simoncox.com train times

So the holiday period is over for Mr Average and his kids are back at school. this inevitably means more people travelling to work by train. In their infinite wisdom Southern have reduced the 07:54 from South Croydon from a comfortable 8 carriages to a 6 car bun fight. Last week I could get a seat easily - I could pick and choose and even people at Norwood Junction were getting seats. This week I can barley get on the train its so crowded. Hence I get to work hot sweaty and annoyed. My colleagues get short tempered answers from me and therefore they treat their customers badly who take it out on their kids who wreck the trains.

And I read in the Metro this morning that the Train companies, who have recently put the ticket prices up above inflation, are demanding and getting above inflation handouts from the government while treating their passengers worse than we allow animals to be transported.

Greedy grasping idiots the lot of them.

I arrived at the station in time for the 07:54 this morning and Southern only bothered to supply a train with four coaches. By the time it arrived at South Croydon it was fully packed so I could not physically get on - though a lot of people tried. When I say packed I do mean it - it is more like tube travel except there will not be another train in two minutes and the people looked physically in discomfort. What annoys me is that the records will show that Southern provided a train service for that time. It will not show that they provided an inadequate service.

This morning free Metro paper carried the headline "Why you can't sit down on the train".
Apparently in the last 10 years we have had a passenger increase of 40% but only a 20% increase in services. However it has been apparent to me that to make 20% more train services Connex (the previous company that ran the services from South London) and Southern have done this without increasing the amount of stock - and to do this they have shorterned trains - thereby increasing passenger discomfort and more importantly putting our lives at greater risk.

The artical mentions that passenger Groups say some peak services operate at 50% above permitted levels of overcrowding. Who officially measures this? And what are the permitted levels?

Apparently we are reaching "third world levels" so expect passengers on the roofs soon.

The Rail Passengers Council are holding a public meeting:

The Health and Safety Commission’s (HSC) Railway Industry Advisory Committee (RIAC) will host its fifth public meeting on Wednesday 2 November at 6.30pm, at the Health & Safety Executive's London Headquarters, Rose Court, 2 Southwark Bridge, London, SE1 9HS. The event is free and doors will open at 6pm.