Dodgy Automated Announcements

[trentside]

When Northern had first acquired some of their 158s from FGW (ex-Wessex) I heard the trains play the Wessex Trains safety announcements a few times. This would generally happen when leaving some rural station and would leave people looking a little confused...

Has anyone else heard the service update announcements at King's Cross Underground station? I think they're done using a text-to-speech facility, and the way it reads things make it sound incredibly odd. It struggles to pronounce some station names too.

 

[Tringonometry]

Heard today at Milton Keynes Central:

"Please stand well back from the platform edge. The train now approaching Platform 2A does not stop here."

I was expecting the woman in the coffee shop to beat a hasty retreat.

 

[FGW_Lad]

Didn't the Class 377 systems on FCC muck up when they switched from DC to AC at Farringdon? I haven't been on one for a while but when I was on it, the system reset itself to just saying Electrostar.

 

[londonbridge]

There's one I've heard involving a train which divides en route which,when announcing which coaches passengers for specific destinations should travel in,results in "passengers for........Polgate,Hampden Park,Eastbourne,Hampden Park,Pevensey And Westham......."

 

[northwichcat]

Heard today at Milton Keynes Central:

"Please stand well back from the platform edge. The train now approaching Platform 2A does not stop here."

I was expecting the woman in the coffee shop to beat a hasty retreat.

They've put that on LED displays at Chester platforms 5 and 6 (meaning the trains would go in to the cafe and toilets.)

 

[Flamingo]

Bristol Temple meads used to announce on the last Cardiff train of the day "A refreshment trolley is available on this train" (NOT).

Gloucester station announcement leaves out Llanharen and Tondu off the Chm - Maesteg train.

 

[umontu]

I've brought up tpe reversing their train's formations (and been told they don't have a set formation.) but at Huddersfield I once heard "First Class is at the front of the train", this was the first time I'd ever heard this at Huddersfield but then it turned out it was at the rear.

I'd say that's a minor screw up.

 

[hougtimo]

Around 20:10 sat at beverley on a Scarborough - Hull service I saw on the screen for the other platform... "The train now passing is the 06:32 service to Scarborough"

Obviously had been set for the morning.

 

[ushawk]

Was on an Ore train at Eastbourne once and it started playing announcements for Littlehampton. The guard quickly came over the PIS and said to ignore the announcements as the system is broken again !

 

[WestCoast]

I presume most remember the One Railway saga with the annoucements!

The 11:30 (One) service to...

Not necessarily dodgy but still enough for a bit of confusion and Daily Mail outrage.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
I was on a South West Trains 450 service where the automated system reckoned the train terminated at Weybridge, but the guard kept said we were going to Addlestone. The constant conflict between the DVA and the guard was a little confusing..

 

[ushawk]

Ah yeah, ive had that. Because faster trains go to Weybridge or something like that. Weird as the departure boards at Waterloo show Addlestone as well.

 

[fairysdad]

I've brought up tpe reversing their train's formations (and been told they don't have a set formation.) but at Huddersfield I once heard "First Class is at the front of the train", this was the first time I'd ever heard this at Huddersfield but then it turned out it was at the rear.

I'd say that's a minor screw up.

Heard at Tiverton Parkway once as the train was visible entering the platform heading towards London...

Auto announcer: "First class accommodation is at the... rear... of this train"

(cue a shuffle of people on the platform, including myself, to move from one end of the train to the other).

Real announcer: "Please ignore that comment about first class - it's at the front as usual, the silly machine doesn't know what it's on about again..."

(cue shuffle again...)

 

[Fincra5]

There's one I've heard involving a train which divides en route which,when announcing which coaches passengers for specific destinations should travel in,results in "passengers for........Polgate,Hampden Park,Eastbourne,Hampden Park,Pevensey And Westham......."

Thats not a mistake, the train is most likely a service to Ore, which would be stopping at Hampden Park one the way to eastbourne and then on the way out.

 

[island]

Irish Rail is amusing, because sometimes the automated announcements say something different in Irish than in English I wonder does this happen on ATW?

 

[TEW]

Another one, this time on screens not announcements. Cross Country service to Plymouth, and a refreshment service will be available from Plymouth.

 

[The175]

Irish Rail is amusing, because sometimes the automated announcements say something different in Irish than in English I wonder does this happen on ATW?

ATW services don't have any Welsh at all on their auto announcements, but you can still have the old 'Welcome aboard this Wales and West Service' if the conductor isn't careful!

Incidentally, the announcement at Birmingham New Street for today's 1424 ATW to Pwllheli and Aberystwyth announced several stations on the Cambrian coast twice... Tywyn, Barmouth, Harlech and Porthmadog all got double mentions!

 

[me123]

I heard a dodgy one at Livingston North a few days ago. It's not the usual Scotrail one; it sounded more like Annoying Annie. Anyway, she didn't record some of the stations on the North Clyde Line, which have been filled in by a male voice; namely, Cardross and Coatbridge Sunnyside. In fact, they didn't record CBS at all, so they substitute "Coatbridge Central" instead...

 

[Mark_re]

On Wednesday at Winchester (admittedly amidst major disruption due to a fatality at Surbiton):

'The train approaching platform two is the 1549 South West Trains service to Brockenhurst...'

Member of station staff comes over the PA: 'Ladies and gentleman on platform two, please STAND WELL BACK, the next train is NOT the 1549 and will not be stopping here'.

Cue a 66+boxes thundering through at full pelt.

 

[BestWestern]

There is an ongoing problem with (I presume) communication issues between FGW and the powers that be, which has resulted in certain FGW 'West' services to/from Cardiff Central being listed on the CIS at Severn Tunnel Jcn (and probably NWP and CDF I'd imagine, though I haven't noticed) as having First Class, and even certain pax with Advance tickets being booked in First Class despite there being none on the train! Indeed I had this today, though having paid only £9 the chap was thankfully not too upset! Mildly amusing though when the screens helpfully inform people that First is at the front/rear of the train, and in rolls a 150...!! :roll:

 

[deltic1989]

Theres an announcement at Nottingham that always amuses me maybe its been heard at other stations too. " Please do not leave luggage unattended on this station. Luggage left unattended will be removed and destroyed or damaged by the secrity services" it reminds me that gone are the days when you could see and unattended suitcase onastation and think "i'm having that".

 

[londonmidland]

Theres an announcement at Nottingham that always amuses me maybe its been heard at other stations too. " Please do not leave luggage unattended on this station. Luggage left unattended will be removed and destroyed or damaged by the secrity services" it reminds me that gone are the days when you could see and unattended suitcase onastation and think "i'm having that".

Nearly right it's "Please do not leave luggage unattended, luggage left unattended may be removed without warning or destroyed or damaged by the security services"

Just some minor mistakes

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

THeres a Lady at Crewe who does the announcments in very sexy sort of voice.

She also can be heard telling people to "cross to platform xx in a calm manner" when there has been a platform alteration.
I don't think this one is in the Virgin customer-friendly manual.

Nor is the one at Warrington BQ threatening dire consequences if you smoke (mentions fines).

I've not heard either of these at other stations.

 

[londonbridge]

Thats not a mistake, the train is most likely a service to Ore, which would be stopping at Hampden Park one the way to eastbourne and then on the way out.

I realise that but I think it just sounds funny because Phil ends up saying Hampden Park twice,plus it could confuse passengers not familiar with the line.

 

[northwichcat]

One at Man Piccadilly should state "Due to today's wet weather please take care because surfaces may be slippery." However, it actually sounds like "Due to today's wet weather please take care because services may be slippery."

Another announcement at Piccadilly states the station "Newton-For-Hyde" but again doesn't sound well recorded and I've heard people say "Newton Popeye?" after hearing it.

 

[northernrail]

The New Metrolink M5000 got lost for the first year or so, i remember being on a Eccles line tram approaching Weaste and the tram said "This Is a Piccadilly service, the next stop will be St Peters Square", that really confused me for a few seconds:roll:

 

[googolplex]

I was on a Scotrail 170 from Glasgow to Dundee the other evening and there was a dodgy connection which meant that when the announcement was played all you got was deafening feedback, so it was turned off just before Stirling.
That then meant that the screens were out of sync as well.

I also find it frustrating that there's no interrupt for approaching trains, especially the "stand well clear" messages.
I was at MKC on Sunday and a Pendolino was approaching the station on the right line at about the right time to be my train, but there was no announcement for it as the system was busy with the long spiel about LM disruption.
Thinking it was my train, I stepped forwards, as did a few others on the platform, followed by us stepping back a couple of seconds later as the driver sounded the horn and the train carried on at full pelt.
About 30 seconds after the train thundered through the station, the "stand well clear" announcement was played!

 

[Goldfish62]

The TPE 185s sometimes run the announcements backwards - e.g. if the system hadn't been reset then when the train goes the other way it runs the announcements for the previous journey in reverse order - i.e. just announcing the station you have just left. Had this happen a few times Windermere-Oxenholme & also Scarborough-York.

Yes, this is because Desiros use a GPS system triggered a certain distance from the station - in the direction in which the system is programmed.

 

[wibble]

Plus all the announcements on trains between Reading and Waterloo, where whoever was doing the voice was having a laugh...
*serious voice* "The next station stop will be Virginia Water"
*a couple of minutes later* "We are now approaching... !!Virginia Water!!!ZOMG LOLOLOL!!"

Or, "The door buttons are now activated" which is announced after the doors have opened and most people have gotten off!

 

[Ibex]

ATW services don't have any Welsh at all on their auto announcements, but you can still have the old 'Welcome aboard this Wales and West Service' if the conductor isn't careful!

Incidentally, the announcement at Birmingham New Street for today's 1424 ATW to Pwllheli and Aberystwyth announced several stations on the Cambrian coast twice... Tywyn, Barmouth, Harlech and Porthmadog all got double mentions!

This happens on DITRA systems when the system tries to announce a station that it has no sound clip for. It will just repeat the previous station announced.

 

[jon0844]

Didn't the Class 377 systems on FCC muck up when they switched from DC to AC at Farringdon? I haven't been on one for a while but when I was on it, the system reset itself to just saying Electrostar.

Yes, it seems to reboot and say 'Electrostar' which must be very useful for passengers wondering where the train goes!

In the early days this could remain on even when the train got to Blackfriars.

365s will say BRB Class 465 when they reboot, which is a rare event.

I did notice the 377s all said 'Electrostar' when sitting outside Hornsey depot. I am surprised they wouldn't have the screens turned off (not that I'm suggesting the LED panels consume a lot of power!).
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Yes, this is because Desiros use a GPS system triggered a certain distance from the station - in the direction in which the system is programmed.

As I've mentioned in other threads, the software should be able to detect it's passing the points in reverse and either switch off or trigger a visual/audible warning to the driver to reset/set correctly.

In fact, for the benefit of the driver, there should be an option to quickly reverse the system, assuming it is doing the same route in reverse. Then it would work properly without the driver having to set it up while on the move.