What train type is Cross Country's 0946 from Southampton booked for?

[Bungle]

I don't know, I'm only repeating what the guard said! I was first on, straight to our reserved seats and specifically picked that train over the opposite half-hour in the knowledge that it started at Southampton and not Bournemouth. I was quite happy!

I don't know what else they can do other than try to allocate more 5-car rather than 4-car sets to the busiest workings for extra space. Double the busiest trips maybe, even if it's only as far as Birmingham? (You could say that about any XC service though...)

Platform annoucements maybe, regarding luggage handling, where to find coach D, etc... Boarding was a nightmare, loads of people getting in the wrong carriages / wrong ends of carriages and then trying to struggle past each other in the aisles with massive suitcases, eventually giving up and leaving luggage all over the place and just sitting anywhere. More platform staff to help lift luggage and direct people (I don't think it's un-PC to observe that many cruise passengers are elderly and the assistance might be appreciated.)

 

[najaB]

Given that XC offer a discounted luggage collection/delivery service, perhaps passengers such as those going on a holiday cruise or indeed on their summer vacation, should be encouraged to use such a service, even the cruise company could arrange this as part of the package.

That's a good idea, make the baggage valet service part of the whole cruise experience. There's a certain irony though that the bags would end up travelling by road!

 

[Kite159]

I don't know, I'm only repeating what the guard said! I was first on, straight to our reserved seats and specifically picked that train over the opposite half-hour in the knowledge that it started at Southampton and not Bournemouth. I was quite happy!

I don't know what else they can do other than try to allocate more 5-car rather than 4-car sets to the busiest workings for extra space. Double the busiest trips maybe, even if it's only as far as Birmingham? (You could say that about any XC service though...)

Platform annoucements maybe, regarding luggage handling, where to find coach D, etc... Boarding was a nightmare, loads of people getting in the wrong carriages / wrong ends of carriages and then trying to struggle past each other in the aisles with massive suitcases, eventually giving up and leaving luggage all over the place and just sitting anywhere. More platform staff to help lift luggage and direct people (I don't think it's un-PC to observe that many cruise passengers are elderly and the assistance might be appreciated.)

At least the voyagers have more luggage space than the 444s

I've seen a few odd double voyagers down around Southampton, however I would imagine they are quite rare compared to single sets.

 

[Ash Bridge]

That's a good idea, make the baggage valet service part of the whole cruise experience. There's a certain irony though that the bags would end up travelling by road!

From personal experience it's brilliant, we've used it every year since 2007 when Virgin introduced it initially on their XC services, I note Virgin Trains have just launched their own in house service now entitled "Virgin Bag Magic" hope it's a success!

 

[davetheguard]

Of course we couldn't have a thread about voyagers with someone mentioning how 'awful' they are!

Perhaps that's because they are.

But it's not just the trains is it? Their Advances always seem to be more expensive than I'd expect whenever I look. They've tightened the restrictions so more people have to buy the most expensive Anytime/SDR/SOR tickets; in B.R. days all journeys via Oxford cross-country were restriction A1: any train, any day. In other words there were no restrictions at all. As a result, all these anomalies leading to the need to split tickets have been created.

Expensive, uncomfortable, noisy, overcrowded, slow, down-market. Rightly or wrongly, that is my expectation of a cross country journey.

 

[MCR247]

Perhaps that's because they are.

But it's not just the trains is it? Their Advances always seem to be more expensive than I'd expect whenever I look. They've tightened the restrictions so more people have to buy the most expensive Anytime/SDR/SOR tickets; in B.R. days all journeys via Oxford cross-country were restriction A1: any train, any day. In other words there were no restrictions at all. As a result, all these anomalies leading to the need to split tickets have been created.

Expensive, uncomfortable, noisy, overcrowded, slow, down-market. Rightly or wrongly, that is my expectation of a cross country journey.

They're nowhere near as bad as made out on here IMO

And its quite funny that you complain they're overcrowded, yet think XC is too expensive/restricted as well? What exactly is it you want again?

 

[davetheguard]

They're nowhere near as bad as made out on here IMO

And its quite funny that you complain they're overcrowded, yet think XC is too expensive/restricted as well? What exactly is it you want again?

A train fleet that strikes a reasonable balance between accommodation and demand for a start. They're pricing people off and still can't cope.

Yes, I know these things are historical, I know that they inherited the fleet, and I know that the dead hand of the DfT has stopped them lengthening sets in the past.

But does that still apply?; not according to the politicians, who claim that rolling stock is down to TOC's. But even if that were true, it would still need an innovative management team. Just what improvements have XC carried out since they took over the franchise from Virgin? Sorry, I can't think of any; just a few things that have made it worse.

 

[MCR247]

A train fleet that strikes a reasonable balance between accommodation and demand for a start. They're pricing people off and still can't cope.

Yes, I know these things are historical, I know that they inherited the fleet, and I know that the dead hand of the DfT has stopped them lengthening sets in the past.

But does that still apply?; not according to the politicians, who claim that rolling stock is down to TOC's. But even if that were true, it would still need an innovative management team. Just what improvements have XC carried out since they took over the franchise from Virgin? Sorry, I can't think of any; just a few things that have made it worse.

What can they do about their train fleet? Very little.

Whilst pricing people off isn't sustainable, it's pretty much the only thing they can do, so I don't see the point in saying they're always overcrowded in one breath but wanting cheaper fares in the next apart from to make XC seem like bad guys.

I'm not really a fan of XC, and one of the only improvements I can think of is the WiFi (and even that was installed horrendously late!) but I think blaming them for issues out of their control is a bit unfair

 

[swt_passenger]

But does that still apply?; not according to the politicians, who claim that rolling stock is down to TOC's.

Still has to be affordable, whoever it's 'down to'...

 

[davetheguard]

Still has to be affordable, whoever it's 'down to'...

Yes, of course I agree it has to be affordable; it also has to have a business case; and a management team that are prepared to consider taking on all the extra work that fleet expansion would create - taking a risk, rather than just sitting back and running a nice, safe, management contract. All the other "Inter City" TOC's business models, have involved going for growth; and when the trains become full you get more or longer ones.

I'm convinced the demand for XC too is there; but you have to procure those longer/better/extra trains if you want to pick up the extra business. Operation Princess went tits up because the fleet that had been ordered couldn't cope with the huge explosion in passenger numbers that the Virgin brand name attracted. So the network contracted to concentrate what trains they did have on the core. So goodbye, Poole, Liverpool, Dover, Didcot, & Brighton.

I think there is a place in the U.K. for a comfortable, profitable, competitive cross-country Inter City network; Personally I don't think we've got one at the moment.

 

[SpacePhoenix]

I don't know why they shifted from Poole to Bournemouth as both stations have got carriage sidings for storing the Voyagers between services. I don't think pairs of Voyagers couple or uncouple at Bournemouth. Were they loosing that much time by running into Poole?

 

[Ash Bridge]

I don't know why they shifted from Poole to Bournemouth as both stations have got carriage sidings for storing the Voyagers between services. I don't think pairs of Voyagers couple or uncouple at Bournemouth. Were they loosing that much time by running into Poole?

Was it perhaps a knock on effect of when services were extended to Glasgow at the other end of the XC network ?

 

[MCR247]

I don't know why they shifted from Poole to Bournemouth as both stations have got carriage sidings for storing the Voyagers between services. I don't think pairs of Voyagers couple or uncouple at Bournemouth. Were they loosing that much time by running into Poole?

Well its a (guaranteed?) same platform connection and turning at Bournemouth will increase reliability as if they ran through to Poole I think they'd be coming pretty much straight back, even when on time

Was it perhaps a knock on effect of when services were extended to Glasgow at the other end of the XC network ?

i don't think Arriva XC has ever served Poole has it so I doubt its that

 

[SpacePhoenix]

Well its a (guaranteed?) same platform connection and turning at Bournemouth will increase reliability

That's also available at Poole, I can't imagine the loading of the buffet stuff could be a major factor

 

[dk1]

Well its a (guaranteed?) same platform connection and turning at Bournemouth will increase reliability as if they ran through to Poole I think they'd be coming pretty much straight back, even when on time



i don't think Arriva XC has ever served Poole has it so I doubt its that

Went through to Weymouth during Olympics2012 but not sure if they called.

 

[MCR247]

That's also available at Poole, I can't imagine the loading of the buffet stuff could be a major factor

I meant Poole is a same platform connection at Bournemouth (so cutting it back didn't really cause issues). Where did I meant the buffet? (Which voyagers don't have!!)

 

[swt_passenger]

I don't know why they shifted from Poole to Bournemouth as both stations have got carriage sidings for storing the Voyagers between services. I don't think pairs of Voyagers couple or uncouple at Bournemouth. Were they loosing that much time by running into Poole?

As I've explained a few times before, the running time to
Poole and back took up nearly the whole of the time they get between arrival at and departure from Bournemouth. So any late arrival at Poole, of which there were many, missed its northbound path.

But how come a simple question about the type of train used has yet again become a discussion about historic changes to the network? Can't be more than a few weeks since the last one...

 

[Jonfun]

That's also available at Poole, I can't imagine the loading of the buffet stuff could be a major factor

You can't load stock at Bournemouth anyway, there isn't an XC catering stores there. Nearest is Reading.

 

[PHILIPE]

As I've explained a few times before, the running time to
Poole and back took up nearly the whole of the time they get between arrival at and departure from Bournemouth. So any late arrival at Poole, of which there were many, missed its northbound path.

But how come a simple question about the type of train used has yet again become a discussion about historic changes to the network? Can't be more than a few weeks since the last one...

Somebody asked almost a week ago as to how many carriages were on the 17 46 Euston to Crewe, and details quickly established. The thread is still active !!!

 

[najaB]

Somebody asked almost a week ago as to how many carriages were on the 17 46 Euston to Crewe, and details quickly established. The thread is still active !!!

Oh, the question was answered by post #3, since then it's been Voyager bashing, XC bashing and capitalism bashing!

 

[Minilad]

Oh, the question was answered by post #3, since then it's been Voyager bashing, XC bashing and capitalism bashing!

So. Pretty much a standard RailUK thread then!