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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Are they're really no trains on boxing day ?

43 replies

bigchris · 18/12/2017 21:19

Its one of the biggest days in the sporting calendar

I can understand no trains Xmas day but surely boxing day people go sale shopping etc

OP posts:

crunchymint · 18/12/2017 22:15

Except if you don't drive, it makes it hard to visit people. My gran always got the bus to us on xmas day, after visiting her local church in the morning.

eddiemairswife · 18/12/2017 22:23

1961...midnight train on Christmas Day from Leeds to Euston. Prior to that. London buses on Christmas Day.

Nyx1 · 18/12/2017 22:26

No wonder hospitals are so short staffed
Friend of ours took 6 hours to get back on a coach for her shift last year

This year she's not seeing her parents on the day

Looking back I don't know why we agreed to make visits longer but the incident with the overrunning engineering works made us review that! I remember by late evening there were miles of people stuck at Finsbury
Park.

ivy799 · 18/12/2017 22:26

Never knew that. Would not go anywhere boxing day anyway.

Chemicalrainbow · 18/12/2017 23:00

I think it’s because it’s the only time of the year network rail can do longer pre-planned work on the track. It may cause problems for some people but this is small compared to the disruption there would be on a normal commuting day.

Theresnonamesleft · 18/12/2017 23:22

No trains but there’s coaches.
Dd for a few years got the train here on Christmas Eve when her shift finished and went home Boxing Day by coach. Although she worked retail the place never opened Boxing Day.

JAMMFYesPlease · 19/12/2017 00:46

I've never known trains run on boxing day. My DH's workplace once considered opening boxing day. He was the only manager and only.person to get the train in but couldn't because trains were off. He didn't drive at the time so I didn't like the idea of driving him in (90 minute round trip) with one DD and 39 weeks pregnant with DD2. The store stuck with the decision not to open on the day as they'd done every year which was a relief. All the staff were grateful.

NoSquirrels · 19/12/2017 00:53

It’s been like this for 20+ years.

If they don’t schedule repair works & maintenance at times when people are less likely to commute then it’s a bigger impact on more people. There’s nearly always loads of train diversions/cancellations etc on other bank holidays too.

CheekyRedhead · 19/12/2017 07:04

Network rail always do major track work on bank and public holidays. There are rarely trains on boxing day. Our rail network is old,it needs updating, Christmas is a time they can get a lot done. Friends husband earns mega money for working on track repairs over Christmas as he misses out on the holiday. The work has to get done sometime. You'd all moan if it was during your Monday to Friday commute. Just get a bus or even better don't go shopping. Why we have to open boxing day is beyond me

UrsulaPandress · 19/12/2017 07:10

DH's sister is always up at sparrowfart on Boxing Day to get to the sales.

Can't understand it myself.

Boxing Day Meet all the way for me.

Crumbs1 · 19/12/2017 07:15

Isn’t it rather nice that the railway staff can spend two days with their families and friends too? There are probably more railway staff than engineering works staff, at a guess, so more have time off. It’s Christmas, in a country with a Christian Heritage. It should be a holiday.

LakieLady · 19/12/2017 07:26

There used to be trains on Boxing Day, we used to get the train to go and spend the day with my gran. I'm going back 50-odd years though!

I can't remember when they stopped a Boxing Day service, but I can remember feeling somewhat outraged about it. I think I was in my 20s, so around 1980 or so.

Outedsochanged · 19/12/2017 07:38

I used to work on the railway. The 2 days at Christmas are the longest shut down of the railway that can happen. There is a ton of work done that would otherwise affect and disrupt even more people of done at other times. It's been like that for many many years. How about a bit of sympathy to those that will be working on the cold, windy, exposed railway over that time to make sure the railways run as well as possible the rest of the year.

Namechanged36 · 19/12/2017 07:50

Here, here Outedsochanged

Deathraystare · 19/12/2017 07:58

What about the workers???! Luckily I am not far from my work and can bus in.

kaytee87 · 19/12/2017 08:07

Trains are running where I live on Boxing Day.

woolythoughts · 19/12/2017 09:28

There never has been train on Boxing day. I can see both sides of it.

On the one hand when I used to go to football etc and it was a pain not having trains.

However now I'm married to a train driver, who works shifts over 7 days, unsocial hours and pre-allocated holidays, it is nice to have two days a year where we can actually have time off together.

Nyx1 · 19/12/2017 09:46

outed "How about a bit of sympathy to those that will be working on the cold, windy, exposed railway over that time to make sure the railways run as well as possible the rest of the year."

yes. this is another reason why I think it would make more sense to pick 2 days in the spring or summer. Sunday and a Bank Holiday.

The enforced shut down of everything at Xmas - except shops!! what is it with the fecking shops? - doesn't really benefit anyone. It's a pretty poor time of year to have such a thing as well.

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