How easy is it to get on the wrong train?

[Tetchytyke]

Arctic Troll mentioned some of the evening peak trains that run on a 'skip stop' pattern. A older lady got the hump with me a few weeks ago over the 1812. The 1712 stops at Apsley, she said, so it stands to reason the 1812 does too. Fair logic, I guess.

She does have a point, mind. There's no rhyme or reason to the skip-stopping, you just have to memorise the timetable and pay attention.

I've not been caught out by it but was on the 1805 just after I moved here. Someone asked if it stopped at Hemel and I agreed that it did (in the usual British way of "I think so!"). It was only when I got off at Apsley and saw the PIS did I realise my mistake. Oops.

With split trains on London Midland the on-board PIS scares people by giving the destination of where the train splits in some carriages (e.g. the old 1805 Crewe was announced as "train to Northampton" in eight of the twelve carriages).

 

[cf111]

I've done it once. The last train from Inverness to Kyle and Wick used to split at Dingwall and the first time I travelled on it after they changed to do so I boarded the rear portion, which was bound for Kyle. Thankfully the Guard got to me before Dingwall!

 

[Traveller54]

I managed to board one of the few trains on the Glasgow -Ayrshire line which didn't stop at Johnstone. Fortunately it did stop at Paisley officially to pick up only so I was able to alight and catch the next one.
Now they've introduced the hourly expresses, first stop Kilwinning I think with no Paisley pickup, it'll be so much easier to be caught out.

 

[bb21]

I am sure transportphoto will gladly recount the occasion when I dragged him and his suitcase onto a Piccadilly Line train at Finsbury Park, thinking (or without thinking rather) that it was Victoria Line's 67 stock.

In my defence, we were in a bit of a rush and they were cross-platform at FPK. I am sure I did not see (read "missed") any sign on entry to the tube platforms.

 

[trentside]

I had a gentleman board one of my services the other day with a ticket to a destination in the North East. I didn't notice on my initial ticket check as it looked very similar to a place the train actually served. It was only when he appeared a few stops later ranting and raving about being told to get on the wrong train by two separate members of staff...

After sorting him out a new itinerary, and establishing what had actually happened it was entirely his fault. He'd missed the train he was told to catch, gone away for an hour and assumed the same itinerary was still what he needed to do, then compounded this by reading the arrivals board rather than departures. Unfortunately my train had come from the station he was supposed to be making his connection at on the original itinerary but was heading in the opposite direction!

 

[Flamingo]

After sorting him out a new itinerary, and establishing what had actually happened it was entirely his fault...

"I'm the customer here, are you trying to tell me it's MY fault?"
"Of course not sir - I'm just explaining it's not ours"...

 

[sarahj]

I do it whenever we split a train, but I've had passengers standing right next to me, who can hear what I'm saying into the handset, nevermind whats coming over the PA, who after departure are in the wrong part of the train. Some people get it into their head that they are in the right part of the train, and even me standing there telling them to their face sometimes makes no difference.

This train did not stop at Lancing
It was never supposed to, did you not hear my announcements?
Yes, but i thought it stopped.

And then there are the headphones bunch.......

 

[Failed Unit]

I wonder how many people were caught out by the Northern units on EMT and Central trains units at both Northern and TPE. I remember seeing someone get it wrong at Grimsby, but at least the could bail out at Barnetby as the TPE was behind. (Also a CT liveried 158)

 

[Kite159]

I assume these are recorded announcements rather than manual ones, but it shouldn't be that difficult - SWT guards do it on some of the trains that split at Bournemouth (and are thus too long for other stations along the route); there have been a few times (admittedly, they seem to be rare, but being done it is possible!) where I've heard 'If you're hearing this announcement, you are in the rear of the train and for *these stations* you'll need to move forward'.

Or the guard displays "Exeter St Davies" or "Bristol Temple Meads" (or "Salisbury") to tell passengers which part of a 159 double/triple they need when it breaks apart at Salisbury on the little display unit in the coaches.

 

[plastictaffy]

With split trains on London Midland the on-board PIS scares people by giving the destination of where the train splits in some carriages (e.g. the old 1805 Crewe was announced as "train to Northampton" in eight of the twelve carriages).

They might as well set the PIS up to play white noise, for all the notice the punters pay to it. We have a lot of services that split at Northampton during the evening peak. I ALWAYS tell them it splits, on departure from Euston, at least once more somewhere along the trip, and then again as the train comes through the "Birdcage" on the run down into Northampton.

And still I kick 'em out of the rear/front four on arrival here.

And still they get the hump, because I didn't tell them.:roll:

 

[iantherev]

Or the guard displays "Exeter St Davies" or "Bristol Temple Meads" (or "Salisbury") to tell passengers which part of a 159 double/triple they need when it breaks apart at Salisbury on the little display unit in the coaches.

Still doesn't stop there being a mad dash for the front unit at Salisbury after the train has divided, though.

 

[D6975]

My friend and I went up to Oxford in his car on one of those network days that NSE used to have. I caught the first hoover to Padd, he went to do the newly opened Bicester branch.
There were 2 trains in the platform, going to Banbury and Bicester. There were announcements as to which was which, the platform staff were also guiding people on to the correct service.
Problem is they'd got it wrong. My friend realised as soon as they passed the junction of course. Every single passenger on the train wanted to go to Bicester. Presumably the reverse applied for the other unit.

 

[Statto]

Lol even Kevin Pietersen managed to do it. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/32497881

 

[Eshonbel]

The 743 from Manningtree goes straight to LST. Wouldn't want to get on that train if you're aiming for one of the many intermediate stops!

 

[D6975]

The 16:30 Euston Glasgow is a cracker to get on by mistake.
Only one intermediate stop at Preston.

The last time I was at Carlisle it stopped there 2 days out of 4 to let off passengers from Preston who had assumed that all trains to Scotland stop at Carlisle.

 

[AM9]

I imagine a thread like this in five years will have tales of Thameslink passengers at St Pancras going to Stevenage when they wanted Luton and vice-versa.

 

[Kite159]

I can imagine when SWT start running the Salisbury Sunday specials (Waterloo - Clapham - Salisbury) there will be some passengers boarding by mistake who wanted Woking/Basingstoke/Andover

Isn't there some XC services from Manchester which skips Stockport?

 

[infobleep]

There are already trains from Clapham Junction that missing out Woking.

During rush hour some trains are also first stop Guildford.

I wonder if people ever get on any of the 455a at Surbiton that run fast to Waterloo, thinking they can get to Wimbledon, Earlsfield or Clapham Junction. It's a busy station and I could see someone rush on hoping not to miss the train.

If they have an Oyster card not so much of an issue I guess.

 

[Holly]

Sometimes it is not the least bit obvious which train one should catch.
Case in point - I had a friend who flew into Manchester Airport from overseas and sought to travel by train to Chester. Thoroughly confusing.

 

[Flamingo]

Last weekend, trains from Bristol Temple Meads to London were calling at Bath then going down Trobridge and B&H, next stop Reading. Trains to Swindon were calling at Reading, then going B&H and Melksham line, next stop Chippenham.

On my train from Reading (next stop Chippenham) were four people who had got on a London-bound train at Bath, thinking it would take them to Chippenham. I don't know how many hours the usually 15 minute journey took them, but I did give them free tea & biscuits when I had finished laughing!

 

[Kite159]

Last night, there was someone on the 00:28 departure from Basingstoke to Salisbury who caught it thinking it was the final London bound service.

Wasn't the happiest bunny when the guard said that there was no more services heading back up towards Basingstoke that the passenger could either get off at Overton and get a taxi back to Basingstoke (by which time the 00:40 would have already gone). Guess he was lucky the guard came through checking tickets, otherwise he might have ended up in deepest darkest Salisbury at 01:15

 

[PeterY]

After reading several posts where honest mistakes have been made by passengers getting on a wrong train and not knowing or realising the stopping patterns, ending up one or more stations along the line, than they intended.

I know London Midland stopping patterns fairly well, so I don't have a problem. I know someone who made a mistake wanting to go to Apsley but next stop was Hemel Hempstead, they just caught the next train back.

For me, using Thameslink from St Pancras northwards with a Zone 1 to 6travelcard. I have to be really careful the train actually stops at West Hampstead and not non stop to St Albans, the platform indicators aren't that clear on the platform.

Should someone travel further than they intend because they've genuinely boarded a train by mistake that doesn't stop at the station they wish to alight, there's 2 options IMO

1)Be honest with gate line staff and buy a return ticket. (Assuming there's no RPI to dish out a Penalty fare)
2)Take a risk and just travel back to intended stop without a ticket and hope there's no, on train ticket inspections.

Thank you everyone for the replies. I can see that mistakes are easily made and I'm guessing most people only make the mistake once.

Reading the Disputes & Prosecutions thread, it's an unlucky few that are penalised with a penalty fare, for a genuine mistake.

 

[trentside]

Thank you everyone for the replies. I can see that mistakes are easily made and I'm guessing most people only make the mistake once.

You'd be surprised on that score too. I can think of one or two occasions where someone has made the same mistake more than once... :roll:

 

[Parallel]

I overheard this last year when on a SWT 159 to Bristol Temple Meads, just before Bathampton Junction near Bath Spa.

Lady: Excuse me, when do we get to Salisbury?
Guard: SALISBURY? Oh dear...

She needed to get to Salisbury for a meeting or appointment or something. Unfortunately she'd have to alight at Bath Spa and then wait for 50 minutes for the Portsmouth Harbour service back down, thus missing her appointments. Oops! I'm still not quite sure how that happened to this day.

 

[Hadders]

I was travelling up the ECML from Edinburgh last year when we stopped at Berwick on Tweed station. I was right at the back of coach A which is right off the end of the platform. The guard made all the usual announcements as we approached the station and as we stopped.

As we pulled off a smart looking business woman asks me why we didn't stop at Berwick. 'Errr, we just did', I replied. 'Are you sure' she said. @yes', I replied.

Turned out she was supposed to me meting her boss at Berwick. She had to make a very apologetic phone call and double back via Newcastle. I don't think it went down very well.

 

[plymothian]

Passengers have a habit of streaming off high speed services at EXD, straight on to whatever train is on platform 1 to get to EXC, even if it's not going that way.

 

[CC 72100]

Passengers have a habit of streaming off high speed services at EXD, straight on to whatever train is on platform 1 to get to EXC, even if it's not going that way.

In a similar vein, on my train yesterday there was somebody who presumably wanted one of the sea wall stations who got on the Barnstaple train. Oops.

Wonder how she found the hour at Crediton?

 

[Deerfold]

Some time ago I was on the 1803 Skipton train from Kings Cross. As we left Leeds the guard did a ticket check. The woman who'd got on at Wakefield Westgate had a ticket for Newcastle. Apparently the display at Wakefield had been swapping between showing our train and a XC service. And she'd obviously not taken any notice of the announcement at Leeds that we were calling at Keighley and Skipton only.

The guard checked if it was possible to get to Newcastle that night and after finding out it wasn't, authorised her ticket for return to Wakefield and travel to Newcastle the next morning (she lived in Wakefield). I pointed her the right way at Keighley as there was a service back to Leeds just a couple of minutes after we arrived then a half hour gap.

 

[Envy123]

I once thought I was on the wrong train.

I was at Arnos Grove and catching a train towards central London and the station announcer said that the next station was Southgate! I thought that I was on the wrong train until the train pulled into Bounds Green.

Awkward.

 

[Llanigraham]

Good one on the Cambrian this afternoon.
A Chinese gent got on the Aberystwyth train at Wolverhampton and wasn't ticket checked until after Shrewsbury. Unfortunately he had no English and his ticket said Edinburgh. Taken to Caersws as no explanation needed about changing platforms and only a very short wait for the next Up.
The excellent Conductress has also contacted her compatriot on the Up so they knew to pick him up and take him back to Wolves and put him on a later train.