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Do you have to wear a mask on public transport?
Well, either the situation has completely changed in the last four months or he's not got a bloody clue.
Reading some of the replies on this thread, it's almost as if some think we should be grateful to have any trains at all - my own view is that TTL should never have got close to being awarded the contract if what I saw on Saturday is the best they can offer even after making an allowance for Covid.
I'm pretty sure I'm right in thinking that, unlike other Valley Line routes, the service from Treherbert to Cardiff Central only operates along that route and does not go on to places like Barry, Bridgend and Penarth like others do. Therefore, for that service anyway, I see no reason why they could not ensure that all trains running on a Saturday three weeks before Christmas consisted of four carriages.
I turned up at Treherbert station on Saturday at around midday to catch my first train in over a year and, having given up on trying to buy a ticket from the non responsive machine on the platform, groaned to myself when I saw that the approaching train only had two two carriages. Pre Covid, I used to use such trains to get to matches regularly and knew how crowded a two carriage train got, so I was expecting it to be bad, but it turned out to be worse than any I caught pre Covid - if I knew that a two carriage train was too small for the requirements of this particular service, why on earth didn't the person who authorised such a small train?
The line to Treherbert is a single track from Porth onwards apart from at Ystryd station which has two platforms where trains can pass each other. Invariably, this leads to short delays while the other train makes its way to the only place where they can pass, but there was none of that on Saturday on either journey because there was not another train coming from the other direction - like so many others, it had been cancelled.
I was on one of the new trains for both journeys and in terms of getting squashed like sardines (that Tory councillor in the link is spot on based on my experience on Saturday), they are no different from the old ones - as mentioned in my first post, people gave up trying to get on the train at Llandaff because it was so crowded.
Is it unreasonable to expect a size of train which is able to fit demand? Is it reasonable to expect advertised trains to actually run and not be cancelled at short notice?
As for masks, I'd say about seventy five per cent of passengers were wearing them and that the huge majority of those who weren't were under thirty - I'm not too bothered about the possibility of catching Covid having had my booster ten days before travelling, but, if I can describe it this way, I've not been in a more Covid friendly situation than when I was on that crowded train from Treherbert on Saturday (to be fair, the other three trains I caught weren't as bad as the first one).
One other thing, because I didn't see a ticket collector on either journey I didn't have to pay a penny in fares (the fact I tried to buy tickets from the machine at Treherbert station proves I was not trying to dodge payment). It happened about half of the times I'd travel to and from games pre Covid as well. The truth is that, unless you're getting off at Cardiff Central or Queen Street where you have to have a ticket to get out of the building, it's so easy to travel on these trains without paying - I'm not complaining because I reckon it's saved me around £100 since I moved up here, but just think of all the money the operators are missing out on, money which could be ploughed into trying to avoid the sort of situation which arose on Saturday.
It couuld be possible, Bob, that the Treherbert train doesn't just run back and forth Treherbert and Cardiff Central all day. Some services are terminated at central station, could it be that there they are re routed, and someone somewhere in an office behind a computer has a bit more of an idea what's going on?
Getting to and from the ground on a match seems to be more difficult than ever on public transport. Seems to be a nightmare for those living outside the city. Those of us who just want to get there from town have been let down badly by the demise of the football bus. Why it’s been stopped without explanation is baffling.
Still staff shortages this morning .
Can someone explain how the new trains will help the situation, because that seems to be TFW's defence at the moment?
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/w...wsApp_AppShare
I agree with this. The club could do so much more in terms of match-day travel. It's bad for able-bodied supporters, imagine what its like for disabled supporters? The answer is, a lot won't be able to go in both groups which is ridiculous. A shuttle service would be a start. Integrate travel and ticket to home matches too.
I get that frustration. It can be as bad coming down from Aberdare.
There is one simple reason all trains can't be 4 car units all day on one route - rolling stock. There aren't the carriages available unless you take them off other route. Then you have issues elsewhere.
It all stems from the last contract ATW were awarded, which failed to consider the amount of growth in passengers over the period. Since then TfW have been playing catch up. They also retired the old Pacers as they were not DDA compliant.
It's not even as simple as borrowing some units from other TOCs. Across the UK there is a shortage of actual carriages.
Can the Pacers be attached to the back of modern units? ie, the train is DDA compliabt but not all carriages are.
It did strike me when TfL were making a lot of noise about getting rid of the 'hated' Pacers. I'd rather four of them on a busy service than two modern carriages.
Your best bet Bob is to move to Sloper Road, you won’t have a problem then. Overcrowding of trains isn’t a new problem, it’s been one for years, lack of rolling stock is the problem no matter what excuse they come out with. It’s better for them to have crowded trains than to spend on new stock. Greed.
Service over the weekend was bloody horrendous. Cancellations galore from tfw. Tfw management have to take a lot of blame for the current situation, other operators aren't having the same problems as they are. All they seem interested in is putting up posters saying how good it will be in 2 years, seemingly no interest in running a decent service in the present
This thread is not bonkers, this thread reflects the truly awful service provided on a Saturday just before Christmas- I bet more of this problem from the previous weekend played a part in it as well.
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/w...aused-22303462
The service is horrendous, why do you feel the need to deny that ? Tfw management have been too slow to get a handle on the ridiculous 769 situation. There is also a big staffing problem at tfw presently, and that's also a situation that tfw management should have got a grip of. The current service is disgraceful, it's not fair on passengers, and it's not fair on the front line tfw staff.
"Seemingly not interested in running a decent service in the mean time"
They don't have the rolling stock to keep up with the demand. Obviously service is going to suffer as a consequence.
People are making out like they are doing it for no reason and can't be arsed.
And I feel the same way with you just parroting a line which you seem to think makes the whole thing perfectly acceptable- have a look at these pictures, they’d be bad enough under normal circumstances, but in a pandemic?
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/w...wales-22229883
That was maybe slightly hyperbolic, I will admit. But I don't think it's too far from the truth. I'm not normally into a 'blame it on the board ' type mentality, but I think it is perfectly justified in this situation. The service has been an absolute joke for months, their crewing issues seem to be the worst in the country. There has been too much silly pr and promises from tfw, with nowhere near enough delivery.