I got into another 'discussion' last night, and said he is willing to let things go for TfL (and anyone else) but not Abellio, making him blinkered and on a personal crusade.
He denied it, but we both agreed that the current franchise (non-growth) was flawed, so I asked if he'd be okay with Abellio if it won the new franchise and agreed to invest in new trains etc.
He said no it wouldn't be okay, as they're clowns and continued to slag them off. The way he talks about the company makes it clear he has an actual hatred towards them, and can't see any positives at all. How else can mismatched seat covers or some dust on a route planner sign be such a big deal?
So, yes, it seems the problem isn't the investment (or lack of) and any other things related to the franchise as it is - set out by the DfT - but Abellio. Even another company running the current franchise and doing the exact same thing would have presumably been okay.
He, like others, believe DOR should have been running it - unaware of that fact that EC was/is a pretty easy and straight forward service to run and I have my doubts that DOR would have done much different on a busy commuter service, on lines in drastic need of upgrades and having suffered loads of problems - as well as using rolling stock that has had maintenance issues that go back further than when Abellio came in.
(Yes, I got the whole apologist thing and he's also told me how pathetic we are on this trainspotter forum. Even Wayne called me inept on Twitter last night and had another dig at this forum!).
Delayed_again said:
Delayed_again and the associated website is nothing more than a front for a couple of people to try and get rid of people they don't like for some reason, not to actually get a better deal for users. It's so weird, as I wonder where they get the time. On Twitter, you'd swear it's a 24/7 operation.
The irony is that he considers us all apologists, and that I secretly work for Abellio, but if he wasn't on a mission he could perhaps save time concentrating on the real issues that get discussed here about AGA, not trivial matters that nobody gives a damn about.
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hock: Perhaps he will bombard EDF / Colchester Council's Twitter feed until this dreadful situation is rectified. He must have another Twitter handle, perhaps @Lights_Again? Methinks he's got too much time on his hands... are there no Job Clubs between signing on cycles for these folk? 
:roll:
