GWR Cornwall Sleeper has terrible timings for Reading customers: possible solutions?

[181]

I boarded it at Reading last year, using an Advance ticket cheap enough that I felt 7 hours on the train was reasonable value for money, but I wouldn't think it worth paying for a sleeper berth if I was alighting there.

As the sleeper stock is now stabled at Reading during the day, I thought it would be good if passengers could join there before the train goes up to Paddington, and vice versa in the morning. But I expect there are reasons why it can't be done.

.and later! The odd FO late night IC down to the West Country was still running at the end of the 1980s - only just over 30 years ago.

and later still: In both July 1996 and June 1997 I got the 05.05 north from Bristol on a Saturday morning (the reason being that it enabled me to get the lunchtime West Highland departure from Glasgow), and on at least one of those occasions there was at least one of those overnight trains in the platform at Temple Meads.

 

[JonathanH]

I haven't alighted at Reading, however - the arrival time is early, but perversely not quite early enough for me to make it to work in time for an early shift!

I have, on occasion, alighted at Reading, caught the first North Downs train back home and then gone to bed for a few hours before work, given how early it all runs. It is great that that connection is maintained. The arrival times at Reading and London clearly have onward connections in mind.

 

[tornado]

@JonathanH did you feel as though you had a good night's sleep though? Getting off at Reading at 4.30am and then getting on a North Downs train doesn't sound like fun to me.

 

[Chrisgr31]

If only they could offer an economic service where you could take your car on the train as well. They could call it Motorail

Having just faced a three hour delay on the journey back up the M5 I’d seriously consider it if there was a competitively priced alternative

In that case you’d also want a stop in Slough, after all who is going to want to drive in to Central London to put their car on a train?

More on topic - should the sleeper services be offering car hire at the destination? If I go to EasyJet to book a flight I get offered car hire at same time. Do the rail companies do that?

 

[Bletchleyite]

More on topic - should the sleeper services be offering car hire at the destination? If I go to EasyJet to book a flight I get offered car hire at same time. Do the rail companies do that?

No, but they should (all trains, not just sleepers). Being able to integrate a simple, ideally automated system of electric car hire with train journeys via the sales sites would be an excellent idea.