The TWaT market

[whole diary]

[grahame]

... people who only travel to the office on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday ... a new abbreviation from yesterday, but a serious segment that transport operators are considering.   Valid market, unfortunate acronym.

[Electric train]

We referred to a guy at work who always worked from home on Mondays as the Boom Town Rat https://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=PL&hl=pl&v=-Kobdb37Cwc

 

[johnneyw]

When I went down to 4 and the a little later, 3.5 days per week, my ideal would have been to base the core of it between Tuesday and Thursday. Sadly, the nature of my then employment meant that my work days were rather more scattered than that, including some weekends. The idea though, that some future rush hours will feel more like they do during school holidays, seems attractive.

[Bryony]

It’s increasingly important that we get businesses and board with developing a broader range of work travel times. There is an appetite out there for varied starts and finishes which could work well in more equally spreading resources and providing a consistent level of service.This will also mean onward connections must be provided in a matching way.  I’d be really keen to hear ideas that people have about coordinating working days, matching to school and out times, hospital appointment arrangements et cetera

[Richard Fairhurst]

Can I do my broken-record thing here about GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)'s Cornwall & Devon three-day season tickets, which are wonderful, and which should be rolled out nationwide? I may have mentioned them once or twice or three million times before.

[Robin Summerhill]

...unfortunate acronym.

I once worked for an organisation that set up a middle management goup and called it the Section Heads Information Team. The name lasted right up until the time that someone typed up the minutes of the first meeting...

[Red Squirrel]

I was once part of an improvement project called 'Finance And Resource Control - Engineering'...

[plymothian]

Can I do my broken-record thing here about GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)'s Cornwall & Devon three-day season tickets, which are wonderful, and which should be rolled out nationwide? I may have mentioned them once or twice or three million times before.

There certainly was thinking at GWR about rolling out part time seasons across their network before CV19 hit, whether that has taken a back seat or will be made higher priority remains to be seen.

[TaplowGreen]

Can I do my broken-record thing here about GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway)'s Cornwall & Devon three-day season tickets, which are wonderful, and which should be rolled out nationwide? I may have mentioned them once or twice or three million times before.

There certainly was thinking at GWR about rolling out part time seasons across their network before CV19 hit, whether that has taken a back seat or will be made higher priority remains to be seen.

There's an easy solution. It's called Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services). TfL^» (Transport for London - about) have been using it for years. Load up a card and use it as and when you need it.

[Richard Fairhurst]

Indeed, but Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services)/ITSO/etc. requires installing readers all over the network at a cost of £££, whereas three-day seasons are just new ticket validities and could be rolled out at the next fare change if GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) so wished.

[Clan Line]

Many years ago when I was at The Clyde Submarine Base there was reputedly an office with the title of the Electrical Installation & Engineering Inspection Office - allegedly named so that the person answering the 'phone could say EI EI O   !     

[Celestial]

I was told by someone working for them at the time that BR^▸ (British Rail(ways)) had an improvement project in the late 1980s called Organising for Quality, which of course was abbreviated to "O for Q". Looked ok written down, but slightly more dubious when spoken.

[rogerw]

Indeed, but Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services)/ITSO/etc. requires installing readers all over the network at a cost of £££, whereas three-day seasons are just new ticket validities and could be rolled out at the next fare change if GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) so wished.

Another option would be a carnet, which I think has also been tried. In its simplest form it could work in the same way as a flexible rover

[TaplowGreen]

Indeed, but Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services)/ITSO/etc. requires installing readers all over the network at a cost of £££, whereas three-day seasons are just new ticket validities and could be rolled out at the next fare change if GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) so wished.

There'd be an upfront cost certainly, but over time it would be saved as you wouldn't need to employ anything like as many ticket clerks or maintain so many other ticket vending facilities (everyone hates TVMs^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine) as there are so many tickets unavailable from them)

"Just" new ticket validities - in amongst how many others that are already there to confuse everyone?

Generally speaking, Oyster is good for customers as they get the lowest fare without having to think about it.

It's definitely the way forward (……………..but yes, I can already hear distant cries of "Oooooooooooz gonna pay for it then?")

[Robin Summerhill]

Indeed, but Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services)/ITSO/etc. requires installing readers all over the network at a cost of £££, whereas three-day seasons are just new ticket validities and could be rolled out at the next fare change if GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) so wished.

There'd be an upfront cost certainly, but over time it would be saved as you wouldn't need to employ anything like as many ticket clerks or maintain so many other ticket vending facilities

...

It's definitely the way forward (……………..but yes, I can already hear distant cries of "Oooooooooooz gonna pay for it then?")

South African Railways are hopelessly overmanned (as are indeed many other state owned industries in that country). They could mechanise if they wanted to, and they know it, but the government is very concerned about finding people jobs - even needless ones to hold down the unemployment levels.

Given the state the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) economy is likely to be in over the next few years, now might not be seen as the right time to adopt labour-saving measures.

Just a thought, not a prediction...