Passenger rage???

[causton]

Seen a 317 coming up the ECML past Brookmans Park this morning, (10:40ish) the display said London Kings Cross*... when the train was heading distinctly away from London! May have been running dead as it was on the slow lines and I don't think any FCC semi-fast trains are booked to go past at that time (none were delayed on the CIS at Potters Bar) but if it was in service no wonder people get confused.

*the screen was faulty and the lines at the top went down like a barcode over the rest of the text, which meant it was hard to make out but I vaguely made out 'London' and guessed

 

[Southern]

Whilst in Woking today a Desiro went past with 'Hounslow Via Brentford' on the external monitors despite the fact it was a semi-fast to Waterloo and going nowhere near either Brentford or Hounslow, so it's no wonder passengers get confused!

Wasn't the 1029 (0954 from Basingstoke) was it? The units are booked to work a Waterloo - Hounslow service, before running empty to Basingstoke for the 0954.

 

[OxtedL]

You have to takes CISs with a pinch of salt. Once at East Croydon p6 I was waiting for a delayed East Grinstead train when the screen switched and decided that a Tattenham Corner train would come through first. Then it switched back again.
Then a 455 arrived and lots of people got on.
Then the real East Grinstead train came through (377). It was just before PM peak, so it stop at South Croydon, where some confused people boarded (presumably from the Tattenham train), double checking the screens.

This is where travelling regularly comes in handy. If you don't travel by train often then of course you want to make sure.

 

[WestCoast]

Sometimes the CIS screens 'freeze' on platforms, meaning that a previous train is displayed, which can become confusing, often for both experienced and one-off passengers.

 

[Mojo]

Heard a good one this afternoon but between two passengers on the platform at Victoria Underground.

1: Do you know how to get out?
2: *points along platform* Do you see that sign that says "Way out?"
3: Yes
4: Walk along the platform, go up the stairs and follow the signs that say the same thing as that

 

[2Dogbox]

I would rather people ask me where the train goes 10 times than having them end up on the wrong train, giving me the headache of sorting out how to get them where they wanted to go in the first place! People can be quite confused especially if they are not regular travelers

One pet hate however is the passengers who ask where the train going and then say "Are you sure?" to which I will reply, "Yes I am sure, I am the guard on this train." . . they then usually walk to the other end of the train and ask the driver if they are sure its going to the place its going to!

 

[strange6]

I would rather people ask me where the train goes 10 times than having them end up on the wrong train, giving me the headache of sorting out how to get them where they wanted to go in the first place! People can be quite confused especially if they are not regular travelers

One pet hate however is the passengers who ask where the train going and then say "Are you sure?" to which I will reply, "Yes I am sure, I am the guard on this train." . . they then usually walk to the other end of the train and ask the driver if they are sure its going to the place its going to!

lol What does the driver say usually? I would be tempted to direct them to the control centre platform phone and to ask the signaller because I don't steer the train

 

[2Dogbox]

lol What does the driver say usually? I would be tempted to direct them to the control centre platform phone and to ask the signaller because I don't steer the train

It depends entirely on the driver in question. I've known them to say they "don't know". . I have sometimes shown them the diagram to prove where it's going. This "are you sure?" thing seems to be a regular thing on Saturdays!

 

[scotsman]

Stewarding tour to Grange, pulling into Newcastle P4 the CIS reads '0859 London Kings Cross, East Coast' pax see train and some try to board while others have doubts. Cue frantic announcements for EC pax to go to P5. In the end only one confused tourist got an unexpected ride to Hexham! (As it happens, she was only going to Durham but on an XC Only ticket!)

 

[jon0844]

One pet hate however is the passengers who ask where the train going and then say "Are you sure?" to which I will reply, "Yes I am sure, I am the guard on this train." . . they then usually walk to the other end of the train and ask the driver if they are sure its going to the place its going to!

Can you not radio the driver quickly and ask him/her to give a different answer?!

 

[SS4]

I've been asked on a London Midland from Euston to Birmingham which split at Northampton (only the first 4 coaches going on to BHM) whilst I was sat in the front coach.

Some of the most amusing incidents I've seen are when either the departure platform at Euston comes up (cue a huge migration) or when there's a platform alteration at new street. I've been standing on platform 8a when there was a platform alteration on 7a, very amusing to see everyone leg it

 

[CNX]

Passengers are stupid, they are thick.

Many years ago I worked in New Street Travel Centre. Passengers would, for example, ask when the next train to Derby was. In those days they departed at xx50, so for example, if it was 1030 I would say 1050. If I had a £ for every time the response was 'isn't there one before that' I would be richer than Warren Buffet!

 

[jon0844]

What if there's another way to get somewhere, possibly by changing trains?

Someone asks when the next train to Moorgate is, it might be 15 minutes.. but a fast to King's Cross is coming. Take that, get off at Finsbury Park and get another Moorgate train that came from the Hertford Loop - you're there a lot quicker.

Perhaps people ask in the hope that there's another train they can take if they're in a real hurry? I accept that in the above case there might not be - but you can see why they might ask? Are they really stupid and thick?

 

[Southern313]

On splitting services out of Victoria I'll announce that passengers for CLJ, ECR, GTW and HHE may travel in any part of this 8/12 coach train...people will be looking and listening at this then as soon as I put the handset down its "Is this okay for Gatwick"....what did I just say?

Best one a few weeks ago after leaving Gatwick walking through the train to get stopped by a passenger who removes his ipod earphones and the conversation went like this
"Excuse me, when do we get to Gatwick"
"We've just left Gatwick, next stop is Haywards Heath"
"No no, we've not got to Gatwick yet mate"
(PIS announcement "The next station is Haywards Heath")
Passenger - "Oh f**k"

Now, I would have thought that as I saw the train off of Gatwick I would have been in a far better position to say for definite that we had just left the airport!

People listening to music does throw up some pretty funny situations, I've had someone ask me when we get to Hastings...as we are rolling into Littlehampton and terminating.

 

[atillathehunn]

I can empathise with the desire for a little human interaction on the railways. I am a confident traveller, by virtue of having grown up in various countries round the world, but occasionally putting trust in a computer system on any mode of transport can be daunting. This is especially so at periods of confusion, or if you are an infrequent traveller. But please don't forget those for whom English is not their first language! I travel between university and home via Brussels Midi station a couple of times a month, and I must ask to the staff there the most stupid questions, but French and and Flemish are not my first languages (not helped by the fact different halves of the platform are in different languages) and so occasionally I like to confirm, especially if I am tight for my Eurostar connection. Ones heart occasionally sinks like a stone if the on train announcements aren't audible, or words are not pronounced how you might think and you fear you're heading for somewhere completely wrong! So please, a little patience! And before criticism comes - I have worked in supermarkets as a teenager to earn some money, and I have had the experience of people asking stupid questions. It's best just to humour us. And I say "us" deliberately, because I can guarantee at some stage in your life, you will have asked a stupid question.

 

[ANorthernGuard]

On splitting services out of Victoria I'll announce that passengers for CLJ, ECR, GTW and HHE may travel in any part of this 8/12 coach train...people will be looking and listening at this then as soon as I put the handset down its "Is this okay for Gatwick"....what did I just say?

Best one a few weeks ago after leaving Gatwick walking through the train to get stopped by a passenger who removes his ipod earphones and the conversation went like this
"Excuse me, when do we get to Gatwick"
"We've just left Gatwick, next stop is Haywards Heath"
"No no, we've not got to Gatwick yet mate"
(PIS announcement "The next station is Haywards Heath")
Passenger - "Oh f**k"

Now, I would have thought that as I saw the train off of Gatwick I would have been in a far better position to say for definite that we had just left the airport!

People listening to music does throw up some pretty funny situations, I've had someone ask me when we get to Hastings...as we are rolling into Littlehampton and terminating.

practically grew up on Littlehamton station my grandfather was the manager there until 82 (a long time ago now) lol

 

[RichmondCommu]

Passengers are stupid, they are thick.

Many years ago I worked in New Street Travel Centre. Passengers would, for example, ask when the next train to Derby was. In those days they departed at xx50, so for example, if it was 1030 I would say 1050. If I had a £ for every time the response was 'isn't there one before that' I would be richer than Warren Buffet!

I'm sorry but this is frankly shameful. They may seem stupid or thick to you but they pay your wages. You may think that they don't deserve your respect but without them you wouldn't have a job.

 

[sunday]

I'm sorry but this is frankly shameful. They may seem stupid or thick to you but they pay your wages. You may think that they don't deserve your respect but without them you wouldn't have a job.

As far as I am aware most people have their wages paid by the company they work for, not directly by passengers. The whole "I pay your wages" thing bugs me so much, you pay for a ticket. You do not pay my wages.

The guy didn't say he would be rude to customers, merely that it is irritating. Completely reasonable based on what he said. I have clients at work, some of them are thick as anything, I don't tell them that, I dont give them a lesser service, I just think it, which is my perogative.

 

[RichmondCommu]

As far as I am aware most people have their wages paid by the company they work for, not directly by passengers. The whole "I pay your wages" thing bugs me so much, you pay for a ticket. You do not pay my wages.

The guy didn't say he would be rude to customers, merely that it is irritating. Completely reasonable based on what he said. I have clients at work, some of them are thick as anything, I don't tell them that, I dont give them a lesser service, I just think it, which is my perogative.

The customer pay's the company money and the company pay's staff their wages. No customers, no wages. Surely this is obvious? To admit that you treat customers with distain is completely wrong and customers will see the body language for what it is.

Don’t bite the hand that feeds you!

 

[sunday]

The customer pay's the company money and the company pay's staff their wages. No customers, no wages. Surely this is obvious? To admit that you treat customers with distain is completely wrong and customers will see the body language for what it is.

Don’t bite the hand that feeds you!

It's not the same thing though. As I say, I manage clients portfolios, they pay my company money for this service, this is not the same thing as paying my wages. Not remotely. If we take this to an extreme I will be writing to Richard Branson soon, I had a shoddy experience on a VT service last week, naturally I pay his wages so he should be fixing it for me.

There is a key difference between feeling disdain towards customers and treating them with disdain, if you expect a ticket office clerk to be perpetuarly cheery in the face of insolence then you might find a TVM more suited to your needs.

 

[RichmondCommu]

It's not the same thing though. As I say, I manage clients portfolios, they pay my company money for this service, this is not the same thing as paying my wages. Not remotely. If we take this to an extreme I will be writing to Richard Branson soon, I had a shoddy experience on a VT service last week, naturally I pay his wages so he should be fixing it for me.

There is a key difference between feeling disdain towards customers and treating them with disdain, if you expect a ticket office clerk to be perpetuarly cheery in the face of insolence then you might find a TVM more suited to your needs.

Asking a question about train times is not insolence! To treat passengers as an irritant is completely wrong. Companies depend on revenue streams to pay their employees. No revenue streams equal no wages. Surely you can see that?

 

[sunday]

Asking a question about train times is not insolence! To treat passengers as an irritant is completely wrong. Companies depend on revenue streams to pay their employees. No revenue streams equal no wages. Surely you can see that?

I maintain if a customer of any kind has asked a question, been given the correct answer and then repeats the question in a slightly different manner because they did not like the original answer then they are being insolent. That is no reason to assume that they will be treated badly because of that but there is no harm in a customer service rep thinking that the customer is insolent, because they are. This is irritating to the member of staff. No harm to the customer unless we want to get into thought policing?

And yes, I can see that. But that is wildly different from your original assertation that a passenger could claim to pay the wages of a ticket office clerk, which is simply not true. The TOC does. Anyone who starts spouting about paying a staff members wages should be met with a request for a pay rise.

 

[RichmondCommu]

I maintain if a customer of any kind has asked a question, been given the correct answer and then repeats the question in a slightly different manner because they did not like the original answer then they are being insolent. That is no reason to assume that they will be treated badly because of that but there is no harm in a customer service rep thinking that the customer is insolent, because they are. This is irritating to the member of staff. No harm to the customer unless we want to get into thought policing?

And yes, I can see that. But that is wildly different from your original assertation that a passenger could claim to pay the wages of a ticket office clerk, which is simply not true. The TOC does. Anyone who starts spouting about paying a staff members wages should be met with a request for a pay rise.

And who pay's the TOC? The customer! If there are no customers, how is the TOC expected to pay their employees?

The customer, having been told that the next train was at 10.50 asked if there was a train before that. All he / she was doing was to double check. And yet they are sneered at. There is something fundamentally wrong here.

 

[CNX]

I'm sorry but this is frankly shameful. They may seem stupid or thick to you but they pay your wages. You may think that they don't deserve your respect but without them you wouldn't have a job.

Please yourself, you can say what the hell you like, but nothing will change me, or the fact that I had to put up with this type of stupidity day after day. I had to keep my cool, and always did. My standard reply was to the effect of 'but that is the next one'.

Can there be one before the next one? Answers on a postcard please.

 

[CarterUSM]

And who pay's the TOC? The customer!

and the government.

 

[jon0844]

Who pays the Government?

 

[ralphchadkirk]

Please yourself, you can say what the hell you like, but nothing will change me, or the fact that I had to put up with this type of stupidity day after day. I had to keep my cool, and always did. My standard reply was to the effect of 'but that is the next one'.

Can there be one before the next one? Answers on a postcard please.

What's the problem with just saying the next one is at 1050? Just saying 1050 is bound to cause problems because the passenger does not know the timetable, and does not know if there is one before that.

Not stupidity, just being unsure.

 

[Smethwickian]

Passengers are stupid, they are thick.

And there we have a perfect example of why Britain's railway industry is so often pilloried in the media, when staff treat paying customers with disdain because they have the temerity to be confused or made a little uncertain by: a myriad of liveries; a clutch of different operating companies; a positively Byzantine ticketing system; inadequate or faulty information; unannounced changes and alterations to previously publicised services; and a host of rules and regulations more imposing than many a totalitarian state has managed to come up with.

Whoever the above poster is, I bet their company is really proud of them.

 

[strange6]

And there we have a perfect example of why Britain's railway industry is so often pilloried in the media, when staff treat paying customers with disdain because they have the temerity to be confused or made a little uncertain by: a myriad of liveries; a clutch of different operating companies; a positively Byzantine ticketing system; inadequate or faulty information; unannounced changes and alterations to previously publicised services; and a host of rules and regulations more imposing than many a totalitarian state has managed to come up with.

Whoever the above poster is, I bet their company is really proud of them.

The word 'Troll' springs to mind

 

[317666]

Had this on the front of my train home recently:

The display looked like that in real life, not just my camera messing it up.