Trains Can't Stop Us.

Pictured here alongside me are John Scott from the Peak Park Planning Authority and Steve Pointer from Notts CC in a day trip to Peak Park. Of which more later. Our experience getting there from Market Harborough is another aspect where we need to improve our rail services and incidentally also why the environment for closing ticket offices is far too premature. I had never taken my bike on a train. Nervous that I might be able to get a cycle reservation on line, I went in a week early to the station at Market Harborough to book my tickets to Matlock. It took three very friendly members of staff (probably 10 minutes) working together to get me a reservation for my bike on Midland Mainline to Beeston (as reservations are required and only 2 places per train are anyway possible). I was told no reservations are possible on the East Midlands train to Matlock from Beeston but ‘you should be fine.’ On the day the train arrives in Market Harborough on time, like on all of our four journeys that day. That is a good news story. Or so I thought. Of course, when our connection arrived in Beeston the guard would not let us on the train, as there were already two bikes on the train. Next train was an hour later. What do we do if the same story endures in an hour’s time? The intervening period was spent planning something around Nottingham. Anyway, the next train did not have any bikes on board, so the pair of us scrambled aboard. What was there though were two persons in wheelchairs. Occupying the space where the bikes are meant to go. Only one of us could put a bike out of the way of the corridor. So, my bike was left blocking the corridor. Did not worry me and no one minded as the train was not busy. But how all this works in busy times goodness only knows. In conclusion there are two problems here. One: no joined up thinking in terms of different operators having different policies re cycles and insufficient space provided in any event on many modern trains. After we were refused access at Beeston another customer approached us to ask why, as he was thinking of travelling to Glasgow and taking his bike. He said there and then he would drive now. Secondly, if I struggle to buy a cycle ticket and so does the ticket office the whole process needs to be radically simplified if more ticket offices are to be closed. Sustainable it certainly isn’t. And the trip to the Peak District? The rest of the day went brilliant, and coming back late meant that there was plenty of room on the trains and there were no issues. We cycled the High Peak and Monsal trails and bits in between. We had a wonderful reunion with plenty of healthy exercise and I would do it again. Among other matters we reminisced about our nearly 90 years’ service collectively on the various management structures of the East Midlands RTPI ! Getting like Last of the summer wine if we are not careful!