Boxing day services only in the South?

[the sniper]

Well where I work almost overlaps in to the emergency services. If I am not in work important stuff doesn't get done. But people who don't want to provide transport services still want me to be in work whether or not they are willing to work on those days just in case they need me. It is simply a case of "I should be off work but everyone I might need shouldn't be".

So everyone should have to work because you have to?

 

[fowler9]

So everyone should have to work because you have to?

So should I not have to work because you don't have to?

 

[route:oxford]

What amazes me is that its beenlike this for years, its slowly starting to change. Last year Chiltern Railways London -Bicester North was a success along with SouthEastern' HS service abit both at restricted times but proven to work.

People kicking off because the railway likes to have two days off which helps with big engineering jobs and the like.... Boohoo they need to grow up.

Just imagine what it is going to be like for BlackFriday & Boxing Day 2015 when the Chiltern Service will operate directly to Bicester Village station.

For the sake of people living in Bicester, I do hope that Chiltern actively promote Boxing Day Village Specials and encourage use of Park & Ride.

 

[jimm]

I think FGW are running a bus service to Gatwick from Reading via Heathrow. Presumably a coach is sufficient capacity for both airports...

The Railair coaches are not run by FGW, they are run by First Group's Berkshire bus operation.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Just imagine what it is going to be like for BlackFriday & Boxing Day 2015 when the Chiltern Service will operate directly to Bicester Village station.

For the sake of people living in Bicester, I do hope that Chiltern actively promote Boxing Day Village Specials and encourage use of Park & Ride.

a. The station is called Bicester Town, and it is not going to be renamed.

b. What do you think the trains running today and that ran on Boxing Day last year are for? Not to enable people from Oxon and Bucks to get to London - that's just a side-effect... and car parking at the Chiltern stations that are open today is free of charge.

 

[the sniper]

So should I not have to work because you don't have to?

You do whatever your job requires of you. Whatever anyone else does is irrelevant.

 

[455driver]

Not unless your after 15% off in the sales that start 9am boxing day. Not all of us have cars!!!

So we should have to work because you choose not to have a car!
I have a 2 word answer for you and it isnt Merry Christmas!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I'm working today have to drive in though as no rail service on the route which I'd like to be using.

I bet the roads were nose to tail with all those people unable to catch the buses or trains!

 

[SPADTrap]

You do whatever your job requires of you. Whatever anyone else does is irrelevant.

What you're contracted to more aptly. I won't get my contract but something tells me it says I don't work! To me that ends any discussion about it.

 

[455driver]

So should I not have to work because you don't have to?

When you took the job did you know (or bother finding out) if Christmas day, Boxing day, New Years day, Sunday etc etc were a normal working day or not?

 

[BestWestern]

I had to work yesterday. Why can't others? No public transport wouldn't be an excuse for me.

A rather unfortunate attitude, chip firmly on shoulder I presume. Nobody should be compelled to work Christmas day unless their role is one of an absolutely essential nature (ie the emergency services etc). Very very few people have an absolute need to travel on Christmas day and as such there is no requirement for public transport to be running around the place. If you really have to travel and don't have your own transport, book a taxi and pay the (steep) price - there is a reason a cabbie will charge double, triple or whatever - because it 's Christmas, and everybody else is on holiday. Your local supermarket will be closed, as will most other places offering a public service; I see no reason why public transport workers should be expected to be out there toiling.

I'm not religious to any extent, however I value Christmas as being the one time when there is a genuine sense of togetherness and the opportunity to spend time with family that the modern pace of life otherwise leaves little chance for. I find this increasing attitude that it is some sort of inconvenience very sad indeed, and I rebuff the suggestion that it should just be another day with a few fairy lights thrown in. Boxing Day has already begun to well and truly slide into oblivion, fuelled of course by the retail cynics who manage to persuade some people that they should be stood outside shops at 7am in the freezing cold as if a sale is some sort of modern day religion in itself.

If you don't want to 'do' Christmas, then best to book yourself a holiday and find somewhere more agreeable to your preferences.

 

[Suraggu]

Me personally I don't want to work New Years but I get every Christmas off as I am contracted to have Christmas & Boxing day off I cannot complain at all and don't.
I get on with life.

 

[Tony2215]

So we should have to work because you choose not to have a car!
:

You work because you opted to work and receive the overtime.

 

[infobleep]

If DfT considered it important to run trains on more franchises on boxing day I suspect companies is would run them and they would find people to work them. End of.

Airports don't seem to have a problem finding staff to man the flights that run.

 

[fowler9]

Look folks I know I didn't make this very clear but it is something that interests me. I volunteered to work Christmas because I have no kids and I know that my rather grown up family wouldn't miss me for 5 hours in the morning. I can even walk to work although being able to get to work on a bus would be a bonus. There are however people in my office living further away who were pretty much forced to work it. Like myself they are pretty much relied upon by many people. Yes when they took the job they knew what it may involve but when you are on the dole they kind of frown upon it if you turn down a job. I don't have a chip on my shoulder, but some people do. We don't even live in a very religious country. I was in Chile for Christmas 3 years ago which is far more Christian than here and they had public transport on Christmas Day. Anyone who thinks I have a chip on my shoulder has a far bigger one on theirs because they think they are entitled to a day off.

 

[dk1]

This gets more comical for me every year & every year I say the same. I have no intention of driving trains on Christmas or Boxing Day & couldn't care less how people are supposed to get to a sporting event. Some professions have no choice I know but thankfully I do.

 

[Monty]

If DfT considered it important to run trains on more franchises on boxing day I suspect companies is would run them and they would find people to work them. End of.

Airports don't seem to have a problem finding staff to man the flights that run.

That's because they are probably contractually obligated to, my wife works at Heathrow and she has to work Christmas Day and Boxing Day if it falls within her rostered hours. The problem is the TOCs would need to actually offer a big enough incentive to get staff to work those days and even then most would opt not to.

 

[andrew bell]

I used to work in a pub and for 8 years and worked every christmas day, The pub was in a different village to where I lived and I didn't drive and there was no buses or trains. I either walked there and back (90 min walk both ways) or asked someone to give me a lift. It never bothered me in the slightest, it was only 1 day of the year that I was 'inconvienced' and I respect the bus and train drivers/guards have family and want 2 days off together as the only other way they can have it is if they book holidays

 

[455driver]

You work because you opted to work and receive the overtime.

Yeah of course! :roll:
And what happens when the company dont get enough volunteers?

Some people are so gullible it is actually quite sad!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I respect the bus and train drivers/guards have family and want 2 days off together as the only other way they can have it is if they book holidays

We have to save 2 days holiday so we can have Christmas day and Boxing days off, the company dont just give us the days off with pay!

Thank you for such a sensible post, it is nice for somebody to post an understanding viewpoint instead of the usual self centred cr+p we normally get.
Merry Christmas Andrew.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Look folks I know I didn't make this very clear but it is something that interests me. I volunteered to work Christmas because I have no kids and I know that my rather grown up family wouldn't miss me for 5 hours in the morning. I can even walk to work although being able to get to work on a bus would be a bonus. There are however people in my office living further away who were pretty much forced to work it. Like myself they are pretty much relied upon by many people. Yes when they took the job they knew what it may involve but when you are on the dole they kind of frown upon it if you turn down a job. I don't have a chip on my shoulder, but some people do. We don't even live in a very religious country. I was in Chile for Christmas 3 years ago which is far more Christian than here and they had public transport on Christmas Day. Anyone who thinks I have a chip on my shoulder has a far bigger one on theirs because they think they are entitled to a day off.

So because the job I took doesnt require me to work on these 2 days I have a chip on my shoulder!

 

[Monty]

Anyone who thinks I have a chip on my shoulder has a far bigger one on theirs because they think they are entitled to a day off

Technically speaking we are entitled to have the 25th and 26th off, our contract says so.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

If DfT considered it important to run trains on more franchises on boxing day I suspect companies is would run them and they would find people to work them. End of.
Airports don't seem to have a problem finding staff to man the flights that run.

The reason certain lines out of London have Boxing Day services is because Network Rail has contracts with Eurostar and the airports, which are fully operational (because Boxing Day is not a holiday anywhere else in the world).
The local TOCs are then able to offer limited local services on the same lines at a minimal extra cost.
There are no such contracts on SWT-land (or elsewhere), so there is no incentive for TOCs to run services.
As franchise contracts get renewed, I'm sure the subject is raised, but the extra costs are such that nothing much changes.
The DfT knows that insisting on running services would cost them in lower premiums/higher subsidy.
Network Rail's extended engineering work over Christmas is another big factor.
Once Watford Jn is done maybe the WCML will join the list of lines open on Boxing Day.

 

[Oswyntail]

My daughter, on a zero hours contract in retail that she was lucky to get, managed to swap her Boxing day shift so that she could come home on Christmas Eve and have Christmas Day with us. Sadly, the condition was that she started at 8am tomorrow, so she had to travel back today. We are "lucky" that we can easily drive her there.
I do appreciate that Christmas is a family time, but, increasingly, as families become more distributed, that means more requirement to travel, later on Christmas Eve, and on Boxing Day. Society has changed a lot in the last thirty years, and, perhaps sadly, service industries like the railways must change in tune.

 

[infobleep]

I used to work in a pub and for 8 years and worked every christmas day, The pub was in a different village to where I lived and I didn't drive and there was no buses or trains. I either walked there and back (90 min walk both ways) or asked someone to give me a lift. It never bothered me in the slightest, it was only 1 day of the year that I was 'inconvienced' and I respect the bus and train drivers/guards have family and want 2 days off together as the only other way they can have it is if they book holidays

Train drivers often work shift work, which wouldn't suit me but they do it and put up with it. As a result they can get 5 days off in a row. In my job I can't get that without taking holiday.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

The reason certain lines out of London have Boxing Day services is because Network Rail has contracts with Eurostar and the airports, which are fully operational (because Boxing Day is not a holiday anywhere else in the world).
The local TOCs are then able to offer limited local services on the same lines at a minimal extra cost.
There are no such contracts on SWT-land (or elsewhere), so there is no incentive for TOCs to run services.
As franchise contracts get renewed, I'm sure the subject is raised, but the extra costs are such that nothing much changes.
The DfT knows that insisting on running services would cost them in lower premiums/higher subsidy.
Network Rail's extended engineering work over Christmas is another big factor.
Once Watford Jn is done maybe the WCML will join the list of lines open on Boxing Day.

Well shouldn't the DfT have discussions with all franchises. Their quite this morning in the newspaper said some services run because they did make arrangements with some franchises. I think they should hold discussions with them all.

I wasn't the one who criticised Labour for not doing enough on boxing day and then became transport secretary and did nothing. This person being the Tory Stephen Hammond. For the record I'm not a Labour voter either so it's not an axe against Tories just a minister who in the past said one thing and then appears to have done nothing.

Why don't the DfT simply come out and say we don't want more trains on boxing day or we will lose our premiums which would be bad for the country as a whole. Philip Hammond could add that since being transport secretary he realises that he was wrong to criticise labour as this is the best way forward for our country financially.

Perhaps he could negotiate the removal of off peak restrictions on the morning of the 27th so there is some good news to report at the same time.

 

[Yabbadabba]

My job this morning, signalling trains in the Croydon area. Well it beats the going to all those crowded Boxing Day Sales lol

 

[455driver]

Train drivers often work shift work, which wouldn't suit me but they do it and put up with it. As a result they can get 5 days off in a row. In my job I can't get that without taking holiday.

Do you have to work 2 out of 3 Saturdays?
Do you have to work 1 in 3 Sundays?*
Do you have to work New Years Eve or New Years day?

We do so we can have that 5 day weekend every 3 weeks!

* Actually overtime but if we want to take the day off and the Company cant cover them then we have to work them regardless!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

My job this morning, signalling trains in the Croydon area. Well it beats the going to all those crowded Boxing Day Sales lol

Thats a lot of T3s!

I have only been out of the house today to visit an elderly neighbour who lives on his own 2 doors up (he was down here for Christmas dinner yesterday), otherwise the whole day has been spent in the house with the family, the car hasnt moved and I havent felt the need to go to a poxy shop hunting for a 'bargain'!

 

[SPADTrap]

To those doing, or wanting to do the traveling on boxing day and so on, why aren't you working?

 

[Yabbadabba]

Thats a lot of T3s!

Yeah but only half the amount that we had on Christmas Day, some blocks had to be given up or shortened to allow the trains to run today.

 

[infobleep]

Do you have to work 2 out of 3 Saturdays?
Do you have to work 1 in 3 Sundays?*
Do you have to work New Years Eve or New Years day?

We do so we can have that 5 day weekend every 3 weeks!

* Actually overtime but if we want to take the day off and the Company cant cover them then we have to work them regardless!

No I don't but if the work I loved required me to work Saturdays I would do it. I occasionally work Saturdays but very rarely. I do a job I love not for the hours I work but for the work I get to do. I never get paid over time, only flexible time if I'm over my hours. I can't get overtime even if I wanted it. I wouldn't do shift work however as I have health issues. The company I work for are against people working weekends unless absolutely needed.

I wouldn't be a train driver because I know I couldn't do such a job. If I could and my health was more average, I'd do the shift work as my love of the job is more important than the range of hours i must do.

 

[SPADTrap]

Look folks I know I didn't make this very clear but it is something that interests me. I volunteered to work Christmas because I have no kids and I know that my rather grown up family wouldn't miss me for 5 hours in the morning. I can even walk to work although being able to get to work on a bus would be a bonus. There are however people in my office living further away who were pretty much forced to work it. Like myself they are pretty much relied upon by many people. Yes when they took the job they knew what it may involve but when you are on the dole they kind of frown upon it if you turn down a job. I don't have a chip on my shoulder, but some people do. We don't even live in a very religious country. I was in Chile for Christmas 3 years ago which is far more Christian than here and they had public transport on Christmas Day. Anyone who thinks I have a chip on my shoulder has a far bigger one on theirs because they think they are entitled to a day off.

I do think quite correctly I am entitled to the day off. I signed for just that. What's wrong with that? I've yet to see a compelling argument.

 

[GB]

Anyone who thinks I have a chip on my shoulder has a far bigger one on theirs because they think they are entitled to a day off.

As others have pointed out, if their contract or roster says they have the time then yes they are entitled to it. Not really that difficult to understand is it?

I'm interested to know what your profession is though.

 

[455driver]

As others have pointed out, if their contract or roster says they have the time then yes they are entitled to it. Not really that difficult to understand is it?

I'm interested to know what your profession is though.

Oh I dont know, some people seem to have a real problem grasping the concept!

Of course if the Government decided there was a social need for train son these 2 days (or just one of them) then they would pay the TOCs to run them, or if the TOCs decided there was a commercial opportunity then they would run them off their own backs.
The fact that neither of these have made that decision should answer the question once and for all!

 

[fowler9]

Yeah of course! :roll:
And what happens when the company dont get enough volunteers?

Some people are so gullible it is actually quite sad!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---


We have to save 2 days holiday so we can have Christmas day and Boxing days off, the company dont just give us the days off with pay!

Thank you for such a sensible post, it is nice for somebody to post an understanding viewpoint instead of the usual self centred cr+p we normally get.
Merry Christmas Andrew.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---


So because the job I took doesnt require me to work on these 2 days I have a chip on my shoulder!

You are of course not contractually obliged to work those days. I'm guessing you don't have to actually save up 2 days out of 25, you probably like us get extra days leave added on in your contract to make up for the fact you are often expected to work bank holidays? Apologies if I am wrong.