The Anonymous Widower

Matchday Travel Made Easy With Lumo

The title of this post, is the same as that as this new item from Gateshead FC.

These three paragraphs outline the partnership between Lumo and Gateshead FC.

Lumo, our official rail partner, continues to offer Gateshead fans the perfect means for travelling to London and back on away days.

Operating exclusively electric trains, Lumo’s fleet run at times convenient for football matches, allowing fans to travel to London from Newcastle train station in just under 3 hours and vice versa. Lumo is committed to delivering sustainable travel without compromising on comfort, convenience, or cost.

Discover the tips and offers from Lumo below to make planning your next trip to t Capital easier, more affordable, and completely hassle-free.

Two tips and offers are listed.

  1. Plan Ahead – Tickets Available Until Spring 2025.
  2. Stay Flexible With LumoFlex

I have a few thoughts and observations.

Lumo Is Faster Than AI

According to the September 2024 Edition of Modern Railways, Lumo holds the record of two hours and 33 minutes from King’s Cross to Newcastle.

  • Google’s AI-enhanced search engine gives three minutes longer.
  • Looks like a stupid computer to me.

If Lumo could keep their record pace going to Edinburgh, they’d be in the Scottish Capital in three hours 43 minutes after leaving King’s Cross.

There Are Eleven Teams In The Same Division Of The National League As Gateshead, That Can Be Reached Easily From London

The teams are.

  • Aldershot Town – Train from Waterloo
  • Barnet – Underground and Bus
  • Braintree – Train from Liverpool Street
  • Dagenham & Redbridge – Underground and Bus
  • Eastleigh – Train from Waterloo
  • Ebbsfleet United – Thameslink
  • Maidenhead – Elizabeth Line
  • Southend United – Train from Liverpool Street
  • Sutton United – Thameslink
  • Wealdstone – Underground
  • Woking – Train from Waterloo

Note.

  1. Maidenhead and Sutton United are probably the easiest.
  2. Woking could be the most difficult.
  3. Thameslink and the Elizabeth Line are useful.

If Lumo bring a train-full of passengers to London, that is 400 passengers per train at £18 each way, if all supporters get the best price.

So each train could produce £14,400, if it was full. If Lumo can run ten-car instead of five-car trains, that doubles the revenue to £28,800.

I think Lumo see this as a nice little earner and they are going for it.

Conclusion

Train companies could support fans a lot better than they do.

November 21, 2024 Posted by | Sport, Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

LNER Names Train ‘The Flying Swiftie’ Ahead Of Tonight’s Opening Gig

The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from LNER.

This is the sub-heading,

Forget “The Flying Scotsman”, LNER is today naming the 1000 London-Edinburgh train “The Flying Swiftie” – as thousands of Taylor Swift fans take the train to her first UK gig in the Scottish capital.

These are the first three paragraphs, which give a few more details.

The rail firm famous for having Red seats knows All Too Well that its passengers love a named train – from The Flying Scotsman to the Highland Chieftan and the recently introduced Carolean Express.

As passengers travel in Style and say So Long, London they will be reminded with on-train and station announcements that Everything Has Changed and that they’re on The Flying Swiftie, while screens around the station and along the route will refer to the train’s name too.

Taylor Swift fans will be able to get refreshments onboard cheaper than their Wildest Dreams thanks to a special Flying Swiftie discount.

Recently, Lumo did a similar promotion for Gateshead fans going to Wembley for the FA Trophy final, which I wrote about in Excitement Brewing for Gateshead FC Away At Wembley.

Last Train Home

In the past, I’ve had difficulty with getting a return train after some matches and it is a complaint of the fans of many sides.

  • Taylor Swift’s concert seems to finish shortly before midnight.
  • I’ve never had trouble from Greater Anglia, as they always run a late train back to London.
  • In one case at Ipswich, there were track problems in the Colchester area, so Greater Anglia returned fans to Sudbury by taxi.
  • Lumo ran an extra return train to make sure everybody got home after the match.

It certainly looks to me, that if you are going to put on a package for an event, you must make sure, that it is possible for those attending the event to get home.

What Is Possible

Lumo and LNER have shown what is possible on the East Coast Main Line and I would hope that they will develop these two experiences to cover, events like these.

  • London football teams playing matches in Newcastle.
  • Newcastle United playing matches in London.
  • England and Scotland rugby matches.

I hopr to see more services like these in the future.

 

 

June 11, 2024 Posted by | Sport, Transport/Travel | , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Excitement Brewing for Gateshead FC Away At Wembley

The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item on Lumo.

This is the sub-heading.

Lumo, the Open Access rail operator, has teamed up with local Gateshead brewery Black Storm to offer Gateshead FC fans a special commemorative beer onboard its trains.

These first two paragraphs add a few more details.

Hot on the heels of Tyneside based Lumo, the Open Access rail operator, announcing an extra train on Saturday 11th May to get Gateshead FC fans back from London as part of the club’s huge achievement of a second Wembley FA cup final in as many years, they’ve teamed up with local Gateshead brewery Black Storm to offer fans and travellers a special commemorative beer onboard its trains.

The appropriately named’ Whistle Stop’ is a 5% ABV Helles Lager featuring special commemorative Gateshead FC Wembley 2024 and Lumo branding on the can and will be available to purchase on the LumoEats at seat trolley service on all Lumo trains from this week, including on its specially named ‘Heed Army Express’ trains on Saturday 11th (running from Newcastle to London at 07:12 and 10:22, and returning at 20:26).

Surely, rail companies should do more deals like this to support local teams and suppliers.

May 10, 2024 Posted by | Sport, Transport/Travel | , , , , , | 1 Comment