A third World country - wot us?, service standards in UK Options

[On the edge]

In a damp and gloomy Paddington - with minutes to spare, the platform for tonight's train to Bedwyn was announced. Number 14. The platform way out the back - presumably built in Victorian times to keep dirty manual workers away from the rest of the population! Almost half way to Acton. Then jump on the train, yes, one of those fit only for scrap, aged, out dated bus technology rail cars. Uggh -the usual unpleasant smell and the grime of past ages covering the fabric. Yes, it eventually struggled out of the station - full to bursting with paying customers who would have been far more comfortable in a tube compartment or a budget aircraft seat. We made it to Newbury and without any pre announcement arrived at 'the wrong side' - where most people got out. Return fare around £50 - fares go up and up. This happens day after day after day. The Managers must see what's happening, the Regulator, presumably sees what's happening as does the Chief Executive. Does anything ever happen - why yes - announcement after announcement saying things will improve.

We lost water recently - a Sunday. We called around 7.00am. Yes, we have someone on the way. They arrived in Newbury - according to the website at 11.00am. Phone announcement said we aim to restore in 6 hours. Six hours later - nothing - look on website - nothing. Call Centre says - aah we are diverting the mains right now. Check website again, announcement had been restored but times altered. A fair time later, some water eventually appeared at tap. In response to compaint - after the ususal 'we are sorry etc' - have issue updating with latest info. because workers are too busy to tell us whats going on! Regulator claims that they can't deal with complaints unless they've been through Company process first.

Is it just Newbury? Why do we let these utilities get away with such appauling service levels? Why are we paying Regulators huge sums of money to 'look after our interests?

....and we have the nerve to laugh at India's attempts to build something for the Commonwealth Games! Welcome to Bombay - next stop Newbury.

[Darren]

You could always emigrate to India and give it a go...

[Biker1]

Yep, they travel on the outside of trains there.

[Darren]

and many have no idea about clean drinking water coming out of a tap inside a house.

[user23]

It's the legacy of privatisation. Perhaps you should visit the Third World before you compare Newbury to it though.

[On the edge]

It's the legacy of privatisation. Perhaps you should visit the Third World before you compare Newbury to it though.

Actually I have. That's what's beginning to worry me, early signs we are going that way. In India you are either very very rich or very poor. Few middle class and what there are generally anxious to go elsewhere.

Have some sympathy with your view about privatisation - which we should really have seen coming. Adam Smith dealt with market forces - that bit is OK - the next chapters dealing with personal responsibility is probably the crux of the matter.

Why Newbury? As far as the trains are concerned, if you go north to Glasgow. The local services use exactly the same rolling stock and its the same firm - First Group. However, the trains are spotless. Why? Are the passengers any dirtier? Or is it just that the Scottish have a different attitude to shoddy service?

As for water (an earlier response) I am very grateful that we have clean running water in the UK and around 150 odd years ago those before us made the investment. Are we not being a little irresponsible to the next generations letting this all go to rack and ruin simply to satisfy the greed of a few international bankers?

Again, why Newbury? OK - water fault could have happened anywhere. However, during a reorganisation a few years back, Newbury lost its dedicated water maintenance crew. Apparently just three or four chaps on a pretty average wage. Now look at how much the CEO is paid - makes sense doesn't it?

Strikes me we've sold the farm, had a party on the proceeds and the booze is about to run out.

[Bofem]

Oh dear - post Empire blues again.

We've tried lots of ways to solve this one. We joined the EEC because we thought Europeans had a better quality of life and cheaper goods.

[Bloggo]

Oh dear - post Empire blues again.

We've tried lots of ways to solve this one. We joined the EEC because we thought Europeans had a better quality of life and cheaper goods.

I was led to believe that when we had the referendum to vote for joining the EEC it was on the grounds of removing trade barriers only. Seems to have crept a bit eh?
I was one who voted against going into the Common Market.

[Bofem]

I was led to believe that when we had the referendum to vote for joining the EEC it was on the grounds of removing trade barriers only. Seems to have crept a bit eh?
I was one who voted against going into the Common Market.

Well let's leave that there.

There's this Third World claim to sort out.

Maybe we should stop inventing stuff, as many other countries buy our ideas as next generation technology, and so learn from our mistakes.

[Bloggo]

Well let's leave that there.

There's this Third World claim to sort out.

Maybe we should stop inventing stuff, as many other countries buy our ideas as next generation technology, and so learn from our mistakes.

I believe that we are a long way from being a third world country despite others, such as the Popes aide before his recent visit, suggesting that we were.
I do believe that the focus of the country as a whole to work towards inproving our status in the world is lacking.
There seems to be too many influential organisations and individuals working for their own ends rather than the good of the country.
Perhaps we have had it too good for too long and have become self serving.
A sweeping statement I know and of course there are many exceptions but it is my general impression of our society today.

[Biker1]

Return off peak with underground to London is £23.
If you had a peak ticket at £47.70 then you could have used inter-city trains (even older!).

What was the timetabled departure from Paddington of the train you caught?

[On the edge]

Oh dear - post Empire blues again.

We've tried lots of ways to solve this one. We joined the EEC because we thought Europeans had a better quality of life and cheaper goods.

Can't see any mention of the Empire or wanting it back. India became independent 60 years ago!! As for Europe - wasn't mentioned, but actually I totally support the idea of free trade - Europe is for me a great concept. However, fairs fair - lets all play by the same rules. For example - EdF were quite rightly able to purchase London Electricity; free market economics and all that. However, would we be able to purchase EdF - answer no, in reality its a nationalised industry! That's really free trade and really fair???

[On the edge]

........Maybe we should stop inventing stuff, as many other countries buy our ideas as next generation technology, and so learn from our mistakes.....

The great British myth 'Buy' our ideas - don't we wish they did! As we've sold out - the 'intellectual element' of most organisations is now situated abroad - innovation and invention as far as UK plc is concerned has gone with it. We 'invented' railways - do we benefit from making trains - nah - leave that to the Germans!

[On the edge]

Return off peak with underground to London is £23.
If you had a peak ticket at £47.70 then you could have used inter-city trains (even older!).

What was the timetabled departure from Paddington of the train you caught?

Had a peak ticket - the 4.18 was the most convenient back in the afternoon. However, why should time of day dictate how filthy the train is?

[Biker1]

Had a peak ticket - the 4.18 was the most convenient back in the afternoon. However, why should time of day dictate how filthy the train is?

You said it went into the "wrong" platform.
I assume by this you mean platform 2 (the ticket office side)?
If so this train is scheduled to go into that platform every day so what is with the "wrong"?

[Simon Kirby]

Train travel isn't always an enjoyable experience but there are thousands of journeys made each day that could be saved by homeworking. Not an option for everyone, but an awful lot of jobs could be done from home over broadband. Shed-working is a cheap way of adding a home office, and it's a good way to maintain that work-life separation too. And if you need a bit of human contact I reckon allotment-shed-working is the thing of the future - a ten minute walk to the office and time for a bit of light gardening at lunchtime. You'd rent the allotment with the shed already set up and there'd be central facilities on site too. It would cost a few bob, but not as much as a season ticket up to town, and so much less stress.

[Darren]

I'm still curious about the water.

How long exactly were you without running water, on this occasion and in say, the previous 12 month?

What would you prefer, the crew to actually fix the mains or spend all their time giving updates. Last time I saw the lads (and lass) out, they didn't have a Communications Director with them. I'm sure they have better thing to be doing while up to their knees in mud and water.

The underinvestment in our utilities started long before privatisation, when successive governments of both sides used them like private piggy banks. If it wasn't broken, it wasn't fixed. Preventative maintenance didn't exist and Thames Water paid road crews to sit in the depot in Speen Lane playing cards.

BT were exactly the same. We could have had a world-class all-digital network with high speed internet using fibre-to-the-house in the 70's. BT were refused permission to build it as it would be anti-competitive. We are now reaping that particular whirlwind where we are saddled with a network full of steel and aluminium cables because it was cheaper than copper, despite it's well known limitations in signal transmission.

Gas too. "Dig up the roads to lay corrosion-proof plastic pipes? Pah! no chance as cast iron is perfectly fine."

[Iommi]

And let's not mention the gauge used on our rail network!

[On the edge]

You said it went into the "wrong" platform.
I assume by this you mean platform 2 (the ticket office side)?
If so this train is scheduled to go into that platform every day so what is with the "wrong"?

Sorry I didn't know that. Platform 2 is generally the up side where the un initiated might expect trains to Reading or London. The other side normally seems to have trains that go to Bedwyn or the West. But hey, I'm only a passenger!

[Darren]

And let's not mention the gauge used on our rail network!

IKB knew his stuff though.