"ONscotland" wrote in message
ups.com...

Probably not to do with 'key performance indicators', but my last few
trips on Chiltern have been very disappointing train. A recent journey
to Birmingham was on what was perhaps the grottiest train I have ever
travelled on - the walls inside had ancient coffee stains, the carpets
looked like they hadn't been cleaned in months and the table was
sticky. Yuck.

The other thing that would worry me if I were Chiltern is that, although
Virgin's service is more expensive, it's not always as expensive as people
think. I don't know if VT have increased their quotas of Value fares but I
was surprised to find that as late as Wednesday I was able to book a First
Advance ticket from New Street to Euston for Friday, at exactly the time I
wanted to travel, for £29.50. I could have got Standard for £10. I was
travelling on business so it was a no-brainer, but at that price I would
have been tempted even if it had been a leisure trip, bearing in mind that
the price includes coffee, soft drinks, a copy of the Times, some perfectly
good sandwiches, and no screaming kids.

It would still be a shame if Chiltern did go into decline. I for one was
sorry that they didn't take over the Snow Hill suburban services in the
recent WM shake-up.

Regards

Jonathan