What's peoples views of cyclists/bicycles on the train? I see a lot of anti cyclist sentiment from railway staff around my way but public opinion is very mixed.
As Railway staff ill give my opinions on your questions .
What do people think can be done to improve things?
Personally I think it needs to be made clear that bikes are not a priority on the train , there is no guarantee that you will get your bike on the train .. Better bike locking facilities at stations in a more uniform manner so that people feel more secure leaving their bikes at the station whilst they go to work . and maybe a decent cheap hire scheme like they do in europe so people that currently cycle to the station , take the train to near work and cycle the short distance from the station can actually hire a bike for the last leg of the journey for pennies rather than taking their own on the train . On long distance journeys with the HST's its not that bad because there is massive amounts of storage . On a short commuter service using something like a 150 or a 156 there is a lot less room for bikes
Should cyclists be charged a separate fare?
I dont think they should have a separate fare no , because then you go down the lines of I have paid more so I should be guarantee room on the train . And I dont think we should guarantee bikes a space on the train .
Should there be restrictions imposed on times?
Nope Im happy for a cyclist to bring a bike on any of my trains any of the time . I will do my best to try and accommodate passengers with bikes , but sometimes if 5 cyclists all turn up to get on one lonely 142 they are going to be disappointed . Or if you are a cyclist trying to travel during peak time you might also face disappointment .
Should cyclists be allowed full stop?
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Cyclist should be allowed of course .,cyclists and crowded services dont mix The only real issues I have ever had with cyclists have been on crowded services .
I had one gentlemen with a bike at a platform ask me if I could please get people to move out of the bike space so he could fit his bike on . Given that this was a sardine tin crowded 156 I declined his request , and politely informed him that if he wished for passengers to move and ultimately leave the train so that he could get his bike on then that was for him to negotiate with his fellow passengers , but I would not be forcing anybody already on board the train to leave to make room for a bike .
I also had a gent with a folding bike ask me If I could wait for him to fold his bike so it could fit on the train . Given I was already running late I again declined his request and pointed out if he was going to regularly travel with the bike in the peak time it might be prudent to have it folded for the arrival of the train rather then expecting the passengers on board who want to get to their destination to wait for him . Fortunately for him there was a service to the station he wanted 5 minutes behind us .
people loading bikes on the wrong door is another issue . If they load it into an area that is not designed to hold the bike they end up blocking the aisle and maybe the door which it is important is kept clear in case of an emergency . For that reason I only let people put their bikes in the space provided . If the space provided is full of luggage then I will look to relocate that to make room for you . But if It is full of bikes or people then tough luck .