Striking Worst Late Western

This morning the organizers of “More Train Less Strain” staged their second fare strike against First Great Western, the railway operator here in the west of England.

To my New York friends, trust me, whatever gripes you have about the Long Island Rail Road cannot compare with the deadly service offered by First Great Western, this decrepit shell of a railway. The most profitable of British train operators is also the one with the worst on-time performance and the most miserable conditions for riders, who have been known to stand in the toilet due to lack of room anywhere else on the train.

Back in the 19th Century, the building of this railway was a major accomplishment of the industrial age, linking London Paddington with Bristol Temple Meads and cutting a trip that formerly took days down to several hours. The builder of the railway, the young Isambard Kingdom Brunel, reportedly mused aloud about how, one day, men would be able to travel from London to Bristol at 40 miles per hour, sipping a cup of tea.

Today, around 150 years later, the inheritor of this legacy, First Great Western, remains true to Brunel’s vision by ensuring that we seemingly do travel at around 40 miles per hour at best, although tea is not as readily available.

The fare strikers were out in force this morning at Bath Spa station, along with the television crews. In typical British style, it was a polite protest, with no angry confrontations. There didn’t seem to be a way to feed my strike ticket through the automated barrier, so I used a real one – but in spirit, I’m on strike, and so the railway workers got no smiles from me today (although to be fair, the only thing more awful than riding on this railway must be working on it).

Cynically, the First Great Western customer support team was also out in force, purporting to be there to hear our concerns, and most importantly ensuring of course that a First Great Western representative was always visible in the background, regardless of camera angle.

Tomorrow it will all be back to normal, the representatives gone back to their cubicles and the commuters wondering once more whether their journey will be delayed, canceled, interrupted or merely unbearable.

Or maybe it was back to normal already this morning, as once out of range of the television cameras the train was delayed again at Bristol and again there were not enough seats in the two dingy carriages to accommodate all the passengers who wished to ride.

Brunel, wherever you are, I hope you’re not watching.