South West Trains?

[Steddenm]

Even National Rail get it wrong!

 

[hexagon789]

View attachment 44059
Even National Rail get it wrong!

Not the first time, the worst I ever saw was a reference to Fife Circle trains to Shoeburyness! They do seem to be struggling with the change from SWT to SWR though.

 

[SPADTrap]

To be fair the correction isn't strictly correct either, their twitter handle isn't the name of the company or what is written on the side of the trains.

 

[Steddenm]

It’s not my reply.

 

[sd0733]

Lnwr/west mids has the same issue. I've seen a couple of ticket acceptance on London Midland since after the change and at the virgin managed stations if there is a delay it always says London Midland apologise for the delay

 

[BestWestern]

Harking after the good old days!

 

[hexagon789]

Harking after the good old days!

Maybe! A friend of mine would certainly prefer SWT were still in operation.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

To be fair the correction isn't strictly correct either, their twitter handle isn't the name of the company or what is written on the side of the trains.

It is actually - they have two Twitter feeds; @SW_Railway is the general one and @SW_Help is the travel updates one.

Screenshot below.

 

[xc170]

Lnwr/west mids has the same issue. I've seen a couple of ticket acceptance on London Midland since after the change and at the virgin managed stations if there is a delay it always says London Midland apologise for the delay

Was at New Street yesterday and on the departure boards under the VT Euston service it said, "London Midland tickets not accepted" or something to that effect...

 

[whhistle]

It's automated tweeting.
Looks like someone didn't update the template is all.

 

[JN114]

Maybe! A friend of mine would certainly prefer SWT were still in operation.

Out of interest, what do they think would be different? It is after all almost entirely the same staff, infrastructure and trains....

 

[hexagon789]

Out of interest, what do they think would be different? It is after all almost entirely the same staff, infrastructure and trains....

No idea, he just likes the old SWT Livery and 442s!

I must ask him actually!

 

[SPADTrap]

It is actually - they have two Twitter feeds; @SW_Railway is the general one and @SW_Help is the travel updates one.

But you don't board a @SW_Railway/@SW_Help train do you?

'Disruption to South Western Railway services' makes sense IMO.

 

[DJames]

But you don't board a @SW_Railway/@SW_Help train do you?

'Disruption to South Western Railway services' makes sense IMO.

I could understand it in the past, if using the full name would've made the tweet hit the character limit, but since it's been raised, I don't see why it can't be used.

 

[fairysdad]

I could understand it in the past, if using the full name would've made the tweet hit the character limit, but since it's been raised, I don't see why it can't be used.

A lot of Twitter clients haven't been updated and still have the old character limit in place. Not saying that this is the reason, but just saying that it's something that's happened/not happened!

Edited to remove tautology.

 

[Mainline421]

Out of interest, what do they think would be different? It is after all almost entirely the same staff, infrastructure and trains....

No strikes for a start....

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

No idea, he just likes the old SWT Livery and 442s!

I must ask him actually!

Well if he still had his precious SWT then he wouldn’t be getting 442s back on the network

 

[hexagon789]

No strikes for a start....

Not necessarily

 

[hexagon789]

Well if he still had his precious SWT then he wouldn’t be getting 442s back on the network

True, but he'd rather have NSE anyway

 

[[.n]]

Out of interest, what do they think would be different? It is after all almost entirely the same staff, infrastructure and trains....

The new management are the biggest problem (and I'm not an employee) - complete waste of space as far as I can tell

 

[JN114]

No strikes for a start....

Strikes are over DOO; which all bidders were asked to look into. Just because First won doesn’t mean stagecoach wouldn’t have made exactly the same proposal - or worse.

The new management are the biggest problem (and I'm not an employee) - complete waste of space as far as I can tell

The New Management are a complete waste of space? Who, and Why? While there’s a new name over the door I think you’ll be surprised at how little changes between the franchisees.

 

[hexagon789]

The new management are the biggest problem (and I'm not an employee) - complete waste of space as far as I can tell

Can I ask why? I wouldn't have thought that much would change you see.

 

[Mainline421]

Strikes are over DOO; which all bidders were asked to look into. Just because First won doesn’t mean stagecoach wouldn’t have made exactly the same proposal - or worse.

Bidders were asked to consider DOO, Stagecoach considered it and decided against. They then repeatedly stressed they had no plans for DOO and their bid did not include DOO (even putting posters up about having guards on all their trains) or even obtaining DOO compatible trains (only 707s are equipped) and generally had good relations with the unions. Not to mention the December 2018 timetable plan that was hated so much by passengers, it's unclear what is to be implemented and there's not even been a single one of the special offers we saw regularly under Stagecoach since August. It's still too early in the franchise to judge SWR properly and they have many strong points compared with other TOCs, but it does look like we'd be much better off if SWT had remained.

 

[infobleep]

Bidders were asked to consider DOO, Stagecoach considered it and decided against. They then repeatedly stressed they no plans for DOO and their bid did not include DOO (even putting posters up about having guards on all their trains) or even obtaining DOO compatible trains (only 707s are equipped) and generally had good relations with the unions. Not to mention the December 2018 timetable plan that was hated so much by passengers, it's unclear what is to be implemented and there's not even been a single one of the special offers we saw regularly under Stagecoach since August. It's still too early in the franchise to judge SWR properly and they have many strong points compared with other TOCs, but it does look like we'd be much better off if SWT had remained.

Toilets on all trains is the selling point of SWR for me.

 

[hexagon789]

Toilets on all trains is the selling point of SWR for me.

Toilets on all trains is definitely a good thing, what with so many suburban trains being used on decidedly less suburban services.

 

[dorsetdesiro]

Toilets on all trains is the selling point of SWR for me.

South West Trains' selling points for me were:

• Generally reliable timing (definitely more than SWR at the moment)
• Good relations with unions hence less strike action
• Regular discounts and offers including Megatrain
• Better website and ticket booking system than SWR
• Better brand presentation than SWR, colour coded livery identifying service types and pleasant warm interiors (royal blue carpet, light blue walls and red fabrics) than the excessive use of blue and dark colours making this seem cold and dreary
• Having experienced some TOCs across the country, I've always been happy to turn up at Waterloo to see SWT trains in view to know I were nearly home, if I'd been through a nightmarish journey or sat in a clapped out dirty old train, that I knew SWT were indeed better with their comfortable 442s & 444s even their commuter fleet were far better than say Silverlink at the time. Get off a old FGW 150 at Southampton Central and transfer to a SWT 444 and see this disparity!
• Much quicker to lay on rail replacement buses than SWR (I suspect SWR will improve more on this if they keep having strikes that they will find themselves planning replacement buses more often)
• Pleasant staff, from my past experience, though since the SWR takeover they don't seem happy or appear they didn't want to be around
• For stopping at rural stations in the New Forest and in western Dorset, that SWR are planning to cut from 2 trains to 1 per hour for these stations as mine is going from 2 fast services to 1 very slow stopping one
• Acceptable number of bicycle spaces on 444s, despite the huge demand on sunny days, but SWR plan to remove this on one carriage for more seating

Funny to say this about a TOC, I miss them already

 

[Steddenm]

I have to say the SWT 159s always looked really good travelling along the sea wall between Dawlish Warren and Teignmouth when they ran the Plymouth services. The First Great Western and CrossCountry services always looked a bit drab.

 

[infobleep]

South West Trains' selling points for me were:

• Generally reliable timing (definitely more than SWR at the moment)
• Good relations with unions hence less strike action
• Regular discounts and offers including Megatrain
• Better website and ticket booking system than SWR
• Better brand presentation than SWR, colour coded livery identifying service types and pleasant warm interiors (royal blue carpet, light blue walls and red fabrics) than the excessive use of blue and dark colours making this seem cold and dreary
• Having experienced some TOCs across the country, I've always been happy to turn up at Waterloo to see SWT trains in view to know I were nearly home, if I'd been through a nightmarish journey or sat in a clapped out dirty old train, that I knew SWT were indeed better with their comfortable 442s & 444s even their commuter fleet were far better than say Silverlink at the time. Get off a old FGW 150 at Southampton Central and transfer to a SWT 444 and see this disparity!
• Much quicker to lay on rail replacement buses than SWR (I suspect SWR will improve more on this if they keep having strikes that they will find themselves planning replacement buses more often)
• Pleasant staff, from my past experience, though since the SWR takeover they don't seem happy or appear they didn't want to be around
• For stopping at rural stations in the New Forest and in western Dorset, that SWR are planning to cut from 2 trains to 1 per hour for these stations as mine is going from 2 fast services to 1 very slow stopping one
• Acceptable number of bicycle spaces on 444s, despite the huge demand on sunny days, but SWR plan to remove this on one carriage for more seating

Funny to say this about a TOC, I miss them already

I can't disagree with lots of those. The loss of services to and from Clapham Junction is something I'm not keen on but so many people wanting to head to Waterloo so they have no choice. Well they couod say to all the people you must squash on for an hour if you want to go to Waterloo as we are stoping at Clapham Junction still and can't run more trains. That won't happen so less services to Clapham Junction is the result.

 

[hexagon789]

I have to say the SWT 159s always looked really good travelling along the sea wall between Dawlish Warren and Teignmouth when they ran the Plymouth services. The First Great Western and CrossCountry services always looked a bit drab.

I always found SWT livery bright and cheerful.

 

[hexagon789]

South West Trains' selling points for me were:

• Generally reliable timing (definitely more than SWR at the moment)
• Good relations with unions hence less strike action
• Regular discounts and offers including Megatrain
• Better website and ticket booking system than SWR
• Better brand presentation than SWR, colour coded livery identifying service types and pleasant warm interiors (royal blue carpet, light blue walls and red fabrics) than the excessive use of blue and dark colours making this seem cold and dreary
• Having experienced some TOCs across the country, I've always been happy to turn up at Waterloo to see SWT trains in view to know I were nearly home, if I'd been through a nightmarish journey or sat in a clapped out dirty old train, that I knew SWT were indeed better with their comfortable 442s & 444s even their commuter fleet were far better than say Silverlink at the time. Get off a old FGW 150 at Southampton Central and transfer to a SWT 444 and see this disparity!
• Much quicker to lay on rail replacement buses than SWR (I suspect SWR will improve more on this if they keep having strikes that they will find themselves planning replacement buses more often)
• Pleasant staff, from my past experience, though since the SWR takeover they don't seem happy or appear they didn't want to be around
• For stopping at rural stations in the New Forest and in western Dorset, that SWR are planning to cut from 2 trains to 1 per hour for these stations as mine is going from 2 fast services to 1 very slow stopping one
• Acceptable number of bicycle spaces on 444s, despite the huge demand on sunny days, but SWR plan to remove this on one carriage for more seating

Funny to say this about a TOC, I miss them already

A friend of mine would certainly agree with you there, as do I, I must say.