Oxford Mail reports on FGW campaign
This week's troubles with train boarding, and the subsequent reports and petition on the Charlbury Website, have been reported in the Oxford Mail under the headline "Commuter Pressures Force Rail Victory".
Excerpts from the full story:
"Passengers using one of the worst rail services in the country have forced a climbdown from their train operator over delays...
"From the start of its new timetable this week, FGW decreed that the front end of a train, normally first class on trains heading into Oxford and London, would be on the platform. However, the majority of commuters have standard class tickets and at Charlbury's four-coach platform they were forced into long queues to enter the doors of the only standard coach on the platform.
"Trains were heavily delayed as a result and complaints piled in to a Charlbury website. On Thursday, FGW instructed drivers to resume the previous practice of stopping four standard class coaches on the platform."
"[FGW spokesman] Mr Ruck added that they had [now] "tweaked" the boarding system. First class passengers were not comfortable with people squeezing by them as people boarded the train and standard fare passengers were also uncomfortable about having few doors to get in by."
Richard Fairhurst · Sat 15 Dec 2007, 17:32 · Link