Is This The Real North-South Divide?
Sathnam Sanghera is one of my favourite columnists. He wrote a piece called, Not on the right track to get the UK moving, saying that it was training that the West Midlands needed and not trains.
In some ways I agree with him, but we actually need both. This bit from his piece stood out.
Nothing, not even the fact that some London bars charge £18 for a cocktail, shocks my fellow Midlanders more than the fact that I have never owned a car. Most families in my parents’ suburb seem to have two or three vehicles per household. Getting them to use a train instead is going to be more difficult than weaning them off pork scratchings.
I’ve come across this attitude before. I have even been accused of being a loser because I travel everywhere by public transport, by an idiot from Middlesborough.
I’m afraid that some parts of the rest of the country are going to have to do a lot of readjustment, when the oil runs out.
A Use for a Cheque
I got a cheque today to settle my problem with National Express East Anglia. I’m not a lover of cheques, but this must be one use for them, as they didn’t have my bank details and probably the credit card details weren’t stored either, as it was a transaction in a station.
Incidentally john Lewis give out gift vouchers for small payments and another rail company gave me compensation for a late train in a Rail Travel Voucher. For me neither is a problem, as I go to Waitrose a couple of times a week and I suspect that the Rail Voucher will be used on a trip to see Ipswich Town.
I wonder how long before Universal Gift Vouchers or something similar become commonplace. These would be bar coded and possibly issued to a particular person, very much like the vouchers I buy for The Times. I think some companies already use M & S vouchers in this way.
When I paid the cheque into my account at a branch of Nationwide in Upper Street, the counter was empty, and I joked with the cashier about writing few cheques these days. He agreed that he didn’t either and judging by his expression, he’d done little business that day. Admittedly, it was lunchtime, but all this seems to say that counter service will soon be gone.
We just need to replace the cheque.
The Future of Very Long Distance Trains in the UK
We may be a small island, but it is possible to do some of the longer train journeys in Europe in the UK, where you don’t have to change trains. The longest trip I did in Europe was Nice to Lille.
We have several major long distance routes starting or finishing in London. Some include.
- London (Kings Cross) to Inverness via Edinburgh
- London (Kings Cross) to Aberdeen via Edinburgh
- London (Euston) to Holyhead
- London (Paddington) to Fishguard
- London (Paddington) to Penzance
I should note that the longest route is actually Penzance to Aberdeen.
At present all of the routes use IC125s or other diesel trains, but for a lot of the journey some will be under wires used by high speed electric trains. It is probably for this reason that when civil servants specified the replacement for the incomparable IC125, they came up with the idea of a bi-mode train, that was electric, but hauled a diesel around for where there was no power supply. Just as with people obesity is not to be tolerated as it wastes fuel, causes more carbon dioxide to be emitted and probably causes all sorts of track problems because of the weight. As an engineer, I just don’t like it! But that’s my prejudice and what do I know about trains?
However, Ian Walmsley, a man who does know about trains, has proposed in the August edition of Modern Railways, that the ageing Class 90 electric locomotives and Mark 3 coaches on the London to Norwich line be replaced with Bombasrdier TRAXX electric locomotives, refurbished and modern styled Mark 3 coaches and perhaps a new set of driving van trailers. The article showed some impressive interiors proposed by a company called Dg8.
Would this concept work on say London to Inverness? I’ve travelled the northermost part of this line in the driver’s cab and it is a truly spectacular line, but it is unlikely that it will ever be able to be electrified further than Stirling. But there are diesel versions of TRAXX, so could an engine change be performed before the electricity runs out. If Bombardier has the engineering correct, which I suspect they do, I doubt that an engine change would take more than a few minutes. It would certainly be less hassle for the passengers than a train change.
As you are running engine facing London as trains do on the northern routes out of Kings Cross, there would be no need for any special operating procedures in London, but you would need to provide for perhaps a small amount of track work at the engine changeover. This point would have to be chosen with respect to driver availability, so perhaps on services via Edinburgh, this might be the point. But of course it would be a simple matter for the train company to work out the best place for the changeover.
In his article, Ian proposed new driving van trailers. When I went to Inverness on the IC125, the driver had no access to train services, so he had to disembark to use the toilet. So should the DVTs be provided with various facilities for the driver?
It should also be noted that the current trains on the route have no room for heavy luggage, so could they be used for such items as bicycles, surfboards for Cornwall and large cases.
If these long routes have more than just distance in common; many passengers will want an at-seat meal and many will be leisure passengers who would want to admire the view.
So should in some ways a retrograde step be taken and make sure everyone has a full table and that seats align with windows, just like they originally did when the Mark 3 coaches were built. In some ways all of the routes are premium routes, where many will book well in advance for a holiday or an event, so the extra cost of the trains would probably be affordable.
An idea I thought of was an observation car, but although it might be possible, it might make train operation difficult. But surely someone like Dg8 could come up with a Cafe Bar Car with large windows that sat in the middle of the train.
As the journey length could be up to about nine hours, it would probably need innovative entertainment systems. How about a front and back camera to show views.
I may be talking out of my backside. But as John Lennon said. Imagine!
A Victoria Line Train Used as a Litter Bin
I came back from Walthamstowe Central on the Victoria Line yesterday.
To say the train was full of litter would have been an understatement.
A Victoria Line Train Used as a Litter Bin
It was even worse if I’d taken a picture to my left, with lots of half-empty beer cans. But there were people there, who were giving the filth equally disdainful looks and probably didn’t want to be associated with it in any way.
Flowers At Bromley-by-Bow Station
It was good to see the flowers at Bromley-by-Bow station today as I came back.
We need more of these in the Underground stations on the surface.
Tax On Second Homes
There is a row brewing about the Council Tax on second homes in Devon. It’s reported here on the BBC.
I could afford to own a home in London and a cottage in the country. But for various reasons I wouldn’t. But if I did I can see no reason why I would get a Council Tax discount on my second home. After all in my view houses are to be lived in permanently, and as we have a shortage of homes in this country at all levels, by having two, you are depriving someone of a home. And that is indefensible.
If I need a break from London, I would much prefer to get on a train to say Liverpool and stay in a nice hotel. After all if your second home is worth £200,000, that money invested properly would pay for a lot of nights in good hotels, with a lot less hassle.
Vauxhall Pinch An Idea From Bombardier
Others may have too, but I was intrigued to see the review of the new Vauhall Ampera; which is probably best described as a bi-mode car. Or an electric one, with a small petrol engine that cuts in to get you home.
At first sight it looks like a solution to the range problem of an electric car, when you can’t find a means to recharge. The idea is not unique and the Bombardier TRAXX electric locomotive has an auxiliary diesel engine for use when the electricity has failed or is not available.
How To Handle Complaints
I reported the ticketing problems, I had on Wednesday to National Express East Anglia by e-mail to the company yesterday morning. I received a reply late in the afternoon, which was in my view pretty quick, as they needed a bit more information. At ten o’clock last night, after an exchange of e-mails, the issue reached a conclusion, which was very satisfactory for me. I hope it was satisfactory for the company too, as it wasn’t anything serious and more of a computer or handbook glitch.
It just shows how companies can handle problems quickly if they put the right systems in place, with the right people manning them.
Other companies should take note!
The Anonymous Widower 