How busy have your trains been?

[S&CLER]

The 0917 Southport-Stockport was lightly loaded this morning (Saturday), only 7 boarding at SOP, 2 more at Meols Cop, and a few at each of the other stations. Wigan moderately busy, but Bolton notably quiet. A big signal problem led to cancellations between Stockport and Alderley Edge (and many others), and the 1130 stopping RRB to Handforth only had 4 on it. After walking from Handforth through Styal village, the Bollin valley and Quarry Bank Mill back to Wilmslow station, I found only a handful of people at Wilmslow waiting for RRBs around 1500. There were 3 or 4 on the 1511 stopping RRB to Stockport. The 1604 Stockport-Southport was very quiet, and the platform at Oxford Road had less than a quarter of the usual Saturday afternoon crowd.

 

[yorkie]

1143 from York towards Plymouth absolutely dead. Only 45 people in the front 4 standard coaches. I didn't look in the two first class coaches but I expect they'd be empty, nor did I check out the rear 3 standard coaches. This would normally be a very busy train.

Most passengers on this train were in close proximity and were under strict instructions not to move seats. Anyone sat in an aisle seat got told to move. The message is clear: XC do not want customers and prefer to be bankrolled by taxpayers. They are succeeding in their aim and passengers continue to desert them.

However the 1209 Leeds to Nottingham semi fast has a much more reasonable loading. No lengthy, onerous, authoritarian threatening announcements in this train, providing a more relaxing experience. People are spread out evenly throughout the train and not forced to sit in close proximity. Passengers travelling together are able to use aisle seats. It's not full by any means but it's not bad under the circumstances.

 

[Mag_seven]

I travelled on a Luton to Sheffield five car Class 222 service this morning. I would say it was about 50% full in standard class but completely dead in first. No ticket checks but announcements about social distancing / mask wearing were spot on i.e. informative but not in any way authoritative.

 

[route101]

Will be interesting to see if the services will get quieter this week!

 

[Shaw S Hunter]

Family matter led to my first pandemic trip last week, Wigan-Harrogate, out Thursday am (just after peak), return Friday evening. 4-car 150 to Man Vic had a couple of dozen on, 6-car 185 to Leeds had about 6-8 per car, 3-car 170 forward even quieter. Returning the 170 had a similar load, then had a completely lucky 68+mk5s which had 80ish on, and a 195 to finish with 10-12 per car. Overall I doubt that I have ever seen trains in this country so quiet in the 45 years that I have been using them though service levels were generally lower in the 1970s. Mask wearing far from universal but little by way of enforcement apart from lots of pa announcements at stations.

 

[Jamesrob637]

Okay here are my anecdotes from a Lancashire Day Ranger plus small add-ons from last Friday (18th of September)

08:47 Heaton Chapel to Stockport - don't really know as like the previous Wednesday it's literally a 3 minute journey. I think that I was one of 2 or 3 in my carriage. 4-car Northern service
09:06 Stockport to Southport - the rare accolade of having caught this train the whole way from its origin to its destination - not many on board at all. My carriage had maximum 10 in it at any point and I think this scene was replicated the whole way. 4-car Northern service (same 4 cars as had taken me from HTC to SPT as trains were reversing in SPT due to the signalling fault at Cheadle Hulme)
(I was not alone from Southport to Liverpool South Parkway much later that evening)
11:31 Southport to Burscough Bridge - we were two of a handful in the rear carriage as we only just made it. The other carriages may have been marginally busier but I don't think much so. 4-car Northern service
12:06 Burscough Junction to Preston - very empty, less than 10 in our carriage. 2-car Northern service
12:40 Preston to Blackpool North - the busiest I had seen on a ratio of passengers per carriage since March. Most seats taken and a few standees. Must have been around 150 on board judging by the numbers alighting at BPN. 3-car Northern service
A good walk along the seafront with some lunch and the Velvet Coaster Wetherspoon where 6 per cent Wobbly Bob (Bobbly Wob!) was on tap too
15:15 Blackpool Pleasure Beach to Preston - a third full, much less so than the outbound to BPN. 2-car Northern service
15:55 Preston to Lancaster - almost dead in our carriage, other carriages were a little busier but overall very quiet. 10-car Avanti West Coast service
16:43 Lancaster to Morecambe - almost dead. 2-car Northern service
18:13 Morecambe to Lancaster - again almost dead. 2-car Northern service (the same 2 cars as before - they'd been back to Lancaster and back again to Morecambe during our time there)
18:29 Lancaster to Manchester Piccadilly - a bit busier, maybe 40% occupancy in our coach and the same along the train. 5-car Trans Pennine Express service
19:37 Manchester Piccadilly to Liverpool South Parkway - around half to 60% full but this was a Friday evening so a few were going out and the train was short. 2-car EMR service (according to my mate this one was 2-car even pre-COVID - that must have been interesting on occasions)
20:24 Liverpool South Parkway to Moorfields - dead, maybe 2 more in our coach and a few along the train. 3-car Merseyrail service
21:24 Liverpool James Street to Liverpool Lime Street (yes I'm aware that we could have walked it!) - we were two of only a handful on board. 3-car Merseyrail service
21:34 Liverpool Lime Street to Liverpool South Parkway (mate got back in his car here and I waited for the following train) - very quiet, only a half dozen maximum per coach. 8-car London North Western Railway service
21:48 Liverpool South Parkway to Stockport - only a few in my carriage so probably very quiet overall. A few more got on in Manchester but then got off again in Stockport. 4-car EMR service
22:40 Stockport to Heaton Chapel - so short I didn't really notice. Couldn't see many when I got off in HTC. 4-car Northern service

Slightly disappointing numbers for a sunny Friday except for the PRE-BPN and PRE-MAN which were down on even their previous selves.

 

[Mojo]

Not a fair test as I’ve only travelled one day this week but safe to say from my limited experience things have been a lot quieter today compared to travelling on the same trains last week and the week before.

 

[Huntergreed]

I've noticed a significant fall in footfall in Glasgow recently.

The subway was absolutely dead this morning and rush hour last night.

I did a WHL return to Tyndrum the other day and there were 3 people onboard on the return (myself included)

Did some bashing yesterday too and trains were very quiet compared to when I come up a month ago indeed.

 

[Scotrail12]

I've noticed a significant fall in footfall in Glasgow recently.

The subway was absolutely dead this morning and rush hour last night.

Universities are back this week and as people are working from home but are busier, they just might not have enough time to go out as often. And schools have been back for a while which also means far less footfall during the week. And of course, WFH is still the trend right now so again, it's quieter.

It's dropped a little bit since EOTHO finished and unis returned but nothing huge and nothing that I didn't expect.

 

[fishquinn]

Had to go to Birmingham today, travelled on 4 trains in total:
Mid morning Leamington-Birmingham MS (Chiltern), 5 standard class coaches and I was one of three in my coach
Early afternoon Birmingham NS-International (Avanti) 1st class, only person in my coach
Mid afternoon International-NS (Avanti) 1st class, only person again
Late afternoon MS-Leamington, 5 std class coaches and only about 10 people in my coach from Solihull

 

[ChiefPlanner]

Yesterday - seeking escape !

Thameslink - semi to West Hampstead , say 40 people at 1131 , Jubilee to Baker St - 30% , Chiltern to Oxford in a 4 car about 45 (calling only High Wycombe and Bicester Shopping Villiage - not a sign of Far Eastern shoppers !) , Oxford - Paddington on a 5 car say 50 , - busy enough Bakerloo to Waterloo with about 15 per car , normal for these days back from Blackfriars with steady green loading indicators and about 6 in a declassified first. Car parks observed being say 25 - 30% used.

Some way to go to reach Germany's 70% loadings if you believe Modern Railways.

 

[43096]

Some way to go to reach Germany's 70% loadings if you believe Modern Railways.

I'm sceptical of that from what I saw last month. I did a peak morning ICE from Stuttgart to Munich and there was one other person in the coach.

In terms of facilities, MR is otherwise right: far more station shops/food outlets open in Germany. To be fair, the trains were generally a bit busier than what I have experienced over here.

 

[Andy Pacer]

I was moderately surprised as I drove past Nuneaton station yesterday afternoon (around 1340) to see quite a crowd waiting on the Leicester bound platform.

 

[EssexGonzo]

I travelled on the 1745 from Shenfield to Chelmsford on Wednesday this week, a train that left LST around 1715, as an estimate. So normally crammed. It would normally be a 12-coach (IIRC) and would normally disgorge one or two hundred passengers at Shenfield.

About 10 people got off at Shenfield and there were five other people in our coach. Every in-service train that went through the station seemed to be carrying mostly fresh air.

 

[lkpridgeon]

I was sat on Winchester station for about an hour yesterday (16-17:00) and the college peaks are definitely back, it was busy enough to have the staff shouting over the tannoy to use the whole platform and stay behind the yellow line... However still rather quiet outside of the school traffic peaks. It looked like the 16:48 towards Waterloo and 17:05 in the other directions were over 50% seated capacity.

 

[yorkie]

My morning train from York to London was not busy, yet was purportedly fully reserved. Bizarre.

 

[lkpridgeon]

My morning train from York to London was not busy, yet was purportedly fully reserved. Bizarre.

I think people are making multiple reservations and simply choosing the most convenient

 

[SE%Traveller]

I went to work for the first time yesterday, Thameslink from Denmark Hill to St Pancras train in was light i'd say about 25% seats filled, on the way back about 50% so the the latter felt almost normal (i was at then end of each peak both ways). On casual observance the metro Thameslink services seem to be buiser than longer distance trains (guessing they're used for school runs etc and by local workers going back to work (rather than further a field commuters)). Have to have a winge about the service though, I was aware they were only running the Orpingtons in the peak but wasn't aware they running through the core. Despite have a flashy new destination finder at St Pancras there was zero indication that you'd have to change at Blackfriars at all times save for about 4 trains in the PM peak. Running 50% of the service is bad enough, but not even bothering to indicate anywhere in the station that you'd have to change trains, that's pretty poor

 

[Cricketer8for9]

11:12 Purley Oaks to London Bridge maybe 10 in coach 5 of a ten clack train, but 16:15 back from Victoria was much fuller, with maybe half to three quarters of the seats in coach 6 occupied after Clapham Junction. In that sense not much different to a normal Friday (given the pre Covid prevalence of working at home on Fridays).

 

[MrTurbostar170]

Moved to University so in an area I wouldn't really know what loadings are like, but my accomodation is right opposite a station so I get a good view of what loadings are like. They seem to be fairly consistent throughout the day.

Travelled on a train full of schoolchildren yesterday, many weren't wearing masks (over 11s too)

 

[takno]

LNER middle of the day Edinburgh-London was about 30% full in the carriage I was in, which is maybe a bit less than half normal. Obviously they are leaving empty coaches as well though.

Rush hour Thameslink to East Croydon was less than 50% seats occupied. Overall, better than July, and in fact in LNERs case it's probably being capped by the compulsory reservation policy and lack of cheap advances rather than lack of demand.

 

[bramling]

My morning train from York to London was not busy, yet was purportedly fully reserved. Bizarre.

If it’s anything like where I am at the moment it seems we’re back to the point where people aren’t out and about - like was the case in mid-March.

The hotel I’m staying in has had shed loads of cancellations apparently.

 

[Peregrine 4903]

I went on the underground for the first time today in about 6 months. Piccadilly Line was really quiet in the morning - I practically had the entire carriage to myself - not a good sign. But the Victoria Line was a bit busier. Still not as busy as it would normally be, what was really strange was seeing Oxford Circus station so quiet. And then the train from Vauxhall to Brentford was quiet, but it is normally quiet off peak.

The way back was much busier, train from Brentford back to Waterloo was about as busy as it would normally be off peak at that time, Clapham Junction station was very busy when going past it. Waterloo was quieter than usual but still a decent amount of people there. Northern Line from Waterloo to Leicester Square was completely dead but it usually is. Then the Piccadilly Line from Leicster Square back home was actually really busy, busier than it would normally be - although our train did get delayed at Kings Cross for quite a bit. But I mean at Finsbury Park there was a completely full platform of people waiting to get on, which doesn't usually happen off peak.

 

[Mag_seven]

I went on the underground for the first time today in about 6 months. Piccadilly Line was really quiet in the morning - I practically had the entire carriage to myself - not a good sign. But the Victoria Line was a bit busier. Still not as busy as it would normally be, what was really strange was seeing Oxford Circus station so quiet. And then the train from Vauxhall to Brentford was quiet, but it is normally quiet off peak.

The way back was much busier, train from Brentford back to Waterloo was about as busy as it would normally be off peak at that time, Clapham Junction station was very busy when going past it. Waterloo was quieter than usual but still a decent amount of people there. Northern Line from Waterloo to Leicester Square was completely dead but it usually is. Then the Piccadilly Line from Leicster Square back home was actually really busy, busier than it would normally be - although our train did get delayed at Kings Cross for quite a bit. But I mean at Finsbury Park there was a completely full platform of people waiting to get on, which doesn't usually happen off peak.

I was in London today and I thought it was noticeably busier than the last time I visited on both the tube and national rail services that I used.

 

[Peregrine 4903]

I was in London today and I thought it was noticeably busier than the last time I visited on both the tube and national rail services that I used.

As this was my first time travelling by train in London during the week for 6 months I can't say myself, but I really hope that numbers are picking up. The Piccadilly Line being relatively busy, especially in the afternoon is a really good sign.

 

[philjo]

I used the 13:24 Crewe to Euston service yesterday ( The train originates from Liverpool). I would estimate around 50-60 passengers leaving the train at Euston. I had a Seatfrog 1st upgrade ( I was the only bidder) - there were 3 other passengers in coach H. This service was running in reverse formation.

 

[birchesgreen]

Train back from Warwick to Moor St today had a reasonably good number aboard, less than normal times (and by no means full).

 

[Hadders]

20:47 Thameslink service from St Pancras to Stevenage was busy this evening. A Pi**head Express service, lots of people drinking, shouting etc. Just like old times....

 

[yorkie]

20:00 London King's Cross to Newcastle was dead. I did a count between Donny and York and counted only about 70 people in the entirety of Standard Class . Very worrying indeed.

I did a return journey on Southeastern High Speed from London St Pancras earlier in the day (outwards at 10:10 and returning from Folkestone at 17:00) and that was reasonably busy; nowhere near as busy as 'normal' but not quiet enough to feel like it was worryingly quiet.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

I had another completely full and standing today with as many standing as seated, 455 821 between Clapham Junction and Thornton Heath - it emptied out a bit at Streatham Common and Norbury but still had a lot get off with me at Thornton Heath.

This service is, I believe, diagrammed for 8 cars but even with 8 cars these ( the Epsom Downs services ) tend to be full on Saturdays on this sector.

The SWR suburban services seemed to be loading quite well. Overall U would say Saturdays around the Clapham Junction area on all lines are pretty much back to normal levels of usage. It's the weekdays that are still an issue.