In message
, at
17:27:56 on Sat, 5 Mar 2011, john b remarked:
10 minutes is easily long enough to get from the Mad Bishop & Bear to
the frontmost coach of any IC platform at Paddington, never mind from
the concourse...

It's only just long enough at Kings Cross to fight your way through the
crowds on the concourse, queue to show your ticket (usually a short
distance down the platform), then walk down looking for your carriage,
then quite likely wait while the people ahead of you get on board. If
you didn't have a seat reservation, it's often necessary to be rather
sharp-elbowed to get to one of the non-reserved seats.
--
Roland Perry

On Sat, 5 Mar 2011 17:27:56 -0800 (PST), john b
wrote:
Which is a problem why? If they told you 2 minutes before departure

It causes a massive rush, and is completely pointless now trains have
central door locking.

Neil

--
Neil Williams, Milton Keynes, UK

In message , Tristan Miller
writes
Contrast this with what is typically observed at London rail stations: the
passengers aren't informed of their train's platform in advance, even for
regular commuter services. This means that, much of the time, the entire
ticket hall is packed with people standing and staring at the departure
board, waiting for the platforms to be announced. This makes the station
difficult to walk through. Once a platform is announced (often only a few
minutes before the train departs), everyone waiting for that train suddenly
rushes to the departure gate, resulting in a queue and further congestion.
May be, it's to do with a train being unattended and punters are only
allowed onto that train once a driver or other responsible person has
arrived.
--
Clive

In message , Huge
writes
Bing-****ing-go. Another ****ing railway geek.
Why do I give a **** who decides what? As a customer, all I want is a
service. I don't give a flying Philadelphia **** who has to do what
to provide it.
This from a man who was pointing out only a few posts ago how little
someone else knows about trains:-)
--
Clive

On Sun, 6 Mar 2011 12:34:28 +0000, Clive
wrote:
May be, it's to do with a train being unattended

No need; if that were the case you just lock the train doors, and
people can spread down the train and wait to board. The other
argument is that it allows the platform to clear when the train
arrives. But that is not stuck to - twice last week the 0852 off
Paddington was called on 2 just as another packed HST arrived on 3.
The result was a rush in both directions rather than a trickle in one
direction.

It's an outmoded practice from the days before central door locking.
It only occurs at London termini, and they would do well to pack it
in.

Neil

--
Neil Williams, Milton Keynes, UK

In article , Huge wrote:
Like all the other
people who choose to travel by some means which is cheap, reliable,
comfortable, door to door and departs when they want.

I'm not sure I can think of any mode of transport that combines *all*
of those (clearly desirable) elements. At least, not one that would
be suitable for inter-city distances. For local journeys, walking
fits the bill nicely, though.

-roy

On Sun, 06 Mar 2011 07:22:21 -0600, (Roy Badami)
wrote:
I'm not sure I can think of any mode of transport that combines
*all*
of those (clearly desirable) elements.

A car can, though it misses the "arrives at a predictable time" one
on occasions.

Neil

--
Neil Williams, Milton Keynes, UK

In message , at 07:22:21
on Sun, 6 Mar 2011, Roy Badami remarked:
Like all the other
people who choose to travel by some means which is cheap, reliable,
comfortable, door to door and departs when they want.

I'm not sure I can think of any mode of transport that combines *all*
of those (clearly desirable) elements. At least, not one that would
be suitable for inter-city distances.

A modest mid-life family car.
--
Roland Perry

In article ,
Roland Perry wrote:
I'm not sure I can think of any mode of transport that combines *all*
of those (clearly desirable) elements. At least, not one that would
be suitable for inter-city distances.

A modest mid-life family car.

It's difficult to see how running any form of car can be described as
'cheap' given the amount it's going to cost you to tax it and ensure
it and MOT it. Add in servicing, break down cover and (depending on
where you door is) residents parking and you have to pay a huge whack
before you even start travelling anywhere.

I'll concede that it may be the least expensive option for some usage
patterns but the high fixed costs pretty much ensure that there are no
circumstances under which it it could be described as 'cheap'

-roy

On 06/03/2011 21:49, Roy Badami wrote:

It's difficult to see how running any form of car can be described as
'cheap' given the amount it's going to cost you to tax it and ensure
it and MOT it. Add in servicing, break down cover and (depending on

As low as £0 + £150 + £0 + £40 + £0

where you door is) residents parking and you have to pay a huge whack
before you even start travelling anywhere.

You overlooked the major whacks.