Recent content by Will Mitchell

https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:P75228/2023-06-30/detailed I travelled from BRI to SWI on this service yesterday morning. The train arrived in Swindon well after 0930 and I missed my connection to Kemble, having to wait nearly an hour for the next one. GWR are claiming I arrived...

This is very helpful. thank you Adam.

I am using Rail UK Tickets to book my weekly tickets from Bristol to London and I am finding it a little tricky. I generally always want to book the same train: Tuesday 0830 BRI-PAD, returning Thursday at 1902. It’s a simple off-peak return ticket but the booking engine needs a lot of...

I am beginning to suspect a conspiracy

In an effort to convince my wife of the virtues of rail travel and get her out of her car, I offered to accompany her on this morning’s 0810 GWR service from Clifton Down to Temple Meads and ensure she made her connection - the 0835 XC service to Edinburgh. The GWR service is scheduled to...

In my fantasy land I would have next generation APTs that can run at 400kph on the high speed lines and then also keep up with (or indeed go faster than) the pendos north of Wigan on the WCML. Someone just needs to figure out how to do that given the significant additional weight from all the...

I just had the same issue. I was unable to buy a standard super off peak from BRI to PAD between 0900 and 1030 for travel today. Neither GWR or Trainline websites would sell me one. RTT says ‘Reservations Compulsory’. Is this just an attempt by the operators to prevent overcrowding or are some...

so standard class has a superior level if service to first class? sounds mad.

DB used to but E* pulled the plug. another reason why i won’t be mourning E*’s demise.

this is great! I for one will be travelling up to dine there.

I’ve always been impressed by the level of comfort on the various TGVs in 1st class. Seat comfort is usually armchair-like and the ambience is good, with warm(ish) lighting, decent ride comfort (at least on the LGVs) and muted external noise and vibration. Ditto the old Eurostars, pre-refurb...

Many of these services are already operating on my purely imaginary integrated European high speed network. I also have Duplex TGV Sleepers running from StP to Vienna/Budapest, Warsaw/Berlin, Copenhagen/Malmo, Rome/Milan, Seville/Malaga, Vigo/LaCoruna. Hopefully in my lifetime some of these...

Most flights I have taken from London to virtually anywhere in Europe have been full. Now I accept it’s not a 1:1 transition to high speed sleeper trains for various and obvious reasons that we can discuss but, given the recent upturn in the fortunes of night trains, I suspect there is a...

I’ve often thought (wished) this could work. It was a complete fantasy up until last year when, as far as I can tell, the public discourse with regards to the climate finally changed direction. Now I can honestly say I can see this happening within the next decade. Clearly there are significant...

If I remember rightly one of the east coast operators used to provide both. But then maybe I imagined it...