Falmouth Branch Line - stations, facilities, services and improvements - ongoing discussion, merged posts

[whole diary]

[RailCornwall]

Simply because of my back condition (I attend Treliske weekly) which I don't make a fuss of makes things difficult, these kind of decisions really annoy those of us who have a physical impairment rather than a visible disability. A class of traveller that is badly neglected. Parking the car at the car park and walking directly onto platform three is brilliant, I always acquire parking and travel tickets in advance.

At least when flying the luggage is removed from you and you can make your way at Gatwick to the Platform without climbing stairs, and exit Victoria onto a taxi or bus easily too. Tube access at Victoria is being improved too.

If FGW^▸ (First Great Western) were to gate platform three separately at Truro that would help but I can't see that happening.

[vacman]

Simply because of my back condition (I attend Treliske weekly) which I don't make a fuss of makes things difficult, these kind of decisions really annoy those of us who have a physical impairment rather than a visible disability. A class of traveller that is badly neglected. Parking the car at the car park and walking directly onto platform three is brilliant, I always acquire parking and travel tickets in advance.

At least when flying the luggage is removed from you and you can make your way at Gatwick to the Platform without climbing stairs, and exit Victoria onto a taxi or bus easily too. Tube access at Victoria is being improved too.

If FGW^▸ (First Great Western) were to gate platform three separately at Truro that would help but I can't see that happening.

I'm sure FGW could easilly afford to lose your custom with the thousands per day that will be taken on the barriers, all the free loaders that you are currently paying for. They're hardly going to have two sets of gates, that would mean double the staff and it's being done on a shoestring!

[Btline]

I would have thought the extra short walk would be far better on your back compared to all the hassle and stress of the airports!

Driving further to the airport, parking, getting to the terminal (long walk? bus?), checking in, security, departures, the flight (hardly the most comfortable method of transport, esp on your back!), getting through Gatwick, collecting luggage from the carrousel, scrambling onto the Gatwick Express....

Luggage is only removed from you after you've checked in and is given back to you when you arrive (often after a long wait, unless you are in Germany or Birmingham) - you will still have to load it in & out the Gatwick Express, just as if you had travelled with FGW^▸ (First Great Western) - except by flying you have had to lug it around 2 airports.

With the train, you can stow your luggage once you board and sit. I am sure taxis and buses are available outside Paddington.

[RailCornwall]

It's the footbridge issue, that will bug me at Truro. It'll mean getting bags up and down what aren't particularly good structures. There's an alternative though which I've thought of which I'll consider, given time I could go down to Camborne or even PZ and get a level route to the Northbound services.

Newquay Airport have baggage trolleys from Carpark to Check in, as does LGW from arrivals to Gatwick Station, don't get me started on not allowing airport trolleys onto station platforms though.

[thetrout]

What about implementing a similar arrangement as at Bath Spa.

Have the main entrance access through Ticket Gates and have a staff member or 2 on Platform 3 with a portable ticket machine...?

Thats what they do at Bath Spa and I think the arrangement worths rather well, especially if you get your timing wrong and you attempt to negociate the stairs just as the London Padd - Bristol Arrives

Off the record I don't like ticket gates to be honest. If you want to break your journey (Like at Bristol Temple Meads to go to The Knights Templar for lunch) the ticket machines can be real pain in the bum. Often the results are that you hold everybody up thats stood behind you. The simple option... ... ... Swear at the ticket machine and go to the human... (Yes the swearing part was a joke )

[John R]

It's easy. Don't bother with the machine, when you know that it will be rejected, but go straight to the barrier staff, who will gladly let you through, and then back again. 

The fact is that barriers prevent a lot of people from travelling from free, with very little inconvenience to the vast majority of the honest travelling public. I can't see the problem myself, and that's having years of negotiating the barriers at BTM^▸ (Bristol Temple Meads (strictly, it should be BRI)) twice a day.

[Phil]

It's easy. Don't bother with the machine, when you know that it will be rejected, but go straight to the barrier staff, who will gladly let you through, and then back again. 

Gladly? I did exactly this at Exeter the other day, feeling certain my ticket (Chippenham to Barnstaple) would be rejected by the barrier, but wanting a cup of tea (the only way to access the Lemming Tree is via the barriers).

The gentleman at the barrier tutted loudly, looked at the ticket, walked across to the barriers, held up a queue of people (a Cross Country train had just pulled in and was unloading), fed my ticket into the barrier, seemed surprised when it didn't work, walked back to his default luggage barrier and waved me through there.

It made me feel like a leper.

[vacman]

It's easy. Don't bother with the machine, when you know that it will be rejected, but go straight to the barrier staff, who will gladly let you through, and then back again. 

Gladly? I did exactly this at Exeter the other day, feeling certain my ticket (Chippenham to Barnstaple) would be rejected by the barrier, but wanting a cup of tea (the only way to access the Lemming Tree is via the barriers).

The gentleman at the barrier tutted loudly, looked at the ticket, walked across to the barriers, held up a queue of people (a Cross Country train had just pulled in and was unloading), fed my ticket into the barrier, seemed surprised when it didn't work, walked back to his default luggage barrier and waved me through there.

It made me feel like a leper.

Let me guess, the member of staff had glasses and a deep devon accent? Think I know who your on about lol

[vacman]

Also, like I said in my earlier post, there will obviously be an alternative to the footbridge at Truro, how do you think wheelchairs will manage???

[Phil]

Let me guess, the member of staff had glasses and a deep devon accent? Think I know who your on about lol

Funnily enough you're spot on! 

[thetrout]

It's easy. Don't bother with the machine, when you know that it will be rejected, but go straight to the barrier staff, who will gladly let you through, and then back again. 

The fact is that barriers prevent a lot of people from travelling from free, with very little inconvenience to the vast majority of the honest travelling public. I can't see the problem myself, and that's having years of negotiating the barriers at BTM^▸ (Bristol Temple Meads (strictly, it should be BRI)) twice a day.

Thats what I do now, just go straight to the Barrier Staff, in all honesty, once they recognise you, they don't even bother to look at you ticket. Same applies in the First Class Lounge at Temple Meads.

I generally don't have a problem with ticket barriers if they behave themselves. What I don't like are the barriers in London. If you want to get from Paddington to London Bridge to connect onto a service, say to Greenwich. There are about 4 different ticket gates to go through...! an absolute pain in the backside

[RichardB]

It's easy. Don't bother with the machine, when you know that it will be rejected, but go straight to the barrier staff, who will gladly let you through, and then back again. 

The fact is that barriers prevent a lot of people from travelling from free, with very little inconvenience to the vast majority of the honest travelling public. I can't see the problem myself, and that's having years of negotiating the barriers at BTM^▸ (Bristol Temple Meads (strictly, it should be BRI)) twice a day.

Thats what I do now, just go straight to the Barrier Staff, in all honesty, once they recognise you, they don't even bother to look at you ticket. Same applies in the First Class Lounge at Temple Meads.

I generally don't have a problem with ticket barriers if they behave themselves. What I don't like are the barriers in London. If you want to get from Paddington to London Bridge to connect onto a service, say to Greenwich. There are about 4 different ticket gates to go through...! an absolute pain in the backside

Just a little aside, instead of London Bridge for South Eastern services, you might find changing at Southwark/Waterloo East much easier.  Just one set of gates at that end, usually (outside the peaks) much quieter than LB too.

Done a lot of Paddington - Dartford trips!

[vacman]

have you heard any more news on the Truro gates Richard?

[Chris from Nailsea]

It made me feel like a leper.

I don't think you need be embarrassed in that way, Phil - but the rather pompous attitude of that member staff at the barriers who, having inspected your valid ticket, nevertheless still found it necessary to try to feed it through a barrier machine, only to have it rejected, is rather disappointing.

Come on, FGW^▸ (First Great Western) - you can do better than that! 

[RailCornwall]

Back to the improvement,

Had a close look at Perranwell today, there's a brand new chrome steel electrics cabinet on the platform now, twice the size of the existing green one. This is located immediately to the north of the shelter. Some information I gave earlier is in fact in error, there is NO cable duct over Carnon Viaduct on the North Western Side, the ducting has been buried under the track around 250m east of the station to switch sides. I'll try a diagram soon.   

The timetable is now within window on the National Rail Site and it's interesting that ALL the weekday morning trains until the clockface operation starts are request stop only at Perranwell, so there's one concern of mine resolved. When the clockface starts the alternation kicks in until the end of clockface then all trains have a scheduled stop at the station until the last service of the day. Only around nine trains a day actually won't stop at the station.

The two signal support structures, observed earlier, are no longer in the station yard, they must have been removed to Penryn now.

 I'll do another check at Penryn early next week.