Virgin/Crosscountry trains, do u love them or hate them?

Question

I had the misfortune of going on one yesterday again, and i just hate them, what do u think?

Answer 1

I think they're alright - but because they're Italian, they have probs...no offence, Italy he he.

I blame they're internal designer - the rest of the train is fine, mechanically - shame about the windows.

But what I would say - "Bring back the APT!". Even though I'm too young to have ridden the APT - but I've seen video of it - it looks way better (and was) than the modern pendelinos cost-for-cost

Answer 2

I went on one of their Pendolino ones (the tilting trains) and it made me sick - spend a lot of time in the loo, which I must say was one of the nicest train loos I've ever been in ;-)

Answer 3

The trains are too short (not enough carriages) to operate long distance services - they've now started fixing two trains together but they're still not long enough!

Luckily I only have to use National Express East Coast to travel to London so I avoid Virgin trains.

Answer 4

Hate, rather go direct rather than cross country

Answer 5

Virgin trains no longer run the cross country services.

But there are still problems with both companies trains.

The seating arrangment on the pendolinos are awful,with lots of seats not even adjacent to a window (funny how they never show you that seat in the advetisements).

The seats that acually have a window position...the window is too small and brings on a feeling of claustrophobia in a lot of people....The APT(the original tilting train) had massive windows by comparision.

On cross-country the class 220/221 trains makes you feel you've bought a ticket for cattle-class!

A train which is only 4 or 5 coaches long to replace a HST unit..so you're very lucky to get a seat at all if you've joined the train at an intermediate stop.

Even doubeling up sets at busy times is not really a soloution...during busy times BR used to put a 2nd service on(a relife) so that was 2 HST trains with approx 30% more seats than 2xclass 221 sets.

I work for a railway company(we're forbidden to speak to the press or to put our thoughts to public scrutiny)..so I won't name them...BUT personally I would'nt travel by train at anytime if i did'nt need to.

Post-privatisation railway companies are only there to make money for thier investors..so it's "pack 'em in the cheapest train and charge as much as you can".

And sod the best quality travel experience for the customer.

Answer 6

Much prefer the older style trains that National Express East Coast run.

Answer 7

Perhaps if the spirit of the Conservative government's privatisation plans had been followed to the letter, we would have the finest railway system in the world. Sadly, it's not the case: instead of letting the franchised companies run the services as they see fit, the government (both Conservative and Labour over the years), have maintained control of the railways and will not allow the expansion required for the growth that the railways have seen since privatisation.

Virgin West Coast asked for an extension to their franchise in return for two more carriages on each train it operates to relieve overcrowding. Denied.

Cross Country needs more carriages, but the government gave them the franchise without the obligation to provide more carriages, just to increase the seating capacity on existing stock by cramming in more seats at the expense of the popular shop area.

Don't blame the train operating company; blame Gordon Brown, the very popular bloke in charge of the country, who also happened to abolish the 10p tax band.