"Unauthorised occupation of this seat"

[All Line Rover]

Pendo FC seats aren't too bad, but I would rather they did an EC and introduced single seats.

That's not necessary as Pendolinos are rarely above 50% capacity in First Class - never mind 70%! Super Voyagers have single seats as they often exceed 80% capacity in First Class.

 

[AlterEgo]

That's not necessary as Pendolinos are rarely above 50% capacity in First Class - never mind 70%! Super Voyagers have single seats as they often exceed 80% capacity in First Class.

I take it you've never been on an early business train out of Manchester or elsewhere!

The 0659 and 0714 from Milton Keynes to London Euston (don't know where they originate from) are without fail always at least 90% full in First on arrival into Euston.

Many peak time journeys heading out of Euston are also very full - Friday evenings in particular.

The reason for single seats on Voyagers is because the whole first class section is in a leading carriage. On MUs designed to travel over a certain speed, all seats within x metres of the front bulkhead have to be rearward facing. Check the seating plans out...

 

[All Line Rover]

I take it you've never been on an early business train out of Manchester or elsewhere!

The 0659 and 0714 from Milton Keynes to London Euston (don't know where they originate from) are without fail always at least 90% full in First on arrival into Euston.

Many peak time journeys heading out of Euston are also very full - Friday evenings in particular.

The reason for single seats on Voyagers is because the whole first class section is in a leading carriage. On MUs designed to travel over a certain speed, all seats within x metres of the front bulkhead have to be rearward facing. Check the seating plans out...

Peak trains that stop at Milton Keynes are always full - in both First and Standard Class - because of those annoying Milton Keynes commuters.

In my experience, weekday departures between 17:00 and 18:59 from Euston are rarely more than 40% full in First Class. I don't know about the trains at or after 19:00, but from 19:40 onwards they are fairly quiet once again (except in Coach J). The 19:40 to Manchester was full in Coach J (the reservations coach), but had only 10 people in Coach G.

I didn't know about the Voyager thing though! Even so, I find it hard to believe that Virgin never thought of inserting airline style seats (in turn creating single seats) to have extra First Class capacity. First Class would be overflowing on Super Voyagers if they had the same layout as Pendolinos!

 

[snail]

I sat in a nearby window seat which had in the overhead display "available until Stockport".
...
Later in the journey I looked at the display again. It had changed, and now just read "Reserved". Why had it changed?

Because you had passed Stockport. The system changes the display to Reserved on arrival at the booked station.

Something like 'Reserved from Stockport' would be better, then people getting on know either someone may turn up at that station or it's an earlier reservation that hasn't been claimed.
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Are there any tips to prevent this happening?

If you are booking online there is nothing preventing you booking more than one journey to get a choice of seats then removing the ones you don't want before paying.

 

[scotsman]

I'm always quite happy to challenge / shift / threaten to remove from train with cases like this (however it has never come to this - I don't play poker, but I bluff very well!)

I think I could do the bluffing very well, which is a huge two fingers up to all those who say "drama isn't a proper subject"

 

[Flamingo]

I think I could do the bluffing very well, which is a huge two fingers up to all those who say "drama isn't a proper subject"

I'm reminded of a line from an Emo Phillips stand-up routine, which went something like "One of my Facebook friends said she'd be here tonight, she's a teenage girl who is studying Drama - That's kinda like a Mexican taking Spanish"

 

[scotsman]

I'm reminded of a line from an Emo Phillips stand-up routine, which went something like "One of my Facebook friends said she'd be here tonight, she's a teenage girl who is studying Drama - That's kinda like a Mexican taking Spanish"

Excellent! It does help when you're dealing with certain situations....like making a PA call to announce raffle prizes "...we have coffee, which is a shame we didn't have it earlier, a fair few of you in coach B could have used it!"

 

[HST Power]

That's not necessary as Pendolinos are rarely above 50% capacity in First Class - never mind 70%!

Shame I'm not writing this from home, because there was a really interesting table in the RAIL Magazine showing First Class to Standard Class ratios on East Coast services. The differences were unsurprisingly huge. I think when departing one staiton the average was about 100 Standard, 5 First Class.

 

[CosherB]

Because you had passed Stockport. The system changes the display to Reserved on arrival at the booked station.

Something like 'Reserved from Stockport' would be better, then people getting on know either someone may turn up at that station or it's an earlier reservation that hasn't been claimed.

That's just silly! The original display of "Available until Stockport" shows anyone that after Stockport, if the seat is unclaimed you can use it.

Changing it to "Reserved" means, to someone boarding after Stockport, that it might be reserved from Wilmslow, Crewe, or Stafford (the 3 remaining stopping points). So they wouldn't use it and it would remain unused all the way to Euston!

If it has to change after Stockport, why can't it change (perhaps after a delay to ensure 'Mr Stockport' hasn't stopped off at the buffet for a coffee on the way to his seat) to "Available"?

 

[MikeWh]

If it has to change after Stockport, why can't it change (perhaps after a delay to ensure 'Mr Stockport' hasn't stopped off at the buffet for a coffee on the way to his seat) to "Available"?

Are you suggesting that the seat should have a sensor to tell whether it is occupied or not? What should happen if the passenger needs to go to the loo?

 

[HST Power]

No, a sensor would not work. I think the idea of an LED screen, whether placed in the back of a seat or up front at the head of the carriage, remains the best solution minus the technical problems.

 

[CosherB]

No, a sensor would not work. I think the idea of an LED screen, whether placed in the back of a seat or up front at the head of the carriage, remains the best solution minus the technical problems.

.....Which retains the message "Reserved from Stockport to Euston" or whatever (not just "reserved"), so seatless passengers can make a judgement on whether to sit there or not.

 

[snail]

That's just silly! The original display of "Available until Stockport" shows anyone that after Stockport, if the seat is unclaimed you can use it.

I generally agree, but on longer journeys you could get the same seat reserved two or three times. What if 'Mr Stockport' was only travelling to Stoke, where 'Mr Stoke' is waiting to claim that seat to Euston - someone boarding at Stockport may think the seat is unreserved for the full journey.

I think a good system would be to print cards with all the reservations for that seat, to be put on the seats at the start of each journey.

 

[ChrisCooper]

The reason for single seats on Voyagers is because the whole first class section is in a leading carriage. On MUs designed to travel over a certain speed, all seats within x metres of the front bulkhead have to be rearward facing. Check the seating plans out...

That's a myth. The 180s have forward facing seats right near the front, as do the 222s.

 

[AlterEgo]

That's a myth. The 180s have forward facing seats right near the front, as do the 222s.

Is it? I have it on pretty good authority. Mind you, if the 180s and 222s have forward facing seats at the front, I'm inclined to agree with you.