When will excessive announcements cease?

[387star]

One of the only good things about the GBR announcement was the ending of excessive on train announcements.

However on a certain TOC you are constantly reminded in a patronising voice not to board or leave the train when the doors are closing. Does any other TOC make such announcements? We are still a long way from standardisation. A further mod sees class 166s announce details of Bus connections... yet more tiresome blurb to disturb the peace.

I quite liked the SWT/SWR announcements as they are said rapidly.

Which TOC gers the balance right?

 

[Trainlog]

I mean it really does depend on how annoying some are considered, i think after major stops i don't think its the worst thing in the world as general messages can get across to the public on issues on safety on board the service, for every stop yeah i can admit that might get annoying. However, if it means that you aren't going to have people ask you every 5mins saying 'does this train go to XYZ' more than normal or to have bad press for the fact that people are put at risk whilst onboard, what is worse in your opinion??

As for the bus announcements, why complain? Lets face it there are many towns and large villages that have been cut off from rail for well over half a century now and in a time where now the buses are getting a similar style of cuts that rail faced 60years ago, i think its wise to give these towns a reference from the train and for which bus you need to get to the non rail connection.

The best compromise for bus announcements on trains in my opinion are

• Straight to the point TFL style announcements for them. Lets say for example "the next station is Headcorn, Change here for the Number 12 bus to Tenterden". You don't need to bring up the fact that the bus also goes to Maidstone, just the non rail connected town. It doesn't overload people and gives them a sense of places they can go from there.
• Buses that are actually going to be in the best interests of the public should be prioritized, i agree not every list of the available buses should be announced, however the 3-4 most important buses that you can expect to have an at least hourly and 'reliable' service to said disconnected towns should get references. I don't expect a bus service that has 4 buses a day to a small village which might have nearly to nothing to be referenced, but a bus that actually has an area of interest with no rail connections towards the end or terminating destination should definitely get a reference.
• There should be work put into making a corresponding system, Dot matrix bus boards on bus stops near train stations means that the person who is transferring from rail to road has an idea of what buses to expect, maybe on the rolling destination sign on the bus itself just put a national rail symbol next to that destination with a train station so they know that they can use rail from there, and finally perhaps make it obvious on and around the station as to what bus destinations you can get to, if there is a sign that lists out where you can catch a bus from a short radius of the station so that there isn't a huge tedious list of buses announced, then yeah it does save the public long announcements and can mean that they can transfer a lot easier between the 2 modes of transit.

I mean yeah it might not be popular to support announcements but lets be fair, sometimes we just need a general reminder on things, for buses how many people are actually going to bother looking up what is surrounding the station they are near or approaching especially if there is a poor signal onboard the train to look it up?

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Mr Shapps and I filmed a public advert earlier in the year to that unnecessary messages would be binned but whether or not Trevelyan will live up to that I do not know. She doesn’t seem as invested and committed to improving the railways as Mr Shapps was. Her love seems to be potholes.

 

[Scotrail314209]

I think Scotrail’s on train announcements have struck a pretty good balance:

Current stop, Terminus, next stop, done.

Destination, calling points, safety information notices and done…

Unless you are on a 385 in which you are then treated to a blurb about the free Wifi, locations for luggage, short platforms and that Scotrail is the fast and environmentally friendly way to travel.

The station announcements are also okay, just says information that the public need to know.

 

[BJames]

Mr Shapps and I filmed a public advert earlier in the year to that unnecessary messages would be binned but whether or not Trevelyan will live up to that I do not know. She doesn’t seem as invested and committed to improving the railways as Mr Shapps was. Her love seems to be potholes.

Ah yes I remember this! I wonder what Mark Harper will make of the post and what (if any) changes his appointment will bring.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Ah yes I remember this! I wonder what Mark Harper will make of the post and what (if any) changes his appointment will bring.

Oh I hadn’t realised Trevelyan was gone already. To be honest, there are bigger priorities.

 

[BJames]

Oh I hadn’t realised Trevelyan was gone already. To be honest, there are bigger priorities.

Indeed - it really is hard to keep up! But you're right, of course - I don't imagine announcements will feature for quite some time if at all, and there are other things he needs to be cracking on with.

 

[busestrains]

The first announcements they need to get rid of are those annoying See It Say It Sort It ones about the BTP number. Those have been going on for far too long. I am in support of plenty of useful announcements telling you where the train is going and where it is calling but i dislike all these ridiculous safety announcements and especially this BTP one.

 

[43066]

The first announcements they need to get rid of are those annoying See It Say It Sort It ones about the BTP number. Those have been going on for far too long. I am in support of plenty of useful announcements telling you where the train is going and where it is calling but i dislike all these ridiculous safety announcements and especially this BTP one.

The DfT could get rid of those at the stroke of a pen if they wished to!

 

[krus_aragon]

When will excessive announcements cease?​

​

This has not yet been announced.

 

[bramling]

The DfT could get rid of those at the stroke of a pen if they wished to!

Seems to be going the other way if anything. I know the DFT have been sending out wave files of the security message to be added to train announcement systems.

The continuing obsession with both this announcement and its rather (IMO) silly slogan is but another example of this country’s institutions having been strategically debased over the last two decades.

 

[londonmidland]

I notice there’s been an increase of announcements regarding the lack of tactile pacing at said (this) stations.

Never used to be any announcements regarding this.

 

[LowLevel]

I notice there’s been an increase of announcements regarding the lack of tactile pacing at said (this) stations.

Never used to be any announcements regarding this.

Yes, that's following the death of a visually impaired gent in London who became disorientated and fell under the train he was planning to catch.

It's being rolled out everywhere but in the meantime you get those announcements where it isn't present. They're annoying but in this case they do follow on from a very unfortunate accident.

RAIB report linked here:

Report 01/2021: Person struck by a train at Eden Park station

RAIB has today released its report into a person struck by a train at Eden Park station, south-east London, 26 February 2020.

www.gov.uk

 

[O L Leigh]

However on a certain TOC you are constantly reminded in a patronising voice not to board or leave the train when the doors are closing.

Might be interesting to cross-reference this statement with the current thread discussing "trap and drag" incidents.

 

[CaptainHaddock]

I think Scotrail’s on train announcements have struck a pretty good balance:

Current stop, Terminus, next stop, done.

Destination, calling points, safety information notices and done…

Why do we still need safety information notices? Surely just where the train's going and where it's stopping is all passengers need to know?

 

[stuu]

I notice there’s been an increase of announcements regarding the lack of tactile pacing at said (this) stations.

Never used to be any announcements regarding this.

Which reminds me, I heard that at Taunton the other day. Where there is a tactile strip the length of the platform... have the rules/expectations changed on how close they are to the edge?

 

[The exile]

Might be interesting to cross-reference this statement with the current thread discussing "trap and drag" incidents.

Which are presumably evidence of cases where announcements didn’t help. The ability to prosecute for interference in the safe operation of the railway might!

 

[CaptainHaddock]

The first announcements they need to get rid of are those annoying See It Say It Sort It ones about the BTP number. Those have been going on for far too long. I am in support of plenty of useful announcements telling you where the train is going and where it is calling but i dislike all these ridiculous safety announcements and especially this BTP one.

Agreed. I think See It Say It Sort It was first introduced in the post 9/11 hysteria era when for a short time there was the perception of a terrorist threat to public safety but now that threat has long since disappeared why is the announcement still required? In all my years of travelling I have never once needed to contact BTP and if I ever did a simple google search would tell me their contact details.

 

[O L Leigh]

Which are presumably evidence of cases where announcements didn’t help. The ability to prosecute for interference in the safe operation of the railway might!

My point being that there are times when incidents result in mandated action, as described above in relation to announcements about tactile paving.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 26 Oct 2022 ==

I think See It Say It Sort It was first introduced in the post 9/11 hysteria era when for a short time there was the perception of a terrorist threat to public safety but now that threat has long since disappeared why is the announcement still required?

No, it's not been going that long. It might seem like forever, but it started on 1 Nov 2016 (link).

 

[Sm5]

Announcements on trainstations remind me of that scene at the airport drop off in “Airplane”.

The constant noise on a tannoy at trainstations is quite stressful, theres no calm or tranquility. Has anyone done a study in to passenger behaviours at stations that are quieter from announcements ?

 

[TUC]

I notice there’s been an increase of announcements regarding the lack of tactile pacing at said (this) stations.

Never used to be any announcements regarding this.

That is very important for visually impaired people, although in practice in too many stations the announcements are useless because they do not state which platforms lack tactile paving. What use is it to anyone to say that 'some platforms lack tactile paving'?

 

[O L Leigh]

That is very important for visually impaired people, although in practice in too many stations the announcements are useless because they do not state which platforms lack tactile paving. What use is it to anyone to say that 'some platforms lack tactile paving'?

Because it prompts visually impaired users to “look” for the edge rather than assuming that there must be tactile paving and failing to find it, with (not very) hilarious consequences.

 

[Jamiescott1]

Gwr has a lot of pointless automated announcements
(Wording may be incorrect)

"Were currently being held at a red signal and trying to establish the reason"

"Please hold the handrails when using the staircase"

To name 2 that spring to mind

 

[TUC]

Because it prompts visually impaired users to “look” for the edge rather than assuming that there must be tactile paving and failing to find it, with (not very) hilarious consequences.

It would be a 15 minute job for a member of staff to walk a station and visually identify that platforms 1,3 and 7 lack tactile paving and arrange for it to be reflected in the announcement. As someone whose wife is visually impaired I can safely say that the scary thing is not knowing what platforms do or not have it. It's not a case of exploring a platform to check as you suggest. Rather it is the unknown which makes one worried about crossing any platform to board a train, so removing independence.

 

[dosxuk]

I feel there is a disconnect between the sort of people who post here - regular, confident, travellers, who know where they're going and where they need to be and the general public who maybe take a train once a year or that find public transport difficult. Announcements and information need to serve both types of traveller. If you're stood there thinking "why do they need to keep announcing this" then that announcement is probably not aimed at you - look around - there's probably at least one person struggling to hear the message because it is useful to them.

That is very important for visually impaired people, although in practice in too many stations the announcements are useless because they do not state which platforms lack tactile paving. What use is it to anyone to say that 'some platforms lack tactile paving'?

It means people will take extra care across the entire station, not assuming because there is tactile paving in one place then it will be everywhere and then finding an edge in a hurry.

 

[JohnRegular]

Gwr has a lot of pointless automated announcements
(Wording may be incorrect)

"Were currently being held at a red signal and trying to establish the reason"

"Please hold the handrails when using the staircase"

To name 2 that spring to mind

My goodness, the echoing of 'When on the stairs, please use the handrail, and take care' through the subways at Swindon and Westbury drive me mad enough, I imagine staff must lose their minds.

The red signal one isn't so bad, infrequent travellers probably quite often wonder why the train has stopped for no apparent reason and it's reassuring for it to be acknowledged at least.

In general, I don't think frequent announcements of calling points and destinations are a problem. That is definitely reassuring for infrequent travellers, and the few times I've helped someone out who is on the wrong train, the on board PIS has not been working.

 

[TUC]

It means people will take extra care across the entire station, not assuming because there is tactile paving in one place then it will be everywhere and then finding an edge in a hurry.

What point is there in having tactile paving if a lack of specific information means that one has to be just as cautious on platforms with it, as ones without it?

 

[800001]

To me it’s not just on train announcements, it’s the constant stream of unnecessary announcements at stations as well, including very rural stations, where there seem to me announcements every minute.

On train announcements should be a full list of calling points when waiting to leave starting station, then after that they should be like a lot of London suburban services where they announce as ‘this is the service to X, the next calling point is X’.

People want to relax and enjoy a journey not listen to a constant barrage of announcements.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Yes, that's following the death of a visually impaired gent in London who became disorientated and fell under the train he was planning to catch.

It's being rolled out everywhere but in the meantime you get those announcements where it isn't present. They're annoying but in this case they do follow on from a very unfortunate accident.

RAIB report linked here:

Report 01/2021: Person struck by a train at Eden Park station

RAIB has today released its report into a person struck by a train at Eden Park station, south-east London, 26 February 2020.

www.gov.uk

And therefore they are very important.
However. Greg Scott or whatever his name is, does not need to deliver the warning with the same tone and emphasis that is used in a pantomime. It's ridiculously over the top when played at Great Western Railway stations.

Anne says the same at South Western Railway stations but in a far less ear-splitting and insincere manner.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 26 Oct 2022 ==

My goodness, the echoing of 'When on the stairs, please use the handrail, and take care' through the subways at Swindon and Westbury drive me mad enough, I imagine staff must lose their minds.

It's the strange emphasis. Why do they stress "ON"
"When ON the stairs..."

Where else would we be, David Sheppard? Underneath them?

 

[Howardh]

To me it’s not just on train announcements, it’s the constant stream of unnecessary announcements at stations as well, including very rural stations, where there seem to me announcements every minute.

On train announcements should be a full list of calling points when waiting to leave starting station, then after that they should be like a lot of London suburban services where they announce as ‘this is the service to X, the next calling point is X’.

People want to relax and enjoy a journey not listen to a constant barrage of announcements.

Couldn't agree more. And in any case, on trains and stations, a lot (if not most) passengers are wearing in-earphones or headsets so they won't hear a darned thing anyway; I do to specifically block out the announcements on trains.