61653 HTAFC
Veteran Member
One of the most irritating things (for me at least) about the privatised railway is the need for TOCs to splash their name and branding in places where it (a) isn't needed, and (b) where it actually causes problems. The obvious examples are names like "First" and "One" which clearly cause confusion in certain situations, but then there's also FirstGroup* and their past policy of putting their logo or colours on almost every fixture and fitting they can- which leads to the sorry state of GC's 180s (admittedly at this point that's Arriva's responsibility).
But today, I noticed that TPE have covered the bike sheds at Dewsbury and Huddersfield with a vinyl wrap in dark blue with "The Bike Shed" written all over it. Now at HUD this isn't a major issue but at Dewsbury it means those using the bench at the Leeds end of the shed (it's there mostly for cyclists to perform maintenance, with the handy provision of tools and pumps, but most of the time it's a handy seat for those wishing to board at the front of a 3-car set). By covering the end wall, those on that bench can so longer see their train approaching. Not a big deal except at peak times when it could mean the difference between getting on the train or not. I just question the process that decided this was worthwhile really though. Does it increase revenue? Doubtful in my opinion. Will it improve awareness of the facilities? Perhaps, but is an opaque wall saying "The Bike Shed" any more effective than a transparent building with bikes and bike racks in? You can tell what it is by looking at it if you don't wrap it up!
Essentially this wrap is just a big boast: "Look at all this investment we're making!", but it is unnecessary. The average passengers won't care where the investment comes from, they just want it to be effective and not wasteful, and not push their ticket prices up too much. A cynic may argue that they've wrapped the bike sheds to hide the fact that they're mostly empty... but I would never suggest such a thing...
*=This wasn't intended to be a bash solely at FirstGroup, it just so happens that they're among the worst offenders and I'm exposed to their largesse regularly. Arguably Virgin are far worse, though they have carte-blanche from the DfT to continue!
But today, I noticed that TPE have covered the bike sheds at Dewsbury and Huddersfield with a vinyl wrap in dark blue with "The Bike Shed" written all over it. Now at HUD this isn't a major issue but at Dewsbury it means those using the bench at the Leeds end of the shed (it's there mostly for cyclists to perform maintenance, with the handy provision of tools and pumps, but most of the time it's a handy seat for those wishing to board at the front of a 3-car set). By covering the end wall, those on that bench can so longer see their train approaching. Not a big deal except at peak times when it could mean the difference between getting on the train or not. I just question the process that decided this was worthwhile really though. Does it increase revenue? Doubtful in my opinion. Will it improve awareness of the facilities? Perhaps, but is an opaque wall saying "The Bike Shed" any more effective than a transparent building with bikes and bike racks in? You can tell what it is by looking at it if you don't wrap it up!
Essentially this wrap is just a big boast: "Look at all this investment we're making!", but it is unnecessary. The average passengers won't care where the investment comes from, they just want it to be effective and not wasteful, and not push their ticket prices up too much. A cynic may argue that they've wrapped the bike sheds to hide the fact that they're mostly empty... but I would never suggest such a thing...
*=This wasn't intended to be a bash solely at FirstGroup, it just so happens that they're among the worst offenders and I'm exposed to their largesse regularly. Arguably Virgin are far worse, though they have carte-blanche from the DfT to continue!
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