IHateThameslink » ihatethameslink.co.uk news

Thameslink performance falls short in May – June (again)

admin — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 21:34:31 +0000

First Capital Connect recently published their performance stats for the period running between 30 May to 26 June. Once again, performance on the Thameslink route was unacceptable with just 88.2% of planned train service running less than 5 minutes late at their final destination. 3.2% of planned services (Thameslink + Great Northern routes combined) were also cancelled for part or all of their journey.

FCC also disclose that their target is for 90.32% of planned Thameslink services to run less than 5 minutes late at their final destination. Therefore, in the May – June period FCC underperformed even by their own standards! Why they do not have a target score of 100% is unclear, but at least they are now prepared to admit they do not offer customers a 100% train service, although we don’t we get a 9.68% reduction in our fares!

First Capital Connect’s excuse this time was as follows;

Performance was on target up until near the end of the period, however major signal problems occurred on the 22 June and a combination of factors including infrastructure and driver availability affected performance for the remaining days of the period. FCC is recruiting extra drivers and working with Network Rail to get performance back above target. This was the first period out of the last four, which have been below target. Periods 13, 1 and 2 running from 7 March to 29 May 2010 were above target.

FCC also cite a number of incidents that affected performance including a ‘Staff incident at Blackfriars’ on the 25th June. Could they be any more vague?!

On the great Northern route performance was 93.3%, against target of 94.65%.

The full report can be accessed by clicking here (PDF)

The performance stats are bad – but here at Ihatethameslink.co.uk we believe FCC do not disclose statistics which truly represent the route’s performance. We will shortly be launching a petition to ask FCC to disclose meaningful statistics. The petition will highlight the following points.

The Thameslink route is used primarily as a commuter route, but the statistics measure performance at the final destination. This should be changed to i.e. St Pancras International.
The statistics combine both rush hour and off peak travel. These should be separated.
Cancellation statistics are combined for Thameslink and the Great Northern route. These should be separated.
Services should be classified as ‘late’ after 1 minute, and not 5 minutes which is currently used.

If you have any other points to raise please email admin@ihatethameslink.co.uk or give me a shout on twitter @ihatethameslink or leave a comment below!

We need your help – blog for us!

admin — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 21:23:25 +0000

Dear IhateThameslink readers,

You may have noticed that I haven’t posted for a little white – this is because I have moved, and only take the Thameslink occasionally. I now have to put up with the northern line.

It would be great to keep the blog updated, and so if you would like to contribute, either with Admin access to the site, or just send through a short blog entry to me now and then it would be great!

Please email admin@ihatethameslink.co.uk if you are interested!

Cheers.

Full Thameslink compensation terms leaked!

admin — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 17:25:03 +0000

IHateThameslink has got its grubby little hands on a leaked internal First Capital Connect document that outlines the full terms of the Compensation FCC are offering commuters. We cannot reveal our source, as unfortunately the email self destructed within 10 seconds – weird.

Anywho, you can read the whole document by downloading it here, but we have also summarised the main points below.

What can we get?

A discount voucher to be redeemed when renewing a ticket either at an FCC booking office or via the FCC website
Free tickets sent in the post
A refund against the cost of their First Class ticket, in recognition that First Class was declassified for several weeks

The table below provides a guide as to what you may be able to claim for

How can I clam?

From Wednesday 3 February until Sunday 31 March 2010, eligible Thameslink route season ticket customers will be able to apply for discounts, free tickets and refunds.
Customers must complete an online application form available from Monday 8 February 2010 and provides proof of purchase.
Customers can also fill in a paper application form and post it, along with proof of their tickets, to a special freepost address if unable to apply online.

Other useful Info

Holders of inter-available season tickets, Oyster Travelcards, scholar/child season tickets, who fit the criteria outlined in the scheme’s terms and conditions, are also eligible.
Free tickets can be given to friends and family to use.
Tickets must be used by 31 December 2011.

Tweet your FCC Acronyms

admin — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:44:40 +0000

I’ve asked all those following ihatethameslink to tweet their FCC acronyms. Within minutes I had received a whole bunch and expect more to follow. So if you are on twitter – tweet your FCC acronym to @ihatethameslink (or post them below) and I will publish it on this post. Perhaps I will set up a vote and see which acronym wins the prestigious ‘best FCC acronym’ award…

13 18 19 25 31 34 40 50 funny and creative acronyms below!

Failure Consistently Comes
Frequent Commuter Calamities
Friday Cancelled Commute
Failing Commuters Consistently
Fairly Crap Company
First Cattle Connect
Fewer Commuters Carried
Feverish Chaos Created
Failing Chu Chu
Finally Considers Commuters (after executives and shareholders…)
Freely Culling Commutes
F**king Crappy Connect
F**ing Can’t Connect
Fine Craftsmen of Cockups
Fundamentally Crap Company
F**ing Cramped Carridges
Farcical Constant Cancellations
Fusty, Crusty Carriages
Fiendishly Crushed Commuting
F**king Clueless Clowns
F**ing Cattle Carrier
Full Cramped Carriages
Four Carriage Crush
Flawed Commuter Connector
Franchise Can’t Continue
First Crapital Connect
Foot, Cycle, Cart – almost anything is better than the train
Frequently Causes Cancellations
Forgets Commuters’ Compensation
Farcical Cancellations Chaos
Fobs-off Cynical Commuters
First Capital Con
First Capital Crap
First Crap Connection
Franchise Change Certainty
Feckless Conveyors of Chaos
Frequently Chastising Customers
False Customer Commitments
Failing Customer Communication
Farcical Customer Charter
F**ing Crap Company
Failing Customer Connections
Failing Customers Commute
F**ing-up Customer Commuting
Fantastically Crowded Commuting
F**ing Crap Commuting
Forlorn, Cranky Commuters
Feckless Conniving Cowboys
F**king Cheating C**ts
Frozen Cattle Carrier

Keep ‘em coming!

Chuka has our back – vote Labour!

admin — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:19:20 +0000

An interesting tweet was picked up on ihatethameslink.co.uk today, and it led me to an article on the Streatham-Labour website.

Minister Told of Thameslink Anger

Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Streatham has contacted FCC and has met with the transport minister to express his anger over the continued disruption to services as a result of the staff unofficial strike.

Chuka has written to First Capital Connect protesting against the current disruption being experienced by Thameslink passengers and met with the Transport Minister to relay residents’ concerns over plans
for the line.

Chuka said

“The disruption to Thameslink services this week has been awful and is simply unacceptable”

Nuff said!

Thanks Chuka.

Thameslink disruptions – FAQ

admin — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:45:50 +0000

Below are the FAQ taken from the FCC website, which I thought you all might find of some interest. I have also added my comments and thoughts in red.

Thameslink route revised timetable – what’s happening
Please accept our sincere apologies for recent unprecedented levels of disruption. We share your frustration and are doing everything we can to restore the service to normality as quickly as possible. Apology NOT accepted!!

Revised timetable
As your usual timetable was becoming increasingly untenable because of short notice forced alterations, the decision was made to introduce a revised timetable from Thursday 12 November. Although the revised timetable means that we will operate a reduced service, it should be more dependable and reliable. All trains should be formed of eight carriages. More dependable + reliable?? So they might turn up?

We know that the introduction of the timetable wasn’t as trouble free as it should have been and we are making changes in light of the invaluable customer feedback we’ve received.

What is happening and why?
First CRapital Connect has a large establishment of drivers available to operate the timetabled service. From that team there are a number of drivers on long term sickness (I want to see doctors letters!) and others who are restricted in the duties they can perform. There are also a number of drivers progressing through the driver training programme which takes a year to complete. Again this reduces the total number of active drivers to operate passenger trains.

Although we have operated your service for three and a half years with these limitations, First Capital Connect along with other train operators relies on a certain amount of flexibility with drivers working a combination of overtime and rest days to operate the service. While we have been in routine pay talks with drivers, a steadily increasing number have withdrawn from working rest days and overtime where they have previously been willing to do both. This is not official industrial action and there exists a Rest Day Working agreement with the trade unions.

Why don’t you just employ more drivers?
We are recruiting more drivers. We have already taken on 38 more to facilitate the new Thameslink route timetable introduced earlier this year and we will have 20 more passing out in spring next year. The whole training programme takes a year to complete, and there are no short cuts. Well, you should have started earlier.

Why didn’t you tell us about this before?
We have always attempted to be open and honest with customers regardless of how tough the message may be. The situation has developed into significant disruption as a growing number of individuals increasingly withdrew from working rest days and overtime.

In hindsight perhaps we should have assumed worse case scenario from the beginning. We apologise that the message we have communicated to you has fallen short and our reaction to unfolding events may have seemed reactive rather than proactive. It is always worst case scenario with FCC, no asumptions need to be made.

What are you doing about it?
We have made what we believe to be a fair offer given the current economic climate and unprecedented duration of the recession.

Our revised offer is a two-year package and includes:

- No increase for the first year from April 2009
- A minimum increase of 3% for the second year starting April 2010
- A payment of £200 in April 2010 in addition to the base pay offer

Why have some services been shortened?
It may seem logical that if we are running less trains, they should all be 8 carriages long and in an ideal world this would be the case. However the driver shortage also means that we have less resource available to carry out shunt manoeuvres in depots and move around empty trains used to strengthen services. The new timetable has been built with 8 carriage trains forming all services.

How do I check my journey?
Travel information is available on this website . Up to date information can be found by clicking through to “Live Train Updates” or selecting the “Live Departure Board” of the station you hope to travel from. Information is also available via National Rail Enquiries on 08457 48 49 50.

Is my ticket valid on other train/bus/tube services?
Ticket acceptance has been arranged for London buses and all London Underground lines via any reasonable route. Inter-available ticket arrangements exist between the Thameslink and Great Northern routes and with East Midlands Trains between London and Bedford. South West Trains are currently accepting tickets via any reasonable route. Southern are now accepting tickets via an reasonable route. Please check the website for further updates.

Can I claim compensation? PLEASE EVERYONE – DO THIS
If you have been delayed by thirty minutes or longer then you can claim compensation via the usual Delay Repay process. Customers are reassured that compensation will be made in line with the usual timetable, not the revised timetable. As long as you make your claim within 28 days this can be for multiple journeys. You must provide details of the date and times of the trains you tried to catch in order for your claim to be processed and provide details of your journey or season ticket. The easiest way to do this is via our website www.firstcapitalconnect.co.uk/delayrepay

More information on claiming is available on the web site or through the Customer Relations team on 0845 026 4700.

When will the disruption end?
We hope to resolve the issue as quickly as possible, ongoing negotiations are progressing at the highest level in the business. Don’t hold your breath.

What is happening on the Great Northern route?
We encourage customers to use the Great Northern route wherever possible as there should be minimal disruption to services on this part of the FCC network. It’s more likely any problems on the Great Northern route will be concentrated on occasional Sundays, so again, do check the website.

First Class
During this time, first class accommodation on Thameslink will be declassified to maximise capacity. We apologise to First class ticket holders, however customers holding first class tickets will be able to apply for compensation through customer relations if you cannot get a seat in first class. What a joke – first class areas are always maxed out even on good days.

Will there be a strike?
ASLEF have balloted their members for strike action and the result will be known on 9 December. We are working to provide the best possible timetable each day and limit the disruption caused. Talks will continue and we hope for a speedy resolution.

Revised Timetable on Thamleslink route due to lack of drivers

admin — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 10:51:49 +0000

Thameslink passengers have faced an awful week of travel as FCC drivers exercise their right not to work overtime. This is not an official strike, however it is claimed that unions will soon go to ballot for strike action. FCC have introduced a revised timetable which can be downloaded here (PDF) but passengers faced major disruptions to their journeys. If you were affected by the recent staff shortages, I urge you yo claim compensation from FCC. Its really quick and easy, and if you have an oyster card, just put your oyster number instead of ticket number. Click here to claim compensation now. FCC have also stated that delays will be calculated based on the old timetable, not the revised one.

More delays due to lack of drivers

100 Twitter followers and counting

admin — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:24:08 +0000

Tweet tweet.

If you have any ideas to help promote the website further or would like to get involved please post a comment and let me know.

Googlebomb update

admin — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 09:47:25 +0000

When setting up this blog, one of my objectives was to make this blog appear on the first page of google when the word ‘thameslink’ was searched for. I think this would really piss off First Capital Connect, especially if it appeared before their website!

Currently – this blog appears on the 3rd page – the 28th search result.

So – in order to improve this I need your help! Please, if you can, link to this website on any blog, website, forum etc like this –> thameslink and I will update you all in a few weeks to see if we have moved up at all!

One love, one hate.

Hating thameslink on Twitter

admin — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 12:29:08 +0000

I’ve just realised why Twitter is great.

On the right hand side of this blog is an RSS feed that will pick up any Tweets that contain the word ‘thameslink’ or the term ‘first capital connect’. They are all quite funny, and (as you would expect) are mostly complaints about how bad the service is.

So when you are waiting for your delayed train, and have nothing better to do, why not use your mobile to tweet about thameslink and it will be picked up on this site for all to see.

One love, one hate.