Adonis criticises First Capital Connect rail services
First Capital Connect offers a “shoddy” service for commuters using the line from London to Bedford and Brighton, Transport Secretary Lord Adonis says.
Standards are nothing like what “passengers expect”, he added, after strikes over pay, driver shortages and disruption caused by the cold weather.
He has demanded “urgent improvements” and did not rule out the option of stripping the firm of its franchise.
Read more from the BBC website
Trouble is, I know full well that nothing will come of this. It’s just Adonis trying to flex his muscles (sorry!) but won’t follow up on any of it. It’s not like this is a new development!
Another day, another cancelled train
18:46 this time. First Capital Connect again. Not much more I can say about the bunch of idiots who are playing toy trains in real life. As long as they get my money each month that’s okay.
My 5 hour train journey
No trains from London Bridge
So the train ride in this morning was so close to perfect, but alas it ended up a complete joke.
It seems the snow has once again caused havoc with the service from Brighton to London Bridge. DSo much so that the 07:33 crawled into London Bridge at a little before 10am, when it should have been 08:43.
Knowing the pain of the return leg during rush hour I decided that enough was enough and to turn around and head home, knowing that I could log on from the warmth of my living room. Again though, the rail networks would play their hand. There were no trains leaving London Bridge from any platform.
So, stuck at a cold station, I had to wait for the next rain to appear which as luck would have it, was only about half an hour away. One of th0 eonly trains to leave was a service by First Capital. Now how ironic is that!
I arrived back home at about 12:30, which means that I have spent 5 hours going too and from London. I hate to think what it will be like when the rush hour commute begins at 5pm this evening. All I can say is good luck, and I’m glad I’m not there. I’m sure there are many people suffering today.
Bloody First Crapital Connect!
I’m ill. the kind where you leave work early and just want to fall into bed.
It looks like First Capital Connect are plotting against me though. The 16:27 has been cancelled.
Now my night is going to consist of getting to East Croydon in the hope of a train going in the general direction of Brighton.
Its at times like these I wish I worked closer to home.
Size matters
I use the ‘overcrowded’ tag as a prediction of what is to come. The 07:33 is made up of eight carrages instead of twelve and there are already people standing.
Good luck those getting on at East Croydon. Or, for that matter, Preston Park!
First Capital Connect’s Brighton service goes into meltdown
First Capital Connect’s rush hour service is in chaos this afternoon after it cancelled a raft of services.
The Argus has the full report about FCC trains from Bedford being cancelled. That must be why I was freezing my butt off earlier this evening. FCC say:
“The majority of these faults developed while trying to provide a service through heavy snow and sub-zero conditions.”
“Our engineering team is working around the clock to repair the trains as quickly as possible, however a number remain out of action which is affecting the level of service we can provide.”
Read more about First Capital’s inability to provide a service of any use.
Three and out
18:30 delayed. 18:39 delayed. 18:40 cancelled. What is going on?
How the hell am I going to get home if they can’t get a single train to stop at London Bridge and go to Brighton?
I’m going to do the ‘Delay Repay’ tomorrow to see if I get money back on this joke service.
Why the delays?
You would have thought that it was still snowing by the delays and cancelled trains from Brighton this morning. The 07:37 was cancelled which meant a trip to London Victoria and a tube across London! What a start to the year eh?
The snow hits again
Ever the optimist, I got on the 07:33 this morning thinking there would be hardly any delay getting to work this morning. After all, only a few weeks back we had snow and I guess that could be used as practice for the next time, eg this time.
But alas no. It’s now almost 9am and we have only just left East Croydon. I reckon I will be in work for about 10am, which means a two and a half hour journey.
Still, I have the return leg to look foward to still. Oh joy.
Things I hate about commuting pt.4
Yep, it’s time for another moan about commuting…….this time it’s the…
Elbow Fighter
The Elbow Fighter is the person who loves to battle over who has the right to put their arm on the arm rest. Usually if they’re overweight you have no say in the matter. They’re over the arm rest and rubbing your ribs – and that’s sometimes their waist doing it.
Yes, these people don’t understand the act of sharing. Probably something that was built in from an early age, possibly from as early as Playschool. They don’t understand that in the first few moments of relaxation, one person has the back of the arm rest, and the other has the front. They want it all.
Now, there is an unwriten rule, and that is when you’re next to someone with a laptop. It’s a given that the constant tapping of the keyboard means that they must have the front of the arm rest. All other times it should be decided upon by the ‘elbow shuffle.’ A mutual agreement should then follow and remain in place until the end of the journey.
If you are one of these people, then spare a thought for the other commuter. Don’t be an Elbow Fighter.
