Christmas and New Year Travel Summary 2010 / 2011

[GodAtum]

Thought i'd give you the heads up on the details from the NR website that have been released:

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/service_disruptions/seasonal/index_custom.html

 

[317 forever]

Thank you, this will help any of us going away for Christmas or having days out over the festive holidays.

 

[GodAtum]

Train passengers face Christmas chaos as ten days of engineering works sever more than half of Britain’s main railway routes.

It will result in journeys to family and friends taking up to four times longer than normal.

As many as 22million people are expected to travel by rail over the festive period, but dozens of shutdowns will turn simple journeys into multi-change trips using replacement buses.

Many passengers will be loaded with presents, but Network Rail has a surprise in store.

‘Passengers are advised that bulky luggage may not be able to be carried on rail replacement services,’ it said in a statement.

The disruption, lasting from late on Christmas Eve to January 3, is another blow to passengers on top of 13 per cent New Year fare rises.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...d-10-days-engineering-work.html#ixzz16iAxRpIt

The DM complaining again!

 

[Carefree]

Dismal First Capital Connect timetable on Monday 27th December:
Bedford to St Pancras - buses run, taking 2hours
St Pancras to Bedford in evening - train, bus, train with a total journey time of 2hrs 45!

This on a journey that can take as little as 35mins usually. Do FCC expect passengers to pay for this service? Or are they simply telling their passengers to ****?

 

[Fred26]

Dismal First Capital Connect timetable on Monday 27th December:
Bedford to St Pancras - buses run, taking 2hours
St Pancras to Bedford in evening - train, bus, train with a total journey time of 2hrs 45!

This on a journey that can take as little as 35mins usually. Do FCC expect passengers to pay for this service? Or are they simply telling their passengers to ****?

What do you suggest?

 

[Carefree]

The journey I personally will be required to take on 27th Dec will be:
1. a train from St Pancras to Hendon (stopping at Kentish Town, West Hampstead Thameslink, Cricklewood)
2. a bus from Hendon to Luton (stopping at Mill Hill Broadway, Estree & Borehamwood, Radlett, St Albans, Harpenden, Luton Airport Parkway) - this bit taking 1hr 45
3. a train from Luton to Bedford (stopping at Leagrave Harlington, Flitwick).
Total journey time: 2hrs 37mins (arriving about 2.30am).

I suggest that it would make far more sense to employ 'fast' buses from St Pancras to, at the very least, Luton to shave an hour of the journey; alongside all-stations services. But FCC, as usual, tender out the operation to the cheapest provider, and care not for the long suffering passenger. Every FCC rail-replacement operation is a debacle.

 

[Fred26]

That's not true.

It's run perfectly well on the GN side - with 'fast' buses as you suggest for the TL. Why that isn't going to happen on the TL is beyond me.