If you think customer service on the railways is bad, then travel on an Airline where they'll most likely tell you to get lost, or travel by bus where they'll tell you to... er... actually they'll probably not tell you anything as chances are there are no staff to speak to!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
At least if you're stood on a station you have some idea if the train is going to turn up or not, and you have safeguards in the fact you're going to get support and possible compensation if things go wrong.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
I think a bus passenger would love the facilities provided at even a rural halt!
Everything is very area dependant. In West Cumbria, many stations are unmanned. When the train ends up running 45 minutes late, or even cancelled, which happens extremely frequently, people on those stations will not know that their train will not be turning up. Compared to the Stagecoach Bus service however, if there is a major delay, or even cancellation to a service, one of the inspectors will go to the main stopping points on the route to inform passengers. Maryport station (one of the main stations on the Cumbrian Coastline) is just 1 platform, with a big bus shelter on it, 2 broken metal benches, and a broken payphone. There is evidence of a tannoy loudspeaker being on the station, but this has been missing for many many years now. Wigton station is similar, however there is 2 platforms there, with a bus shelter type thing on each side. There is a tannoy system in place on the station, but there isn't an announcer.
In West Cumbria, the bus is always a far more attractive option to the train. Bus service 300 (Whitehaven - Carlisle) follows most of the Cumbrian Coastline. It is an hourly service (every 2 hours in evenings), so you have a regular working, unlike the trains, when timings are seemingly rather random.
The buses are often all timetabled to leave Carlisle at 10 minutes past the hour, whereas the trains are 1150, 1247, 1420, 1512, 1631, 1727, 1813 (just a small selection).
As for fares, a day return Workington - Carlisle is £8.20, bus is £8.55. A 7 day North West Megarider Plus on Stagecoach is £24 (unlimited travel on Stagecoach in Cumbria, Stagecoach in Lancaster, Stagecoach in Lancashire, plus service 79/179 to Dumfries/Annan, Stagecoach journeys on 685 to Newcastle, service X2 to Liverpool, and service X61 to Manchester). The day rider version costs £9.75. A 7 day ticket on the railways, for unlimited travel between Workington and Carlisle only, costs £32.80. The Cumbria
Day Ranger ticket on the railways is £36!
The only trains we get on the line are 142, 153 and 156. None are really shopping friendly, especially when faced with a large step down to the platform. Most of the buses in the area on main public services are low floor with kneeling facility, so passengers don't have a large gap to step down (or up), which is something old people often struggle with (some passengers get a bus to and from a station that doesn't have such a large gap down). Often find the trains very full (especially when a 153 is the main allocation for a peak time slot!!!!!), resulting in many people standing, squashed up like a tin of sardines. The buses are generally much less cluttered, and you can, 99% of the time, get a seat.
I also find that trouble from youths is less of a problem on the buses as well. A large number of the buses have CCTV equipment in use. The trains don't. Conductors on the trains often ignore anything occurring on the trains, and sit in their cabs. I've saw fights, sex, smoking, and kids running up and down aisles on the trains, yet never came across any of it on the buses.
