Gatwick Express "every 15 minutes"

[Robertj21a]

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People miss flights because they're not told of earlier trains which are booked to take 31 minutes.

Try turning up at Victoria as the 1742 is pulling out and see what advice they give you. Will you be advised to take the 1746 or 1757? Nope; you'll be told to wait until the 1800, which is slower, and booked to take 36 minutes (and is rarely on time when a full timetable is operating), so you won't be at Gatwick until 1836 (if on time) - almost an hour later.

Well, if that was a serious point then I think those people must have various other problems arising in their lives !. I doubt that people getting a train to catch a flight are really very likely to cut it so ridiculously fine by a few minutes.

 

[Surreytraveller]

Well, if that was a serious point then I think those people must have various other problems arising in their lives !. I doubt that people getting a train to catch a flight are really very likely to cut it so ridiculously fine by a few minutes.

You would be surprised.

 

[infobleep]

Well, if that was a serious point then I think those people must have various other problems arising in their lives !. I doubt that people getting a train to catch a flight are really very likely to cut it so ridiculously fine by a few minutes.

If someone miss read their flight times they might. One offs I know but why should misleading information or economical information be given out? What is the benefit?

 

[kieron]

I complained to the ASA back in June and received this response

From the ASA's web site, Govia agreed to modify their promotional material on two occasions this year; to do with their web site on 8/6/16, and to do with posters on 14/12/16. The web site doesn't give any detail of the complaints, or what Govia agreed to change then, so I don't know any more than that.

As the earlier complaint was around the time you mentioned, the ASA's response appears to at least be factual. Did Govia make changes which addressed the substance of your complaint within the next month? If not, what happened after then?

Whether the system the ASA have is a good one or a bad one, it is the one Govia have to deal with.

 

[najaB]

I doubt that people getting a train to catch a flight are really very likely to cut it so ridiculously fine by a few minutes.

They might, however, already be running late due to a delay earlier in their journey.

 

[jon0844]

The problem with the ASA is that it doesn't stop companies breaking the rules, as there's no real punishment.

Sure, publishers are likely to refuse to run an ad that the ASA has ordered not to be run - but you just come up with a new one that's controversial (or wrong) and let the process repeat...

You basically have to hope a company wants to comply, not rely on pretty toothless enforcement. No point saying an ad shouldn't run again when the campaign has already ended and wasn't going to happen again anyway.

 

[yorkie]

So would I be right in saying that the xx.45 and xx.15 are ones that terminate at the Airport and the xx.00 and xx.30 are extended to Brighton ?
WTT say the terminators take 30 / 31 mins and the Brightons 28 mins

In general, yes. The journey times can theoretically be as little as 28mins but this is rare. At times most people travel, journey times are booked for 32-40 minutes, with "Southern" branded trains being faster.

It's also common at weekends, or when other special timetables occur, for GX trains to be booked to be slower.

They often crawl behind other trains as they can have inferior paths, and waiting for a "premium" platform can extend the journey too.

Well, if that was a serious point then I think those people must have various other problems arising in their lives !. I doubt that people getting a train to catch a flight are really very likely to cut it so ridiculously fine by a few minutes.

Some people may leave an hour or more spare but still miss the flight, because there can be huge gaps in service, last moment cancellations, a general lack of communication and their "Southern" branded services are no longer advertised for Gatwick under the "Next fastest train to:" board. Some staff have been known to make passengers wait for ages while letting several 31-minute trains go. People who advise on the next fastest train can be threatened with being removed from the station.

 

[jon0844]

I wouldn't leave it so tight to miss a flight, but it can be equally inconvenient to lose enough time to be unable to clear security in a relaxed fashion, perhaps do a quick shop or have a bite to eat, change money (yes, you should have done that earlier!) or even have a toilet break.

Not telling people about other services just a few platforms away is mad, but doesn't surprise me in the least. I've seen the people who man the high-security gates that earn the extra bucks. There's no way management don't know what they're up to given the complaints, so they almost certainly are being told to do what they do.

(not that management wouldn't hesitate to drop staff in it if such interactions were perhaps caught by hidden camera or something one day).

 

[All Line Rover]

If only GTR were subject to FOIA.

 

[najaB]

If only GTR were subject to FOIA.

What information do you think is being hidden? There is more than enough in the public domain to form the basis of a complaint.

 

[yorkie]

It would be interesting to know if the behaviour or the infamous platform 13/14 gateline staff is officially sanctioned by GTR.

It would also be interesting to know for the reasoning behind removing Gatwick Airport's entry on the 'Next fastest train to:' board.

It would be interesting to know what instructions are given to staff that lead to situations where people are wrongly charged e.g. Southern admit they were wrong to sell GX "supplement".

But yes, there's plenty of actions from which we can deduce that what is going on is very disgraceful and is what many reasonable people would see as a scam.

 

[najaB]

It would also be interesting to know for the reasoning behind removing Gatwick Airport's entry on the 'Next fastest train to:' board.

That would've been done by Network Rail as station operator, would it not?

 

[yorkie]

That would've been done by Network Rail as station operator, would it not?

I do not know if those screens are controlled by Network Rail or GTR staff. An FOI request could be made to Network Rail though.

 

[najaB]

An FOI request could be made to Network Rail though.

Even a negative answer from NR saying that they didn't do it would be useful for a complaint as it would place the blame firmly at GTR's feet.

 

[Clip]

That would've been done by Network Rail as station operator, would it not?

They put up on the boards what is asked of them by the TOCs.

 

[Skimpot flyer]

Mind you, if people are silly enough to pay £19.80 just for a 'faster' service then they probably deserve to be 'had'.

Imagine this scenario: You travel as a tourist to another country, and upon landing at the airport, look for a train to the city centre. You understand from your guidebook (or Google translate app on your smartphone) what the local language words for 'express' and 'non-stop' are, so you buy a ticket for that train, which costs you almost 20 of the local currency.

When you return from holiday, it comes to your attention that you could in fact have caught a train between the airport and the same city centre station for only 8 of the local currency, and the journey time would have been the same, and possibly less, than the train you paid a 250% higher fare to travel on.

Factor in that you also find out that the government of the country you visited receives the ticket revenue for the services you could have travelled on, and are willingly allowing this fleecing of tourists to happen.

How does that make you feel about making another trip to that country?

 

[jon0844]

Tourists are often considered cash cows and knowing no better, but thanks to travel guides and the Internet things usually get found out and don't help a reputation for a nation as a whole.

So GTR could be doing more harm than we realise.

By contrast, TfL seems to make it very easy for tourists visiting the capital with Oyster, or even just using a payment card. I think we should be proud and hope for the same when we travel elsewhere.

 

[Robertj21a]

Imagine this scenario: You travel as a tourist to another country, and upon landing at the airport, look for a train to the city centre. You understand from your guidebook (or Google translate app on your smartphone) what the local language words for 'express' and 'non-stop' are, so you buy a ticket for that train, which costs you almost 20 of the local currency.

When you return from holiday, it comes to your attention that you could in fact have caught a train between the airport and the same city centre station for only 8 of the local currency, and the journey time would have been the same, and possibly less, than the train you paid a 250% higher fare to travel on.

Factor in that you also find out that the government of the country you visited receives the ticket revenue for the services you could have travelled on, and are willingly allowing this fleecing of tourists to happen.

How does that make you feel about making another trip to that country?

I travel to numerous other countries. In each case I fully research my travel arrangements in advance. Never been 'caught out' yet.