Actually Tony, I am from Aylesbury. And I do not think the politicians
here in the US are above criticism. When it comes to railroads, the
word clueless comes to mind.

The word 'system' would be hard to apply to most of the passenger
railroads in the United States.

Nevertheless having grown up near a town (Aylesbury) with fine rail
links both north and south. Said routes having the potential for
development into a fine network, you will understand my disappointment
at the leftovers that Aylesbury has for it rail link today.

This is particularly strange in so far as Aylesbury was part of an area
that was expected to see, and did see, expanded housing and employment
as companies and individual were encouraged to relocate away from
London in the 1960s and 1970s.

Aylesbury never did gain a motorway connection, for which I am
grateful. However, it lost a fine mainline to the north. It lost the
fast service to London. It lost its link to the WCML at Cheddington
and all local service going north. All tat remains are the stopping
DMU services to London.

A couple of years back I recall one lady politician at Westminster
refer to "Arrangements in Breweries". My first thought in response was
"She would know, wouldn't she".

For some years now Tony, I have been part of a successful campaign for
rail expansion here in Los Angeles County, see
http://www.friends4expo.org/ It has been a long slog. But we are
making progress and doing so in a metropolis that loves cars and
freeways.

:-) Have a nice evening

Adrian.
HOLLYWOOD, CA

Aylesbury does still have good if bloody expensive rail connections with
Chiltern, there are plans for an Aylesbury North station to be built
along with a big housing development, what we really need are links west
to east, connecting us with Oxford, MK, and Cambridge now that would be
fantastic, with the planned expansion of the town with Mad Uncle
Prescotts lets cover the entire south east with homes idea, the amount
of traffic is going to go through the roof, parts of the town are
already a pollution hotspot! to have this rail link, along with a bypass
would hopefully sort out some of the chaos that we have now, oh and
don't get me started on Arriva busses (bunch of crooks).





Adrian Auer-Hudson wrote:
Actually Tony, I am from Aylesbury. And I do not think the politicians
here in the US are above criticism. When it comes to railroads, the
word clueless comes to mind.

The word 'system' would be hard to apply to most of the passenger
railroads in the United States.

Nevertheless having grown up near a town (Aylesbury) with fine rail
links both north and south. Said routes having the potential for
development into a fine network, you will understand my disappointment
at the leftovers that Aylesbury has for it rail link today.

This is particularly strange in so far as Aylesbury was part of an area
that was expected to see, and did see, expanded housing and employment
as companies and individual were encouraged to relocate away from
London in the 1960s and 1970s.

Aylesbury never did gain a motorway connection, for which I am
grateful. However, it lost a fine mainline to the north. It lost the
fast service to London. It lost its link to the WCML at Cheddington
and all local service going north. All tat remains are the stopping
DMU services to London.

A couple of years back I recall one lady politician at Westminster
refer to "Arrangements in Breweries". My first thought in response was
"She would know, wouldn't she".

For some years now Tony, I have been part of a successful campaign for
rail expansion here in Los Angeles County, see
http://www.friends4expo.org/ It has been a long slog. But we are
making progress and doing so in a metropolis that loves cars and
freeways.

:-) Have a nice evening

Adrian.
HOLLYWOOD, CA

"General Von Clinkerhoffen" wrote in message
...
Aylesbury does still have good if bloody expensive rail connections with
Chiltern,

Eh?

I'd call £10 for a day Travelcard to London (with a Network Card), giving
travel on all trains, buses, Underground etc. as far south as Orpington,
Croydon and Surbiton *bloody* good value for money.

Likewise £18 return to Brum is pretty good value compared with the walk-on
fares that the competition charge.

"Jack Taylor" wrote:


"General Von Clinkerhoffen" wrote in message
...
Aylesbury does still have good if bloody expensive rail connections with
Chiltern,

Eh?

I'd call £10 for a day Travelcard to London (with a Network Card), giving
travel on all trains, buses, Underground etc. as far south as Orpington,
Croydon and Surbiton *bloody* good value for money.

Likewise £18 return to Brum is pretty good value compared with the walk-on
fares that the competition charge.


Well said, Jack. Chiltern Railways offer *excellent* value for money,
whether as a taxpayer or a farepayer.

Well said, Jack. Chiltern Railways offer *excellent* value for money,
whether as a taxpayer or a farepayer.

£2.50 for a *Single* High Wycombe - Beaconsfield. Value?

"Joe" wrote in message
oups.com...
Well said, Jack. Chiltern Railways offer *excellent* value for
money,
whether as a taxpayer or a farepayer.

£2.50 for a *Single* High Wycombe - Beaconsfield. Value?


Why is it a rip off ? I suspect its the price the market will bear, in
which case its hardly a rip off.
If you don't like it, catch the bus, there are about 3 or 4 per hour
between High Wycombe and Beaconsfield.
I suspect Chiltern rate the local Beaconsfield - High Wycombe
traveller as less important to the overall business compared with
commuters to/from London or Birmingham, and longer distance travel on
intermediate stations (eg Warwick to Gerrards Cross or High Wycombe to
Stratford upon Avon).

Having said that, you could just be moaning for the sake of it... you
seem to have a real chip on your shoulder about Chiltern Railways and
Arriva buses, neither of which are anywhere near as bad as the picture
you paint of them.

"Matt Wheeler" wrote:

Why is it a rip off ? I suspect its the price the market will bear, in
which case its hardly a rip off.
If you don't like it, catch the bus, there are about 3 or 4 per hour
between High Wycombe and Beaconsfield.
I suspect Chiltern rate the local Beaconsfield - High Wycombe
traveller as less important to the overall business compared with
commuters to/from London or Birmingham, and longer distance travel on
intermediate stations (eg Warwick to Gerrards Cross or High Wycombe to
Stratford upon Avon).

Having said that, you could just be moaning for the sake of it... you
seem to have a real chip on your shoulder about Chiltern Railways and
Arriva buses, neither of which are anywhere near as bad as the picture
you paint of them.


Well said that man !!

;-)

£2.50 for a *Single* High Wycombe - Beaconsfield. Value?
For the sake of comparison, the LACMTA serve the County of Los Angeles.
LA Co. covers an area of some 4,061 square miles. Any single trip on
an MTA (better know as Metro) Bus, or Train is USD1.35 that would be
well under GBP1.00). No transfer is allowed on a single ticket.
However an all day pass is USD3.00.

A monthly pass is USD52.00. However many employers subsidize transit
and van pool commuting. For example my employer buys the monthly
passes from the MTA and sells them to staff for USD28.00. With the
pass my employer gives me a discount card. All meals purchased in the
company's cafeteria are reduced in cost by 25%. In practice that means
lunch costs me 3 to 4 dollars a day instead of 4 to 5 dollars. I
calculate that, with the meal discount, my commute of 28 miles each
way, twice a day is costing me under USD8.00 a month. That would be
under GBP5.00 a month.

So, I do find any bus and rail fares in the UK expensive. That aside,
I still enjoy my visits.


A.

In message .com, at
15:00:55 on Wed, 27 Jul 2005, Adrian Auer-Hudson
remarked:
For the sake of comparison, the LACMTA serve the County of Los Angeles.
LA Co. covers an area of some 4,061 square miles. Any single trip on
an MTA (better know as Metro) Bus, or Train is USD1.35 that would be
well under GBP1.00). No transfer is allowed on a single ticket.

Fares are much the same on the Atlanta Marta ($1.75 for a single fare
that could be - and I made that trip frequently - as far as 20 miles
[further than Gerrards Cross to Central London]).

But the Marta fares only pay a third of the cost of the system. The
other two thirds is paid for by an extra 1% sales tax levied on the
residents of certain well-off counties in the metro area.

As far as I'm aware, the lines being compared within the UK don't have a
public subsidy, and have to run at a profit (or even worse, have to pay
the government a levy).
--
Roland Perry

Well said, Jack. Chiltern Railways offer *excellent* value for money,
whether as a taxpayer or a farepayer.

£2.50 for a *Single* High Wycombe - Beaconsfield. Value? CH are a
bloody rip-Off.