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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to be really angry with this train station attendant's behaviour!

53 replies

extremepie · 09/10/2014 22:34

I was running a bit late for my train to college this morning, fair enough that is my own fault but I managed to arrive at the platform 2 minutes before the train was due to leave. Train was still at the platform, waiting.

Brilliant, I thought, Ive still got time to get on the train, only when I approached the door the train station attendant guy (the ones with the fluro orange jackets) shouted at me that it was too late and I couldn't get on! There was another guy on the platform who he also wouldn't let on and yet the conductor was not even on the train himself! We're both standing there on the platform, tickets in hand, telling him that we really need to get on the train and the whole time he just shouted at us saying 'its too late' and 'get back from the train' over & over.

Consequently, because of this guy being ridiculous, I missed my train to college, the next one being an hour later. In my defence I was exhausted and had only had 2hrs sleep the night before but I was so upset I went outside the station and burst into tears.

Was there any reason for him to shout at me? AIBU to think he was being ridiculous to not allow me the 10 seconds it would have taken for me to get on the train, especially since the actual conductor for the train was not even on it at the time!!!!

OP posts:
QuietNinjaTardis · 09/10/2014 22:38

I think at a certain point they lock the doors and signal that the trains ready to go. I have no idea if this happened to you or if the guy was just being a jobsworth. It's crap but not much you can do I don't think.

stupidlittlegirl · 09/10/2014 22:39

Tough! Train doors lock usually 40 secs before it is due to depart.

Original poster
extremepie · 09/10/2014 22:41

But the conductor was still on the platform so how could the doors have been locked! He wouldn't have been able to get on the train himself!

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Original poster
extremepie · 09/10/2014 22:42

It wasn't 40 seconds, I was there 2 minutes before the train was due to depart - that's 120 seconds by my maths.

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OraProNobis · 09/10/2014 22:43

I suppose he was just working within parameters set by his employers. If he doesn't abide by the rules imposed on him then he could lose his job or - if something goes horribly wrong - face prosecution. As ridiculous as this may sound it's the world we live in now. I'm sorry you got so upset - given that you had such a bad night maybe you'd have been better off taking a sickie?

WooWooOwl · 09/10/2014 22:44

YANBU. He was being jobsworthy.

HoVis2001 · 09/10/2014 22:44

For some of the fast trains on the Continent I think they lock train doors 5-10 minutes before my departure. My DB's connecting train was massively delayed and he ran to get his next train - and then had to stand there for 10 minutes watching it stand in the platform but with the doors locked, so he couldn't get on. As it was a long-distance train which he'd pre-booked it cost him hundreds to get the next train. Confused

It's naff, and usually train guards in the UK tend to be a bit more sympathetic in my experience (at small local stations I often see them hold the train for a few seconds if someone is sprinting towards the platform). YANBU to be upset but on the other hand if it was only 2 mins to go then I think it's stated somewhere in T&Cs for tickets that the doors can close early.

littledrummergirl · 09/10/2014 22:48

It wasnt Bristol was it?

We had a shit experience there, dh was just in front of sil and me on the train. Attendent jumps on, manhandles dh off the train and orders sil and me off.

He then told people arriving behind us that they could get on the train as it still had a few minutes.

When we tried to get an explanation he threatened to have us arrested by transport police. He said that by the time they worked out we hadnt done anything we would been detained for a few hours

I was fucking furious and complained to ticket staff who said thats a shame, shall we call btp?

Bastards.(in my opinion Grin

Original poster
extremepie · 09/10/2014 22:50

Ora, unfortunately I couldn't take the day off as I had an assignment due so I had to be in that day.

It just massively pissed me off because that was the only train I could get on that would get me to the college even close to the start time - I always arrive at college late because of the trains but missing that one meant I was an extra hour late so it was just extra stress I didn't need :(

It's a little rural train station that has one train going through an hour, never had a problem getting on one down to the wire before.

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Original poster
extremepie · 09/10/2014 22:52

That's awful drummergirl, why did they chuck him off the train?! No, not Bristol but similar area of the country :)

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RustyDalek · 09/10/2014 22:52

Our station has a notice saying doors lock 90 seconds before departure - which could look like 2 minutes on the clock. The conductor's door doesn't lock, so he would be able to get on the train just before it leaves.

There are 17 stations on the journey I usually take - if they had a 10 second delay at every one to let late passengers on, the train would end up nearly 3 minutes late.

Madcatgirl · 09/10/2014 22:53

Which stAtion was it op? I had to involve btp in staff behaviour at manchester last week.

Original poster
extremepie · 09/10/2014 22:56

There's no signs up about door locking at my station rusty, like I said I've gotten on the train with seconds to spare before with no problem.

Mad its the truro - penzance line.

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ReverseAtMarbleArch · 09/10/2014 22:59

Safety is the first concern. You would be surprised at how many accidents take place at the platform/train interface with people trying to rush and board trains at the last minute. The guard is not in control of the train but it is his responsibility to make sure that the train departs safely - he doesn't know that you won't slip and fall or lean on the train when it leaves. That being said, it sounds like he was pretty strict - maybe he's had a bad experience recently.

It's this kind of story that weighs heavily on a railway workers mind:
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9680110/Railway-guard-jailed-for-five-years-over-death-of-drunken-teenager-who-fell-between-train-and-platform.html

Totally frustrating for you, of course, and it sounds like you had a rotten day. Hope tomorrow is a better one! Smile

littledrummergirl · 09/10/2014 23:00

Never did get an answer to that one! Dh was very calm under the circumstances, he doesnt like being pushed around but didnt defend himself.

It felt as though the bloke wanted an excuse to cause trouble and was trying to provoke a reaction.

It was a crap end to a very stressful day though. We just wanted to get home.

Gruntfuttock · 09/10/2014 23:00

littledrummergirl that's terrible and sounds like insane behaviour by the attendant. WTF was he playing at, I wonder?

MsAdorabelleDearheartVonLipwig · 09/10/2014 23:04

Three minutes late?

The train passes near my house and I have to cross the line when I walk the dog. You take your life in your hands, it can come through at up to ten minutes either side of its usual time.

I would imagine only being three minutes late would be a good day.

prh47bridge · 09/10/2014 23:14

But the conductor was still on the platform so how could the doors have been locked! He wouldn't have been able to get on the train himself

The guard's door is controlled separately. When the train arrives at a station he/she opens their own door, checks it is safe then opens the other doors. When the train is getting ready to depart they close and lock the other doors, check that it is safe then board, signal to the driver that it is ok to depart and close their own door.

I was there 2 minutes before the train was due to depart

Are you judging that from your watch or the station clock? The latter is the one that matters as far as the guard is concerned. Was it actually 2 minutes from when you arrived until the train departed or was it less than that?

When station staff are trying to despatch a train there is nothing more annoying than people arriving at the last minute trying to get on. They need to get the train away on time if at all possible as a late departure can affect a lot of other trains, particularly if this is a busy station. If the doors were already shut it would have taken more than 10 seconds to get you on board. And I'm afraid platform staff have plenty of experience with people who take an age to get on the train or, worse, stand with one foot on the train and the other on the platform to make the train wait. They had no way of knowing whether or not you would take seconds to get on board or cause a serious hold up.

ElephantsNeverForgive · 09/10/2014 23:16

I liked good old fashioned slam door trains you could jump on when they were moving.

TinklyLittleLaugh · 09/10/2014 23:20

We turned up at Euston once at the end of a lovely weekend in London. I was in my wheelchair DP pushing. The train was standing in the platform and they were letting people through the gate.

They refused to let us through because there were no staff to put a ramp out. DH politely explained I was perfectly capable of getting out of the wheelchair and onto the train myself, just used it for long distances. They were having none of it and refused to let us through the gate while people just walked past us and onto the train. Train left and we had to wait another hour.

We didn't kick off because we had the DCs with us and didn't want to sour the weekend. It felt very malicious though.

maddening · 09/10/2014 23:25

They were being ridiculous - if the rules are set so you can not get on while the train is stood on the platform then complain - it is ludicrous !

Original poster
extremepie · 09/10/2014 23:25

prh, all I wanted to do was get on the train so I could get to college, I had no reason to take ages, I had sprinted off the bus through the station to the platform and just wanted to get on - open door, get on, shut door. 10 seconds. Maybe 30 if I was being generous but still not long at all. No reason at all to take ages.

It is not a busy station, it is a small village train station and for some people (like me) who don't drive it is the only way to get around that doesn't take hours and hours.

When I arrived it was 2 minutes before the train's scheduled departure time according to the station clock - my own watch is set 5 minutes fast so its not accurate.

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prh47bridge · 09/10/2014 23:37

I am sure you had no reason to take ages but the staff didn't know that. People do claim to be in a hurry and then force the train to wait for ages.

To be strictly correct I shouldn't have referred to the station clock. Whether or not that was right depends on whether it is synchronised to Control time, which is what the guard should be using.

If the train departed within a minute of your arrival I'm afraid I don't think you have any real complaint. If it was sat there for 2 full minutes after you entered the platform I would agree that you do have reason to be angry.

duhgldiuhfdsli · 09/10/2014 23:45

"Whether or not that was right depends on whether it is synchronised to Control time, which is what the guard should be using."

Looking the train up on the "Detailed" options on www.realtimetrains.co.uk will reveal whether it left early or not. The timings are to the nearest fifteen second and show late/early relative to UTC.

Original poster
extremepie · 09/10/2014 23:56

Just had a look on there duh and it left on time but it was only at the station for 2 minutes according to that! It must have turned up just as I arrived and I'm guessing there weren't many passengers getting on or off because he refused to let us on and I stood there with him shouting at me for over a minute - I literally stood there and watched the seconds count down on the station clock. What a knobhead.

If the train is only at the platform for 2 minutes is doesn't make any sense to lock the doors one minute before departure, thats barely enough time to get on and off when the train is busy :/

It also left its original station early so it wasn't running late.

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