Great British Railways

[NewMatress]

Grant Shapps on TV talking about bringing the rail network back under public control.

Does no one remember how bad things were last time round? Things might not be perfect now, but the service is a damn sight better than it was under British Rail. I'm a football fan, I've been travelling the length of the country by train for four decades and I was a commuter from 1988 to 2012.

So much better now than it was back then. We haven't missed a kick off due to delayed or cancelled trains in decades and DH, who is a relatively new commuter is never hours late home in the way that I was regularly in the 80s and 90s.

Plus, Shapps spent ages going on about how it would mean he could introduce flexible season tickets, a pack of 20 tickets offering reduced fares to people who only need to be in the office a few days a week - which is exactly what DH has been buying for his commute for at least the last 4 years.

Also, apparently it will be end of one company playing off against another - that never happens in public sector organisations, where one dept blames another, does it?

Oh God, British Rail!
Yes, OP, that brings back memories I would rather forget.
Fourteen hours on a train hauled by a knackered old Deltic, with a thumping headache from the engine noise, just to get from Dundee to London.
Stopping randomly in fields for an hour or more due to “engineering work on the line”.
Going to the buffet for wilting sandwiches and vile coffee. Or not going - “the buffet service will close at Berwick for staff to cash up”.
I had to suffer the living hell of that journey on BR six times a year while at uni in the 70’s. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone!

As someone whose had to put up with the awful 'service' from Southern Railway, I'd gladly go back to BR.

Under British Rail I could travel into central London, spend the evening/half the night in Soho and catch a train home every hour until about 4am when I'd have to wait for the 'milk train' at 6.30ish.

The last time I went out for the evening in London was to a show at the Albert Hall, where I was also attending the after show party (my bro in the band). We didn't stay terribly long, but by the time we got to Waterloo there were no trains to Surbiton at all and we had to catch a tube train to Wimbledon and then get a taxi. Ridiculous at only 1/1.30am.

DH flatly refused to go to evening entertainment anywhere in London again as a result, though I did a few times with associated nightmares trying to home in the small houurs.