When doing the First Class week in February, one of the combinations of Birmingham to London journeys that I didn't acheive was the 09.03 CrossCountry connection into the 09.46 Wrexham & Shropshire service from Leamington Spa (a combination giving an overall journey time of 132 minutes).
Last Thursday, I had reason to be in London and the above combination fitted in well with my day. Naturally, I baulked at the £148.20 walk-on First Class return fare but such are the vagaries of UK rail fares that I was able to travel to Leamington First Class for £9.60 (only £2.30 more than the standard single fare), and, as I mentioned last week, Wrexham & Shropshire's standard class is as good as First Class...
The Voyager from Manchester was packed as it arrived into New Street but was relatively quiet from there onwards. I had had a very mixed First Class experience on CrossCountry in February so was very keen to see if matters had improved... First signs were good as the friendly First Class host offered a copy of The Times before bringing round the drinks and food selection.
Despite the listings on the 'menu card' on the table, the food offering proved to be a Danish Pastry with a choice of fillings: brie & cranberry or marmalade. I plumped for the brie and cranberry which turned out to be a product designed to be frozen (frozen best before date was in September 2010) which had clearly been thawed out for the journey ('fresh' best before date was 19 March). It was ok but nothing more. Fortunately, the fresh orange was better!
A second offering came round after Coventry, so this First Class journey was the best to date, certainly in terms of value-for-money.
There is a rumour around that Deutsch Bahn, the owners of the Wrexham & Shropshire Railway, have bid for Arriva, the owners of CrossCountry. One can only hope that it is true as I would like to believe that CrossCountry is ripe for improvement and that the style and class of the Wrexham & Shropshire services might influence this improvement!
Thursday's 9.46 was as pleasant a journey as one could wish for, though, of course, the space available in Standard Coaches 'C' and 'D' occurs partly because the reservations are 'crammed' (relatively speaking) into Coach 'B'. The service continues to delight apart from the weakness of the 'free' wi-fi offering which once again wasn't working in Standard Class. Had a very enjoyable cappacino and chocolate muffin from the buffet car.
Submitted a comment card regarding the WiFi. Wrexham & Shropshire aim for a 10 day response time for comments. I can report that a week after my comment form from the 11th I had a letter saying that high correspondence levels meant that my comments might not be answered in the 10 days...
Came back from London Marylebone on the 16.00 Chiltern service. Another Deutsch Bahn company which does almost everything right, though of course the standards of comfort on the Clubmans can't match the Wrexham & Shropshire 'proper' trains.
Fingers crossed over the future of Arriva!
Sunday, 21 March 2010
Friday, 12 March 2010
Friday 12th March
Back to the Pendolinos: this time, the 10.30 'off-peak' New Street to London Euston service. Not particularly busy which meant a '2-seater' table to myself in Quiet Coach 'A'. So able to plug my laptop into the socket and boot up the (paid-for) Wi-Fi which worked fine.
Smooth, on time journey. Tickets checks, shop announcements, and cleaning runs. Virgin have got it right, especially if you can avail yourself of the return fare of £41.90 ie return before 3pm or after 6.45pm or at weekends!
Came back to Coleshill Parkway using the 17.10 SuperVoyager to Nuneaton for a change onto the 18.17 CrossCountry service. The 17.10 service turned out to be two sets - the front for Holyhead and the rear for Chester - which were very busy though seats were available. After travelling Pendolino at speed, it is very different to use a SuperVoyager: there is much more of the sense of the power being unleashed to acheive the timings demanded.
Slight confusion over the Shop announcement which seem to indicate that only the Holyhead set had one (I was in the Chester set) but this was cleared up and I partook of one of Virgin's Meal Deals: hot chocolate, Red Salmon Sandwich, and crisps for £3.95. Certainly palatable but the W&S buffet is better...
The friendly shop steward extolled the meal being served to the First Class passengers which certainly sounded more interesting than the Pendolino First Class evening meal that I had received a few weeks ago. Serving it fully would take some doing though in the 62 minutes that the run takes...
No problem making the connection into a busy, tired-looking Class 170 3-car diesel set to Coleshill. Got a table seat however... No announcement, no refereshment trolley, but an on-time arrival at Coleshill Parkway gave a start-to-stop journey time of 82 minutes. Interestingly, the through single walk-on fare is £70 yet by splitting the fare at Nuneaton, this drops to £65.90. Aren't rail fares a nonsense!
So ends another week of on-time, safe, pleasant journeys. My thanks as ever to the teams across the privatised network who manage to make this happen. It's just a pity that their work is never recognised, only criticised...
On a final note, yesterday saw the announcement of HS2. I'm with Christian Wolmar: why can't we spend significantly less money by focusing on clearing the pinch points on the network so that our existing 'high-speed' services between the two cities are really given a chance to shine?!
Smooth, on time journey. Tickets checks, shop announcements, and cleaning runs. Virgin have got it right, especially if you can avail yourself of the return fare of £41.90 ie return before 3pm or after 6.45pm or at weekends!
Came back to Coleshill Parkway using the 17.10 SuperVoyager to Nuneaton for a change onto the 18.17 CrossCountry service. The 17.10 service turned out to be two sets - the front for Holyhead and the rear for Chester - which were very busy though seats were available. After travelling Pendolino at speed, it is very different to use a SuperVoyager: there is much more of the sense of the power being unleashed to acheive the timings demanded.
Slight confusion over the Shop announcement which seem to indicate that only the Holyhead set had one (I was in the Chester set) but this was cleared up and I partook of one of Virgin's Meal Deals: hot chocolate, Red Salmon Sandwich, and crisps for £3.95. Certainly palatable but the W&S buffet is better...
The friendly shop steward extolled the meal being served to the First Class passengers which certainly sounded more interesting than the Pendolino First Class evening meal that I had received a few weeks ago. Serving it fully would take some doing though in the 62 minutes that the run takes...
No problem making the connection into a busy, tired-looking Class 170 3-car diesel set to Coleshill. Got a table seat however... No announcement, no refereshment trolley, but an on-time arrival at Coleshill Parkway gave a start-to-stop journey time of 82 minutes. Interestingly, the through single walk-on fare is £70 yet by splitting the fare at Nuneaton, this drops to £65.90. Aren't rail fares a nonsense!
So ends another week of on-time, safe, pleasant journeys. My thanks as ever to the teams across the privatised network who manage to make this happen. It's just a pity that their work is never recognised, only criticised...
On a final note, yesterday saw the announcement of HS2. I'm with Christian Wolmar: why can't we spend significantly less money by focusing on clearing the pinch points on the network so that our existing 'high-speed' services between the two cities are really given a chance to shine?!
Thursday, 11 March 2010
Thursday 11th March
Back to the delights of the Wrexham & Shropshire service today as I joined the 9.02 from Tame Bridge Parkway to Marylebone. Reasonably busy train - amused to see a fully reserved Coach 'B' with relatively empty 'C' and 'D' coaches - but I had no problem finding a table to myself.
Alas, the promised free standard class wireless didn't materialise for my laptop. Fortunately, W&S employ tech-savvy train managers. In this case, she pointed out that the wireless transmitter was in First Class and so may not be reaching my end of the train... She was correct: carrying the laptop to the Buffet end of the First Class coach established a connection, though this was lost on my return to my seat!
Have completed a comment form so look forward to a W&S response on this matter.
Other than that disappointment, the service was fine (indeed, more than fine). W&S staff are friendly and helpful; the buffet car stays open the whole journey and serves good, interesting food; the carriages and toilets are clean and cared for; the power points work; and the seats are comfortable. What more for a walk-on single fare of £31 (£19.40 after 1pm) could a standard class passenger want?
Well, a slightly faster journey would be a start: the 9.02 takes 133 minutes; and a more convenient station location: Tame Bridge Parkway is fine for Walsall and NW Birmingham but not easy to reach from more central areas of Birmingham even by car.
One does wonder if the company could get a variation to allow a stop at Birmingham International - I'm sure an argument could be made for Welsh passengers needing the airport...
Incidentally, the train manager confirmed that the 11.20 W&S service from Marylebone also has the £19.40 Super-off peak single fare: anyone thinking of travelling on the 11.24 Chiltern service to Banbury and beyond, take note!
On the subject of Super off-peak fares, the ticket machine (LondonMidland owned) at Tame Bridge Parkway fails to make the availability clear. Why can't these machines show the time restrictions in an obvious and clear manner?
Walked along the Regent Canal to Paddington for lunch at The Mad Bishop & Bear, Paddington's lovely pub tucked away on the 2nd floor of the food court (though obviously not too hidden given the busyness over lunch). Almost as nice as the former Royal Waiting Room (aka the FGW First Class Lounge) though of course you have to pay for the (wider range of!)refreshments...
Caught the 13.00 FGW HST to Bristol to connect into the 13.41 CrossCountry Reading to Birmingham. Both trains reasonably quiet and the connection made comfortably. Both HSTs and Voyagers offer reasonably comfortable seats, some tables, power sockets, and refreshments (albeit from a trolley).
The 132 minute journey* would have cost £40.90 (off-peak single fare) so doesn't compare in price with LondonMidland's equivalent timed offering (though more comfortable and with refreshments and sockets) and is nowhere near the value for money of the W&S service... I still think that, given it is an effectively half-hourly service, FGW and XC are missing the opportunity to capture some of the London-Birmingham traffic with some aggressive pricing...
* The 132 minute comes from catching the 13.06 out of Paddington
Alas, the promised free standard class wireless didn't materialise for my laptop. Fortunately, W&S employ tech-savvy train managers. In this case, she pointed out that the wireless transmitter was in First Class and so may not be reaching my end of the train... She was correct: carrying the laptop to the Buffet end of the First Class coach established a connection, though this was lost on my return to my seat!
Have completed a comment form so look forward to a W&S response on this matter.
Other than that disappointment, the service was fine (indeed, more than fine). W&S staff are friendly and helpful; the buffet car stays open the whole journey and serves good, interesting food; the carriages and toilets are clean and cared for; the power points work; and the seats are comfortable. What more for a walk-on single fare of £31 (£19.40 after 1pm) could a standard class passenger want?
Well, a slightly faster journey would be a start: the 9.02 takes 133 minutes; and a more convenient station location: Tame Bridge Parkway is fine for Walsall and NW Birmingham but not easy to reach from more central areas of Birmingham even by car.
One does wonder if the company could get a variation to allow a stop at Birmingham International - I'm sure an argument could be made for Welsh passengers needing the airport...
Incidentally, the train manager confirmed that the 11.20 W&S service from Marylebone also has the £19.40 Super-off peak single fare: anyone thinking of travelling on the 11.24 Chiltern service to Banbury and beyond, take note!
On the subject of Super off-peak fares, the ticket machine (LondonMidland owned) at Tame Bridge Parkway fails to make the availability clear. Why can't these machines show the time restrictions in an obvious and clear manner?
Walked along the Regent Canal to Paddington for lunch at The Mad Bishop & Bear, Paddington's lovely pub tucked away on the 2nd floor of the food court (though obviously not too hidden given the busyness over lunch). Almost as nice as the former Royal Waiting Room (aka the FGW First Class Lounge) though of course you have to pay for the (wider range of!)refreshments...
Caught the 13.00 FGW HST to Bristol to connect into the 13.41 CrossCountry Reading to Birmingham. Both trains reasonably quiet and the connection made comfortably. Both HSTs and Voyagers offer reasonably comfortable seats, some tables, power sockets, and refreshments (albeit from a trolley).
The 132 minute journey* would have cost £40.90 (off-peak single fare) so doesn't compare in price with LondonMidland's equivalent timed offering (though more comfortable and with refreshments and sockets) and is nowhere near the value for money of the W&S service... I still think that, given it is an effectively half-hourly service, FGW and XC are missing the opportunity to capture some of the London-Birmingham traffic with some aggressive pricing...
* The 132 minute comes from catching the 13.06 out of Paddington
Wednesday, 10 March 2010
Wednesday 10th March
Caught the 7.30 Pendolino for the non-stop run to Euston today. I wasn't the only one... standard class was packed! The train manager announced prior to departure that there were only 19 unreserved seats in coaches 'A' to 'D' (coach 'E' being unreserved) and judging by my later walk to the Shop there were very few 'no-shows'.
Of course, such take-up brings to the fore the 'sardine' style seating of the Pendolino standard class and means that work on a laptop is virtually impossible (compunded, I realised today, by the lack of sockets at the airline style seating...). So, the chargeable Wi-Fi was not used by me today at least.
Have to admit to being surprised at the busyness of this train. Admittedly, the 72 minute run is excellent for London morning meetings but the walk-on full fare is £70 with Advance tickets at £55. Would be very interested to learn the ticket types of the clientele: season ticket holders, charity ID holders, railcard holders or business types / public officials charging it to expenses...
Anyway, another efficient on-time journey. Shop announced several times; ticket checked; and rubbish collected frequently! Just a pity about the seating...
Came back on the 13.46 LondonMidland Class 350 service, which, with a change at Rugby, should give a 135 minute journey with a walk-on single fare of £16.90 (the equivalent Virgin fare is £40.90 albeit for a much quicker journey).
Class 350 units ride well but the seats are really not particularly comfortable. Of course, being designed for commuting, there are no tables, no power sockets, no Wi-Fi, and no refereshments. Definitely a no-frills offering. Still, busy enough with a number of people travelling beyond Rugby.
The train ran to time to Rugby, and the connecting local service (also a Class 350 set) arrived on time. Alas, held at Coventry due to trespassers at Tile Hill which meant that arrival in New Street was 15 minutes late.
Given that the 13.50 Chiltern service from Marylebone to Moor Street has a walk-on fare of £19.40 for a faster service and some frills (namely, tables, sockets, and more comfortable seats) I think that I will be sticking to Chiltern for my low-cost journeys!
Of course, such take-up brings to the fore the 'sardine' style seating of the Pendolino standard class and means that work on a laptop is virtually impossible (compunded, I realised today, by the lack of sockets at the airline style seating...). So, the chargeable Wi-Fi was not used by me today at least.
Have to admit to being surprised at the busyness of this train. Admittedly, the 72 minute run is excellent for London morning meetings but the walk-on full fare is £70 with Advance tickets at £55. Would be very interested to learn the ticket types of the clientele: season ticket holders, charity ID holders, railcard holders or business types / public officials charging it to expenses...
Anyway, another efficient on-time journey. Shop announced several times; ticket checked; and rubbish collected frequently! Just a pity about the seating...
Came back on the 13.46 LondonMidland Class 350 service, which, with a change at Rugby, should give a 135 minute journey with a walk-on single fare of £16.90 (the equivalent Virgin fare is £40.90 albeit for a much quicker journey).
Class 350 units ride well but the seats are really not particularly comfortable. Of course, being designed for commuting, there are no tables, no power sockets, no Wi-Fi, and no refereshments. Definitely a no-frills offering. Still, busy enough with a number of people travelling beyond Rugby.
The train ran to time to Rugby, and the connecting local service (also a Class 350 set) arrived on time. Alas, held at Coventry due to trespassers at Tile Hill which meant that arrival in New Street was 15 minutes late.
Given that the 13.50 Chiltern service from Marylebone to Moor Street has a walk-on fare of £19.40 for a faster service and some frills (namely, tables, sockets, and more comfortable seats) I think that I will be sticking to Chiltern for my low-cost journeys!
Tuesday, 9 March 2010
Tuesday 9th March
One of the inspirations for the Birmingham2London site was the realisation that most of my friends and colleagues weren't aware of the great service being offered by Chiltern and by its companion company, the Wrexham & Shropshire Railway.
Chiltern, of course, don't offer a First Class service and weren't included in my first week of blogging so it was with great pleasure that I turned up at Moor Street for the 8.15 Clubman to Marylebone this morning.
Moor Street is definitely the nicest and most interesting of the Birmingham and London stations that I frequent, and, of course, is undergoing a further make-over in preparation for the 2011 Chiltern Mainline upgrade. However, Platform 2 can be bleak, and the waiting room, whilst warm and tidy, is rather bare...
As ever, the 8.15 carried a strong commuter flow both to Moor Street and onwards to Solihull. Seats were available but tables were at a premium. Although quieter after Solihull, there was another commuter influx at Warwick Parway and Warwick bound for Leamington and London.
So a busy train but not crowded. No problems for ticket checks nor for the refreshment trolley. The power points worked ok, the toilets were ok, and the train ran comfortably to time. For a return fare of £31.90 and a reasonable arrival time in London of 10.27, what more could one ask?
Came back on the 11.20 Wrexham & Shropshire service to Leamington Spa which, as it is followed by the 11.24 Chiltern service to Moor Street, gives a 130 minute journey between the two cities.
There is no doubt that the W & S 'spoil' their standard class passengers. The refurbished coaches give plenty of room around the numerous tables aligned to the large windows (with curtains), the toilets are the best of the standard class provision, and the buffet service is superb. Staff are friendly and helpful, and the atmosphere quiet and comfortable.
Had the sausage and bacon bap (excellent value at £3.75) along with tea and Welsh cakes. The freshness was certainly a contrast to the ok but rather packaged offerings from the Virgin Shop yesterday - and the availability of the buffet was announced!
Leamington station waiting room is fine but rather drab. One wonders why the owning train companies don't adorn their waiting rooms with bright posters or other artwork.
The Chiltern Clubman onto Birmingham was quiet, and ran to time... another successful day of travel!
Chiltern, of course, don't offer a First Class service and weren't included in my first week of blogging so it was with great pleasure that I turned up at Moor Street for the 8.15 Clubman to Marylebone this morning.
Moor Street is definitely the nicest and most interesting of the Birmingham and London stations that I frequent, and, of course, is undergoing a further make-over in preparation for the 2011 Chiltern Mainline upgrade. However, Platform 2 can be bleak, and the waiting room, whilst warm and tidy, is rather bare...
As ever, the 8.15 carried a strong commuter flow both to Moor Street and onwards to Solihull. Seats were available but tables were at a premium. Although quieter after Solihull, there was another commuter influx at Warwick Parway and Warwick bound for Leamington and London.
So a busy train but not crowded. No problems for ticket checks nor for the refreshment trolley. The power points worked ok, the toilets were ok, and the train ran comfortably to time. For a return fare of £31.90 and a reasonable arrival time in London of 10.27, what more could one ask?
Came back on the 11.20 Wrexham & Shropshire service to Leamington Spa which, as it is followed by the 11.24 Chiltern service to Moor Street, gives a 130 minute journey between the two cities.
There is no doubt that the W & S 'spoil' their standard class passengers. The refurbished coaches give plenty of room around the numerous tables aligned to the large windows (with curtains), the toilets are the best of the standard class provision, and the buffet service is superb. Staff are friendly and helpful, and the atmosphere quiet and comfortable.
Had the sausage and bacon bap (excellent value at £3.75) along with tea and Welsh cakes. The freshness was certainly a contrast to the ok but rather packaged offerings from the Virgin Shop yesterday - and the availability of the buffet was announced!
Leamington station waiting room is fine but rather drab. One wonders why the owning train companies don't adorn their waiting rooms with bright posters or other artwork.
The Chiltern Clubman onto Birmingham was quiet, and ran to time... another successful day of travel!
Monday, 8 March 2010
Monday 8th March
Back on the rails again - this time with a standard class Tame Bridge Parkway to London (any route permitted) 7 day season...
Birmingham New Street ticket office sold me for £215.30 (once again no mention of London Midland's cheaper offering, though I did ask for any permitted route) and I was in good time for the 9.10 Pendolino from Platform 2. As this is an arrival from Wolverhampton, I had the pleasure of using the waiting room at the 'b' end of the platform. Warm, tidy but hardly inspiring...
On time departure accompanied by a very thorough and clear rendition of the 'peak' ticket restrictions that applied to the train. Quiet coach 'A' and coach 'E' were lightly loaded, especially after Coventry, and 'B', 'C', and 'D' reasonably full.
No announcement regarding the shop until a '10 minute to closure' one as we sped through Milton Keynes. Of course, the shop had been open from New Street...
Tickets checked, and rubbish collected as the journey progressed. Loos clean and working! On time arrival at Euston.
Overall, another efficient example of the Very High Frequency service being offered day-in, day-out by Virgin. Just a pity about the fare structure (see below).
Returned from London on the 16.23 Pendolino from Euston platform 3. One of the downsides of Euston is the length of the walk to the standard class accommodation, especially if you want to reach Quiet Coach A. New Street's access arrangements definitely score in this respect!
On time departure accompanied again by the 'peak' ticket restrictions announcement. Reasonably busy in all the coaches. No shop announcement at all though the shop was open. Tickets checked during the journey. Loos ok.
Alas, quiet coach 'A' is not quiet after Coventry due to the influx of commuters there. On time arrival at New Street. Another good journey!
By the way, Hotline magazine is very good and informative.
Returning to the fares... if I had bought a Return for this journey from New Street, I would have been charged £140 (shows what good value a season ticket is...). However, by buying an Anytime Return to Coventry (£4.70) and an Anytime Return from Coventry to London (£122), the cost drops to £126.70. Still an awful lot of money but a saving worth having (and it gets better on those trains which stop at Rugby: £115.80 using 2 Anytime Returns). I plan to highlight such savings as my Birmingham2London website develops!
Finally, Barry Doe in Rail 639 (in all good newsagents on Wednesday) highlights the anomalies in London Midland's ticket restrictions to London Euston. It makes you long for the simplicity of the Wrexham & Shropshire ticket structure (of which more later in the week).
Birmingham New Street ticket office sold me for £215.30 (once again no mention of London Midland's cheaper offering, though I did ask for any permitted route) and I was in good time for the 9.10 Pendolino from Platform 2. As this is an arrival from Wolverhampton, I had the pleasure of using the waiting room at the 'b' end of the platform. Warm, tidy but hardly inspiring...
On time departure accompanied by a very thorough and clear rendition of the 'peak' ticket restrictions that applied to the train. Quiet coach 'A' and coach 'E' were lightly loaded, especially after Coventry, and 'B', 'C', and 'D' reasonably full.
No announcement regarding the shop until a '10 minute to closure' one as we sped through Milton Keynes. Of course, the shop had been open from New Street...
Tickets checked, and rubbish collected as the journey progressed. Loos clean and working! On time arrival at Euston.
Overall, another efficient example of the Very High Frequency service being offered day-in, day-out by Virgin. Just a pity about the fare structure (see below).
Returned from London on the 16.23 Pendolino from Euston platform 3. One of the downsides of Euston is the length of the walk to the standard class accommodation, especially if you want to reach Quiet Coach A. New Street's access arrangements definitely score in this respect!
On time departure accompanied again by the 'peak' ticket restrictions announcement. Reasonably busy in all the coaches. No shop announcement at all though the shop was open. Tickets checked during the journey. Loos ok.
Alas, quiet coach 'A' is not quiet after Coventry due to the influx of commuters there. On time arrival at New Street. Another good journey!
By the way, Hotline magazine is very good and informative.
Returning to the fares... if I had bought a Return for this journey from New Street, I would have been charged £140 (shows what good value a season ticket is...). However, by buying an Anytime Return to Coventry (£4.70) and an Anytime Return from Coventry to London (£122), the cost drops to £126.70. Still an awful lot of money but a saving worth having (and it gets better on those trains which stop at Rugby: £115.80 using 2 Anytime Returns). I plan to highlight such savings as my Birmingham2London website develops!
Finally, Barry Doe in Rail 639 (in all good newsagents on Wednesday) highlights the anomalies in London Midland's ticket restrictions to London Euston. It makes you long for the simplicity of the Wrexham & Shropshire ticket structure (of which more later in the week).
Friday, 5 March 2010
Requirements questionnaire
One of the supporters of the Birmingham2London site is The Design Institute at Coventry University (http://wwwm.coventry.ac.uk/business/designinstitute/Pages/DesignInstitute.aspx).
The team has created an online questionnaire (http://bit.ly/ad8Pko) on users' requirements for a site such as mine.
Please complete it!
Many thanks...
The team has created an online questionnaire (http://bit.ly/ad8Pko) on users' requirements for a site such as mine.
Please complete it!
Many thanks...
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