[Albion] Notification of train travel for tonight

[Thunder Bolt]

I've just received a notification on the Albion app on my phone re train travel for tonight.

If you are travelling by train this evening, we have been advised by Southern Rail that they are experiencing staff shortages, so please ensure you allow additional time for your journey to and from the Amex and expect long queues.

 

[bluenitsuj]

Same message that southern seem to send out every day.

 

[Springal]

Must be getting close to Christmas parties again

 

[Jim in the West]

I've just received a notification on the Albion app on my phone re train travel for tonight.

If you are travelling by train this evening, we have been advised by Southern Rail that they are experiencing staff shortages, so please ensure you allow additional time for your journey to and from the Amex and expect long queues.

Without wanting to be a doomsayer, this translates to: "In order to get to The Amex you will be exposed to additional levels of crowding before, during and after your train journey." If you haven't had your booster, this sounds a bit scary to me.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Without wanting to be a doomsayer, this translates to: "In order to get to The Amex you will be exposed to additional levels of crowding before, during and after your train journey." If you haven't had your booster, this sounds a bit scary to me.

That's how I read it too and started the thread so people thinking of using the train to be able to make their own judgement on travelling tonight.

 

[Weststander]

The last super spreader event in Sussex of the year.

The train operators are making sure it’s a good-un, with extra packed trains resulting from reduced services.

Well done, let’s award you another franchise.

 

[Billy the Fish]

If you leave after the final whistle pretty much every game this season has been a total clusterf**k at the station, especially going East.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

I've just received a notification on the Albion app on my phone re train travel for tonight.

If you are travelling by train this evening, we have been advised by Southern Rail that they are experiencing staff shortages, so please ensure you allow additional time for your journey to and from the Amex and expect long queues.

Good ol' SASTA, can always rely on them to be part of the problem

 

[The-Libertine]

We ALL pay towards the cost of travel to The Amex. It is included as part of the price of all tickets. Southern take a lot of money off the club. This is what they get back in return. Southern don’t want to provide a service. They actively try to dissuade people from travelling by train!! It is outrageous. I hope the club ask questions.

 

[jackalbion]

We ALL pay towards the cost of travel to The Amex. It is included as part of the price of all tickets. Southern take a lot of money off the club. This is what they get back in return. Southern don’t want to provide a service. They actively try to dissuade people from travelling by train!! It is outrageous. I hope the club ask questions.

While it is pretty terrible, I presume that the staff shortages are due to COVID, so I’m not really sure what anybody can do about this.

 

[Lower West Stander]

Without wanting to be a doomsayer, this translates to: "In order to get to The Amex you will be exposed to additional levels of crowding before, during and after your train journey." If you haven't had your booster, this sounds a bit scary to me.

Surely anyone who gets on a train going to a match knows this already? If you're scared, you'll be scared getting on any train to the Amex and won't be going....

 

[A1X]

Fewer, more packed trains plus a more transmissible variant?

What could possibly go wrong.

 

[Berty23]

I can’t imagine it will be much more than half full tonight. Trains, park and ride buses, basically a reserves team (I think that is more exciting by the way) all combined with it being on TV means I suspect this will be the beginning of the end for fans for a while. It sucks.

 

[CheeseRolls]

While it is pretty terrible, I presume that the staff shortages are due to COVID, so I’m not really sure what anybody can do about this.

Stop the pretence that this is a for profit private enterprise. Over three decades of this BS and the only thing we have to show for it is better sandwiches, which are F'all to do with the operators anyway. Treat the railways and water treatment (while I am having a rant) like they matter and are a critical part of the countries infrastructure and employ enough people to make sure that services can still run in all but the most extreme of circumstances and that we don't have to wallow in our own excrement in our rivers and seas.

 

[jackalbion]

Stop the pretence that this is a for profit private enterprise. Over three decades of this BS and the only thing we have to show for it is better sandwiches, which are F'all to do with the operators anyway. Treat the railways and water treatment (while I am having a rant) like they matter and are a critical part of the countries infrastructure and employ enough people to make sure that services can still run in all but the most extreme of circumstances and that we don't have to wallow in our own excrement in our rivers and seas.

I agree with what you are saying, but looking at it on a smaller, short term scale, if there is a COVID outbreak at a drivers depot, what can anyone do?

 

[CheeseRolls]

I agree with what you are saying, but looking at it on a smaller, short term scale, if there is a COVID outbreak at a drivers depot, what can anyone do?

As always make alternative arrangements. SASTA don't have a plan and couldn't care less.

 

[jackalbion]

As always make alternative arrangements. SASTA don't have a plan and couldn't care less.

And what alternative arrangements would those be? While I agree with franchising being a disaster, having some background knowledge on the industry, judging by this weekend, a lot of people are only just testing positive, it takes over 2 years to train a driver, I can’t really see where they are gonna get drivers/train crew from in a days notice.

 

[CheeseRolls]

And what alternative arrangements would those be? While I agree with franchising being a disaster, having some background knowledge on the industry, judging by this weekend, a lot of people are only just testing positive, it takes over 2 years to train a driver, I can’t really see where they are gonna get drivers/train crew from in a days notice.

Sorry Jack I wasn't suggesting anything more sophisticated than using whatever means of transport is available a bit like the suggestion provided by Saints fans at St Marys "1-0 and your walking home", although they really struggled to keep that one going towards the end of the game.

 

[faoileán]

I agree with what you are saying, but looking at it on a smaller, short term scale, if there is a COVID outbreak at a drivers depot, what can anyone do?

A major contributing factor which has been the case for many years is that they don't employ enough contingency staff to ensure they can keep services running even when there have been flu outbreaks. Employ the minimum of staff, maximise profits...

 

[jackalbion]

Sorry Jack I wasn't suggesting anything more sophisticated than using whatever means of transport is available a bit like the suggestion provided by Saints fans at St Marys "1-0 and your walking home", although they really struggled to keep that one going towards the end of the game.

Sorry misunderstanding there, I do agree that better contingency driver numbers would help, and certainly the profit maximising doesn’t help.