Heathrow Express use continuing to decline

[John R]

Looking forward it will be interesting to see what the proposal is when the government sanction T5 which I am sure they will.

You sure you meant that?

 

[Andrew*Debbie]

To be fair back in the summer they did bring back the £10 (£6.60 Railcard) Advance fares that they scrapped at the end of last year.

From a quick look at walk up prices, the HEX is £25 one way, EL to zone 1 is £12.80, Piccadilly line is £5.50.

Advance fares on Heathrow Express(HX) can be as low as £13.30 return with a rail card. I just checked for an upcoming trip to America.

I've tried these routes:

Euston (EUS), Northern Line to Tottenham Court Road then Elizabeth line to Heathrow (LHR) Takes me 50-70 minutes to Terminal 2/3 station.

OR

EUS, Taxi or bus to Paddington, HX to LHR. In my opinion this is the best option if you have a lot of luggage.

OR

EUS, Victoria Line to Green Park, walk, Piccadilly Line to LHR. Cheap. Can be unpleasant.

OR
Years ago I took the busses. Can't remember why. Tube not running maybe?

Or

Taxi / Addison Lee

 

[FGW_DID]

Are the HEX trains crewed by GWR staff?

If they are, the staff have two sets of separate uniform.

GWR are contracted to run the rail side of Heathrow Express.
They provide the fleet of 12 dedicated Class 387 EMUs which are maintained at Reading TCD.
All train crew are GWR staff.
Platform staff are all GWR at Paddington but the staff at the stations in the Central Terminal Area at Heathrow are employed directly by Heathrow Airport.
I’m sure that’s the current situation but if it’s wrong I’m sure @JN114 will be able to provide chapter and verse.

I have no idea about the uniform, I would presume they would wear normal GWR uniform but as the dedicated units are in HEX livery and the drivers are in a separate link (depot?) to the GWR Paddington drivers, maybe it makes sense if they do they wear a HEX uniform. I don’t know

 

[tram21]

Advance fares on Heathrow Express(HX) can be as low as £13.30 return with a rail card. I just checked for an upcoming trip to America.

This is for a return I imagine? As it's £6.60 single with a railcard

 

[Snow1964]

This is for a return I imagine? As it's £6.60 single with a railcard

So return is more than cost of 2 singles !

 

[Taunton]

The service isn’t just about running trains. It is part of the Regulated Asset Base for the airport so there are bigger finances involved with it continuing to run.

This is indeed something I have written about here in the past. It was a misapprehension of the Heathrow lawyers that applying some calculation they had made up would give rise to a surcharge of about £6 for each Elizabeth Line passenger into the airport, and it was both the ORR and the aviation regulator who shot this calculation down.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

As it's £6.60 single with a railcard

£6.65 now isn't it?

 

[Mikey C]

Advance fares on Heathrow Express(HX) can be as low as £13.30 return with a rail card. I just checked for an upcoming trip to America.

I've tried these routes:

Euston (EUS), Northern Line to Tottenham Court Road then Elizabeth line to Heathrow (LHR) Takes me 50-70 minutes to Terminal 2/3 station.

OR

EUS, Taxi or bus to Paddington, HX to LHR. In my opinion this is the best option if you have a lot of luggage.

OR

EUS, Victoria Line to Green Park, walk, Piccadilly Line to LHR. Cheap. Can be unpleasant.

OR
Years ago I took the busses. Can't remember why. Tube not running maybe?

Or

Taxi / Addison Lee

The previous taxi rank at Paddington was a lot more convenient, being a short walk from the end of the platform. Now it's quite a trek, which eats away at the time saving from the taxi/HEx option.

 

[duffield]

Been a while since I was last on it. Thanks for that.

However, there is a restriction that no staff travel facilities whatsoever are valid in business 1st on Hex.

 

[Failed Unit]

Advance fares on Heathrow Express(HX) can be as low as £13.30 return with a rail card. I just checked for an upcoming trip to America.

I've tried these routes:

Euston (EUS), Northern Line to Tottenham Court Road then Elizabeth line to Heathrow (LHR) Takes me 50-70 minutes to Terminal 2/3 station.

OR

EUS, Taxi or bus to Paddington, HX to LHR. In my opinion this is the best option if you have a lot of luggage.

OR

EUS, Victoria Line to Green Park, walk, Piccadilly Line to LHR. Cheap. Can be unpleasant.

OR
Years ago I took the busses. Can't remember why. Tube not running maybe?

Or

Taxi / Addison Lee

How far ahead are you looking, I have seen some good deals a long time ahead. For my own journey even if the HeX was cheaper it wouldn't beat the convenience of a single change with no barriers onto Thameslink. I am sure the price reduction will be welcome for many, as long as you can change it if the airline changes your flight time. Option 2 of taxi, is good for the no humping bags onto the tube, but bad on the unpredictability of the journey time.

 

[kevin_roche]

I'm still hoping that one day I will be able to catch a train from Basingstoke to Heathrow.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

With these cut price (booked train only) advance HEX tickets, from Heathrow, what happens if your inbound flight has been delayed? At Manchester Airport, advance single rail tickets can be endorsed so as to permit travel on a later train, if you've been delayed for up to 3 hours.

 

[Krokodil]

With these cut price (booked train only) advance HEX tickets, from Heathrow, what happens if your inbound flight has been delayed? At Manchester Airport, advance single rail tickets can be endorsed so as to permit travel on a later train, if you've been delayed for up to 3 hours.

Only with TPE.

 

[oldman]

With these cut price (booked train only) advance HEX tickets, from Heathrow, what happens if your inbound flight has been delayed? At Manchester Airport, advance single rail tickets can be endorsed so as to permit travel on a later train, if you've been delayed for up to 3 hours.

The £10 single advance tickets currently on offer are date specific, not time.

 

[Watershed]

With these cut price (booked train only) advance HEX tickets, from Heathrow, what happens if your inbound flight has been delayed? At Manchester Airport, advance single rail tickets can be endorsed so as to permit travel on a later train, if you've been delayed for up to 3 hours.

They are valid for any HeX service on the chosen date. However, they are only valid in the chosen direction and are non-refundable (except in case of disruption, of course).

 

[aaronspence]

They provide the fleet of 12 dedicated Class 387 EMUs which are maintained at Reading TCD.

If the trains are every 15 minutes and the journey takes 20, isn't having 12 trains a lot.. even accounting for maintenance?

 

[D6975]

If the trains are every 15 minutes and the journey takes 20, isn't having 12 trains a lot.. even accounting for maintenance?

Just had a look at the timings and the xx:10 off PAD forms the xx:35 of PAD 01:25 mins later. That means 5 diagrams, each of 2 units equals 10 units in service at any one time. So 12 units is about right.

 

[Watershed]

If the trains are every 15 minutes and the journey takes 20, isn't having 12 trains a lot.. even accounting for maintenance?

The end-to-end journey time is 22 minutes. When you add on a turnaround of at least 6-8 minutes you could just about operate the service with 4 circuits (i.e. 8 trains when doubled up) but it would allow very little contingency for delays and disruption.

HeX instead operate with a longer turnaround at Paddington so that one train is always planned to be in the platform - in theory so you can sit straight down, but the gateline staff have other ideas...

This means they need 5 circuits, i.e. 10 units. 10 out of 12 units is a fairly tight level of availability, especially considering that substitution by non-HeX liveried/outfitted 387s seems out of the question.

For context, TPE's full Anglo Scottish timetable once relied on 10 out of 12 397s being available, and they were always struggling for units - they now resort to using 9x 397s with an extra 802 to make up the 'lost' unit.

 

[Horizon22]

If the trains are every 15 minutes and the journey takes 20, isn't having 12 trains a lot.. even accounting for maintenance?

Don’t forget they run as 2x4 cars, so it’s double number required.

This means they need 5 circuits, i.e. 10 units. 10 out of 12 units is a fairly tight level of availability, especially considering that substitution by non-HeX liveried/outfitted 387s seems out of the question.

More that the 12 trains are specified differently for the ETCS operation at Heathrow.

 

[Sprinter107]

However, there is a restriction that no staff travel facilities whatsoever are valid in business 1st on Hex.

That would be fair enough really. Even if it was valid, First and Standard class doesn't seem very much different in many of today's emus, so im not sure I'd pay the difference anyway.

 

[Andrew*Debbie]

How far ahead are you looking, I have seen some good deals a long time ahead. For my own journey even if the HeX was cheaper it wouldn't beat the convenience of a single change with no barriers onto Thameslink. ... Option 2 of taxi, is good for the no humping bags onto the tube, but bad on the unpredictability of the journey time.

The £10 single fare is for tickets purchased at least 45 days in advance. Rail card cuts that to £6.65.

• £10 tickets are valid for travel anytime of the day.
• £10 tickets cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, offer, discount or any other train company special offers.
• £10 tickets can be used in conjunction with Railcards.
• £10 tickets are non-refundable and non-exchangeable.
• There may be occasions where cheaper tickets become available closer to the time of travel. Please note that in these circumstances £10 offer tickets that have already been bought cannot be refunded in part or in full.

Book Early To Save More with Advance Discounted Tickets | Heathrow Express

Buy our Advance Discounted Tickets from just £10 by booking in advance.

www.heathrowexpress.com

Any journey can be unpredictable, although traffic on Euston Road is a given. One time we waited at Acton Town for 10-15 minutes. Changing at Green Park isn't as bad as it used to be but it is still a long walk.

 

[Taunton]

The previous taxi rank at Paddington was a lot more convenient, being a short walk from the end of the platform. Now it's quite a trek, which eats away at the time saving from the taxi/HEx option.

That's if you can find it in the first place. It's also no longer on the same level. Must be a challenge for overseas visitors to find it. It's strange that every taxi rearrangement at Paddington makes it far less convenient than before. It wasn't that many years ago that the rank was right down on the platforms.

Given that the roundabout route out must also add more than £5 to the fare compared to the old location, it's far easier to go out onto Praed Street and flag one down, or get one in front of The Hilton.

 

[Class15]

Surely that is dependent on from where you are coming? It can’t be more convenient surely lugging a suitcase onto a taxi or down to the Elizabeth line versus a direct train if you are heading to central London and a short walk to your hotel?

My preferred route is via Richmond and Feltham

 

[duffield]

That would be fair enough really. Even if it was valid, First and Standard class doesn't seem very much different in many of today's emus, so im not sure I'd pay the difference anyway.

Yes, I'm not complaining, and it's only 15 minutes anyhow. It's just quite unusual, so something e.g. 1st status pass holders need to be aware of to avoid a potential "travel irregularity incident".

 

[Andrew*Debbie]

Must be a challenge for overseas visitors to find it

There are guide lines but not everyone looks down.

I've been asked a few times. After hearing my American accent, the next question is always "Where are you visiting from?"


Taxi is easy. It is the underground that is confusing. Many on-line guides don't show the Elizebeth line. Knowing the correct train and station is a dark art, known only to a select few.

 

[Horizon22]

It's strange that every taxi rearrangement at Paddington makes it far less convenient than before.

Is it? If you were being really cynical you could suggest that it’s done this way to encourage public transport usage at Paddington, which would be no bad thing.

 

[Taunton]

Is it? If you were being really cynical you could suggest that it’s done this way to encourage public transport usage at Paddington, which would be no bad thing.

... or to have people choose taxi all the way.

There are guide lines but not everyone looks down.

Only Piglet ...

 

[fandroid]

As for taxi access at Paddington, I suspect it's easiest to use the mid-platform bridge. Position yourself close to where the two HEx units are coupled and after alighting head back up the steps to the bridge, turn right on the bridge and right again at the end.

 

[duffield]

As for taxi access at Paddington, I suspect it's easiest to use the mid-platform bridge. Position yourself close to where the two HEx units are coupled and after alighting head back up the steps to the bridge, turn right on the bridge and right again at the end.

Of course, the centre bridge is a good option for the Elizabeth Line too (changing from other GWR services as well as HEx), if you're not at the front of the train. I must remember that next time, should have thought of it before.

 

[BlueLeanie]

Wouldn't most people just go straight to their Uber app if they needed a ride a Paddington? Pick it up outside on the street?

The same app operates worldwide. Turn on roaming, it's what I use on my regular US trips.

The taxi stance upstairs presents as being designed for the olden days with cattle market style pens.