How much is enough notice?

[SuspectUsual]

So.

Lots of threads end up talking about the current definition of the timetable being that published at 22:00 on the day prior to travel.

But how reasonable is that?

Obviously it depends on the journey. One extreme might be the first Wick train out of Inverness; if that’s cancelled it’s a wait of a few hours. The other might be an urban metro line with trains every ten minutes, where once cancellation might not be as bad. Except if it causes a missed connection, which is where it gets messy.

To me it seems incredibly unfair that a train at 05:00 could be cancelled at 21:59 the previous evening, when in all likelihood any sensible passenger would already have gone to bed.

What’s the answer?

To me, it’s simple. The timetable is the timetable, it’s unreasonable to expect the passenger to be required to keep checking if what they’ve paid for is going to turn up.

Or, as a compromise, would it be fairer (less unfair maybe) to say the timetable is fixed 24 or 48 hours prior to the train starting it’s journey?

 

[Watershed]

So.

Lots of threads end up talking about the current definition of the timetable being that published at 22:00 on the day prior to travel.

But how reasonable is that?

Obviously it depends on the journey. One extreme might be the first Wick train out of Inverness; if that’s cancelled it’s a wait of a few hours. The other might be an urban metro line with trains every ten minutes, where once cancellation might not be as bad. Except if it causes a missed connection, which is where it gets messy.

To me it seems incredibly unfair that a train at 05:00 could be cancelled at 21:59 the previous evening, when in all likelihood any sensible passenger would already have gone to bed.

What’s the answer?

To me, it’s simple. The timetable is the timetable, it’s unreasonable to expect the passenger to be required to keep checking if what they’ve paid for is going to turn up.

Or, as a compromise, would it be fairer (less unfair maybe) to say the timetable is fixed 24 or 48 hours prior to the train starting it’s journey?

I don't think the NRCoT are in any way effective in attempting to exclude delay compensation for changes made at/around 10pm the night before. There are several issues in terms of consumer and contract law with any such clause, particularly with the hamfisted manner in which the purported exclusion is currently worded and applied.

Whilst I don't think that TOCs should be allowed to change trains without compensation once a ticket has been bought, the reality is that post-purchase changes are not uncommon in other industries. Indeed EU261 for aviation, which essentially inspired the PRO for rail, explicitly allows operators to retime or cancel flights without being liable for compensation provided they do so at least 14 days in advance.

14 days feels like too short a period to me (especially given that Advance tickets can be bought nearly 6 months ahead on some routes) - but even that would be a million times better than the current attempt to allow TOCs to 'get out of jail free' for traincrew cancellations.

The problem at the moment is that the DfT appears to be behind the TToD nonsense, and so the ORR is reluctant to step on the Department's toes. This makes a mockery of the notion that they provide some sort of independent oversight.