Friday commute....quieter?

Tooktook · 13 Oct 2016

With the risk of asking a stupid question (also I know it's Thursday today) does anyone prefer peak train travel on a Friday?

As someone who works shifts and commutes by train, I find with the TOC I use (sw trains) that I will stand Monday to Thursday. However every Friday I get a seat and the carpark is half empty.

My thoughts are that people have probably got better jobs than me ie flexi working or are taking long weekends. However the pattern seems to repeat throughout the year.

I'm just interested if this is the same elsewhere.

Ps- I'm not moaning about standing at other times. I see it as an inevitable part of peak travel.

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Bletchleyite · 13 Oct 2016

It's certainly true on the south WCML - very common for office workers to work remotely on Fridays, and yes, if people are taking a long weekend Friday off is the most common.

AlterEgo · 13 Oct 2016

Fridays are quieter almost everywhere in the country.

- People using annual leave efficiently for a long weekend are more likely to book a Friday than any other day
- Flexi time
- Partial home working

Probably the three biggest reasons there.

dk1 · 13 Oct 2016

Friday mornings commute always has been the quietest of the week. Many take it off & you don't hear of so many business meetings either. Probably a good job as by early afternoon the getaway begins & we all know of the afternoon/evening overcrowding that has existed for years.

I find Tuesday-Thursday the busiest for station parking.

306024 · 13 Oct 2016

dk1 said:
Friday mornings commute always has been the quietest of the week. Many take it off & you don't hear of so many business meetings either. Probably a good job as by early afternoon the getaway begins & we all know of the afternoon/evening overcrowding that has existed for years.

I find Tuesday-Thursday the busiest for station parking.

That is certainly the case on the GEML. Monday morning is also busy with the Friday evening set returning after a relaxing weekend in the country. There are some trains I won't consider using at the start of the week, but by Thursday are OK.

bramling · 13 Oct 2016

Tooktook said:
With the risk of asking a stupid question (also I know it's Thursday today) does anyone prefer peak train travel on a Friday?

As someone who works shifts and commutes by train, I find with the TOC I use (sw trains) that I will stand Monday to Thursday. However every Friday I get a seat and the carpark is half empty.

My thoughts are that people have probably got better jobs than me ie flexi working or are taking long weekends. However the pattern seems to repeat throughout the year.

I'm just interested if this is the same elsewhere.

Ps- I'm not moaning about standing at other times. I see it as an inevitable part of peak travel.

Definitely quieter in the peaks. In the morning peak a packed train on any other day can have a few spare seats, whilst in the evening peak (particularly after 1830) some shorter-distance commuter trains can be quite empty indeed.

The flip side of the coin is that lunchtime/early afternoon on a Friday can be busier. I occasional travel out of King's Cross around 1400 - Monday to Thursday I'd normally expect no more than 5-10 people in the carriage, Friday is noticeably busier.

Apart from more people taking annual leave, a lot of people "cut away" on Fridays. Taking the railway industry as an example, don't try looking for certain grades of manager after Friday lunchtime!

Tooktook · 13 Oct 2016

Yeah I agree above. On Friday rush hour seems to start about 2-3pm.

Also I do occasionally suffer work envy with my friend who works from home on the laptop. Basically in his pyjamas and tv on in the background.

HH · 13 Oct 2016

306024 said:
That is certainly the case on the GEML. Monday morning is also busy with the Friday evening set returning after a relaxing weekend in the country. There are some trains I won't consider using at the start of the week, but by Thursday are OK.

Friday is certainly a lot quieter on GEML and Monday somewhat too (seems to vary week to week). I didn't see today being quiet, although I think that Tues/Weds are a little busier.

This is the general case on most non-InterCity routes from what I recall.

stut · 13 Oct 2016

Southern ECML here, and yes, Fridays have always been quieter for me - and I've always assumed these are down to the reasons AlterEgo has given.

You also get a nice atmosphere on the early evening trains - people in a better mood, or sleepy, or having a couple of cans on the way home (although there's always a hardcore that seems to get through a few every evening, but that's a whole other discussion).

Now, the after-work drinks crowd on the mid-evening home-to-see-your-partner drunky expresses... That gets interesting!

Tetchytyke · 13 Oct 2016

I used to commute on the southern WCML from Hemel and yes, very true. Many people work from home on a Friday, or have a compressed week, so the morning trains tend to be quieter. As for the evening, those who do get to work seem to be spread out more; I used to either leave at 4pm on a Friday afternoon or I'd stay out and get home about 11pm after having "a quiet pint" (or five) after work.

As for the flip side of the coin, try getting a seat on the 1819 or 1830 trains from Kings Cross to Newcastle...

gimmea50anyday · 13 Oct 2016

TPE fridays are generally quieter morning commute, however trains are then much busier later in the day as uni students, squaddies etc head home on leave and other people head away for the weekend. You then get the people who are heading out for the evening along with thise who have had afternokn long liwuid lunches. The afternoon commute is busier and longer as a result

DarloRich · 13 Oct 2016

Arctic Troll said:
I used to commute on the southern WCML from Hemel and yes, very true. Many people work from home on a Friday, or have a compressed week, so the morning trains tend to be quieter. As for the evening, those who do get to work seem to be spread out more; I used to either leave at 4pm on a Friday afternoon or I'd stay out and get home about 11pm after having "a quiet pint" (or five) after work.

As for the flip side of the coin, try getting a seat on the 1819 or 1830 trains from Kings Cross to Newcastle...

agreed - the compressed hours option is very common these days and it is amazing the number of people who work flexibly and have Friday agreed as the home working day

Antman · 13 Oct 2016

Generally a lot quieter on the roads Friday morning as well.

pemma · 13 Oct 2016

Friday morning is also the day 16-18 year olds studying vocational qualifications often do their work placement day meaning less school/college pupils doing their usual commute.

Up here Friday evening peak is the worst time to travel as people start using the train for their evening out well before the commuters have got home, add to that the students travelling home for the weekend as already mentioned.

Bald Rick · 13 Oct 2016

The last numbers I saw suggest peak commuting is approx 20% lower on Fridays than Tues / Weds.

As others have said, it is a combination of

1) people taking Fridays off (for those that commute at 'normal' times, which day do you take off the most over the course of a year?)

2) people doing flexible working

3) people who work at multiple sites, who will do anything to avoid London on a Friday

4) people who start early (ie get in before the peak gets going) on a Friday to finish early.

Iskra · 13 Oct 2016

Fridays were always quieter at Wakefield Westgate in the earlier mornings (0530-0830) but would be heaving Mon-Thurs at the same time, but then got busier around 0900-1200 than other weekdays with people going away for the weekend to London/Edinburgh/the South West.

A lot of people work from home or work half-days/shorter days on Fridays. I notice in my car that the evening rush hour is quieter and more spread out on a Friday.

trainophile · 13 Oct 2016

It's POETS day innit? :lol:

(For the uninitiated... Push off early, tomorrow's Saturday - variations of "push" are also used!)

I remember back in BR days it was dearer to buy a ticket for a Friday than any other day, and even recently ATW's Club 55 tickets charged more if you wanted to travel on a Friday.

parkender102 · 13 Oct 2016

Yes I much prefer travelling Peak on a Friday Afternoon – however – you have to time your journey correctly.
I work away from home Monday to Friday so travel in to work via London on a Monday morning arriving London around 11:00 on a Peak Service with an Off Peak Ticket (Regional Variations) and my Virgin Pendolino arrives in London typically with my carriage containing 10 people. On Fridays the Peak times for my route are 15:01 – 18:44 however my Off Peak Ticket allows me to use any train apart from the 16:10. I am usually at Euston around 14:15 which unless I want to wait around forces me onto the last Off Peak train of the afternoon to Crewe and Manchester – the 14:40 which is always rammed. If I take the 15:40 Peak Time Virgin train to Crewe and Manchester I’m back to the Monday Morning loadings – typically arriving at Crewe with maybe 10 people in the carriage.

LexyBoy · 13 Oct 2016

On the GWML it's certainly quieter in the morning (down direction); much busier in the afternoon (up).

johntea · 14 Oct 2016

Well in my old job my working hours were 8:30am - 5:00pm Mon-Thu then 8:30am - 4:30pm Fri (inc 1 hour lunch), to be honest I'm not a morning person full stop so would always rather start work later and finish later though!

AnonymousUser1 · 14 Oct 2016

AlterEgo said:
Fridays are quieter almost everywhere in the country.

- People using annual leave efficiently for a long weekend are more likely to book a Friday than any other day
- Flexi time
- Partial home working

Probably the three biggest reasons there.

indeed and in the evening peak POETS working time arrangements

Robertj21a · 14 Oct 2016

Fridays have always been quieter just about everywhere that I've travelled in the UK - for very many years. I plan my longer distance car trips on a Friday quite differently from, say, a Monday (or Sunday evening in some areas).

30907 · 14 Oct 2016

In some parts of Germany working patterns mean that the Friday peak extras on some commuter routes (Munich comes to mind) start and finish a couple of hours earlier than FX.

Tooktook · 15 Oct 2016

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Also I got a seat yesterday

AM9 · 15 Oct 2016

Maybe these days there is another aspect of the Friday travel pattern, that of some religious adherants. I believe that Muslims see Friday congregational prayer as more important than other weekdays, and in the winter months the desire for Jews to observe the beginning of the Sabbath means being home before nightfall. Both of these must have an impact on commuter travel flows, particularly parts of Greater London and other cities such as Manchester.

Greenback · 15 Oct 2016

I used to find the journey from Llanelli into Swansea quieter on Friday mornings, but the afternoon train home that I used to catch regularly were just as busy as normal, if not busier, through people heading down to West Wales for the weekend.

it might just me my memory, but I'm sure there were more delays getting home on Fridays as well!

alb1 · 17 Oct 2016

Greenback said:
I used to find the journey from Llanelli into Swansea quieter on Friday mornings, but the afternoon train home that I used to catch regularly were just as busy as normal, if not busier, through people heading down to West Wales for the weekend.

it might just me my memory, but I'm sure there were more delays getting home on Fridays as well!

Agreed. I definitely find the 1740 from Cardiff to West Wales busier on a Friday. It's always full, usually to the point of leaving passengers standing on the platform. I've lost count of the number of times I've spent over an hour sat in the luggage rack in the absence of a seat.

For what it's worth, I finish work earlier on a Friday which allows me to catch that service (the first realistic one after 5pm). The rest of the week I'm pushing it to make the 1752 so I don't usually catch that service midweek, but on the odd occasion I do (probably once every few weeks) it's definitely quieter Monday - Thursday than on a Friday.

Friday commute....quieter?

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