Strip Govia of the Thameslink Franchise immediately - A Guest Blog by Richard Logue

By Richard Logue,

Like many of you I am a regular daily commuter on the Thameslink line from Mill Hill Broadway to Central London. I share your frustration at the constantly cancelled trains, short formations and gross overcrowding that characterise our local train service. 

It wasn't always like this. If you look closely on the wall next to the station entrance you can see a faded British Rail era timetable poster. This timetable dates from the Bed-Pan days, before the Thameslink service was introduced in 1988. What is remarkable that even back then Mill Hill Broadway had Six trains an hour at peak times, four stopping and two fast. The fast trains were non-stop to St. Pancras and later to Kings Cross Thameslink. Compare and contrast with today's five trains at peak times and you begin to wonder what real benefits did rail privatisation actually bring to Mill Hill Commuters?

Mill Hill Broadway - unloved by Train operators

 The service began to change for the worse when First Capital Connect took over the previous Govia Thameslink franchise. We lost our fast trains to Kings Cross and to make matters worse, went down to four stopping trains per hour. Only at a later stage was the extra fast train to West Hampstead at peak times introduced. Now we are back at full circle again; Govia have reclaimed the Thameslink franchise but significantly have not made major changes to the Timetable they inherited from First. As a result, journeys on the Thameslink to Mill Hill Broadway are characterised by gross overcrowding and short formations. Coupled with a shortage of drivers qualified to drive the remaining Class 319 trains that Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) provide for the Thameslink Metro service that stops at Mill Hill, there is a real sense that MIll Hill Broadway is more of a nuisance than an asset for Thameslink Management. 

How many times have you stood on a Monday morning at Mill Hill Broadway only to be told your trains are cancelled while fast trains from St Albans and Bedford whizz past on the fast lines? These trains could stop at Mill Hill. We have 12-car capable platforms that could accommodate the longer and newer trains that First Group and now GTR don't allow to stop at Mill Hill. Indeed I worked on the Thameslink Programme and took part in the decision to provide 12-car platforms at our station. What a pity these platforms are currently going to waste.

In my capacity as Chair of the Mill Hill Residents Association I have taken part in meetings with senior Thameslink management and asked them to consider stopping fast trains when there are delays to the existing service. I have asked them to provide an extra train at peak to eliminate the 20 minute gap that occurs at peak times by allowing the trains that are fast from West Hampstead to Elstree and vice versa. In both cases Thameslink have refused to budge, citing the tight timetabling needs of the line. 

It is obvious to me that Thameslink Management place far more value on their long distance commuters than the local London commuters. That is why we don't get the fast, modern trains that the St Albans and Bedford commuters get. Instead it's jam tomorrow and we will have to wait for the new Class 700 trains that are due to enter service in 2018. These trains will be running in 12 car formations as well as 8 cars, and they will have more room for standing compared to the old Class 319 trains. In addition we will get 8 trains an hour after 2018. Great, but what about in the meantime?

Two more years of misery isn't acceptable. It isn't acceptable to be constantly late for work and it certainly isn't acceptable to fob off commuters with the promise of a brighter day tomorrow. Not when Thameslink's performance ratings are among the worst of any of the Train Operating Companies and have been since they took over the line.

Mill Hill -Services worse than in the BR days

We need a better deal; I welcome the recent announcement that the Thameslink franchise is to be handed over to Transport for London (TFL) in 2021 when the franchise expires. However 2021 is a ridiculous time to wait for a better management team. Better to cancel the Thameslink franchise now and get TFL on board to start running the railway properly and in the interests of passengers. Some may wonder if this would affect the Thameslink Programme. Not a bit of it. The Thameslink Programme is being delivered by Network Rail and the DFT. Govia Thameslink may be the current Train Operating Company on the route, but they do not take part in the delivery of the project. 

If you believe as I do, that the Thameslink franchise should be taken away from Govia Thameslink and handed over immediately to TFL, please sign this petition: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/119480 

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Richard Logue is a Mill Hill Resident and chair of the Mill Hill Residents Association. He is also works in the railway industry. 

Is this what Sir Richard Branson and Virgin Trains call customer service?

Richard Branson has made a career out of being a bit different. When the major record labels shunned the Sex Pistols, he signed them up. He launched Virgin Atlantic Airways to offer a high quality, low cost option for transatlantic travel, succeeding where Freddie Laker had been torn to shreds. Virgin brand themselves as different, more customer focused and better.

So today my Daughter had an open day at Manchester University to attend. She left the house at 7am to get the 8am Virgin Trains service to Manchester. She had booked a cheap return ticket with a railcard. When she arrived at the station to board the train she found she'd forgotten the card, when asked. The ticket inspectors point blank refused to let her board the train and informed her she'd have to buy a brand new ticket. Being an art student on a limited budget, she only had enough cash on her for fares and lunch and a little spending money. As the ticket would be full price, this was simply not an option. She had to be at the Uni at 10.30.

Now of course by the letter of the law, Virgin Trains were within their rights to refuse to let her travel. But surely when someone makes a genuine mistake, one which is easy enough to verify, in this day and age a company such as Virgin should be able to accomodate it. Under the much maligned First Capital Connect, I once travelled to Blackfriars having fogotten my season ticket. At the Barriers, a helpful chap explained that I had to pay a £20 penalty fare. He asked if I wanted to pay now or later. He then said that season ticket holders will be let off if they could prove they actually had a season ticket. This simply involved scanning the ticket and photocard and sending it with an appeal form to the company. I duly did this and the fine was waived.

In my Daughters case, surely it would have been equally simple to take her details and get her to supply a photo of the card. In fact, we could have scanned it and sent it to her smartphone there and then (or to any other computer they wanted). But no. The Virgin Trains staff sent my daughter home in tears. She has missed the open day for the University and she is distraught.

So thank you Sir Richard and your company. I never thought I'd say this but I am starting to form the conclusion that for all their sins, First Capital Connect were not that bad. As far as I am concerned, if Labour really were serious about winning the election, they would make a pledge to nationalise all of these rail companies ASAP and stop these greedy fat cat companies ripping us off for every last penny. To deny a student the opportunity to attend a University Open day, when she has paid for a valid ticket, has a valid railcard and has simply made a silly mistake rushing for a train is scandalous and sickening. 

Guest Blog - Govia Thameslink consult...but won't tell us what they are consulting on - By Richard Logue

By Richard Logue (Chair of Mill Hill Residents Association),

It is no secret that since Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) took over from the much loathed First Capital Connect on the Thameslink route that they have taken the level of service on our trains down to an even lower level than First Capital Connect ever did. Late trains, cancelled trains and shorter trains are what we long suffering Mill Hill Broadway commuters have had to put up with.

We are even now at the point where Charles Horton the Managing Director of GTR even tells the Evening Standard that his priority is to make it easier for us to stand on Thameslink's sardine can trains. What else could GTR possibly throw at us to make our train journeys even more unbearable?

A botched consultation exercise perhaps? 

I received an email yesterday from Andrew Dismore drawing my attention to a consultation exercise that GTR have launched concerning their December 2015 timetable. That may seem a long way off, but once that timetable is set, we will not see many more significant changes to our train service until 2018, when the new trains enter service and the link from the Peterborough and Cambridge lines to St Pancras International opens. 

So what are GTR proposing for Mill Hill Broadway in this consultation? 

At present Mill Hill Broadway is served overnight by an hourly service that starts at Three Bridges, just south of Gatwick Airport, and terminates at Bedford. These trains run until the early morning, at which the normal commuter service kicks in. GTR are proposing to run these trains non-stop between West Hampstead and St Albans, which means that Mill Hill Broadway will not be served. However, GTR propose to run an extra hourly service from Luton to Blackfriars, stopping at Mill Hill and all other stops. 

That does not sound too bad as in effect we would not lose a train, but the GTR consultation document does not tell us anything else about the proposed extra Luton to Blackfriars service, not even to tell us what times these trains would run.

How is it then possible to respond to a consultation document without the whole picture of what is being proposed? So I called GTR. Big mistake. It took me about 40 minutes to actually connect to a human being rather than a voice menu. Only problem was that when I did speak to a human being she was in an overseas call centre and I was definitely not sticking to her script.

I was first told that the Brighton line timetables were online. When I told the lady from the call centre I wanted to see what the proposed timetable for Mill Hill Broadway was I was told that was online too. I asked where? I was told it was in the consultation document. Only problem is that the proposed timetable isn't in the consultation document, and how can I respond to the consultation without the timetable I am supposed to be consulted on?

Well, you too can be bamboozled by the GTR consultation document too. It's available at http://thameslink-cms.govia.net/uploads/publications/256.pdf

If I do get any clarity from GTR regarding what they are proposing I will of course let you know. The consultation closes on 30 January 2015.

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Guest blogs are always welcome at the Barnet Eye. Please send via email link in side bar.

Open letter to David Statham - Managing Director of First Capital Connect

From: Roger Tichborne

To: david.statham@firstgroup.com

Sent: Monday, October 21, 2013 8:30 AM

Subject: Disruption on First Capital Connect 22/10/2013

Dear Mr Statham,

I am writing as a regular user of the Thameslink service operated by your company. I regularly travel between Mill Hill Broadway and Central London on the route. Last night I had to use the service to get to West Hampstead to pick up a connection to Shepherds Bush. I had tickets to see a concert and had arranged to meet friends before.

On arrival at Mill Hill Broadway Station, I saw that there was disruption. An announcement on the message board told me that a tragic incident had occurred at Radlett, where a train had hit a person. Clearly in such a case, a train company cannot avoid disruption and it would be unreasonable to expect a train company not to have issues running a service. What would not be unreasonable would be to expect the train company to inform passengers of what is going on. First Capital Connect have digital noticeboards which should display accurate train information. They also have station staff and a PA systems, linked to a central control.

Every passenger using your service has a requirement to go somewhere and get there at a set time. People do not set off at random times with no expectation of getting anywhere. Often people have appointments or arrangements. All they want a train company to do is get them there and if they can't do that on time, give them a reasonable estimate of when they will arrive. Arriving at Mill Hill Broadway at 18:10, there was no indication at all of when the next train would arrive. The various message boards were completely unhelpful. The first train, a Sutton Service was showing as cancelled. The next service scheduled to arrive was the 18:20. This was running late and was expected at 18:34. With this timescale, I decided that it would be quicker to wait for this service than to take a bus and tube. I waited several minutes before using my Oyster card to touch in. I observed that the ETA of the train was not changing, therefore I had a reasonable expectation that the train would arrive.

Approx one minute before the train was due to arrive, the noticeboard suddenly changed. It said "stand back from the platform edge, fast train approaching". An announcement was made to the same effect. When the message cleared, the 18:20 was still showing as due. Two minutes later it disappeared. The next train then showed as arriving in ten minutes. By this time there were many passengers and all were frustrated and rather bemused. Although the next train did arrive when it said, I missed my connection at West Hampstead and was late for the arranged meeting. This resulted in missing the start of the first band, The Selecter, who I had been keen to see.

As I said, I don't expect miracles from your company when things go wrong. I simply expect you to tell me what is happening. It is not plausable for you to say that no one in your organisation knew the 18:20 would not stop at Mill Hill until two minutes after your noticeboard said it was due. The driver and the signalling system must have known. This information should be relayed to customers. In my case, I used my Oyster to touch in for a journey, based on this information, rather than take another route. Presumably the misinformation has generated a profit for FCC at my expense.

As managing director of the organisation, can I suggest that you conduct a review of your information systems as a matter of urgency.

Regards

Roger Tichborne

Dr Who is alive and well and living in Hendon and enjoying the Thameslink service

No those of you who know me quite well will know I'm a Sci Fi buff. As such it gives me great pleasure to announce that I've uncovered an amazing fact. The most famous Timelord on the planet is alive and well and representing the people of Hendon in Parliament.

Yesterday I was in Marks and Spencers and a person who I've talked to over the years a few times whilst out campaigning on various local issues collared me. The gentlemen in question is a pugnatious character who has a low opinion of everyone involved in Politics and is more than happy to explain why at great length. He also has strong views on all manner of local issues. Like many people in Mill Hill he has become extremely disillusioned with the awful train service in Mill Hill, provided by First Capital Connect. Yesterday he was at his wits end about it and knowing I have taken an interest, he collard me. The conversation went as follows. Let's call him Adam (I've skipped the pleasantaries at the start).

Adam: "I am bloody well sick of this train service, First are an absolute joke. I thought the previous mob were bad, but this lot take the biscuit. Did you see that they've been voted the worst train company in the country".

Me: "Yes"

Adam: "What is that lazy git of an MP, Andrew Dismore doing about it? You never hear from him apart from when he wants your vote at the election, then you can't get away from him"

Me: "Erm, Andrew Dismore isn't the MP for Hendon. He lost in 2010"

Adam: "I thought he won the election last year?"

Me: "No, that was for the GLA, they don't run the trains, they just keep an eye on Boris"

Adam: "Oh, so who is our local MP then?"

Me: "It's Dr Matthew Offord"

Adam: "Doctor Who?"

At this I sniggered. I think the title quite suits Matthew. Given his activities to rescue the bumble bees of Barnet http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/news/matthew-creates-buzz-about-bee-decline and his action man training with the Royal Marines http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/news/matthew-graduates-armed-forces he clearly sees himself as bit of a Time Lord on the sly.

As with all good Time Lords, he has a trusted companion in the shape of Max the Jack Russell. He is fearless when faced with challenges such as diving on old wrecks http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/news/matthew-dives-inspect-wwii-wreck and it must be said that not a single Dalek has been spotted in Mill Hill since Dr Who took over from Andrew Dismore.

Just like the TV Timelord, Matthew has that special telepathic power which means you forget all about him after you've met him. Like the TV timelord he also has special telepathic paper for his campaign leaflets, so you see just what you want to see. A great example of this was his campaign leaflet which said he was going to stop Kentish Town Football club building a pavillion for 50 people at Copthall Stadium. Locals thought this would spare them from traffic Chaos. What he concealed was the plans for a 15,000 seat Rugby stadium on the site. Of course locals realise that 15,000 Rugby fans will cause far less disturbance to Mill Hill than the 50 people turning up to see Non League Kentish Town play. The matchday CPZ has seen to that.

So having had his true identity rumbled. My conversation with Adam continued.

Me: Doctor Matthew Offord

Adam: Are you sure it's not Andrew Dismore? Is Offord Labour? They are a bunch of lazy sods.

Me: Yes, absolutely. And no he's a Tory.

Adam: Do you know what he's doing about this bloody rail service?

Me: Well he says on his website that he's pleased that the Improvements are on track (http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/news/investment-thameslink-line-continue)

Adam: What, is he an idiot? Does he actually use the service? Who is he again?

At that we parted company. It seems that Dr Who really has learned to swim like a fish in the sea of people without troubling them with recognition. It is telling that nearly three years after the election, Andrew Dismore still has far higher local recognition that Dr Who.

On the good Doctors site, there is a section called local issues

http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/local-issues-one-barnet

Interestingly, this has only one topic. The One Barnet project which the good Doctor has no power over as it is a local council issue and out of his jurisdiction. There is nothing about the following issues, which he could have a big say in

The NHS and local health provision
Transport issues, roads, Underground and Rail (such as Thameslink)
Overdevelopment and Green Belt policy
Education, Acadamies and Free Schools

Do any of these matter to you? Well they certainly don't seem to matter to Dr Who? do they. One other interesting fact. Adam voted for Dr Who last time. He said he wanted to see the back of Gordon Brown. I asked if he would vote for him again? His verdict? "If I bother to vote, yes I'll vote Conservative as I always do, but if what your saying is true about his attitude to Thameslink, I don't think I'll bother"

Matthew Offord has a wafer thin majority of 105 and the Tories do not have Gordon Brown to act as a Millstone around the Labour vote. If Dr Who is to survive, I suspect he needs to build up a strong personal vote. He has made a big pitch for the anti gay marriage vote in Hendon, but apart from that, it is hard to see where this support can be rustled up from.

Guest Blog - First Capital Connect Update - from Ivor the Engine

23 trains cancelled. At 17:15 It was reported that the driver of 1E03 (15:56 Bedford - Sevenoaks) had fallen onto the track at Blackfriars Station whilst cleaning his windscreen. The driver required medical treatment and a relief driver was sent to Blackfriars to take the stock ECS to Orpington. 5E03 was on the move at 18:05 which allowed train movements to resume south of City Thameslink. ----------------------------------------------  Ivor the Engine is in regular contact with the Barnet Eye regarding First Capital Connect and it's marvellous service. Follow him on Facebook here for the truth behind the announcements - http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000647547135

Welcome back to work - Deus Irae? or the woe of Thameslink

For many of us, today is the first day back at work after the Xmas and new year break. After the festivities, the alarm clock here went off at 6.30 to get the children up for school. What a day to come back to. On one such day, my old latin teacher at FCHS exclaimed as the wind howled and the rain poured down "Deus Irae". Today's weather is appropriate for the post holiday hangover we all have. For me, the first day back after the seasonal holidays is my least favourite day of the year. We find ourselves skint, facing the two harshest months of the year. We are welcomed back today to a huge hike in the cost of commuting into London. The reason for this is to "pay for investments" apparently. I have no issue with investments being paid for, but I seriously question the logic of paying for it by front loading it on to hard pressed commuters. Let me give you an example. Take my local service, the Thameslink line into London. Fares have been hiked, year after year to "pay for improvements". What has been the effect on the commuters of these improvements. Let me list a few :-

1. No direct service to Moorgate Station
2. The through service suspended for six months to construct the New St Pancras Station
3. Blackfriars tube Station shut for two years.
4. Massive overcrowding.
5. Removal of cross London Services for Sutton Loop.
6. No cross London services at weekends for years on end.

With all this disruption, you would think that rather than fare hikes, they should give passengers a discount whilst there journeys are constantly disrupted. For many people they pay the rises, but by 2016 when the program is finished, they will have retired. Years of disruption at extortionate prices, with what in return? Nothing. We are told that when the program is finished, there will be less overcrowding. I don't believe a word of it. If the service improves, more people will use it. I remember when the M25 was proposed, the argument was that it would "reduce overcrowding". What happened was the opposite. So you may say, how should the Thameslink program be paid for? It is clear to me that it should be paid from general taxation and borrowing. Capital programs produce a return on investments. Presumably there is a good business case for Thameslink and the benefits of the work will be felt for decades, if not centuries. Not only that, but people who never set foot on a Thameslink train will reap huge benefits from it. How you may ask? Because improved infrastructure opens up job opportunities, meaning that people can travel further to work, more quickly and more conveniently. This reduces unemployment and stimulates the economy. It removes cars from the roads, as people switch to rail, making other motorists journeys quicker and more pleasant. Who pays for major road projects? We all do. I rarely use the M1, but the roadworks North of Luton are paid for by me. Road commuters from Bedfordshire into London are subsidised by me, but as a regular rail user, they get a free ride from subsidising me. 

The UK has some of the highest fares in Europe and some of the lowest subsidies for travel. Who benefits from all this? The Thameslink service is operated by First Group under the First Capital Connect banner. Has First Group and it's shareholders suffered for this? Of course not. They have hidden behind the program as an excuse for a shoddy service. Regular users have suffered all manner of misfortune under this inept company. We had a period of months where the network virtually ground to a halt due to lack of trained drivers. We have had noticeboards which didn't work, resulting in many people boarding trains to completely the wrong destination. I had a conversation with a First representative about this. This is how the conversation went

Me: What are you doing about the fact your electronic destination boards are consistently not working
FCC: We are talking to our suppliers
Me: That is no use for me, why can't you have a system to tell passengers on the platform?
FCC: We do, we make announcements
Me: That is no use to me, I'm registered deaf (NB> I have a 44db hearing loss) and cannot usually hear them
FCC: Well that's your problem then, isn't it. You should check the front of the train or ask a member of staff.

The bottom line is that this company makes huge profits, is subsidised by the taxpayer and the passengers are lumbered with an uncaring monopoly. If and when they lose the franchise, no one will mourn their demise.

At the Mayoral election in May we have a clear choice and we have two people who have vastly different views on transport. We have Boris Johnson who stands for high fares and cares only for motorists in the posher London Boroughs and we have Ken Livingstone who has a consistant track record of standing up for lower fares and better all round transport infrastructure.

I asked a local Tory what Boris had done for Transport in Barnet. His answer "He got rid of the Bendy buses and he's developed the new Boris bus. He also got the cycle scheme going". An odd response really. There were no bendy buses in Barnet, we've seen one prototype bus delivered, which I've yet to see in Barnet and the cycle scheme hasn't come within miles of the Borough.

I doubt Ken Livingstone will do well in Barnet.I doubt that this fact is anything to do with his record on transport. In fact I doubt that it is based on anything more than a dislike generated by some comments to an Evening Standard reporter who was hassling him. I do understand this and I have some sympathy with the view, I just think it is crying shame that everyone in Barnet who commutes has to pay for these comments on a daily basis.

If like me you've been none too impressed with the performance of First Group, you may wish to sign this petition.

http://www.petitiononline.co.uk/petition/say-no-to-firstgroup-bidding-for-scotrail-in-2014/4085 Say no to firstgroup bidding for scotrail in 2014 www.petitiononline.co.uk Say NO to FirstGroup bidding for Scotrail in 2014.

More Thameslink chaos

Last week we had two days where the Thameslink rail network collapsed due to signalling problems. All day monday and Friday evening, the only way into London was to try another route. Not only that, but yet again they have found an ingenious new way to wind up customers. At City Thameslink, which has an extremely log through platform, they've decided to make the four carriage trains stop at the other end of the station. You would think that if a company did this, they'd publicise it first and have signs everywhere. Sadly no. That is why I missed the 17.02 on Wednesday. I arrived at the station at 17.01.59 and the train was up the other end of the platform. No announcements or anything. It just pulled out and there I was waiting for the next one. In the scheme of things a minor annoyance, but typical of their contempt for passengers.

What does Hendon MP Matthew Offord have to say about Hendon Station becoming unmanned?

Today the Evening Standard reports that two local First Capital Connect Stations are to become unmanned. These are Hendon and Elstree. They are two of 675 ticket offices to be closed as part of the CONSERVATIVE governments cost cutting measures. Too bad if you need a ticket. Of course you'll still get the £20 penalty fare if you don't have one.

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23983762-price-hikes-and-safety-fears-over-unstaffed-stations.do

What does our local MP have to say about it on his Twitter feed? Nothing - he's too busy scoffing cake

http://twitter.com/#!/HendonMP/statuses/110685701955260416

@HendonMP Matthew Offord

Thank you to Red Watch at Mill Hill Fire Station for the birthday cake!

9 hours ago via web Favorite Retweet Reply

 

 And nothing on his website either :-

 

http://www.matthewofford.co.uk/news.aspx?id=4

Amazing really? Does he know? Does he care? Has he complained to First Capital Connect? Has he lobbied the Government (which he slavishly supports).

Barnet Eye News Round up

Greetings, greetings to one and all. Great news, last night I took a phone call from Brian Coleman and he offered me a non job at Barnet Council paying £150,000 a year, if I agreed to only say nice things about him between now and the GLA election and then told me it would go up to £200,000 a year if I said Andrew Dismore smells of poo. Then I woke up and found it was all a horrible dream, caused by eating too much cheese and drinking too much red wine. So no £200,000 a year, no comfy non job, and no compromising of my principles. Ain't life a bitch, guess I'll just have to keep knocking out them blogs then.

So why you may wonder, was the issue of Brian Coleman & the GLA elections troubling me. I've been hacking through the backlog of emails from my holidays and I found this, which was revealed as part of an FOI response. It is an email sent by Brian Coleman, in response to a resident asking about the Obscene increases in CPZ charges (click on the images for a more readable version).

As you can see, Councillor Brian Coleman responds to a perfectly reasonable query about the Obscene raise in CPZ parking charges, by ridiculing his constituents use of the word Obscene, in relation to the price hike. Now if like me (yup, I live in a CPZ) you are subjected to this huge hike in prices and you are lumbered with it, you'd probably think it was "Obscene". However, if like Brian Coleman, you receive a free parking permit, because you are a Councillor, you probably wouldn't have a clue what the poor chap was on about. Or mayby, like Coleman, you wouldn't give a shit, because you are alright jack.

And why was I think of Andrew Dismore? Well yesterday the Labour Party were out in force in Mill Hill Broadway. A brief conversation with one of the campaigners in an Andrew Dismore T-shirt revealed that they were getting a rather good response. What were the topics people were interested in? Nationally, protecting the NHS. Locally - I was told that many local people have been impressed with Andrew Dismore's stance on the proposed Free School in Daws Lane. People have also woken up to the fact that Coleman is MR CPZ rise. They are also none too impressed with his sneaky attempt to abolish Pay and Display. At the last GLA elections, Nicky Gavron (the Labour candidate) was invisible in Barnet. Andrew Dismore is anything but invisible. I suspect that Brian Coleman may well be £53,439 out of pocket come May next year.

What else has been going on. Well there is yet another great new Barnet website, protesting at the stupidty of Barnet Council. As ever we are more than happy to give them a plug. Please check out the Daily Friern, the new site for the Friern Barnet Library campaign - http://paper.li/friernblibrary/1308604551 - at this blog we always give new bloggers in Barnet a plug. There are plenty of other great blogs in the sidebar. If you haven't checked them out, please have a nose around.

On the subject of Barnet Council & the industrial action, there is a great article by Kate Belgrave - http://www.katebelgrave.com/2011/09/barnet-strikes/ - Kate is a freelance investigative journalist who is a passionate supporter of the underrepresented in society. Well worth a read.

For all Barnet Eye readers who are Hogwarts and about to return for the new term, Network rail have moved the Hogwarts platform at Kings Cross - 9 3/4.

You can find details of it's new home at the Londonist - http://londonist.com/2011/09/hogwarts-pupils-confounded-by-moving-platform-at-kings-cross.php - I hope this helps the young wizards of Barnet to get  to school on time.

And on to this :-

I was shocked to see this picture on the First Capital Connect website. For a second, I thought it was the new uniforms for their revenue protection officers (Ticket inspectors in plain English). Happily for those of us partial to bunking the fair (an activity the Barnet Eye would never condone), it isn't . The chaps in the picture are part of the celebrations surrounding the naming of a First Capital Connect train as "Elstree Studios" - Full story here - http://www.firstcapitalconnect.co.uk/about-us/media-centre/news/2011/full-steam-ahead-elstree-film-studios-and-film-capital-connect/ - Maybe Councillor Brian Coleman would like to collaborate with the Barnet Eye and First Capital Connect and get a train named "Mill Hill Music Complex". This could celebrate some of the fine international artists such as Amy Winehouse and Kate Nash, who started their musical career rehearsing in Mill Hill. The offer is there.

Anyway, enjoy your Sunday. I'm off down to Iceland to get a pot noodle for lunch. Having spent all of my cash (and some) on our family holiday, that's all we can afford. That £200,000 a year would have come in mightily handy this month !!!!

First Capital Connect - Tell us the truth

Useless. No other words can describe them. Yesterday a packed commuter train was stuck for three hours just outside St Pancras station. No announcement was made for 2 hours and as the train was in the tunnel, no one could phone home. I was affected as well. I had to get to St Pancras and went down to Mill Hill Broadway Station for the 7.41 train. The noticeboard showed that it was running 26 minutes late. Arrival time was 8.03. Announcements said it was 26 minutes late. every two minutes it got two minutes later, until eventually, the time just said "delayed". At that point, I gave up and got the bus to Burnt Oak, and took the Northern Line, arring nearly an hour after I'd had to. Coming back, the trains were still up the spout. At St Pancras, a train arrived. It was announced that it was Bedford only. A horde of drunks jumped on. The train sat their for five minutes, then they announced that it was "travelling empty". Most people got off (some refused). It departed empty, leaving a packed platform. Thanks First Capital Connect. Five minutes later, an all stations pulled in. It was packed.

No apologies (other than a recorded message). We all know things go wrong. Why can't they just keep us informed and if trains aren't coming, tell us. They must know. How hard is that?

More crap from First Crapital Connect - Now I'm treated like a criminal

Grrrrr......  Where to begin? Maybe we should start at 10:25pm last night, when I arrived back at St Pancras from watching iconic Punk band Wire at The Scala. I'd been planning to get the 10:32 train home. Sadly that was cancelled. So was the 10:48. So I could have had another beer and a longer chat with my friends. I wouldn't have rushed back for the 10:32, as I'd have known that I wouldn't be home in time for the babysitter, who I told I'd be home by 11pm. So I get home at 11.30pm and have to pay for another hours babysitting. First rule of First Capital Connect, they always cost you more than you think.

Anyway, so I get to bed later than I hoped and wake up completely cream crackered and late. I put on my work clothes and run down to catch the 7.46am train. All goes well until I get to City Thameslink. Damn, no season ticket. So I go up to the guy in the customer services and explain that I've left my wallet & ticket at home. "In that case I have to issue you with a penalty ticket - you must pay a fine". But I haven't any money. "Then I have to caution you and you have to pay it within 28 days". But I have a ticket at home "Then you have to supply proof within 14 days". Ok so how "You must post a copy to the prosections department". - "But you have all my details, my name is on the ticket". "That doesn't matter, you may not be who you say you are". They then ring up and check who I say I am. "So you can ring up and check that, but you can't check your own computer". "No, you may be someone else" - "Well if I am, you'll send the fine to someone else".

I then had to be "officially cautioned" like a common criminal, in front of a crowd of people. He asks me all the questions again "officially". I ask what I do to get home - he replies "buy a ticket and claim it back". So there you go. In FCC world, they cancel trains, cost me money, treat me like cattle. We've had untold delays recently. I make one silly mistake that they could easily resolve without any problems at all, but they'd rather treat me like Sh*t and humiliate me. Last night when two trains were cancelled, where were the "customer services" people? Nowhere to be seen.

In the old days of British Rail, there were no such things as penalty fares. You just bought a ticket and claimed it back. If you had no money, you supplied your name and address and paid later. That is what it says in the Railway Act. Sadly this bunch of cowboys have a whole different agenda. One where the passenger comes last and profit comes first. They make me sick. I pay them over £1,000 a year for this crap and there is no choice at all.

In the days of British Rail, the priority was always getting people from A to B. Staff had discretion and were not focussed on "rvenue protection". The amount of subsidies from the taxpayer was many times lower. There were 8 rush hour trains an hour from Mill Hill to the City. Now there are 5 or 6. When trains were cancelled, other trains had extra stops inserted into their journey. Sure things went wrong on occasion, but never for months on end.

When I bought the ticket at the start of January, I commented that it had gone up sunstancially. The bloke who sold me the ticket said "Blame Boris Johnson, he put the fares up". The Tories created the monster of the privatised railway. Labour had huge majorities and 13 years and did nothing to improve it. There is zero chance that the Con/Lib Government will either. Personally I'd like to see every commuter in London descend on Parliament and tell the whole bunch just what they think of them. There are millions of commuters who are treated like Sh*t every day with avoidable delays, huge fare hikes and crap with penalty fares. If every commuter in every London seat got off their arses and complained, maybe just maybe something would change. A mate of mine suggested that every single commuter buy shares in First Group and put a resolution to the AGM to suspend all payments to the board until they sort this crap out, it would soon stop. Any takers? There are plenty of people out there who could afford a few shares. That would scare them !!!!

Crapitally Unconnected - Another First Capital Cockup

Tuesday night we had a great night out at Boz Boorers Xmas party. As we had an early get up, we left at 11pm, in time for the 11.27 train from West Hampstead to Mill Hill Broadway. Earlier in the evening, we checked the website to ensure there were no problems as driving was the other option. As we wanted a drink, but couldn't get hammered, either option worked. As the the FCC website said a normal Saturday service was running, it seemed the more convenient option. Sadly when we arrived at West Hampstead for the train home, it became clear that it was anything but a normal Saturday service. All trains were terminating at Hendon, one stop short of Mill Hill. As there was a train in, we jumped on. We were in Hendon ten minutes later. Hordes of people, a few FCC employees running around. I asked a couple of questions "Why aren't there any buses" The response "Because we didn't know four trains would come at once" An odd response. Don't they actually look at the timetable. I then asked when the next one to Mill Hill would be along. The answer "Soon". Soon turned out to be around 20 minutes later. We got on and the bus waited for another 10 minutes. When it got going, it took a bizarre route. Rather than driving up the hill to the A41, it drove down the hill to the Edgware Road, then south to Staples corner, along the North Circular to Brent Cross, then up the A41, a huge detour.

 So a journey that took 5 minutes, ended up taking nearly an hour, in a state of total confusion. A few hundred peoples night out was ruined. I have a few questions for FCC.

a) Why was there nothing on their website?
b) Why did none of their staff have a clue what was going on, even down to the level of how many trains were arriving?
c)  Why didn't the coach drivers know the quickest routes

All basic stuff. As usual, no information and no organisation as soon as something goes wrong.

First Capital Connect - Another fine mess !

In the words of Stan and Ollie "That's another fine mess you've got me into". This afternoon I thought I'd see how the Thameslink trains were running back to Mill Hill from City Thameslink. "No Service" was the answer? What, none at all. Further investigation showed that the station was shut. I made a few enquiries. Apparently an unfortunate lady commuter had slipped over on the platform this morning. Although this was terrible, why did the station need to be closed all day? You'll love this. Word on the street is that the platforms were treated with a new "anti slip surface". What happened next? It became slippery when it was became wet. The health and safety advisors deemed it "unsafe" and shut the station. Could you make it up?

Crapitalisation - Another sorry day for First Capital Connect

In Mill Hill today you could smell the stench of corporate failure. Yet again First Capital Connect failed to provide even a basic service on the Thameslink line. The reason? Snow and poor weather. Rather bizarrely the one bit of the network with no service at all was the bit in the tunnel, between St Pancras and Blackfriars.

It seems like they've given up even trying. At Mill Hill at 7.45, no staff, no information on the signs except "listen for announcements" and no announcements. For most commuters the only time you need an announcement or a display board is when it goes wrong. When this happens the system collapses. Surely the signalmen know where the trains are. Surely these systems talk to the systems that display the info?

Coming home, I checked the FCC website. It said there was a 17.02 from City Thameslink to Mill Hill and it was running on time. Off I headed. On arrival, there was a hand written board saying all northbound services start from St Pancras.

Just how useless can a company be?

First Capital Connect : The greatest Cockney rip off

Just suppose that you've been travelling to work on the same train for the last 20 years. Just suppose that your journey takes you from the station at the bottom of your road, all of the way to another one next to your office. It sounds marvellous doesn't it?


Just suppose that one day, the train company announces that they are spending billions of pounds on improving the service. You'd be even more pleased no doubt? Then you read the small print. How do these improvements affect you? Well if you live in Mill Hill or anywhere else on the Thameslink route and you travel to Moorgate, these improvements mean that you cannot get a direct train to work anymore and that you'll be charged more for the privelidge. Full details are here.

http://www.thameslinkprogramme.co.uk/faqs/faqs_categories/public_index#question_25

I think that it is scandalous that First Capital Connect, which uses Moorgate station as a terminus for it's GN route trains, refuses to honour the "London Terminus" tickets. It is bad enough that passengers now have to change at Farringdon to a congested underground service, but to charge people for the tube fare is adding insult to injury. The Government funded a concession on the tickets up until March 2011. When this expires, passengers will face a huge hike in fares as they have to buy a zone 1 travelcard.

Customers of FCC have suffered disruption, delays, cancellations and all manner of inconvenience due to the program of improvements. Most people accept that this is a necessary evil to improve the service, but charging people extra for a less convenient journey is scandalous. Presumably once the new routes open and the the longer trains start service, First Capital Connect will increase its profits - any chance of them sharing some of the loot with those who have to endure a far less comfortable journey?

A customer focussed company would have maintained the concession for London Terminus tickets. Of course we are dealing with First Group PLC, so no chance of that.