Great Western Coffee Shop

Ok, so on my way home Thursday was was significant debate as to whether or not I would make the connection at WOF.  We were due in at 2131 (ish) and the LM hereford train was due at 2140 (ish) which allowed me to connect with the last hereford-ludlow train at 2300.

As to why I took this circuitous route - I was on the 1815 to cardiff when I had my meltdown and given the CH was still ranting at Reading I decided to evict myself before the TM actually came through to do a ticket check as I was NOT going to apologise and in the mood I was in .......

The next train to come through that was an option was the WOF train - decided to get on the road rather wait for another potential maybe south wales train.

So - we're running about 10-15 minutes late all the way - in the end I did make the connection but I was advised by the TM that because my route was viar hereford to ludlow if they did arrange a taxi then I would be taxied from worcester to hereford as there was time to make the connection at hereford.   Seem sensible on the face of it......except:

 WOF to LUD is 30.8 miles and WOF to HFD is 25.7 miles.................however say the taxi left WOF at 10pm - we would arrive in LUD by 1045pm (at that time of night) but going to hereford and then connecting to the train mean arrival in LUD at 11:31...

Now, I know its an extra few miles is probably an extra fiver or so but would there have been any scope for getting the taxi to deliver me at ludlow?  If it had have happned, I would have been even more annoyed than I was already sitting on the platform at hereford for half an hour waiting for a train when I could have been home already!

Its the fact that its a damn site quicker to drive from ludlow to worcester than to get the train that I go from there in the first place!

The good old CoC are as always quite vague on the matter:

43. Help from Train Companies if you are stranded
If disruption caused by circumstances within the control of a Train Company or
a Rail Service Company leaves you stranded before you have reached your
destination and the Train Company whose trains you are entitled to use is unable
to get you to that destination by other means, any Train Company which is in a
position to help will, if it reasonably can, either arrange to get you to that
destination, or provide overnight accommodation for you.

I'm guessing it would depends on how many other people were also heading in that direction, if there were a few of you heading to LUD then they may pop taxi on for you to get there, otherwise they'd be in their rights to take you to HFD.

Note the above clause is only if the delay is within the control of a train company or it's agents, which the CoC fluffily quote as:

44. Circumstances that are within a Train Company^s control
For the purposes of Conditions 42 and 43, circumstances that are within a Train
Company^s control include the negligent or wilful acts or omission of its, or a Rail
Service Company^s, staff or agents.

They're a lot more specific about what is not considered within a train company's control:

45. Circumstances that are not within a Train Company^s control
For the purposes of Conditions 42 and 43, circumstances that are not within a
Train Company^s control include:
(a) acts or threats of vandalism or terrorism;
(b) suicides or accidents involving trespassers;
(c) gas leaks or fires in lineside buildings not caused by a Train Company or a Rail
Service Company or any of their employees or agents;
(d) line closures at the request of the police or emergency services;
(e) exceptionally severe weather conditions;
(f) industrial action by a Train Company^s, or Rail Service Company^s, staff or
agents or by any other person;
(g) riots or civil commotion; and
(h) fire, mechanical or electrical failure or a defect (except where this is caused
by a Train Company or Rail Service Company or their employees or agents, or
as a result of the condition of a Train Company^s trains).

Right folks, big spoon added, time to stir.

You can also try playing the 'lone female late at night' card.

Did that once a couple of years ago - first hereford home of the evening, missed the connection and because of timings, the last train was over two hours away - this was about 2230 on a Friday night and it was pissing down.

They taxied me to ludlow when technically there was a last train still to come

 On the couple of occasions I've been stuck at Exeter/Newton Abbot never had a problem.
 I suppose a bit different if stuck at an unmanned station, I now never rely on the last connection.

 Talking to the staff at Newton, they try to assist with taxi's if you miss a fgw connection and have more than an hour to wait ( cross-country 2 hours)

Plymouth good last Friday - missed the last Gunnislake by ten mins on late running train from Paddington. Taxi was immediately ordered. Interestingly three of us with through tickets were given taxi but person with ticket to Plymouth who intended to buy ticket on train to Gunnislake was not so lucky.

where had they got on? If there gad been a ticket check on train even *I* agree he was chancing it. The minute it looked like there was a chance of missing connection I'd have been hunting the tm likee
 a hound to get one.

Like last Thursday - I knew my ticket only went to wos but needed to get to Ludlow - first chance I had once I knew we were going to struggle I hunted him down - purchased eos to lud and verified that if we missed the connection some form of taxi would be sorted

Quick piece in Mofdern Railways.

A 37 failed on Beatock and passengers in the following train misssed their connections in Glasgow for Ilse of Skye and Thurso.

Taxis all the way!

I wonder how much all these taxis cost in the end?!

I REALLY need to learn to type on an iphone

Thought it might be useful to know a bit about FGW policy re: taxis - If a customer misses a connection through the fault of a late arrival (not necessarily the fault of FGW), then we apply the "is there another service within an hour" rule. If not, then we will either taxi to the destination station (not to a home address) or arrange a hotel if the latter is cheaper. We will not provide a taxi if the customer does not have a valid rail ticket. Having said all that, we do make exceptions to the ruling for the 'lone female at an isolated station' etc. Each case is taken on its own merit. We are very aware of unmanned stations, so try wherever possible to taxi from a manned station. We also look at every possible option for travel, including other TOCs (eg a customer from Swansea-Southampton missing the last Pompey at Cardiff would be sent onto Reading for CrossCountry to Southampton).
And, as a matter of interest, the TOC that has the delay that causes the missed connection has the responsibility for taxi/hotel,no matter how far off region that may be. As a genuine example, we had a customer from St Ives who missed her connection at St Erth by 10 minutes, and ended up missing the 18:15 Glasgow-Oban (last train of the day) so we ended up with a hotel in Glasgow that night!
Finally, as already mentioned, only FGW have an 'hour' rule. Other neighbouring TOCs have a two hour rule.

That makes sense then over my hereford experience a yer or so ago

But what would be the official stance on:

Customer has ticket to X but plans on buying add on ticket from X to Y on the train (playing devils advocate - maybe because they got a phone call en route with a change of plan rather than in my case, having valid ticket and buying off TM is less hastle than queueing) - but train misses connection from X to Y because of late arrival at X.

If you got a jobsworth TM - would they have to taxi you from X to Y.

I can think of one or two who wouldnt but then, if I risked missing a last train and that was the case and they were the TM - I'd either go a different route or book a hotel myself and save myself the blood pressure.  I'd still love to argue the toss mind (vociferously if they got me in a bad mood) but it would be safe in the knowledge I had alternate arrangements

Any customer has the right to ask the TM / Conductor to seek the advise of FGW Control if in doubt. We take every situation on its own merits. The only time we have real problems is when the TM makes the promise of a taxi before checking with control. We  then say 'no' because there is a train service alternative, and the TM is left in a difficult place!

I appreciate why / where that rule's coming from but it's very discriminatory against passengers from unmanned stations where there is no opportunity to buy a ticket.  I have turned up at Melksham station for the 07:17 to find it cancelled.  No ticket because I am forced for day-of-travel tickets to buy on the train (no ticket sale facilities anywhere at the station or in the town!) and then a "we're not going to help you" attitude when he train is cancelled through lack of stock even though the next one isn't due until 19:11.

To be fair to FGW, the reliability of the service is now much improved ... cancellations have become rare, whereas they peaked at an alarming figure in January 2007.  But if I'm putting people on the train, I still make sure it turns up before I leave them ....

Interesting to note the 1 hour rule too. With ticket, I've been told to wait for the next train by the chaps and chapesses on the 0845 number in the past - "we only make other arrangements if it's the last train". And it's rather more than an hour from 07:17 to 19:11!

I have twice missed the last train down the Severn Beach branch after arriving late from Waterloo on the late evening direct to Temple Meads SWT service. The scheduled arrival time into BRI is 9 minutes before the SVB departure. On both occasions the DSM at Temple Meads has arranged a taxi for me to Shirehampton, even though 9 minutes is outside (just) the minimum connection time. A polite request and flashing my DSB railcard can work wonders!!
On both occasions I was able to negotiate with the taxi driver to take me to my door, asking that he switched the meter on as we turned of the Portway near Shirehampton station.