Advanced purchase seat... seat taken!!

[Flamingo]

Oh well, no system is foolproof.

(idiots are very ingenious )

 

[Statto]

Problem comes when someone has AP ticket, but someone else is in there seat & refuses to move as the T&C on AP, stipulates that they must sit in the seat as stated on the ticket, or they might end up paying the extra excess charge for the journey, & it doesn't matter if the carriage is empty, the person should have been told by trainstaff to vacate that seat.

Just as well VT have electronic reservation system on there Pendolinos, rather than paper reservations.

 

[142094]

As has been said, if there are other seats available I'll go and sit there. However I do like a window seat, and if there are none available I'll ask the person sitting in mine to kindly vacate it.

If someone came to me and had a reservation for the seat I was sitting on, I'd certainly move. However some people can be awkward and you can never tell what type of perosn you are likely to encounter.

 

[yorkie]

Problem comes when someone has AP ticket, but someone else is in there seat & refuses to move as the T&C on AP, stipulates that they must sit in the seat as stated on the ticket, or they might end up paying the extra excess charge for the journey,

Not going to happen in the real world.

it doesn't matter if the carriage is empty, the person should have been told by trainstaff to vacate that seat.

If the coach is empty out of Edinburgh (and, let's face it at that time of night it's going to empty out, not get busier) then you'd be bonkers making someone move rather than finding another seat.

It does rather depend on the circumstances, though.

 

[craigwilson]

I do try to use a bit of common sense with these kind of situations. If, like over Christmas, when I travelled on a 0900 from Euston to Manchester (which was very empty - me and about 7 others in the entirity of coach C) then I probably wouldn't bother forcing someone out of a seat.

However, on the occasions I've got the equivalent journey at 1900 on a Friday, then I most definitely would tell someone to get out of my seat if they were being unreasonable about vacating it!! You're often lucky if you get on that train at all, if you don't have a reservation.

 

[Railjet]

Not going to happen in the real world.

Thank goodness - I hope sanity prevails in these circumstances. No-one ever seems to have a problem with this on the many continental trains I've been on.

 

[WestCoast]

Just as well VT have electronic reservation system on there Pendolinos, rather than paper reservations.

Best system IMO, people can't remove the tags and for some reason, people in most cases definitely take notice of what the screens say.

 

[Railjet]

Best system IMO, people can't remove the tags and for some reason, people in most cases definitely take notice of what the screens say.

When it works - I seem to have had several instances of bad luck in this respect on VT. The most frustrating situation is when a lot of people have already boarded at Euston and suddenly the reservations indicators spring to life about 10 minutes before departure.

 

[sheff1]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Statto
Problem comes when someone has AP ticket, but someone else is in there seat & refuses to move as the T&C on AP, stipulates that they must sit in the seat as stated on the ticket, or they might end up paying the extra excess charge for the journey,

Not going to happen in the real world.

Hopefully not, but I did travel on a XC train a couple of years ago when the conductor went on at great length stating that customers with Advance Tickets MUST sit in their allocated seat and that the tickets weren't valid elsewhere. I always wondered whether he would really try and charge someone in the wrong seat for a new ticket.

 

[SS4]

Just as well VT have electronic reservation system on there Pendolinos, rather than paper reservations.

I agree, they always seem to be up already when doors open at New St (possibly because it's come from Wolves but the starters are usually up too). Definitely seen them adhered to by pretty much everyone, probably because they can't be tampered with.

To go a tad off-topic what is frustrating with Pendos is everyone's tendency to drag bags through the length of the train when it's sitting at the platform with more than 10mins to departure when it would be far easier to drag luggage along the platform to the intended coach.

In my experience, if a seat says reserved from New St I generally tend to wait until [Birmingham] International to see if they get on and if not I'll take that seat (but ready to move if asked). For people joining at a station obviously from that station. If a seat says available I take it, since I like the 4 table in order to stretch my legs but I will give it up if someone evidently has a better use for it (like 4 friends sitting together)

 

[Lad Brookes]

I've NEVER seen that. Often heard it claimed, but one of them is always wrong (and if on an ADVANCE ticket, charged up for causing me the hassle of having to sort it out )

I had it with two tickets I bought for the same train.

I bought 3 First Advance tickets, and then another friend decided to join us, so I bought a 4th a few days later (at a slightly higher price, as the quota for the cheaper ticket had sold out). The extra ticket had the same seat number as one of the group of 3.

We didn't sit in our booked seats though, so didn't find out if all the seats were double-booked or indeed if any of them were booked at all.

It caused no major hassle to us, but got me thinking that if the reservation system was doing that, it might not take tickets off the quotas correctly, and too many/too few tickets would be available at each price.

 

[MCR247]

The most frustrating situation is when a lot of people have already boarded at Euston and suddenly the reservations indicators spring to life about 10 minutes before departure.

That is really annoying and always happens on 222s! Its not even like they are just blank, they say 'Not Reserved' so people sit in them, and then ten minutes later they change!

 

[Blindtraveler]

have had a few problems with XC reservations over the years. Ones I remember wer the time when the Aberdeen-Penzance reached Waverley Southbound with the staggerinly large number of 4 coaches and a booked school party taking up 1.5 of them. Also, they were using paper reservations as computer was, yet again down. The combination of this, 4 coaches and the large group ment there was nowhere for quite a few of us to sit. The train crew said they could do nothing and said we'll have to transfer you to the train an hour later, but which according to platform staff was cansled due to a set problem. Result, EDB-BHM on the floor of the then newly installed luggage area in coach D with old ladies moaning about the lack of luggage space whilst stairing at an empty shelf or 2! Had problems on the northbound leg of same trip and they like an earlier post here make me question how well the booking system works with seats and AP fares. On this occasion, had paid 12 quid with railcard for BHM-EDB and my tiket and seat reservation were collected at BHM. train arives and someone in my seat. Complain. Whilst complaining meat another passenger who had same seat as me who was already on at BHM and just when I'm preparing myself for another 5 hrs on the floor when another 2 BHM passengers turn up with same type of tiket and seat no. Traincrew now summon manager to train as suspect tiket froad as there list and the reservation system shows the seat as being booked seperately by 3 passengers. plymouth BHM, BHM EDB and EDB ABD. the train staff thought we all knew eachother and that they were using me as the poor blind stuped inosent disabled man as a way of blagging them all seats. Management at BHM didnt agree and simply said that we could travel but would have to stand as no other seats anywhere even first. I didnt fancy this with a hostile train crew and the fact there was even less space as this set had not been refreshed. Get off, complain, threaten legal action against XC for way I was treated, end result, up the WCML in first class with Virgin as all other X C services showing full for rest of day.

Had 2 other occasions where seats dubble booked and have been delayed or stood due to simple lack of seats on XC voyagers and interestingly, all bookings have been made by phone with the helpful, sometimes callcentre in india. not raceist but wonder if theres a connection somewhere? finally, must pic up on the bylaw about compensating passengers who have been unduly destressed by others and must Say well done XC for sorting me out on an occasion where i'd deliberately booked the quiet zone and a lady got on further south with 2 bratty kids who wouldnt shut up and the lady sat having an argument on her phone with someone. When i politely pointed the quiet coach bit to her I got insults and raised fists. The TM ATTEMPTED TO GET RID OF HER, THOUGHT BETTER OF IT AND MOVED ME TO EIRST. sorry for ranting

 

[90019]

Oh well, no system is foolproof.

(idiots are very ingenious )

If you make something idiotproof, someone will make a better idiot

 

[asylumxl]

That is really annoying and always happens on 222s! Its not even like they are just blank, they say 'Not Reserved' so people sit in them, and then ten minutes later they change!

I was under the impression the TM had to load the file manually into the train management system on Meridians. So, if it's not coming up early enough...

 

[Seacook]

Virgin Pendolinos are usually quite good with seat reservations but there were certainly glitches. On my commute between Sandwell & Dudley and Birmingham International the reservations system failed to work four days out of five one week. Admittedly the TM did announce that the reservations were cancelled as the pax joined at New Street, Worse though, was the time the reservation system came back on just as the train got to New St - cue lots of movement when the announcement was made.

The main disadvantage of the electronic reservations is the lack of a starting station - if the display just says RESERVED you have no idea whether someone is making their way to the carriage or missed the train at Wolverhampton.

 

[craigwilson]

The main disadvantage of the electronic reservations is the lack of a starting station - if the display just says RESERVED you have no idea whether someone is making their way to the carriage or missed the train at Wolverhampton.

When I'm joining a Pendo at Manchester for the journey to London Euston it generally does display properly - my seat (for the entire journey) displays "RESERVED" constantly, whereas a seat empty till Crewe displays "AVAILABLE until Crewe" and then switches to "RESERVED" as you arrive at Crewe.

So if a seat has said it is reserved at Manchester, and then someone gets on at Wilmslow, say, without a reservation, then I'd have no qualms about saying "Yeah, go ahead, take the seat, doesn't look like anyone's there"

Then you just have to assume that they will vacate if the situation you've described above occurs and someone arrives for the seat at Crewe!

 

[MikeWh]

So are you saying that you've no way of knowing whether an available seat is available for the whole of your journey? That seems like a backward step to me.

 

[MCR247]

So are you saying that you've no way of knowing whether an available seat is available for the whole of your journey? That seems like a backward step to me.

If true system works correctly it'll say reserved from.. Reserved to... Available.. But if not, it'll just say Reserved etc

 

[craigwilson]

So are you saying that you've no way of knowing whether an available seat is available for the whole of your journey? That seems like a backward step to me.

This is also why I try to get reservations where I can - it makes it completely unambiguous - the seat is mine.

 

[WestCoast]

The voyagers always tend to say where they are reserved to and from - why the Pendolinos can't do this consistently is odd.

In the very early days of the Pendos, couldn't you put your name on the system?

 

[AlterEgo]

In the very early days of the Pendos, couldn't you put your name on the system?

You can, but only by calling Customer Relations, who do seat reservations, or by going to a station, where they'll usually take a surname.

 

[island]

They offer the option to put your name up on Irish Rail, but this has been badly misused with people putting up fantasy characters or lewd and defamatory names.