Central Trains

Advantages: See Review
Disadvantages: See Review

Central Trains are my nearest and dearest rail operator, and my experiences of using their services are therefore quite extensive. Whilst I will normally only use Central Trains for connecting services to Virgin or other Inter City routes, travelling with the company has proven to be an experience in itself. Network Central Trains operate a number of key routes in the Midlands and Wales, although some of their services run some way outside ...
...be fair to say that Central Trains has more than its fair share of problems in this area. Trains are regularly significantly late – 30 minutes or more – and I would approximate that one train in twenty is actually cancelled. Silly excuses aside (leaves on the line etc) I would observe that Central Trains suffers most as a result of its own network. Firstly, most (if not all) of the trains end up at some point in Birmingham New Street. ... Read review

Advantages: Cheap Tickets when booking in advance and also they are the only choice!
Disadvantages: Slow, delays, terrible coffee!

...Manchester from Peterborough twice with Central Trains and have had varying experiences. On both journeys I was able to purchase tickets 5 days or more in advance allowing me to make savings off the final ticket price, so the price of £26 was quite reasonable. Both times I was allocated seats. This meant that when I boarded the train they would have a reserve sign on one of the seats so I was guaranteed one. This was good as it ensured I had a seat. ...
...disembark and get onto another central trains service for the same location but with many more passengers. I was still able to get a seat but as the service continued to Manchester, more and more people got on board and it became very crowded. I was therefore very glad when my train pulled in at Manchester Piccadilly Station and I disembarked. The following evening after a very enjoyable time seeing a friend, I boarded the return train to Peterborough. ... Read review

Advantages: Quick, easy, loads of destinations
Disadvantages: Never on time, Weird passengers, Expensive

...8 out of ten (85.1%) Central Trains services arrived at their destinations on time - an improvement of nearly 11% compared to the same period last year when the company achieved 74.6%." Note - "punctual" means that trains arrive within 10 minutes of their scheduled time. Central Trains cover a wide area from Birmingham, Cardiff, Liverpool, Manchester, Norwich, etc. Example of fares: A return from Birmingham to Cardiff costs £28 on Central Trains ...
...2.5 hours. £28 with Virgin trains and takes 2 hours. For long-distance journeys, the fares are quite competetive. However, it's the short distances where it mounts up. For a single between Walsall and Birmingham it's £2.40, whereas if you got the bus it'd be £1.10. For 15 year olds and under, the prices are usually half adult prices. There's no student discount and usually if you're over 10 you'll need photo ID to prove you're under 15 as they're ... Read review

Advantages: Sensible fares, frequent services
Disadvantages: Poor timekeeping, trains are too short, very variable service quality

...live in the West Midlands, Central Trains are the railway company I use most often, particularly the suburban routes around Birmingham. I feel that their overall performance can best be described as "variable". On the whole, they don't do anything particularly stupid, but there are regular little niggles that create a feeling of vague annoyance. First, the trains themselves. Central run a wide variety of trains, so this isn't easy to generalise ...
...in the rush hour, though Central don't seem to appreciate this. The electric trains used within the "Birmingham blot" are fairly new, and generally clean. The seats are uncomfortable, however, being too hard and plasticky - a common failing of the modern railway companies - and they are not pleasant for long journeys. I have been from Birmingham to Liverpool on these trains several times, and it is not a particularly enjoyable experience. The newest ... Read review

Advantages: Mostly on time
Disadvantages: Dirty trains, very basic.

I travel on Central Trains very regularly, as they share my local line between Telford Central and Wolverhampton with Arriva Trains Wales. Luckily the journeys I have on them are quite short, because some of the trains are quite dinghy. Well, I say that, it's about half and half. They all have a peculiar smell, but some are so dirty and litter ridden it's hard to find anywhere appealing to sit down. Some of them are actually OK, bright and satisfactory. ...
...due to necessary engineering works, Central Trains have to lay on replacement bus services, these are erratic and barely catchable. They either don't stop at the station, or they stop in some random place next to it, so anybody wanting to get on can't see it. Saying that, that's probably not Central Trains fault. They have a nice reimbursment scheme which you can claim off if you are delayed by more than 30 minutes. These are apparently standard ... Read review

Advantages: more investement, new trains, doesnt require as much Government money
Disadvantages: Railtrack making a mess of things at the moment

...and hence I believe that we will begin to reap the rewards very soon. I am starting to see a lot of new trains arriving now. My local operator, Central Trains, have just unveiled their lovely new trains and they really are so comfortable and clean that I couldn't believe it when I first travelled on them. Back this up with my other main long distance operator, Virgin Trains, spate of new trains arriving between now and 2005, I believe we are in an increasingly better situation. Overall I think there are safety concerns but I will continue to travel on Britains Railways and I will continue to sing the praises of the 3 operators I use, Central Trains, Virgin Trains and Northern Spirit. This is because i've had some decent service off all 3.... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Frequent services. very comfortable, excellent trains, great provisions, excellent customer service
Disadvantages: Sometimes late.

...Trains are the best there. I don't know about London Rail Companies, but the competition up here is Central Trains, Arriva Trains Wales and the like. Doesn't say much for Virgin, that they're the best, but honestly, compared to them, Virgin is luxury for me. I generally travel with big bags, but not suitcases. There isn't a lot of storage space for large suitcases, but for bags, you can store them on your feet if your not fussy, or there's the overhead areas. It can be crowded, especially if it's a busy Friday afternoon and you're travelling for an hour and a half (longer if you're doing Devon/Cornwall), but imagine doing it on Central Trains. Har Har. Staff are really friendly and can often be humorous. Before reaching a station, and after departing from one, the Train Manager and/or the Retail Manager will go on the tannoy and keep you... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Smart trains, fast, reliable, comfortable, friendly
Disadvantages: Website doesn't work for me

...High Speed Trains could run faster. This of course, had it's downsides. The turbostar trains were simply not fast enough, and didn't carry enough capacity to deal with Midland Mainline's passenger growth. This had to be sorted out, and it was in due course. By 2004, Midland Mainline had ordered another batch of trains as Central Trains had agreed to take their turbostars. The newer 4-coach 'Meridian' trains were based on the controversial virgin voyager trains, however were built with the voyager criticisms taken on board. The trains were built to run at the same speed as the High Speed Trains, and could tackle frequent stopping services with the highest acceleration. This would hopefully reduce delays and overcrowding. The plan seemed to work... Now it is 2007, most meridians have been increased to 5 coaches and there have been even... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful