What has been your longest rail replacement taxi?

[SteveHFC]

There's some impressive distances covered there. Longest I've had was Lancaster to Kents Bank after my (whichever company was running what is now Avanti) train arrived late in Lancaster missing the connection for the Barrow train. Staff at Lancaster were on the platform ready to sort taxis - shared one with 3 others, 2 of whom were going to Grange-over-Sands, and the other to Kents Bank. About 30 miles distance.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Have you had longer?

Preston to Edinburgh following a woefully inadequate rail replacement provision (and the usual incompetent management of the situation by Preston's staff) leaving people behind after that bridge failure near Carlisle about 10 years ago.

 

[styles]

Preston to Edinburgh following a woefully inadequate rail replacement provision (and the usual incompetent management of the situation by Preston's staff) leaving people behind after that bridge failure near Carlisle about 10 years ago.

I was actually surprised at how well the cabs were sorted at Carlisle when I had that long rail replacement taxi. There was a decent system set up to find people who could share a cab, those who couldn't, those with wheelchairs or large luggage needing particular vehicles, etc.

 

[sh24]

I did speak to a cab driver who had done Plymouth-London. 237 miles...

Thankfully my longest was Exeter-Plymouth.

 

[Belperpete]

My longest was Shrewsbury to Porthmadog. Fortunately Virgin WC had already arranged it for one of their passengers, otherwise I think we would have been told to wait for the next train. And the bonus was that we were in Porthmadog a lot earlier than we would have been if our train had made the connection!

I think that some of the previous posters imagining cabbies raking it in might be forgetting that the cabs are usually arranged through a cab company, not direct with individual cabbies. I was once with a driver who was not at all happy about a long journey. He said that the company owner kept most of the money that the railway paid, and only paid his drivers a fairly measly fixed mileage rate for the work. As it was a Saturday night, he could have been earning far more from multiple short distance trips at late night rates plus good tips. But he got no say in it, he had to take the work he was allocated.

 

[Krokodil]

Birmingham to Bristol twice for me. First time was following some use of the old trailing crossover at Runcorn to run bang road around dropped wires.

 

[Mag_seven]

They didn't even check tickets or they would have found us on free passes which may have resulted in a different outcome!

It doesn't matter whether the ticket you hold is a free pass or a full fare single ticket. It's a ticket and the TOC is obliged not to leave you stranded.

 

[zero]

Fort William to Glasgow cancelled. Some time later, station staff said a coach had only just been dispatched to Mallaig to pick up the passengers from there, which sounded like it wouldn't get to Glasgow until midnight. The staff authorised taxis for those who wanted to arrive earlier, but I forgot to keep proof of this.

An American family and I were the only ones who didn't want to wait for the coach, but there were 4 of them and they wanted to go to Glasgow airport. There was another taxi driver hovering around looking for a fare. I noticed that the Oban train was still running so I bargained him down to £75 cash to get to Crianlarich. He had the meter on and as we approached Tyndrum it had already passed £130. He was feeling sad that he had accepted my bargain, so I told him to set me down at the petrol station there instead of going another 5 miles. Scotrail CS later denied that taxis had been authorised, and since I caught up with the train I would have got anyway, I wasn't even delayed


I also had a flight replacement taxi from Newcastle Airport to Heathrow. It appeared that BA was prepared to hire a coach, but only 6 passengers wanted to get to London that evening and the remainder went home or took a hotel room, so it was two taxis. BA paid the taxi company by invoice so the meter was not turned on. The driver told us he would stay overnight with relatives (saving his employer / BA money) and drive back the next morning, presumably losing out on 5 hours of working time too.

 

[philip.holgate]

Glasgow to Lancaster for me, went for a day ranger, planned by return by the full line timetable, when I looked at the screens it wasn't there, walked into the travel centre asked when the next train was, he said Monday, I showed him the timetable and he disappeared into the back and came back and said we will get you a taxi.

 

[Steddenm]

Swindon to Fishguard Harbour for me due to a fatality my train was running around 90 minutes late and would've missed the connection at Swansea to Fishguard to catch the ferry.

Nice man in GWR Control called me* en route to Swindon to say a taxi had been organised and to meet the driver there.

Taxi driver was lovely and we arrived into Fishguard with not that much time to spare. Found out at check-in to the ferry that the Controller at GWR had called ahead to Stena to say that I was on my way and Stena kept check in open for as long as they could. The ferry departed around 15 minutes late but still arrived into Rosslare Europort on time.

*The guard on the train noticed the ticket was London to Rosslare (via Stena) and contacted his control with my contact details. Still have the Control phone number in Swindon stored in my phone as the GWR guy said if I ever needed anything again to call. I never have, and never would.

 

[Martin_1981]

Salisbury to Whimple in Feb 2014. Train from Waterloo terminated after a landslide at Crewkerne and the diversionary route via Westbury blocked due to flooding.

My mates partner has also had to get a taxi from Yate to Barnstaple a few times with trains cancelled, also she needs special assistance which hasn't always gone to plan, hence the need for a taxi.

 

[dgl]

Longest for me would be Westbury to Weymouth via Bruton (though without stopping at the station) and Yeovil Pen Mill, and between the same stations but direct (so via Shaftesbury). Both were times when the service back to Weymouth had been caped at Westbury due to staff shortages.
I've also had taxis to Castle Cary from Weymouth on two occasions down to driver shortages and a train fault (annoyingly after I'd got on, sat down and was very much ready to settle in for the journey. It couldn't be helped though).

Previous to these recent occasions my only other replacement taxi was Dorchester West to Weymouth after lightening had taken out the signals, a rather shorter journey.

 

[Highlander1]

A few years ago friend of mine had Perth to Wick after disruption travelling from Birmingham up the WCML. 200+ miles and 5 hours.

 

[styles]

I think that some of the previous posters imagining cabbies raking it in might be forgetting that the cabs are usually arranged through a cab company, not direct with individual cabbies. I was once with a driver who was not at all happy about a long journey. He said that the company owner kept most of the money that the railway paid, and only paid his drivers a fairly measly fixed mileage rate for the work. As it was a Saturday night, he could have been earning far more from multiple short distance trips at late night rates plus good tips. But he got no say in it, he had to take the work he was allocated.

My understanding from the cabbie I had was that Avanti had an agreed fixed rate with the taxi companies, so it wasn't even a negotiation exercise when they needed them.

 

[Essan]

Couple of years ago, after major disruption on the WCML (think it was a body on the line), I was put in a taxi from Glasgow to Preston with a couple of other people - think we arrived just in time to catch the train we would have been on had we hung around in Glasgow for another hour!

 

[Sealink]

Bournemouth to Dorchester.
The coaches that turned up were full of passengers (just after first lockdown was lifted, I thought I'd wait and board at the end to avoid the crowds)... then all of "polite" customers were provided with a taxi to finish the journey.

 

[The exile]

There is a possibly apocryphal story of the late singer Jessye Norman who, on discovering that she physically would not fit through the door of her booked sleeper cabin following an appearance at the Edinburgh Festival, hailed the nearest taxi and requested to be taken to the Grosvenor Hotel, London. The reaction of the taxi driver was not part of the story. (And it wasn’t an RRT so acted off topic!)

 

[The exile]

Following trouble at the Chunnel years ago, we were bussed from Cheriton to Waterloo where we arrived too late for onward connections.

Waiting for the first report of an RRT going the other way - ie on Le Shuttle!

 

[styles]

There is a possibly apocryphal story of the late singer Jessye Norman who, on discovering that she physically would not fit through the door of her booked sleeper cabin following an appearance at the Edinburgh Festival, hailed the nearest taxi and requested to be taken to the Grosvenor Hotel, London. The reaction of the taxi driver was not part of the story. (And it wasn’t an RRT so acted off topic!)

I get that train chairs, single beds, and doors aren't particularly wide in some cases, but how can I say this, Jessye Norman wasn't that large was she?!

 

[The exile]

I get that train chairs, single beds, and doors aren't particularly wide in some cases, but how can I say this, Jessye Norman wasn't that large was she?!

Mk 3 (and Mk1?) Sleeper corridors and berth doors are very narrow - as are the beds. It may have been the sight of what she was going to have to sleep in that was the final straw - she was a very large lady - but the story may well have been “improved” in the telling. The story was at least 3rd hand by the time it reached me.

 

[styles]

Mk 3 (and Mk1?) Sleeper corridors and berth doors are very narrow - as are the beds. It may have been the sight of what she was going to have to sleep in that was the final straw - she was a very large lady - but the story may well have been “improved” in the telling. The story was at least 3rd hand by the time it reached me.

I suppose. Maybe I'm just not picturing her, or the sleeper doors, right!

Does make me wonder - how often do accessible rooms get booked by people who are large who require the space, rather than people who need a particular accessibility feature (aside from space). Anyway, off topic there!

 

[pitdiver]

Not a very long journey Watford-Milton Keynes. But there was 6 inches of snow on the ground plus an intermittent blizzard. This was a special taxi courtesy of LUL.

 

[D6130]

Not exactly a rail replacement taxi - so possibly off topic - but when EMR/EMT HSTs used to spend the night at Neville Hill and work through trains Leeds-St Pancras and vice-versa, Derby drivers had diagrammed taxis to and from Leeds at the beginning and end of their shifts. About 80-90 miles each way I believe.

 

[A S Leib]

A relatively short one compared to some of those mentioned; sixty miles from Carlisle to Newcastle. There had been a fatality between Rugby and Stafford so my train from Wigan was delayed by over an hour and got to Carlisle after the last Newcastle train had left, or would have left had it (or the penultimate train; I can't remember which) not been cancelled due to staff shortages.

 

[Kath123]

My longest was Birmingham New Street to Taunton last year during a storm. I’d started the return portion of my journey from Manchester Piccadilly with a relative. We were due to change at Birmingham and our train got there much later than it was due. Then we were told there were no trains going to the South West due to the storm. A member of staff took us to Station Reception at Birmingham where they were sorting out taxis. We shared a taxi back to Taunton with another passenger.

I also shared one with other passengers from Yeovil Pen Mill to Westbury last year due to a train being cancelled.

I have had other taxis. Once due to feeling unwell at a station (probably due to heat) and other times due to a station not being staffed and me needing station staff for assistance due to my disability so I don’t think they count in this.

Birmingham to Taunton is definitely my longest anyhow.

 

[galwhv69]

Working a late shift in control a while back, had some passengers attempt to blag a taxi out of us from Ely to Birmingham, safe to say no booking was made after we confirmed they were just trying their luck

 

[LickeyIncliner]

Peterborough to Ely, 15-20 years ago. Not very far, but might have been a lot further... the driver set off down the A1(M) and wasn't going to turn onto the A14 until I told him that he needed to turn left, with rather emphatic hand signals. Either he had no idea at all where he was going, or he thought he had heard "Ealing". Since he couldn't or wouldn't speak English, I never found out, though as I had to tell him again to turn from the A14 onto the A10, I suspect no idea.

 

[Requeststop]

There is a possibly apocryphal story of the late singer Jessye Norman who, on discovering that she physically would not fit through the door of her booked sleeper cabin following an appearance at the Edinburgh Festival, hailed the nearest taxi and requested to be taken to the Grosvenor Hotel, London. The reaction of the taxi driver was not part of the story. (And it wasn’t an RRT so acted off topic!)

As the late great Victor Borge one said about a very large soprano. She was four foot eight - Lying down!

 

[AY1975]

Nothing like as long as the above examples, but back before privatisation I once had a taxi provided from Bristol Temple Meads to Chippenham. Long story but several mis-communications / real SNUFUs meant several people including me missed the last Paddington HST one evening [after it had been agreed to hold it for the five or so minutes needed, I heard that agreement !]. A couple of them were returning to RAF Lynham and had to be back ... we shared Taxi down the M4... and they got back to base with "a few minutes" to spare, then I got taken to my destination as well.

Again nothing like as long as any of the above examples, but I think my record is probably either Chesterfield to Alfreton or Coventry to Rugby.

Back in I think the 1990s, possibly before privatisation, I seem to remember reading in one of the railway magazines about someone who was trying to get from (I think) Guildford to Perth, and their first train was delayed so they missed the last daytime train from London to Scotland with a connection to Perth (or maybe even THE last daytime train to Scotland, even if they would have needed to be taxied from Glasgow or Edinburgh) and were provided with a taxi all the way from Waterloo to Perth!

Maybe it was a Saturday evening so there was no Sleeper that night. If it had been any other night, you'd think that they should be accommodated on the Sleeper if possible.

 

[styles]

Again nothing like as long as any of the above examples, but I think my record is probably either Chesterfield to Alfreton or Coventry to Rugby.

Back in I think the 1990s, possibly before privatisation, I seem to remember reading in one of the railway magazines about someone who was trying to get from (I think) Guildford to Perth, and their first train was delayed so they missed the last daytime train from London to Scotland with a connection to Perth (or maybe even THE last daytime train to Scotland, even if they would have needed to be taxied from Glasgow or Edinburgh) and were provided with a taxi all the way from Waterloo to Perth!

Maybe it was a Saturday evening so there was no Sleeper that night. If it had been any other night, you'd think that they should be accommodated on the Sleeper if possible.

The issue with trying to put people on the sleeper is that by the day of running, it is often fully booked, both beds and seats. The sleeper operations refuse to put two people from separate groups into the same room now as well, so not even like you could ask the people with a spare bed in their twin rooms to share with a stranded passenger without breaking their own policies. If you're lucky a Caledonian Double or Accessible Double may be available but I've certainly been on when they've had nothing to upgrade to.

That said, I'm surprised they bothered with a taxi instead of putting the passenger up in a hotel for the night and sending them on the first journey up the next day.