Imprisoned by SWT

triddletree said:

Later in the day I took the little pink Hamble Ferry and I was allowed
off. Thankfully SWT or Stagecoach haven't got their incompetent little
hands on that yet.

Lucky you weren't taking the Red Funnel Ferry to Cowes - that would have
nicely rounded off your day!

--
Tony

"The best way I know of to win an argument is to start by being in the
right."
- Lord Hailsham

triddletree said:

Today I took a SWT service to Southampton - one of those Wessex Electric
jobs. The guard asked where I was going when I got on.
At Southampton (last stop due to engineering works) he was nowhere to be
seen. The train emptied and he'd left the van's doors locked. There were
no platform staff in sight.

Yes, the 'empty' train set off with just me and bike, and and was
shunted into a holding area.

I'd have stood in the door to stop them from closing. That would have
attracted some attention.
--
Phil Cook looking north over the park to the "Westminster Gasworks"

Phil Cook said:

triddletree said:

Today I took a SWT service to Southampton - one of those Wessex Electric
jobs. The guard asked where I was going when I got on.
At Southampton (last stop due to engineering works) he was nowhere to be
seen. The train emptied and he'd left the van's doors locked. There were
no platform staff in sight.

Yes, the 'empty' train set off with just me and bike, and and was
shunted into a holding area.

I'd have stood in the door to stop them from closing. That would have
attracted some attention.

I did. And I waved my arms about.
No one took a scrap of notice :-(

I got back on the train and started moving my bike up the aisles to
reach the nearest open 'passenger door'.
It was whie I was doing that the doors closed and the train set off.
B*gg*rs.
Letter on its way to SWT, for what good that will do.

tt

triddletree said:

Phil Cook wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'd have stood in the door to stop them from closing. That would have
attracted some attention.

I did. And I waved my arms about.
No one took a scrap of notice :-(

I got back on the train and started moving my bike up the aisles to
reach the nearest open 'passenger door'.
It was whie I was doing that the doors closed and the train set off.
B*gg*rs.
Letter on its way to SWT, for what good that will do.

Pull the alarm?

Al C-F said:

triddletree said:

Phil Cook wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I'd have stood in the door to stop them from closing. That would have
attracted some attention.

I did. And I waved my arms about.
No one took a scrap of notice :-(

I got back on the train and started moving my bike up the aisles to
reach the nearest open 'passenger door'.
It was whie I was doing that the doors closed and the train set off.
B*gg*rs.
Letter on its way to SWT, for what good that will do.

Pull the alarm?

It certainly went through my mind, but was discounted as no one was in
any real 'danger' - except of course of missing my connection.

tt

triddletree said:

Al C-F said:

triddletree said:

Phil Cook wrote:

Quoted message said:

>
> I'd have stood in the door to stop them from closing. That would have
> attracted some attention.

I did. And I waved my arms about.
No one took a scrap of notice :-(

I got back on the train and started moving my bike up the aisles to
reach the nearest open 'passenger door'.
It was whie I was doing that the doors closed and the train set off.
B*gg*rs.
Letter on its way to SWT, for what good that will do.

Pull the alarm?

It certainly went through my mind, but was discounted as no one was in
any real 'danger' - except of course of missing my connection.

A similar thing happened to my on a SWT train late summer last year.

I was travelling back from Alton back home with my Galaxy (with full
camping gear attached) in one of those trains where the guard puts the
key into a panel next to the door, opens it and presses a button
underneath to open the doors.

Got to my station and pressed the button to open the doors.. Nothing
happened. Pressed it again, nothing. All the other doors had opened,
so I tried to carry my bike with full panniers and tent attached
through to the next carriage.. No chance.

There was a SWT employee seated near by who was out of uniform and had
a key to open the door panel, which he did, but couldn't open the
doors because they guard had left them locked when he had opened the
doors at the previous station.

So he "pulled the chain".. and said to the driver "I'm a SWT driver,
and the ~£^&$£^*&" guard has locked the doors to this carriage so they
won't open, and a guy with a fully laden bike can't get off. I have a
key but can't unlock the doors, please contact the guard and tell me
to go to this carriage now!"

By that time, the guard had closed the doors, and we started moving to
the next station.

In the end I got off at the next station and got the train back.. at
which point I met the guard as I left the train. To his credit he did
say sorry.. and as much as I wanted to swear at him I didn't.

To the off duty driver who tried to help.. I thanked him several times
for trying, and he was just as peeved about the situation as I was.

On Sun, 12 Mar 2006 13:15:02 +0000 someone who may be triddletree
<[email hidden]> wrote this:-

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Pull the alarm?

It certainly went through my mind, but was discounted as no one was in
any real 'danger' - except of course of missing my connection.

It is for emergencies and I would say this was just that, though the
mild end of emergencies.

Transporting you into and out of the sidings on the train might well
have been illegal. Trains with passengers onboard are operated to
stricter legal requirements than trains with just staff onboard.
There are three main areas where your trip may have been illegal. 1)
facing points not locked, 2) permissive working where not authorised
for trains with passengers onboard, 3) driver only operation where
not authorised.

Of more importance, I wonder why the driver did not come through the
train in the sidings and find you?

--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54

David Hansen said:

Transporting you into and out of the sidings on the train might well
have been illegal. Trains with passengers onboard are operated to
stricter legal requirements than trains with just staff onboard.
There are three main areas where your trip may have been illegal. 1)
facing points not locked, 2) permissive working where not authorised
for trains with passengers onboard, 3) driver only operation where
not authorised.

Possibly. I'll put those points to SWT.
I certainly believe the train should have been checked as empty before
it left the station. I was also disturbed at the complete lack of
station staff when the train left the station.

Quoted message said:

Of more importance, I wonder why the driver did not come through the
train in the sidings and find you?

In a way he did, as I met him half way up the train. I walked towards
the front and met him coming back through the train as he needed to take
it back into Southampton.
He remarked on the disgusting mess passengers leave.

tt

On Mon, 13 Mar 2006 13:56:05 +0000 someone who may be triddletree
<[email hidden]> wrote this:-

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Transporting you into and out of the sidings on the train might well
have been illegal. Trains with passengers onboard are operated to
stricter legal requirements than trains with just staff onboard.
There are three main areas where your trip may have been illegal. 1)
facing points not locked, 2) permissive working where not authorised
for trains with passengers onboard, 3) driver only operation where
not authorised.

Possibly. I'll put those points to SWT.

Feel free to do so. They will probably reply that the facing points
were locked. The reason for this is that although they don't need to
be locked they probably were because it is easier to install
standard machines which have the locking built in as standard. They
are probably on more of a sticky wicket with the second two.

Quoted message said:

I certainly believe the train should have been checked as empty before
it left the station.

Someone should certainly have walked through it, before it left the
platform.

--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54

David Hansen said:

On Mon, 13 Mar 2006 13:56:05 +0000 someone who may be triddletree
<[email hidden]> wrote this:-

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Transporting you into and out of the sidings on the train might well
have been illegal. Trains with passengers onboard are operated to
stricter legal requirements than trains with just staff onboard.
There are three main areas where your trip may have been illegal. 1)
facing points not locked, 2) permissive working where not authorised
for trains with passengers onboard, 3) driver only operation where
not authorised.

Possibly. I'll put those points to SWT.

Feel free to do so.

Oh, how so very kind of you.

Quoted message said:

They will probably reply

Oh, you work for them then. I didn't know that.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I certainly believe the train should have been checked as empty before
it left the station.

Someone should certainly have walked through it, before it left the
platform.

I'm sure I implied that, but feel free to repeat it.

tt

On Mon, 13 Mar 2006 16:12:30 +0000 someone who may be triddletree
<[email hidden]> wrote this:-

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

They will probably reply

Oh, you work for them then. I didn't know that.

I have dealt with such companies before. Far too often.

Quoted message said:

I'm sure I implied that,

You did more than imply it.

Quoted message said:

but feel free to repeat it.

I indicated the reasons why such walking through is more than just a
courtesy.

--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54

David Hansen said:

On Mon, 13 Mar 2006 16:12:30 +0000 someone who may be triddletree
<[email hidden]> wrote this:-

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

They will probably reply

Oh, you work for them then. I didn't know that.

I have dealt with such companies before. Far too often.

Quoted message said:

I'm sure I implied that,

You did more than imply it.

Quoted message said:

but feel free to repeat it.

I indicated the reasons why such walking through is more than just a
courtesy.

David, I doubt if I'm the first, and i probably won't be the last to say
it, but your interpersonal skills probably need a little improvement.
Please take this as well-meant advice.

tt

On Mon, 13 Mar 2006 20:30:39 +0000 someone who may be triddletree
<[email hidden]> wrote this:-

Quoted message said:

David, I doubt if I'm the first, and i probably won't be the last to say
it, but your interpersonal skills probably need a little improvement.

Most people need such improvements, some more than others. However,
be careful not to assume that people behave the same way on Usenet
as they do in "real life". Also sticking to the items under
discussion, rather than the tabloid journalist approach of ignoring
that in favour of "personal" discussions, tends to result in more
information being got across.

--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54