Nightmare at Hayes and Harlington - 2

On the afternoon of Monday (2-7-2007) there was a lightening strike
at
Southall which put the signals out.

However not knowing this I went up to Hayes & Harlington Station at
about 19.00 to catch a train to Paddington. Then the clerk in the
ticket office told me that no trains were running.

But when I went down to platform 4 it was FULL of commuters. No-one
had bothered to tell them. I told a few and they ignored me. There
were no announcements. Hoards of commuters coninued to arrive at the
station by bus. There were no signs in the foyer. The monitors did
not
display any information to anyone about anything.

And apparently it had been like this for hours.

YET NO ALTERNATIVE BUS SERVICE HAD EVEN BEEN ORGANISED BY FIRST GREAT
WESTERN.


Then at 19.05 a HEX went through on the up fast. Did it stop to pick
people up - NO!!

Then at 19.10 a Connect went THROUGH on the up slow - did it stop to
pick people up as it should have done - NO!!!

So despite the hours of warning in the late afternoon, and knowing
full well that the rush hour out of / into London was about to start
First Great Western did absolutely NOTHING.

* There were no warning signs in the Hayes and Harlington Station
foyer - why not?

* No announcements were displayed on the monitors in the foyer - why
not?

* No announcements were broadcast to hundreds of passengers waiting
on
platforms 4 and 3

* No alternative buses / taxis had been organised - why not?

* The HEX for Paddington at 19.05 passed by platform 2 without
stopping - why?

* The Connect for Paddington at 19.10 passed by platform 4 (where
hundreds were waiting) without stopping - why?

What an appalling fiaco - but typical of the attitude that FGW staff
and management treat long suffering passengers. The sooner they lose
their franchise the better.

CJB.