Glenn1969
Established Member
Guess they could always make Northbound long distance services pick up only at Watford and MKC if they really wanted to
Guess they could always make Northbound long distance services pick up only at Watford and MKC if they really wanted to
Picture the scene at Coventry when a New Street terminating 11 coach Pendo rolls in around 5pm, "oh sorry sir you can't travel on this lightly loaded service as you don't have a reservation, you need to wait 5 minutes for the crush loaded commuter service behind"
The people on Cov platform could book a seat on their way to the station
What, while driving or cycling?
The people on Cov platform could book a seat on their way to the station
Long distance shouldn’t be for the convenience of commuters.
No one is suggesting booking proper commuter trains.
Many thousands of people use "long distance" trains for "commuting"; there are many examples of this but we would go out of the scope of this thread if we started listing them all!Long distance shouldn’t be for the convenience of commuters.
No one is suggesting booking proper commuter trains.
TPE is largely a principal stations only operator. However for some reason they transferred the stopping service from Northern to TPE between Leeds, Huddersfield and Manchester which is something of an anomaly
They're going to have fun when all those MKC season ticket holders get their reservations in so VT can't sell those same seats to Euston-Manchester Anytime passengers, aren't they?
(One advantage of not having compulsory reservations is that the use of seats is more efficient - with all compulsory reservation systems I've seen no ticket will be sold if there isn't one single seat free for the whole journey)
Driving to their train home?
Then book before you leave the office or on the platform.
You don’t think Virgin would want to fill those empty seats (though you might need ORCATS to allocate based on reservations)
What, while driving or cycling?
You mean only sell Advance tickets? That is exactly what Virgin want to do. Most people disagree with you; have you read the posts above yours?The easy option is only sell enough tickets for the amount of seats you have once trains full no more tickets sold...
We run a walk-up railway; if there are no seat reservations on the train then anyone is just as entitled as anyone else to sit anywhereI have been on a train from London to Leicester on day of London marathon evening train so packed seat reservation's not put out so people with reservation's standing because people without one taking seats not entitled to
I don't understand what you are saying here, but you are right that if Virgin get their way people who need to travel 'ASAP' would not be able to do so if the trains are already fully reserved. That's unacceptable to the vast majority of passengers.but having this system take away flexibilities so say if a family member dies and you need to travel asap and trains are full Leicester to Stansted airport is a long distance train but some evening trains stop at local stations between Birmingham and Leicester so local commuters would be on them
That was a long time ago as BR used market based pricing in the 80s/90s (if not before); it is not considered a viable option by train companies. If you want to make your own thread to speculate on how it might work, feel free to do so.But then I liked the old BR days when they charged by the mile
Wow, that 110 word sentence sure is difficult to understand.The easy option is only sell enough tickets for the amount of seats you have once trains full no more tickets sold I have been on a train from London to Leicester on day of London marathon evening train so packed seat reservation's not put out so people with reservation's standing because people without one taking seats not entitled to but having this system take away flexibilities so say if a family member dies and you need to travel asap and trains are full Leicester to Stansted airport is a long distance train but some evening trains stop at local stations between Birmingham and Leicester so local commuters would be on them ...
And?I agree if they had their way prices would skyrocket. But surely that would backfire because it would force people into their cars and off the trains maybe for good
Modernising the system? Bringing rail travel into the same century as airline travel?How the hell is that going to be managed or enforced?
... or their train from home?
Given that a smartphone would likely be involved, if not a phone call, then there is a hazard factor. That's before you consider getting your 'phone out while on the street.
Overcrowding can be very anxiety inducing to many people. There are so-called hidden disabilities which can result in suffers being unable - or make it especially distressing - to travel on services which are crowded. We must not only think of accessibility in terms of wheelchairs!
Besides there is the rail operator's own edge of quality to consider and people standing down the aisles does not result in a premium ambience. See how far you get ordering dinner in a fully booked restaurant on the basis that you don't need a table and you can just eat standing amongst the other diners.
*note* Some here might recognise the above arguments: not being aware of this thread I posted them a broader discussion related to the RDG fares reform in the speculation forum.
You’ve obviously never traveled on an LNER service over a holiday period. Long distance overcrowding has been a problem for many years on the East Coast route. Long distance travellers are indeed being targeted by this.Modernising the system? Bringing rail travel into the same century as airline travel?
Passengers who walk-on a Virgin train are unlikely to be long distance travellers. They are not being targeted here.
Modernising the system? Bringing rail travel into the same century as airline travel?
Passengers who walk-on a Virgin train are unlikely to be long distance travellers. They are not being targeted here.
Passengers who have booked a hotel six months or so in advance and are now looking at getting down to London are being targeted here. They'd expect a seat on a plane, they'd expect a seat on a coach; why should they not expect a seat on a train?
Modernising the system? Bringing rail travel into the same century as airline travel?
Passengers who walk-on a Virgin train are unlikely to be long distance travellers. They are not being targeted here.
Passengers who have booked a hotel six months or so in advance and are now looking at getting down to London are being targeted here. They'd expect a seat on a plane, they'd expect a seat on a coach; why should they not expect a seat on a train?
Get a train at the start of a bank holiday weekend, particularly with great weather, then you have to expect very busy trains as you would traffic jams.
I was going away over the weekend and purposely took the Thursday off and got an early train to avoid the hordes.
That may well be true but if the ultimate decision is with the DfT, they could take a wider view. Their political brief is to drive the railway towards self-funding. For every open ticket purchased, the railway as a whole gets more than for the equivalent journey on an advance ticket, so through ORCATS the open ticket makes a bigger contribution to reducing the subsidy to UK rail. Virgin is championing this initiative for their own ends, and doesn't have any genuine concern for how crowded their trains are as long as they can get the profit.And?
Virgin will just demand more subsidy money.