Sold my car

Gonzalez said:

I've just (15 minutes ago) sold my car.

Yippee!!!

Trains and bicycles for me from now on.

It's such a sensible thing to do.

Incidentally, don't believe all the anti-train media hysteria; in my experience, they're pretty good
and (can be) very cheap.

Well done!

Not Responding said:

Incidentally, don't believe all the anti-train media hysteria; in my experience, they're pretty
good and (can be) very cheap.

Well I doubt if you've had the 'pleasure' of commuting from Reading into Padington then if you think
the train service is good.
--
Take out the garbage to reply

Regards Tony Hogarty

"Tony Hogarty" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Incidentally, don't believe all the anti-train media hysteria; in my experience, they're pretty
good and (can be) very cheap.

Quoted message said:

Well I doubt if you've had the 'pleasure' of commuting from Reading into Padington then if you
think the train service is good.

In what way is a train every 12 minutes with a journey time of around 25 minutes not "good?"

--
Guy
===

WARNING: may contain traces of irony. Contents may settle after posting.
chapmancentral.co.ukchapmancentral.co.ukOpen ↗

On 13/2/04 9:03 am, in article [email hidden],

Tony Hogarty said:

Well I doubt if you've had the 'pleasure' of commuting from Reading into Padington then if you
think the train service is good.

I did that for a year (actually Didcot -> Wormwood Scrubbs). The most pleasant part of the journey
was the Didcot _> Paddington bit despite going within 1 mile of my place of work and knowing it
would be another hour before I got there. The trains were generally on time. I could get a seat, a
coffee and read the paper/books/do some work. The worst bit was the 6pm train on Friday which was
only missing the tomato sauce and key on the outside.

..d

Just zis Guy said:

"Tony Hogarty" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Incidentally, don't believe all the anti-train media hysteria; in my experience, they're pretty
good and (can be) very cheap.

Quoted message said:

Well I doubt if you've had the 'pleasure' of commuting from Reading into Padington then if you
think the train service is good.

In what way is a train every 12 minutes with a journey time of around 25 minutes not "good?"

When they don't turn up on time or at all. When on nine Mondays out of ten there is major
disruption due to overrunning engineering work. When the trains are so overcrowded you have to
stand. When the trains are dirty and uncomfortable. When trains are cancelled at short notice, or
even no notice. When frequent engineering works mean that the journey time is substantially longer
than the 25 minutes.
--
Take out the garbage to reply

Regards Tony Hogarty

you know? said:

"Tony Hogarty" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Incidentally, don't believe all the anti-train media hysteria; in my experience, they're pretty
good and (can be) very cheap.

Quoted message said:

Well I doubt if you've had the 'pleasure' of commuting from Reading into Padington then if you
think the train service is good.

In what way is a train every 12 minutes with a journey time of around 25 minutes not "good?"

And for 12UKP return each day (season is 2700UKP and assume 225 working days). Bargain compared to
motoring and parking costs; not to mention time.

I can't find FGW's performance stats but I'll bet they're better than any competitive mode.

If your complaint is overcrowding, then I have *some* sympathy but what do you expect if you commute
into Europe's most populous and busy city at peak hours?

It might not be a pleasurable commute, I agree. But then, most aren't. Except for cyclists,
of course.

David Martin said:

On 13/2/04 9:03 am, in article [email hidden], "Tony Hogarty"
<[email hidden]> wrote:

The trains were generally on time. I could get a seat, a coffee and read the paper/books/do
some work.

I wouldn't go so far as to call it coffee, warm brown stuff perhaps. It is nice to be able to read
and relax though.

Not Responding said:

you know? said:

"Tony Hogarty" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

> Incidentally, don't believe all the anti-train media hysteria; in my experience, they're
> pretty good and (can be) very cheap.

Quoted message said:

Well I doubt if you've had the 'pleasure' of commuting from Reading into Padington then if you
think the train service is good.

In what way is a train every 12 minutes with a journey time of around 25 minutes not "good?"

And for 12UKP return each day (season is 2700UKP and assume 225 working days). Bargain compared to
motoring and parking costs; not to mention time.

I can't find FGW's performance stats but I'll bet they're better than any competitive mode.

I suppose it might be SWT. I think about 75% of their peak trains arrive on time or within 5 minutes
during the peak.

Quoted message said:

If your complaint is overcrowding, then I have *some* sympathy but what do you expect if you
commute into Europe's most populous and busy city at peak hours?

It might not be a pleasurable commute, I agree. But then, most aren't. Except for cyclists,
of course.

"[Not Responding]" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

And for 12UKP return each day (season is 2700UKP and assume 225 working days). Bargain compared to
motoring and parking costs; not to mention time.

In the US I used to take the MBTA commuter rail from Concord into North Station in downtown Boston.
40 minute journey, clean, good seating, guard collecting fares in _each_ carriage, Costs $170/month
or about £1200/yr (which includes any journeys within the network)

Tony

Not Responding said:

you know? said:

"Tony Hogarty" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

> Incidentally, don't believe all the anti-train media hysteria; in my experience, they're
> pretty good and (can be) very cheap.

Quoted message said:

Well I doubt if you've had the 'pleasure' of commuting from Reading into Padington then if you
think the train service is good.

In what way is a train every 12 minutes with a journey time of around 25 minutes not "good?"

And for 12UKP return each day (season is 2700UKP and assume 225 working days). Bargain compared to
motoring and parking costs; not to mention time.

I can't find FGW's performance stats but I'll bet they're better than any competitive mode.

If your complaint is overcrowding, then I have *some* sympathy but what do you expect if you
commute into Europe's most populous and busy city at peak hours?

It might not be a pleasurable commute, I agree. But then, most aren't. Except for cyclists,
of course.

If I'm going to London I often have a choice between going via Reading to Paddington or Guildford to
Waterloo. I find the Guildford/Waterloo option much better.
--
Michael MacClancy Random putdown - "He has never been known to use a word that might send a reader
to the dictionary." - William Faulkner (about Ernest Hemingway) www.macclancy.demon.co.uk
www.macclancy.co.uk

In "]news:[email hidden],
Vincent Wilcox <[email hidden]> typed:

Quoted message said:

David Martin said:

On 13/2/04 9:03 am, in article [email hidden], "Tony Hogarty"
<[email hidden]> wrote:

The trains were generally on time. I could get a seat, a coffee and read the paper/books/do
some work.

I wouldn't go so far as to call it coffee, warm brown stuff perhaps. It is nice to be able to read
and relax though.

Reading -> Paddington on Virgin XC has good coffee. Espresso based coffees that taste fresh to me,
if perhaps not up to the coffee afficionado's standards.

On 13/2/04 10:36 am, in article
[email hidden], "Tony Raven"

Quoted message said:

"[Not Responding]" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

And for 12UKP return each day (season is 2700UKP and assume 225 working days). Bargain compared
to motoring and parking costs; not to mention time.

In the US I used to take the MBTA commuter rail from Concord into North Station in downtown
Boston. 40 minute journey, clean, good seating, guard collecting fares in _each_ carriage, Costs
$170/month or about £1200/yr (which includes any journeys within the network)

Total trip is about 40km compared to 40 miles (centre to centre). Both include local network travel.
25 mins/40 miles vs 40mins/25 miles. The local network in London is larger so could conceivably be
worth twice the price.

To me the costs look pretty equivalent given the distance travelled.

..d

Ambrose Nankivell said:

In "]news:[email hidden], Vincent Wilcox <[email hidden]> typed:

Quoted message said:

David Martin wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I wouldn't go so far as to call it coffee, warm brown stuff perhaps. It is nice to be able to
read and relax though.

Reading -> Paddington on Virgin XC has good coffee. Espresso based coffees that taste fresh to me,
if perhaps not up to the coffee afficionado's standards.

Yes, the Virgin Voyagers do do half-decent coffee. GNER still have those paper cups preloaded with
instant brown granules.

Colin
--

In "]news:[email hidden],
Buggs Bunny <[email hidden]> typed:

Quoted message said:

Colin Blackburn said:

Ambrose Nankivell said:

In "]news:[email hidden], Vincent Wilcox <[email hidden]> typed:
> David Martin wrote:

Quoted message said:

> I wouldn't go so far as to call it coffee, warm brown stuff perhaps. It is nice to be able to
> read and relax though.

Reading -> Paddington on Virgin XC has good coffee. Espresso based coffees that taste fresh to
me, if perhaps not up to the coffee afficionado's standards.

Yes, the Virgin Voyagers do do half-decent coffee. GNER still have those paper cups preloaded
with instant brown granules.

Colin

Dont get me wrong, less use of cars has got to be good for enviroment and health reasons. But my
local railway the 'bedpan line' has been in the news quite often, issues like ever increasing
fares/delays. I dont think the rail network should have been privatized.

However, my local rail network has trains running on time to the two local cities I need to travel
to*, is well used but not crowded, has friendly staff, runs trains as late as I need, and is
generally very satisfying. Suffice it to say I don't live in the south east.

A

*although the trains to Wolverhampton are only once an hour: would be *much* better half hourly, and
plenty of people I know have mentioned that unprompted, too

On Fri, 13 Feb 2004 13:49:51 +0000 someone who may be Buggs Bunny
<[email hidden]> wrote this:-

Quoted message said:

I dont think the rail network should have been privatized.

Debatable. Even the Tories admit that the form of privatisation that they chose has been less than
ideal. Could the railways have been privatised without the problems? Possibly.

--
David Hansen, Edinburgh | PGP email preferred-key number F566DA0E I will always explain revoked
keys, unless the UK government prevents me using the RIP Act 2000.

"Tony Hogarty" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Well I doubt if you've had the 'pleasure' of commuting from Reading

into

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Padington then if you think the train service is good.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

In what way is a train every 12 minutes with a journey time of around 25 minutes not "good?"

Quoted message said:

When they don't turn up on time or at all. When on nine Mondays out of

ten

Quoted message said:

there is major disruption due to overrunning engineering work. When the trains are so overcrowded
you have to stand. When the trains are dirty

and

Quoted message said:

uncomfortable. When trains are cancelled at short notice, or even no notice. When frequent
engineering works mean that the journey time is substantially longer than the 25 minutes.

Obviously you use them much more often that I do, then, as I've only once experienced significant
delays on that line that I can remember. And that IIRC due to some twunt deciding that Twyford was a
great place to kill himself.

--
Guy
===

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"[Not Responding]" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I can't find FGW's performance stats but I'll bet they're better than any competitive mode.

In my experience it doesn't matter if the train at Platform 5 is the delayed
8:22 or the on-time 8:33[1] - there are simply so many trains that it can be a challenge getting
your coffee before the first one arrives.

You never get a seat going to London in Standard. But the journey is short. It doesn't bother me.

--
Guy
===

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"Michael MacClancy" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

If I'm going to London I often have a choice between going via Reading to Paddington or Guildford
to Waterloo. I find the Guildford/Waterloo option much better.

The last resting place of 1950s slam-door trains ;-)

--
Guy
===

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"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

You never get a seat going to London in Standard. But the journey is

short.

Quoted message said:

It doesn't bother me.

With a Brompton you have a ready made seat with you.

Tony