On a recent visit to Tunbridge Wells in Kent I had the misfortune to experience the “service” offered the regional railway operator Connex South Eastern. I’m not sure where they dreamed that name up – I think it’s supposed to signify rapid connections or something ... Read review
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...offered the regional railway operator Connex South Eastern. I’m not sure where they dreamed that name up – I think it’s supposed to signify rapid connections or something – I think the use of the word “con” is probably far more appropriate.
In the course of a normal working week, I will probably spend between six and ten hours travelling by train. Due to the nature of my work, this involves travel ... ...have to hand it to Connex though – they are without a single shadow of a doubt the worst rail operator I have yet to experience.
It would appear that most of Connex’s rolling stock is currently on loan from a railway museum – it astounded me that such old trains were still in use. Whereas, even on local services, one would normally expect safe, relatively modern, air conditioned trains Connex South Eastern have obviously ... more
On a recent visit to Tunbridge Wells in Kent I had the misfortune to experience the “service” offered the regional railway operator Connex South Eastern. I’m not sure where they dreamed that name up – I think it’s supposed to signify rapid connections or something – I think the use of the word “con” is probably far more appropriate.
In the course of a normal working week, I will probably spend between six and ten hours travelling by train. Due to the nature of my work, this involves travel right across the UK, so I have now experienced most of the major rail operators quite extensively. I have to hand it to Connex though – they are without a single shadow of a doubt the worst rail operator I have yet to experience.
It would appear that most of Connex’s rolling stock is currently on loan from a railway museum – it astounded me that such old trains were still in use. Whereas, even on local services, one would normally expect safe, relatively modern, air conditioned trains Connex South Eastern have obviously decided that there is absolutely no point in investing in modern trains at all. Their trains are scabby – there is no other word. The floors, seats and walls were disgustingly filthy. Vandalism was rife – one seat in ten had at some point been dismantled, no doubt for the Friday Night Crew to hurl from the window. Even more amazing was that Connex had the nerve to label some compartments as first class – aside from the slightly wider seats I couldn’t spot any distinction between standard class and first class. I’m not sure if the windows were filthy, or whether there was mildew between the double-glazed pains – either way you couldn’t see out.
I had the misfortune to travel on an extremely humid day, during the rush hour (London departure time 17:00). There were a considerable number of passengers standing up (despite the fact that the trains were running every fifteen minutes) but then the simple answer to this would be to remove the (extensive) first class carriages which simply weren’t required. The only form of air-conditioning was a few small windows that only allowed fresh air in when the train was at full speed – and if a train passed in the other direction the air current would cause them all to slam shut anyway.
Without wishing to be alarmist, these trains are also extremely unsafe. The door mechanism was so old that the door could be opened whilst the train was in motion and the doors were also a potential hazard for little fingers getting caught in the mechanism, or to passengers on platforms waiting to get clobbered. A number of the seats had sharp edges exposed where rubber guards had worn/been torn off. The sheer volume of passengers would also mean that in the event of an emergency things would probably be about as bad as they could get. What really worries me is that I recognise these trains quite clearly as the same trains that were in use nine or ten years ago.
This shabby, almost vagrant attitude to the trains is also clearly evident in the stations. Once again, there is a marked contrast in the upkeep of stations in the South East compared to other areas of the country. Dilapidated stations, poorly manned by obviously disheartened staff – and once again the evidence of vandalism was everywhere. Upon my return I had to queue for quite some time to buy a ticket – the staff in the ticket office were in no hurry – and the ticket machine was out of order. My train arrived, and went without me, simply because I was advised that I had to buy a ticket first, or incur a penalty fare.
The worst part about all this is that Connex South Eastern has no real excuse not to be a profitable, flagship rail service. Due to its catchment area (including many routes in and out of London), this network has an extremely high throughput of customers and commuters – if Connex can’t get things right what hope is there for the smaller operators struggling to provide services on rural routes? The service offered is downright embarrassing – tourists arriving from Europe may well need to use these services – hardly what one might call a good advertisement for our public transport system.
I saw very little evidence of attempts by Connex to improve Customer Service. Information posters were adhered randomly to badly-decorated station walls – there is no evidence of any care or attention anywhere. Many smaller stations are now unmanned which means that advice on buying tickets or finding out train times is not always easy to find. My trains were both on time, but as I glanced around the information boards at Waterloo East I quickly spotted cancellations and considerable delays without looking very hard. Fares are also comparatively high – I saw very few special offers or deals to persuade passengers to travel more.
This is a railway gone wrong – it is painfully apparent that nobody within Connex could care less about the quality of service on offer. I was appalled to see a poster offering management apologies for “inconvenience caused” when two trains nearly collided. Something clearly has to give somewhere along the line – and why do I get this feeling that people will have to die before anyone does something about this? In all the years seen I last travelled in this area, the service is now markedly inferior to what it was – and it was pretty bad back then!
A recent questionnaire conducted by Connex on their website asked
“Do you think Connex is getting better at listening to its customers?”
Advantages: Fast Disadvantages: very expensive, not comfortable, not reliable
...trains == Despite Connex constantly releasing statistics saying how trains are no where near as late as they used to be, I think that these 'statistics' must be false as I am constantly plagued by late trains. I have known trains to 'disappear' by vanishing from the screens and not turning up at the station.
Today (13-04-2007) I had to get the train to and from a local town and both trains were delayed the outbound journey 12 minutes and the inbound ... ...of trains ==
With Connex it tends to be roughly a train an hour and during peek times this becomes two and hour, which in all fairness I think is actually sufficient.
However on the school run every morning there needs to be more carriages added as they try to fit about 800 children onto a train with seating for only about half of that and despite complaints from all the schools in the area nothing has been done to help this issue.
== Comfort ...
Deal_lion 13.04.2007
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Connex South Eastern
Advantages: Generally OK during off-peak times, Not many first class cabins Disadvantages: Frequently late or cancelled at peak times, Gets overcrowded, Infrequent service compared to underground
...SouthEast. As a teenager when Connex took over, I still enjoyed travelling into central London every weekend, despite the occasional Sunday engineering works that would disrupt my journey. But how things changed once I began to commute to work properly, I now understand why commuters are so dissatisfied with Connex's service, because while the service might be 'fine' and endurable during off-peak hours, it can fall to pieces during rush hour, and ... ...and believe me, this is Connex running well. Those that frequently use Connex, end up planning their time around the train timetables - underground users would be shocked, being used to waiting for the next tube arriving within the next 10 mins, and would get twitchy if they even had to wait that long! Travel during rush hour and it's a different matter. If you manage to get a seat, you should be counting your blessings. Rush hour begins about 7am, ...
chinnyli 24.09.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Connex South Eastern
Advantages: Vibration of old trains sends you to sleep. Delays mean extra sleep Disadvantages: Boss yells at you for being late. Dog eats your dinner due to being late.
...little naively I thought that Connex South Eastern would be capable of ferrying me to work in London every day. At the very least I hoped that they would be able to reliably achieve a modicum of time keeping in this simple task, even if I plan to jump companies the minute the high-speed rail link from Ashford to London is completed. Alas, Connex have failed dismally.
I have recently suffered regular extensive delays during the ‘rush hour’, ... ...London while optimistically believing that Connex could actually deliver a service. But the complaint is not just about a gross failure to keep to timetables, it is also about the appalling condition of their trains, many of which are the poorly maintained old slam-door type which should really be rusting in museums by now. Having travelled on their new trains, there is a major difference in standard. The only grouches I have about the new trains ...
gorrit 01.11.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Connex South Eastern
Advantages: gets you to your destination... Disadvantages: ....feeling short changed and dirty
...the buses and even though Connex is usually a little bit late, it does ultimately get you to your destination. One of the main problems with Connex is that the train are some of the oldest in the country, which is quite amazing considering the line is one of the busiest commuter networks. They are dirty, often broken and becasue of the shoddy state they are kept in, are often prone to vandalism.
Connex South East is the rail network from London ... ...reason alone I feel that Connex South East has a responsibility to the country to maintain the trains to an acceptable standard. Furthermore, the network goes through the main commuter-belt for London and if the company can't provide a resonable service, then it further effects the economics within the city.
SERVICE AT RUSH HOUR...
All I can say here, is that avoide using the service before 9.30am and between the hours of 4.30pm and 7.30pm, unless ...
breezes 11.07.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Connex South Eastern
This year my travelcard went up 20p - doesn't sound like much, does it? but I don't think I should be paying after what's been happening to transport service over the past years. There were, in total, 6 train collisions/incidents last year - 6 too many. Isn't it supposed to be the safest mode of transport, after the aeroplane? The bus service don't seem to be raising their prices. Maybe they need the extra cash to improve? Or they are just taking ...
gem2_k 16.01.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Connex South Eastern
Frequency of trains
Reliability of trains
Comfort of trains
On-board facilities
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