LATE TRAINS

JOURNEYS FROM HELL | Inside Out exposes the nightmares of train travel

All aboard! - Pack your travel sweets and magnetic Scrabble as we take you on the train journey from hell.

Nicola Butler had a journey she would never forget. Unluckily for Virgin, she had a camera too!

For any of you who have been sitting waiting on a drafty platform or have found you reserved seat taken and your replacement is a corridor, then rest assured you are not alone.

A simple train journey for producer Nicola Butler turned into the journey from hell and the subject of an Inside Out investigation.

Delays

The supposed six hour train journey begins in Totnes and gets off to a bad, but all to familiar start - a 30 minute delay.

Things do not improve and by Taunton, the train is packed. Even those with reserved seats find that their organisation had been in vain as all reserved seats are cancelled. On this train it’s every passenger for themselves.

This may be what we have come to expect from trains of yesteryear, but this is a brand new, hi-tec train of the millennium, complete with emergency intercom. An intercom put to use by one disgruntled passenger who believes that an emergency is an emergency - no matter how small …

Out of order

Passengers are in for a long wait as the toilets are all out of order

"Hello… hello, can you hear me? You’ve got a train load of very dissatisfied customers, a large number of whom require to go to the lavatory. So when you stop at the next station we are demanding to be able to use station facilities please."

Christine’s speech meets with a burst of applause, not least from the crowd of passengers in the queue for the facility in question.

Lemmington Spa is the next station, but Christine’s plea was to no avail. It is not until Derby that passengers are given three minutes in order to use station facilities.

"This train is absolutely appalling," exclaims one passenger. "Considering the length of this journey, there should be a far larger train. People are standing in all compartments and the toilets aren’t working."

All change

But surely this journey is an isolated incident? It seems not. A glutton for punishment, Nicola Butler boards yet another Virgin train.

After hours of standing up, even the floor begins to look comfy

A simple journey goes rapidly down hill at Birmingham New Street, when two train loads of passengers are squeezed onto one shorter Virgin Train. Once again, upturned suit cases propped up in the corridors become seats.

At Bristol passengers are informed that extra coaches have been added to the train, not to increase seating space, but to replace the coaches they are currently sitting in. So once again, it’s all change.

One mother is forced to leave her children whilst she retrieves her luggage from the other coaches. At least now the train can continue to its final destination… or not.

The train terminates early. It seems it has somewhere else to be and must be on time, unlike the passengers who are now hours late.

Right to reply

The only comfort the passengers get is Nicola’s promise that the footage will be sent to Virgin. Nicola is true to her word and Chief Executive of Virgin, Chris Green relives the nightmare journeys through the wonder of television.

Find out in May whether the investment pays off

"I am obviously horrified at the conditions people are travelling in," says Chris. "We are really sorry. Every minute of our day is being spent trying to find solutions. A big apology to our customers and staff."

Chris assures Nicola that the issues are being addressed and quick fix solutions are being implemented to improve services in the short term. Among the quick fixes, is reducing the number of stops at smaller stations - not good news for everyone.

Chris Green believes that by May 2003, Virgin will be providing an efficient and reliable service. Little comfort for the passengers on our journeys and little comfort for those of you travelling by train in the next few months.

Let's hope that some day, in the not too distant future, the UK will have a train service to be proud of. In the meantime, Inside Out’s advice to you - pack a good book and a big bag of sweets, you could be here for the duration!