18 May 2025 ==

I run https://railannouncements.co.uk/ which lets you generate various announcements of your own choice for various trains and stations across the country (and different voices as a result).

Maybe for your situation, the automated real-time "live announcements" would be best, and picking a busy station such as Birmingham New Street would help? This has a male and female voice which it can switch between.

Thanks so much! Have bookmarked and this could prove very useful. Cheers!