Catering on Trains

[LateThanNever]

Wrong, on FGW HST's on-train catering staff have first-aid, fire and evacuation training as part of induction, with yearly updates.

Gobsmacked. And hurray! Didn't know Worst Group had it in them - delighted they do! Wonder if the trolley dollies are the same?

 

[Flamingo]

Gobsmacked. And hurray! Didn't know Worst Group had it in them - delighted they do! Wonder if the trolley dollies are the same?

The induction training for catering staff included, amongst other things, the best disability awareness training I ever had.

 

[dcsprior]

(though I don't know about £5 premium for Oyster Cards)!

To clarify, I meant that the £5 would be the deposit that would've been paid at the station anyway.

Having said that, I reckon if there was a choice when buying a £10 card between either:
*£5 credit and £5 deposit (same as buying at station)
*£7 credit and £3 non-refundable card cost (same as tourist oyster)
Then a significant number would buy the latter. I wonder what TOCs have to pay TfL (excl any credit/deposit) for an Oyster? Would there be much margin on the £3?

 

[IanXC]

Perhaps the solution is to not compete for the sandwich market, but look at other things to sell:

• Oyster cards preloaded with £5 credit for £10 (or £15 credit for £20)

Also, it may encourage use if the counter is at the midway point of standard class, rather than at one end as it is on some services at present.

Hull Trains sell preloaded Oyster cards onboard... Not sure how successful its been though!

Centrally located counters seem to be the trend now for new stock, so that hopefully brings one aspect into place.

 

[Gemz91]

I really hope Greggs get nowhere near the catering of any of the services I use.

 

[Taunton]

Hull Trains sell preloaded Oyster cards onboard....

Eurostar from day 1 in 1994 sold the equivalent Paris Metro tickets.

 

[backontrack]

It would make sense for there to be buffet cars on Scotrail trains from Glasgow and Edinburgh to Inverness and Aberdeen.

Where else could they be introduced?

 

[bnm]

It would make sense for there to be buffet cars on Scotrail trains from Glasgow and Edinburgh to Inverness and Aberdeen.

Where else could they be introduced?

In what sense? I doubt very much a financial one. How do you fit them in the existing rolling stock? It would have to be at the expense of seats. That makes little sense.

 

[scotsman]

It would make sense for there to be buffet cars on Scotrail trains from Glasgow and Edinburgh to Inverness and Aberdeen.

Where else could they be introduced?

All XC routes bar those operated by 170s.
TPE: EDB/GLC - Manchester, Liverpool - Newcastle.
FGW: Reopen the buffets on the Adelantes - trolleys currently used instead.
EMT: Not sure of their arrangement, but sounds like they could.
SWT: As above, repoen the buffets on the 444s.

 

[swt_passenger]

SWT: As above, repoen the buffets on the 444s.

SWT routinely sell stuff from the mini-buffet counter when the trains are too packed to get through with the trolley.

That rather suggests to me that (because they do already have both options available) that they must have sufficient evidence that they sell more stock from the trolley than at the counter.

 

[drbdrb]

I really hope Greggs get nowhere near the catering of any of the services I use.

And how could they be worse than a Virgin microwaved bacon roll?

 

[Gemz91]

And how could they be worse than a Virgin microwaved bacon roll?

Never travel on Virgin trains so they're welcome to their catering.

 

[Envoy]

The Arriva Trains Wales Holyhead to Cardiff Express service (Monday to Friday) has a dining car service in both directions.
http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/PremierService/

 

[Qwerty133]

And how could they be worse than a Virgin microwaved bacon roll?

EMT's melted kitkat and quavers served with lukewarm coke.

 

[Busaholic]

The Arriva Trains Wales Holyhead to Cardiff Express service (Monday to Friday) has a dining car service in both directions.
http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/PremierService/

That'll be for the Welsh Assembly Members on expenses! Same as the Penzance sleeper being regularly used by several MPs of all parties, thus ensuring its survival.

 

[yorksrob]

Never travel on Virgin trains so they're welcome to their catering.

Wouldn't be too bad......

so long as we got Greggs prices !

 

[Butts]

I've just come back from a few days away in Scotland, during which I used ScotRail's catering trolley, owing to the long nature of most of my trips (Inverness-Helmsdale is horribly dull btw, that's 5 hours I'll never get back!): £1.60 for a coffee (proper coffee, none of your whack it in a machine / capsule nonsense :P) is very reasonable for the amount you get, and certainly encouraged me to buy them more often than I would have if the price was pushing £2 or more. I also believe they were in-house staff: they certainly appeared a lot more friendly, talkative, and, frankly, more competent with English, than outsourced Rail Gourmet-style operation. Well done ScotRail!

£1.60 is not bad for a Coffee considering Flybe charge £2.50 on UK Domestic Flights.

One annoying aspect of Scotrail Catering "freebies" in 1st Class is that you get a smaller cup than the "paying customer" :cry:

 

[Flamingo]

One annoying aspect of Scotrail Catering "freebies" in 1st Class is that you get a smaller cup than the "paying customer" :cry:

It's as much as anything a stock control measure, so nobody is "accidently" sold free tea or coffee (and the catering staff "accidentally" pocket the proceeds).

 

[DarloRich]

Simple calculation:

Will the number of fares lost by taking out seats and (re?) introducing a buffet car be offset by the revenue earned from the buffet?

You should also consider that TOCs, when wanting to withdraw buffet services issue a loaded questionnaire that aims to lead people to answering yes to the question Would you prefer service at your seat? The idea conjured up by the survey and supporting literature is some form of steward like service ferrying fresh hot food and drink from a buffet rather than the scabby under provisioned trolley you may be lucky to see during a journey.

 

[Flamingo]

Simple calculation:

Will the number of fares lost by taking out seats and (re?) introducing a buffet car be offset by the revenue earned from the buffet?

You should also consider that TOCs, when wanting to withdraw buffet services issue a loaded questionnaire that aims to lead people to answering yes to the question Would you prefer service at your seat? The idea conjured up by the survey and supporting literature is some form of steward like service ferrying fresh hot food and drink from a buffet rather than the scabby under provisioned trolley you may be lucky to see during a journey.

Write the conclusion first, then frame the questions accordingly...

 

[Clip]

I just have to mention the Pork pies that FGW sell at the counter as they are bloody amazing - just wish I remembered the name of them to buy some now im home.

 

[Philip C]

May I make mention of the sorry tale of trolleys on the Hastings Line?

Not that long ago they were provided on most trains and seemed to do well on busy trains, but were rather quiet on quieter trains. SouthEastern decided that they should be withdrawn but, after a year or so, a little bit of local enterprise led to them being reintroduced on a limited range of services. These enterprising people, many those made redundant by the earlier decision, made a real effort to provide a decent offering (locally sourced fruit and a decent coffee being examples).

SouthEastern always found reason not to advertise which trains they were on which did nothing to encourage trade - several times I'd taken food or a coffee onto the train only to discover that there was a trolley that I'd otherwise have used. I wrote to SouthEastern and got nowhere. In the end the business folded shortly before last winter's landslide season would probably have seen them off.

Now we have a journey taking 90+ minutes without big station catering outlets and no trolleys. This nibbling away at the quality of the train journey (I could add leg-room, window alignment, whistling lights, lack of fresh-air, corporately decided temperature, being locked out of the train before the advertised departure time and much more) is not, in my opinion, taking us in the right direction at all.

 

[DarloRich]

Write the conclusion first, then frame the questions accordingly...

So terribly cynical - I like it!

 

[455driver]

So terribly cynical - I like it!

Having read the report into why the Travelling Chef is being withdrawn I fully concure with our learned pink bird.

 

[yorksrob]

May I make mention of the sorry tale of trolleys on the Hastings Line?

Not that long ago they were provided on most trains and seemed to do well on busy trains, but were rather quiet on quieter trains. SouthEastern decided that they should be withdrawn but, after a year or so, a little bit of local enterprise led to them being reintroduced on a limited range of services. These enterprising people, many those made redundant by the earlier decision, made a real effort to provide a decent offering (locally sourced fruit and a decent coffee being examples).

SouthEastern always found reason not to advertise which trains they were on which did nothing to encourage trade - several times I'd taken food or a coffee onto the train only to discover that there was a trolley that I'd otherwise have used. I wrote to SouthEastern and got nowhere. In the end the business folded shortly before last winter's landslide season would probably have seen them off.

Now we have a journey taking 90+ minutes without big station catering outlets and no trolleys. This nibbling away at the quality of the train journey (I could add leg-room, window alignment, whistling lights, lack of fresh-air, corporately decided temperature, being locked out of the train before the advertised departure time and much more) is not, in my opinion, taking us in the right direction at all.

That's a pity.

I often find myself buying a beer from the Ashford - Charing Cross trolley. I hope that's not going to go the same way !

I agree with all of your other gripes about modern train travel. Fortunately, the last time I was on the Hastings line I was on the thumper which had a decent supply of gin

 

[scotsman]

That's a pity.

I often find myself buying a beer from the Ashford - Charing Cross trolley. I hope that's not going to go the same way !

I agree with all of your other gripes about modern train travel. Fortunately, the last time I was on the Hastings line I was on the thumper which had a decent supply of gin

It's amazing what booze does to overall sales

 

[martynbristow]

It's amazing what booze does to overall sales

Booze gets a healthy markup and can help bump your sales however.
Duty - Makes its very expensive.
Its effects - Well do I need to elaborate

As a part time license i get these problems and it doesn't make a lot of profit when you pay your staff the bare minimum, given the railway is generous you can see how catering struggles.

 

[GatwickDepress]

May I make mention of the sorry tale of trolleys on the Hastings Line?

Not that long ago they were provided on most trains and seemed to do well on busy trains, but were rather quiet on quieter trains. SouthEastern decided that they should be withdrawn but, after a year or so, a little bit of local enterprise led to them being reintroduced on a limited range of services. These enterprising people, many those made redundant by the earlier decision, made a real effort to provide a decent offering (locally sourced fruit and a decent coffee being examples).

SouthEastern always found reason not to advertise which trains they were on which did nothing to encourage trade - several times I'd taken food or a coffee onto the train only to discover that there was a trolley that I'd otherwise have used. I wrote to SouthEastern and got nowhere. In the end the business folded shortly before last winter's landslide season would probably have seen them off.

Despite the initial furore Southeastern made over it - PR shoots in the local rag etc - the trolley service was never advertised on timetables, never at stations, and very rarely announced on-board the train.

It was very irritating for me as well, as I greatly preferred their coffee to the slop the Pumpkin at Hastings plops out.

 

[SF-02]

Typical southeastern. I feel for the people who gave it a go, with no support by one of the most hopeless TOCs.

 

[GarethJohn]

Booze gets a healthy markup and can help bump your sales however.
Duty - Makes its very expensive.
Its effects - Well do I need to elaborate

As a part time license i get these problems and it doesn't make a lot of profit when you pay your staff the bare minimum, given the railway is generous you can see how catering struggles.

But Trolley Stewards can top up there stock via a Supermarket in their break