Advice on Reserved Seats

[dcd]

Hi ,

Sorry to bring up seat reservations again but could not find the answer to these anywhere.
I am about to start an ALR on Sunday and have some questions about seat reservations.

I have reserved seats on all my planned journeys that are over half an hour long. (I can stand for that long) just to ensure that if the trains are full when I get on I still have a seat.

Now I know that some of the seats I have been allocated are not what I would have preferred and not what I asked for, 2 are back facing when I asked for forward facing. I could also not specify which side of the train.

Here come the questions.

If I get on and find the there is a more preferable seat available and sit there is there anything I can or should do about the reserved seat. i.e. I presume I can't remove the label on the seat I


reserved and make it available. Should I put the reservation ticket on the seat so someone else can use it?

If there are no better seats unreserved how long do I have to wait before moving to a reserved seat that has not been taken?


Is there a reason why the system has given me back facing tickets when I asked for forward. Is it likely all facing were taken when I booked months ago. Or is it the system being clever in that the train reverses at some point and what starts back facing spends most of the journey forwards facing. The journeys are Fort William to Mallaig and Swansea to Shrewsbury via Sugar Loaf.


Thanks for any help.


PS would anyone be interested in a thread covering my progress?

 

[LexyBoy]

If your reservation is the only one on the label then I can’t see any guard having a problem with you removing it – it’s certainly what I’ve done in the past. Obviously if there are other reservations included on it then leave it.

If no-one’s sat in a reserved seat a couple of minutes after departure (once everyone’s settled down) then I’d say it’s fair game to sit in it. Just be attentive to anyone who might be eyeing it wondering if it’s their seat! Also, look out for seats with a reservation from a much earlier station, where the occupant is obviously sitting elsewhere.

As for how the system allocates seats, I think it’s fairly random! Fort William to Mallaig certainly doesn’t involve any reversals.

 

[MikeWh]

Fort William to Mallaig certainly doesn’t involve any reversals.

Although the train has reversed at Fort William IIRC, so perhaps that is what has confused the computer.

 

[LexyBoy]

Although the train has reversed at Fort William IIRC, so perhaps that is what has confused the computer.

You're probably right - the facing/backward status is probably loaded into the system for the whole journey of the train, based on the longest stretch (and there is indeed a reversal at Fort William).

 

[John @ home]

Fort William to Mallaig certainly doesn’t involve any reversals.

Although the train has reversed at Fort William IIRC, so perhaps that is what has confused the computer.

I think this is the reason you have been allocated backwards facing seats for these two legs.

Indicating a backwards facing seat ensures the seat is facing backwards when the train starts from Glasgow. It is therefore facing forwards when you want to use it from Fort William to Mallaig.

The Swansea - Shrewsbury situation is more complex. On 3 of the 4 daily trains, you would be sitting backwards for the shorter Swansea - Llanelli part of the journey and forwards for the longer Llanelli - Shrewsbury part. But the 0915 from Swansea starts from Cardiff at 0809 and reverses twice. In this instance, you would be sitting forwards for the shorter Swansea - Llanelli part of the journey and backwards for the longer Llanelli - Shrewsbury part.

 

[rail-britain]

If I get on and find the there is a more preferable seat available and sit there is there anything I can or should do about the reserved seat. i.e. I presume I can't remove the label on the seat I reserved and make it available. Should I put the reservation ticket on the seat so someone else can use it?

If there are no better seats unreserved how long do I have to wait before moving to a reserved seat that has not been taken?

If you use another unreserved seat, then leave the original reservation
After the station intended it will be disregarded, or if you see someone looking at it, advise them it is actually yours and won't be using it

Once the train has passed the intended station, then you are free to use that seat
However, I would allow some time for the passenger to walk the entire length of the train
A few weeks ago a passenger had a reservation from Lancaster but ended up at the wrong end of the train and it took them until nearly Preston to reach the other end of the train