Have Your Say

Aiden
Just a few points to answer, and as I work in the rail industry, I do have a little 'inside knowledge'. Above inflation fare increases were forced upon FGW by the DfT as part of the franchise agreement(as it was with all operators). The 180 units went off lease because of reliability issues, if Tim Myerscough wants them on the Portsmouth service, I hope is still happy when they break down. Services may be crowded, but the majority that I have been on have been on time. Maybe I'm lucky, but I think a lot of people complain about the odd one that is late rather than the ones that are on time. You don't moan at your friends that the train/bus/plane was on time do you. FGW has had a few extra units recently, but extra staff for them need training, 3-4 months for a guard and 12 for a driver. Unless you want your trains run by untrained staff? FGW are aware of the problems, but results can't be expected to be seen overnight. Many TOC's are facing similar problems too. In my opinion if they were all given a freer hand instead of the DfT meddling in every aspect of running trains, then we would have railway system that would meet the needs of each local community.

Dave
People who do "Fare Strikes" deserve what they get. Everyone else pays their train fares so why shouldn't the "strikers"? Fine the whole lot of them, I say.

Mike Keen
Better services in Europe

colin
To Neil I seem to remeber that you had a descent service then the people voted to make the system private you canot blame the present goverment as they did not sell our railways to the money grabbers you get what you voted for.

Aaron
So let me get this right you complain how bad the trains are by using them, well now thats just so clever. why don't the police go on strike about their pay by still going to work cause that would show their bosses how angry they are

alan
it's time for the BCC and the goverment to get it's act together.First has taken the people of Bristol for a one way ride.Bad bus service, bad train service, an airport that cost you more to park then to fly.I am sorry to say the top management at BCC is to blame.

martyn ford in south wales
the blame lies with the dept for transport who ordered this train company to hand back 13 158 dmu to go to other operators their may be rolling stock available from london midland next year when they get their new trains on order at present there is no spare dmu units available any where i cannot see an end to this problem until next year first need to place orders now for new dmu trains just as 2 other operators have done providing the dft alows them it is the dft that is stopping virgin trains lenthening their trains by 2 carrages each pendolino unit so the blame for the problems at bristol are due the dept of transport ie mike mitchell who is in charge along with mp tom harris.

M Jones
Oh dear FGW... As for taking names and addresses, do you REALLY think that anyone gave their real name and address??? STUPID STUPID STUPID. It says it all doesn't it. Stupid firm run by stupid people with stupid ideas. You are a disgrace and you cant keep cutting services and peak hours. We need to get home and get to work. Its dangerous and a serious risk, PLEASE do something Please supply more trains. We will pay your fares but only for a better service. We dont all want to take our cars to work but we have no choice. Many of us live too far to cycle and buses dont always go where we need them too you are a good option but I HAVE to take my car now!!

Chris
I lost my job because of the irregularity of the farcical GW service from Swindon to London !! I have not been able to get a replacement job for over 2 months now ! Ridiculous why we the public have to pay the consequences of such shocking service. The trains were often late, postponed or cancelled !

Dan Rubinstein
Pleased to see that people are standing up not because they can`t get a seat-but for a proper service that for 40 years was rightly PUBLIC, not private !

Richard Davidson
All this talk of the new fare increases providing better services is rubbish. All it is doing is paying off the franchise owner (FGW) subsidy back to the government. I commute to London everyday from Bath and the service is appalling.

Neil
The whole rail franchising is a joke. If the transport secretary Ruth Kelly dosen't get a grip on this problem and sack these incompetent TOCs then she should do the decent thing and RESIGN NOW! My local TOC South West Trains have over the last year put fares up by more than 10% making rail travel totally unaffordable. I'm lucky I don't commute to work by train but I think the way Ruth Kelly continues to let the TOCs get away with it is a disgrace. GO NOW MS KELLY BEFORE WE VOTE YOU OUT OF GOVERMENT!

Paul Acres
I get my daily fix of vastly overpriced discomfort,delay and dirt courtesy of the One "service" from Essex into Liverpool Street.GFW is not the only company which couldn't organise a piss up in a brewery.My journey time is scheduled as 45 minutes.So bad has it become that 10/15 minute delays are no longer announced by personnel.The whole railway system has gone to hell in a handcart.Rather than wasting billions in Irag and Afghanistan and propping up Northern Rock perhaps this clueless government would do better spending the money on improving public transport.And whilst they continue to tarmac the whole of the country south of Birmingham perhaps they should provide funds for proper flood defences as well.I'm tired of first world prices and third world service.

Hannah Durrant
I'm sure the blame is shared between DfT and First Great Western, but the point is, at a time when we should all be travelling on public transport rather than using our cars, we're simply not being encouraged to do so.I regularly travel between Bristol and Oxford on FGW and frequently miss the advertised connections at Didcot Parkway due to a ridiculously short connection time (which is 'not really a connection' according to station staff, who have got used to simply handing out complaint forms). This often means an extra hour's wait at Didcot in the evening for the next connection.Last Friday I sat on a train from Reading, having accidentally got on a delayed fast London train that ran at the advertised time of my slower connection via Didcot. The FGW fare enforcement chap was enjoying his job so much that I honestly thought he would charge me for a whole new ticket for travelling via Reading, despite my honest mistake and there being no incentive for me to do so! Fortunately (for me) he spent so long delightedly explaining to a hapless bunch of perfectly well-behaved young lads that they would have to retrace their whole journey and not get to their destination until 11pm, OR pay over 60 quid each for new tickets, that we were past Didcot by the time he checked my ticket.In the context of such poor service as described by others, this kind of bullying of people who may have the wrong ticket but who are simply trying to negotiate a sub-standard service (the lads who got such a hard time had had their original service via Salisbury cancelled), is totally out of order.At the end of the day, our public transport should be a public service first and foremost.

Bill
To FGW now,it's all about the money!!. They must suspect that their chance of a franchise renewal are slim, so why should they care? Too bad their poor performance appears to have besmirched a name that once was the hallmark of railway excellence: Great Western!

First Capital Chaos
Its the same on First Capital Chaos into London - new vending machines? but ticket machines that wont sell a chap day retuen til the fisrt cehap day train has gone?!, 'help' points (ha as if), CCTV, revenue officers pushing their way down crowded standing room only trains, 4 carrige trains in peak, unhelpful barrier staff who think we are all fare dogers & shisters, etc etc but no new trains, no air conditioning, no longer trains & no more ferquent services. Just more profits to shareholders at 'customers' expense I bet they fund the nulabour to get away with this as well.

Oz Steopath
If seatbelts are required on a coach and standing passengers are not permitted, how is it permissable on trains?Get more rolling stock and ALWAYS have enough.At these prices and when treated worse than cattle - and they're protected by law in transit funny old thing - no one is ever going to give up the car!

Matt
I use FGW to travel to and from work every day (Cardiff to Portsmouth via Bristol Temple Meads). Not once have I managed to get a seat on the return journey (Not through lack of trying or personal preference). Within the last two weeks I have been told to 'Get off the train' as there were too many people on it for the fare collecter to get on. No wonder, the train only turned up with ONE carriage!

Melanie Sali
First great western say only 100 people took part in the protest??????? is that jut the ones passing through Bristol Temple Meads? not everyone does you know!!!! Oh and I would like to point out.. According to various guards on the trains if you are getting off at Weston Super Mare/ Worle dont bother buying a ticket because they wont check them because they cant get through the train easily and its too much hassle! So I travel from Yatton to Weston Most days for Free!

Bill
The whole thing is a national scandal perpetuated by the Government and the train operators. FGW fares are truly horrendous and FGW have used the money from the Government and their fleeced passengers to buy Greyhound in the USA in a £1bn + deal. Privatised monopolies always rip off the customer and this is a fine example, but the Government want to wash their hands of the problem. FGW will never give a value for money service while they can get away with it. They promised new trains in the late 90's but they never arrived. They blame management but that is a smokescren as they regularly change top management. The railways should be re-nationalised.

jack ladd
waiting at Bath Spa,for a overloaded 2 or 3 carriage train,already packed with people before picking up new passengers for the Hell ride,The one thing that stands out to me, No-one has mentioned once about the HEALTH & SAFETY ISSUE,Its about time all of this is reported to the H.S.E In BRISTOL To help settle the issue.

Jo Toon
Would you believe that a large chunk of the crush at Temple Meads this morning was due to the huge amount of TV crews and paparazzi that were sticking their cameras in everybody's faces? No thought for those of us who just spent 15 minutes trying to get out of the station and to work.

Steve Inman
I am incredibly annoyed, i use South West Trains, and my train fare has gone up for a service that i NEVER get a seat on, is inundated with "revenue protection officers". Along with the petrol prices, this country is getting beyond a joke... recession on the way? no wonder as this muppet-show of a government (dictatorship?) couldn't organise a piss-up in a brewery...

Anthony Gomersall
Is'nt it about time the government admitted defeat on this route and took First Great Westerns franchise away

Paul White
There's far too much blame attributed to FGW. The DfT took away the rolling stock and sent it northwards. The DfT underwrite all leases. No approval, no stock for the train companies. The DfT should be answerable for many of FGW's problems but protests like today's using inaccurate information to make a point do no good at all. 10% increase in fares? Mine is less than it was a year ago due to the conveniently forgotten fare decrease last September. No seats? On one so called over-crowded train I travelled on last week I found many seats empty towards the back of the train. Why? Some people choose to stand so they can get off first!

Simon Sutherland
This despicable company has had enough warnings and have failed to improve their performance over many years. They should be stripped of their franchise and another operator brought in - preferably Network Rail. We can then return to sensible fares and enough room to sit down - it's not too much to ask! At the moment, if two people travel to London at peak time then it's cheaper to rent a taxi for the day. Ridiculous. West MPs DO SOMETHING!

Tim Myerscough
First Great Western have sent too much rolling stock back that is why they are short.At the moment they are off leasing the Class 180 trains which are only 8 years old.These could be used on the Cardiff to Portsmouth line which passes through Bristol and relieve over crowding.

dave
It's a good idea! generally customer service across all different sectors has gone downhill over the last few years. We get rude personell both in person and over the phone. Why whould we pay them for a poor.. sorry VERY VERY VERY poor service? enough is enough.. why dont we go a step further and hit the buses as well. "More bus, less fuss" perhaps?