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That old festive trains debate again...
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Meld
Member
I remember working the last time the railways ran on a boxing day - 0630-1515 and the number of passengers was far lower than a normal Sunday morning 
I have contacted my MP asking him to sign EDM 598 http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=34749&SESSION=891
richa2002
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This is the farce we have now, services have to be profitable for these privitised companies, the railways are a service which the public pay for through taxes, whether it's profitable or not shouldn't be an issue (to an extent of course).
l remember being told a story from many years ago when they used to run a skeleton service on Christmas day and the train broke down at some village station and they were all kicked off. They didn't want to leave the station incase a train came along to save them but after 2 hours they got very cold and had to break into the waiting room for some warmth - they were "saved" 3 hours later. Not an ideal Christmas day!
Where do I sign so we can have a service at weekends as well? Which many lines don't have with engineering work. They don't do that in Europe either..
They stopped running services on Christmas day/Boxing day just after the Beeching cuts, which I suppose removed many lines for diversionary purposes.
They stopped running services on Christmas day/Boxing day just after the Beeching cuts, which I suppose removed many lines for diversionary purposes.
W14Fishbourne
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The government's contracts with the TOCs are to operate trains 363, not 365, days a year. That is all the TOCs are paid for.
Would you be happy if your employer announced that you were to work on Boxing Day and that, as you already get an annual salary, you wouldn't be paid any extra?
richa2002
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I don't blame the TOCs to be honest, it's a systematic failure of privitisation as a whole.
There must be a demand for some kind of services. Many of the few buses that ran today in Hull looked pretty full. The railways need to wake up and realise that people don't just sit around at home on boxing day anymore - they like to be out and about!
Fuzzy Logic
Member
You would've thought that at least some sort of skeleton service could be operated, maybe not on Christmas day but certainly boxing day; especially considering the number of sporting fixtures on, and with people going to visit relatives and the like.
W14Fishbourne
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A few bus loads of passengers (even if the buses were full) don't provide an economic basis for running a train service.
Even peak hour trains during the holiday week barely carry enough to justify their operation. They're quieter than normal off-peak trains. You can tell how quiet they are by the fact that they all run precisely to time - which, incidentally, also proves that poor punctuality is the fault of the passenger, not the railways!
Most people on Boxing Day want to make short journeys. However, they'd still expect a train at least every half an hour, and then they'd complain about having to carry all their shopping to and from the stations.
As I've said above, people wouldn't be happy with a skeleton service. They'd expect a train at least every half an hour. A skeleton service wouldn't attract anyone.
DavyCrocket
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Some TOCs run on Boxing Day. My local station had a 20 min daytime service from 9 till 7.
Boxing Day is more like a normal public holiday now. Unless there is engineering work being carried out, some trains should be run. At least on main line routes.
Boxing Day is more like a normal public holiday now. Unless there is engineering work being carried out, some trains should be run. At least on main line routes.
Mintona
Established Member
No other public services are open over the Christmas period, so why should the railways?
David
Established Member
Did you watch any television yesterday or today? Did you listen to the radio at all? What about all the hotels and restaurants that had bookings? What about petrol stations and shops that opened (or stayed open)?
Are they any different? The people who staff them want the time off work as well, but they did have to go to work.
Also, did you use the internet yesterday? What about the technicians (sp?) who kept everything running ????
1D53
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West Yorkshire PTE sponsered a ton of services today for the first year in about 20 years, they've published them so much yet most of them appear to have run empty.
I personally think we cant be more than 5 years away from having services back on Boxing Day, especially when we manage to run a full service on NYD.
I personally think we cant be more than 5 years away from having services back on Boxing Day, especially when we manage to run a full service on NYD.
O L Leigh
Established Member
Most of the Christmas output on TV and radio is pre-recorded. There is actually only a very small skeleton staff there to make sure stuff works and the news goes out. In fact, having just seen the main BBC news bulletin this evening, it seems that there is almost no-one at work in that department either, as there was only a single piece of UK news in the entire broadcast. All the rest was world news that would have been syndicated through the various international news agencies before being editted by a BBC News drone and given a BBC commentary.
I really think that the size of the market over the Christmas period is overstated. I worked late Christmas Eve and it was as quiet as the grave. By 2330 I'd parked up at Bishops Stortford CS and had to wait for a StanEx to pass in each direction before I could cross the line. Both appeared to be completely empty.
On the wider points, I saw no shops or petrol stations open yesterday. None at all. Even if they were, what influence is that supposed to have on the railway? As a driver I know that there are just the two days in the entire year when I know that I will not be working. I give up my weekends and evenings, work unsociable hours and have my job impinge on what I want to do with my free time, which affects my family and friends. In short, my life is adequately ruled by the job thank you very much indeed. I most certainly do not wish to see any in-roads made into the Christmas holiday period in order to ferry a handful of curmudgeons or bargain hunters around the network. If folk want to work on a volutary basis on Boxing Day to provide a limited service then so be it, but you will never find my name on such a list.
What concerns me the most is that it becomes a slippery slope. Once people get a taste for services over the holiday you can bet it won't be long before we are compelled to come in and work trains, and that is something that I most certainly will resist.
one TN
I really think that the size of the market over the Christmas period is overstated. I worked late Christmas Eve and it was as quiet as the grave. By 2330 I'd parked up at Bishops Stortford CS and had to wait for a StanEx to pass in each direction before I could cross the line. Both appeared to be completely empty.
On the wider points, I saw no shops or petrol stations open yesterday. None at all. Even if they were, what influence is that supposed to have on the railway? As a driver I know that there are just the two days in the entire year when I know that I will not be working. I give up my weekends and evenings, work unsociable hours and have my job impinge on what I want to do with my free time, which affects my family and friends. In short, my life is adequately ruled by the job thank you very much indeed. I most certainly do not wish to see any in-roads made into the Christmas holiday period in order to ferry a handful of curmudgeons or bargain hunters around the network. If folk want to work on a volutary basis on Boxing Day to provide a limited service then so be it, but you will never find my name on such a list.
What concerns me the most is that it becomes a slippery slope. Once people get a taste for services over the holiday you can bet it won't be long before we are compelled to come in and work trains, and that is something that I most certainly will resist.
one TN
DescendingSadly
Member
I think the workforce are entitled to a holiday, those who want to work over christmas should be allowed to however. They do provide a public service, but you put random punter into that job and tell them to work christmas they'd be the first to complain.
We had one petrol station and a few Pakistani-owned shops open; and they seemed relatively busy with people buying forgotten ingrediants and petrol for the long trip to Auntie Mabel's or whatever.
I have to agree with a closure of the railways on Christmas Day, although not today. Today, with Sales, Sports, the railways are really needed and would be appreciated by some. FSR gave a service today (but they'll get NYD off), but I think all TOCs should really give at least a Sunday service today.
Lesjordans
Member
Ochh those replacement busses are a nuisance! The whifflet line is running tomorrow though isnt it? I hope so because i need to go in - sales are on 
Ochh those replacement busses are a nuisance! The whifflet line is running tomorrow though isnt it? I hope so because i need to go in - sales are on
I refuse to travel on those bloody buses. Better than Easter this year though, when they ran to Dalmarnock with a 29 minute connection onto an Argyle or something stupid...
I'm pretty sure the trains are on tommorrow, you'll be glad to know.
Lesjordans
Member
Thank goodness! If you're on it come say hi to me, im the miserable-looking one that always gets on at the back doors at bargeddie, and off at the very front on the way back.
I hate Glasgow Central when there's engineering works
I hate Glasgow Central when there's engineering works
O L Leigh
Established Member
There should be trains everywhere tomorrow. Now that Christmas Day and Boxign Day are done, it should be an uninterrupted service until late Christmas Eve 2008.
one TN
one TN
87015
Established Member
I take it you don't live in the WCML!!!!!!!!! An uninterrupted month is a bonus!!!!!!
Tom B
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Quite, but many engineering etc staff won't. Besides, I doubt they're not being happily renumerated with overtime etc.
AlexS
Established Member
Kerching as it were!
Not quite sure I get the lunacy of not running trains on New Years Day though!
I used them last year and will do this year - the ones first thing were totally empty as expected, bar a few drunks passed out on the floor which the conductor was just stepping over (!) BUT the Cross Country train that the hired in HST worked from Edinburgh to New Street via Leeds that I boarded at Leeds was full and standing at about 1700 or whatever it was!
Not quite sure I get the lunacy of not running trains on New Years Day though!
I used them last year and will do this year - the ones first thing were totally empty as expected, bar a few drunks passed out on the floor which the conductor was just stepping over (!) BUT the Cross Country train that the hired in HST worked from Edinburgh to New Street via Leeds that I boarded at Leeds was full and standing at about 1700 or whatever it was!
back to the christmas debate
I work in the rail industry at a depot, I work bank holidays all year, if i want them off I have to book them off
and Ill be buggered if you think ill be working christmas day etc to provide a service, everything starts again boxing day, so we only get the one holiday off
I work in the rail industry at a depot, I work bank holidays all year, if i want them off I have to book them off
and Ill be buggered if you think ill be working christmas day etc to provide a service, everything starts again boxing day, so we only get the one holiday off
Techniquest
Veteran Member
I don't believe they should work Christmas and Boxing Days. Why should they, just to please a few shoppers?
There may be some demand, but there is nowhere near enough demand to warrant any real service. As has already been mentioned, even a skeleton service would not satisfy the moaning shoppers.
I worked Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, but then I was working in retail. I'm happy with the extra money from it, but I don't expect the hard-working railway staff to have to give up their days off to run trains for a handful of people.
New Year is a different story altogether. There's more money to be made there (I believe, I'm happy to be corrected should it be the other way around) than running on Boxing Day.
Besides, if we ran on Christmas and Boxing Days, when would we get vital engineering works done? More weekend closures that inconvience a lot more people than they would otherwise? No, I'd rather have it the way it is. Although I do feel for the engineering staff who have to work the two days.
So my opinion on this matter? Leave it the way it is. The demand does not warrant services at this time, nor does the network have the ability to deal with it.
There may be some demand, but there is nowhere near enough demand to warrant any real service. As has already been mentioned, even a skeleton service would not satisfy the moaning shoppers.
I worked Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, but then I was working in retail. I'm happy with the extra money from it, but I don't expect the hard-working railway staff to have to give up their days off to run trains for a handful of people.
New Year is a different story altogether. There's more money to be made there (I believe, I'm happy to be corrected should it be the other way around) than running on Boxing Day.
Besides, if we ran on Christmas and Boxing Days, when would we get vital engineering works done? More weekend closures that inconvience a lot more people than they would otherwise? No, I'd rather have it the way it is. Although I do feel for the engineering staff who have to work the two days.
So my opinion on this matter? Leave it the way it is. The demand does not warrant services at this time, nor does the network have the ability to deal with it.
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