Vagueness and the Aftermath - A sporadic diary

[tikay]

A proper prop bet.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-20676667

I do hope Mr Walsh wins.

[tikay]

[outragous76]

I have to go to London tomorrow for a meeting. I usually take an off peak train but this time I can't because have to be there by 10:30.

Guess how much my ticket will cost....

£167  (its £215 from leeds now!)

£215? Christ on a bike!

Im actually of the opinion that its  a national disgrace.

ITs obviously driven by morning business traffic, especially on a monday, where on a bad day you could stand for half of the journey if you got on at Newark!

However, little businesses like mine struggle to make things work in the capital when before you get out of bed it costs you £215! It cheaper for me to go in teh afternoon and take my clients out for dinner!

[kinboshi]

I used to travel down to London from Nottingham once a week for a meeting with a client. If I forgot to book the ticket at least a week in advance, or had to travel at peak time it'd make me cry paying the ridiculous prices.

I would get the return train after 7, as it was about £100 cheaper, even in first class where at least I could work on my laptop during the journey. Miss your train though and they make you pay full price for the next one on top of the ticket you've already bought. Same if you try to get an earlier one.

Those who use the train every day into London must pay a fortune for their season tickets, or their firms do.

[david3103]

On the other hand - my Dad is travelling by train to visit us at Christmas. His return fare Kings Cross to Darlington is £75.

Rail prices, like airfares, are set at levels influenced by the Law of Supply & Demand. Should they be subsidised in some way?
Besides which, there are cheap rail fares to be had if you travel at times that have low demand. I've taken the train to London late on a night and paid for a Travelodge room when the cost of the two is cheaper than taking the early train the following day. I get a decent night of sleep with no need to be worried about missing my train too.

The train wins on cost comparison with the car most of the time. It's around 260 miles to London from here, that's around 14 gallons of fuel at £6 and when you add in car parking and congestion charges the price differential is minimal. Then there's the rest/productive time on the train vs the car which is a big factor.

Plus, on speed of journey the train wins every time - 2hrs 30 mins to London? I can't get to Nottingham in that time.

[millidonk]

I used to travel down to London from Nottingham once a week for a meeting with a client. If I forgot to book the ticket at least a week in advance, or had to travel at peak time it'd make me cry paying the ridiculous prices.

I would get the return train after 7, as it was about £100 cheaper, even in first class where at least I could work on my laptop during the journey. Miss your train though and they make you pay full price for the next one on top of the ticket you've already bought. Same if you try to get an earlier one.

Those who use the train every day into London must pay a fortune for their season tickets, or their firms do.

Lincoln to Kings X season ticket with all zones is £10,000 a year. Could have taken a job with 18k more than I am now in the City, but 8k extra for fulltime 16hr days and even more time away from family just wasn't worth it.

Whenever I go I book well in advance

[kinboshi]

On the other hand - my Dad is travelling by train to visit us at Christmas. His return fare Kings Cross to Darlington is £75.

Rail prices, like airfares, are set at levels influenced by the Law of Supply & Demand. Should they be subsidised in some way?
Besides which, there are cheap rail fares to be had if you travel at times that have low demand. I've taken the train to London late on a night and paid for a Travelodge room when the cost of the two is cheaper than taking the early train the following day. I get a decent night of sleep with no need to be worried about missing my train too.

The train wins on cost comparison with the car most of the time. It's around 260 miles to London from here, that's around 14 gallons of fuel at £6 and when you add in car parking and congestion charges the price differential is minimal. Then there's the rest/productive time on the train vs the car which is a big factor.

Plus, on speed of journey the train wins every time - 2hrs 30 mins to London? I can't get to Nottingham in that time.

That's assuming the train hasn't been cancelled by the wrong kind of rain/leaves/snow/ice, and that you can get to the station easily (parking isn't always cheap at the stations, and public transport to get the station isn't always reliable/available).

Then there's the connections to manage on the other end once you get to London (or wherever else).

There are many ways the train service in this country could be made more attractive and more accessible.  I understand the supply & demand argument for pricing, but when they run a train with only two carriages and then wonder why people are upset that they can't sit in their reserved seat because that carriage isn't actually attached to the train and there are no other seats available, you can see why people look at alternatives - which usually means the car.

[david3103]

On the other hand - my Dad is travelling by train to visit us at Christmas. His return fare Kings Cross to Darlington is £75.

Rail prices, like airfares, are set at levels influenced by the Law of Supply & Demand. Should they be subsidised in some way?
Besides which, there are cheap rail fares to be had if you travel at times that have low demand. I've taken the train to London late on a night and paid for a Travelodge room when the cost of the two is cheaper than taking the early train the following day. I get a decent night of sleep with no need to be worried about missing my train too.

The train wins on cost comparison with the car most of the time. It's around 260 miles to London from here, that's around 14 gallons of fuel at £6 and when you add in car parking and congestion charges the price differential is minimal. Then there's the rest/productive time on the train vs the car which is a big factor.

Plus, on speed of journey the train wins every time - 2hrs 30 mins to London? I can't get to Nottingham in that time.

That's assuming the train hasn't been cancelled by the wrong kind of rain/leaves/snow/ice, and that you can get to the station easily (parking isn't always cheap at the stations, and public transport to get the station isn't always reliable/available).

Then there's the connections to manage on the other end once you get to London (or wherever else).

There are many ways the train service in this country could be made more attractive and more accessible.  I understand the supply & demand argument for pricing, but when they run a train with only two carriages and then wonder why people are upset that they can't sit in their reserved seat because that carriage isn't actually attached to the train and there are no other seats available, you can see why people look at alternatives - which usually means the car.

I live in a bubble where all my trains run on time and there are always parking spaces at the station or someone to drop me off.
Some journeys don't lend themselves to rail transport, but getting to London pretty much always does.

[Karabiner]

How can you tell when soured cream has gone off?

[tonytats]

How can you tell when soured cream has gone off?

12 hours after eating it ,if half digested food has not started coming out of one end or the other at projectile speeds ,it's prolly ok !

[RED-DOG]

Kendall taking part in the distribution of a joke.

I never thought I'd live to see the day.

[RED-DOG]

Spent an hour with this bloke today. He told me some great stories.



http://www.leicester.gov.uk/oneleicester/downloads/posters/edmond-isaac.pdf

[kinboshi]

On the other hand - my Dad is travelling by train to visit us at Christmas. His return fare Kings Cross to Darlington is £75.

Rail prices, like airfares, are set at levels influenced by the Law of Supply & Demand. Should they be subsidised in some way?
Besides which, there are cheap rail fares to be had if you travel at times that have low demand. I've taken the train to London late on a night and paid for a Travelodge room when the cost of the two is cheaper than taking the early train the following day. I get a decent night of sleep with no need to be worried about missing my train too.

The train wins on cost comparison with the car most of the time. It's around 260 miles to London from here, that's around 14 gallons of fuel at £6 and when you add in car parking and congestion charges the price differential is minimal. Then there's the rest/productive time on the train vs the car which is a big factor.

Plus, on speed of journey the train wins every time - 2hrs 30 mins to London? I can't get to Nottingham in that time.

That's assuming the train hasn't been cancelled by the wrong kind of rain/leaves/snow/ice, and that you can get to the station easily (parking isn't always cheap at the stations, and public transport to get the station isn't always reliable/available).

Then there's the connections to manage on the other end once you get to London (or wherever else).

There are many ways the train service in this country could be made more attractive and more accessible.  I understand the supply & demand argument for pricing, but when they run a train with only two carriages and then wonder why people are upset that they can't sit in their reserved seat because that carriage isn't actually attached to the train and there are no other seats available, you can see why people look at alternatives - which usually means the car.

I live in a bubble where all my trains run on time and there are always parking spaces at the station or someone to drop me off.
Some journeys don't lend themselves to rail transport, but getting to London pretty much always does.

I meant it depends where you live.

When I was in Nottingham, and before that in Tamworth, I was close to a station to get to London fairly easily.  But now I'm 20 minutes from a station, and that station is a good 30 minutes from Birmingham from where I'd get the train to London.  Definitely not a practical choice for me now.

[kinboshi]

Read this interesting article earlier today. Thought this thread was the most high-brow in which to share it.

http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/pandemics/2012/12/napoleon_march_to_russia_in_1812_typhus_spread_by_lice_was_more_powerful.single.html

[Kev B]

Spent an hour with this bloke today. He told me some great stories.



http://www.leicester.gov.uk/oneleicester/downloads/posters/edmond-isaac.pdf

He's a cracking character Tom. I saw him interviewed on Central News the other week. How nice to be content for so many years in your job.