Luton Airport Express - Misleading Ads?

[BluePenguin]

Heathrow is still within the official Greater London boundary

Hmmm debatable these days as the Greater London boundary has extended much too far. Heathrow is only just inside M25

 

[Merle Haggard]

Always used to laugh when Steve Wright on his afternoon R2 show referred to Southend as in London as that’s what they claimed their airport was

Years ago, when I listened to him, I formed the opinion that when he had a (proper??) job as an insurance clerk he commuted into London from Essex. He was in the habit of making bitter, scathing, generalised comments about B.R. managers then, presumably as a result of his experiences.

 

[dk1]

Years ago, when I listened to him, I formed the opinion that when he had a (proper??) job as an insurance clerk he commuted into London from Essex. He was in the habit of making bitter, scathing, generalised comments about B.R. managers then, presumably as a result of his experiences.

Yes he commuted in for years often with Jilly Cooper.

 

[London Trains]

The Corby aspect seems to have been marginalised just lately; possibly Corby business hasn't met expectations and this is an attempt to build passenger numbers up at other points on the route ( by poaching Thameslink's traffic? ). It would be interesting to know; previous attempts to serve Corby after the station's closure, such as the coach-rail link ( 2 attempts ) didn't seem to meet with great success.

It isn't particularly relevant to this thread, but I wonder if adding a stop at Leagrave to the Corby services would be worth it?

 

[PGAT]

It isn't particularly relevant to this thread, but I wonder if adding a stop at Leagrave to the Corby services would be worth it?

Well given that half the services between Luton and Bedford were axed after 7pm it seems unlikely that change would be justified

 

[cactustwirly]

With the shuttle it's no different from Gatwick North. So I think this is perfectly fair.

Indeed had the station been built at the same time as the shuttle I suspect it would have just been called Luton Airport, though really it is "Luton Airport and M1 Parkway" in intention.

But with Gatwick, the station is in the South Terminal which is the bigger of the 2 terminals

 

[43074]

The Corby aspect seems to have been marginalised just lately; possibly Corby business hasn't met expectations and this is an attempt to build passenger numbers up at other points on the route ( by poaching Thameslink's traffic? ). It would be interesting to know; previous attempts to serve Corby after the station's closure, such as the coach-rail link ( 2 attempts ) didn't seem to meet with great success.

EMR Connect never was about Corby to be honest - it always was the intention it would replace Intercity stops south of Kettering and it's done that largely as intended. Corby is just a convenient turnback location as much as anything else, the bulk of the demand always was expected to be from Luton and Bedford.

It isn't particularly relevant to this thread, but I wonder if adding a stop at Leagrave to the Corby services would be worth it?

Why on earth would you do that? It would break the timetable as the Corby services have to fit between the Intercity service, there isn't capacity for any additional calls whatsoever.

The 360s run a well used and popular service in practice, there's only a minority of people on here with an agenda against them. Sure they need a refurbishment but that's a DfT problem not an EMR one.

 

[Mike395]

Well given that half the services between Luton and Bedford were axed after 7pm it seems unlikely that change would be justified

News to me - unless this happened as of this morning, when I used this route at 10:30pm yesterday trains after 7pm were every 15 minutes, same as they’ve always been!

Anyway - re the advert, I really don’t see a problem with it. As others have pointed out, if built today the station would likely not have got ‘Parkway’ in the name at all, and it’s no different to the ‘direct trains to Birmingham Airport’ signs you see all over the West Midlands, which also needs a transit ride on arrival at Birmingham International...

 

[al78]

Sounds like pedantry for the sake of pedantry. If the train stops at a location where an airport shuttle will take passengers a short distance to the terminal then for all practical purposes, the train does serve the airport. Of all the things worth complaining about this is not even on the list, never mind at the bottom of the list as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Gemz91]

I’m unfamiliar with Luton Airport or Luton Parkway Station, but isn’t the fact you have to get a bus from the station to the airport just the same as getting airport parking then having to get a bus from the car park to the airport building? Pretty sure that’s what I had to do last time I flew from Luton.

 

[pokemonsuper9]

I’m unfamiliar with Luton Airport or Luton Parkway Station, but isn’t the fact you have to get a bus from the station to the airport just the same as getting airport parking then having to get a bus from the car park to the airport building? Pretty sure that’s what I had to do last time I flew from Luton.

Bus is gone (to Ukraine), there is the Dart now

 

[dosxuk]

Absolute pedantry with absolutely no basis for claims of being misleading.

The poster states:

London St Pancras to Luton Airport in as little as 32 minutes from £10

The combined journey time of the EMR service and DART can be less than 32 minutes.
Tickets are available for (less than) £10.

Both claims in the advertisement are factually correct and accurate. The advert does not make the claim that the train will take you direct to the terminal.

If people are intending to complain that the PIS on the pictured train states Luton Airport while not actually serving the airport terminal, then I would suggest they also complain that they don't solely use 360119 for the service. The train serves the closest station to the airport, and connects, in-station, to a shuttle to the terminal. This is common to many other airport stations in the UK and abroad, and would be well within the expectations of the normal traveller.

 

[nw1]

"East Midlands Parkway Express... bringing you the quintessential East Midlands view in as little as 80 minutes."

(I hasten to add, I still love the East Midlands )

What, the power station, assuming it's still there?

I seem to be in the minority here, but I find it very misleading. As a traveller, I'd be expecting to be carried the whole way to Luton Airport directly on the train.

I'd say the fact that there's an extra fare to be paid for the Dart is the slightly 'dodgy' part.

This is completely different to the Gatwick situation.

Also do the residents of Corby et al feel left out by the fact that their train is now branded the "Luton Airport Express"?

 

[zero]

I see both sides of the argument.

In my view the ad is acceptable, however there should be an asterisk with a footnote explaining that you need to take the separately-paid DART to actually get to the airport, but the £10 includes that fare.

I don't see how airport parking is analogous as the first thing I would check when looking at an airport car park is whether it is walkable to the terminal or can only be accessed by shuttle.

 

[Bletchleyite]

In my view the ad is acceptable, however there should be an asterisk with a footnote explaining that you need to take the separately-paid DART to actually get to the airport, but the £10 includes that fare.

There are through tickets including the add-on, are there not?

 

[Merle Haggard]

There are through tickets including the add-on, are there not?

That seems to be the case; NRES offers both Luton Airport Parkway and Luton Airport as destinations and offers a fare to the latter.

 

[norbitonflyer]

I'd say the fact that there's an extra fare to be paid for the Dart is the slightly 'dodgy' part.

There isn't. The £10 (or £7.60) includes the DART

I’m unfamiliar with Luton Airport or Luton Parkway Station, but isn’t the fact you have to get a bus from the station to the airport......... Pretty sure that’s what I had to do last time I flew from Luton.

You don't now - you use the DART (included in the £10 fare quoted) . That's the point of the advert.

The DART runs on rails so is, by definition, a railway.

 

[Bartsimho]

There are through tickets including the add-on, are there not?

There are. If you buy to Luton Airport it includes the DART fare. If you buy to Luton Airport Parkway it doesn't

 

[renegademaster]

If Luton parkway can't be advertised as Luton airport, Luton airport would definitely be getting itself sued for calling it London Luton

 

[norbitonflyer]

The only London Airport is London City Airport. (It is the only one that has a London postcode and is therefore in London).

"London" postcodes (by which I assume you mean only those named for the cardinal points of the compass) coincide, almost but not quite exactly,with the old London County Council, which existed for less than 80 years and was was abolished nearly 60 years ago. Unless you mean the City (square Mile) "London" now means Greater London, the area defined by the 32 London boroughs, (including the London Borough of Hillingdon, in which Heathrow is located), and managed by the Mayor of London, and in which London Zip cards and Over-60s cards are valid

 

[Horizon22]

The only London Airport is London City Airport. (It is the only one that has a London postcode and is therefore in London).

No it isn’t. Heathrow is in Greater London and has been since 1965.

Using postcodes is completely irrelevant.

Hmmm debatable these days as the Greater London boundary has extended much too far. Heathrow is only just inside M25

Eh? It hasn’t changed for nearly 60 years!

 

[miklcct]

Initial thoughts are that this advert is misleading and potentially unlawful. Will be interested to see if anyone complains!

I will notice and if I see one I will make a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority.

 

[Bletchleyite]

If Luton parkway can't be advertised as Luton airport, Luton airport would definitely be getting itself sued for calling it London Luton

The only thing that really grates for me is using LLA on the signage when the correct code is LTN.

 

[py_megapixel]

On the first mockups of the "New Tube for London" stock several years ago, the destination blind read "The Future". Is that misleading on the basis that they were not specified with time-travel capability??

 

[riceuten]

I was wondering about this service recently, that suddenly started appearing on my Facebook timeline. Although I found the adverts slightly misleading - the way it is advertised seems to suggest there is a dedicated St Pancras - LAP shuttle train, and that the train itself takes you directly to the airport, but I don't think there are sufficient grounds to appeal to the ASA. I suspect, outside of the rush hour, loadings are light on the Corby to London trains, and they are seeking to exploit that excess capacity and abstract some of Thameslink's (or indeed Green Line/Arriva's) passengers. As regards the latter, there was something of a stand off a few years ago when Luton Airport were trying to block Green Line from actually serving the airport itself, and the latter were forced to use the bus stop at the long stay car park as a terminus. I wonder if the DART is not successful whether the Airport will move the bus station to LAP to try and force people to use DART ?

I also wonder if it's an ORCATS raid on Thameslink's LAP fare receipts?

 

[Purple Train]

What, the power station, assuming it's still there?

The only coal-fired power station still left in England, no less!

 

[Merle Haggard]

The only coal-fired power station still left in England, no less!

And when I came past it on Tuesday it was working - all the cooling towers steaming. Not enough sun or wind for renewables presumably.
By the way, does the ash leave by rail? Remember all those trains of Presflos conveying PFA (Pulverised Fly Ash) from power stations?

 

[Mike395]

The term 'express' is misleading, as they are a slow/semi fast service, not the express advertised.

I don't think it's misleading to say a service is express as far as its first calling point.

 

[Tetchytyke]

I also wonder if it's an ORCATS raid on Thameslink's LAP fare receipts?

No. EMR, and EMT before them, have called at Luton Airport Parkway ever since it opened.

 

[norbitonflyer]

No it isn’t. Heathrow is in Greater London and has been since 1965 It hasn’t changed for nearly 60 years!

It has, but only slightly. When it was built, half of Terminal 4 was in Surrey.