Live web chat transcript

Question: 141

Ref Q21 and others on use of Class 450 on Portsmouth line. Could the XX 39 from Waterloo to Poole which is usually a class 444 be retimed to arrive at Poole earlier?

It waits 15 minutes at Southampton and 25 minutes at Brockenhurst before arriving at Poole just 5 minutes after the previous train has left for London. If this service from Waterloo had less waiting time it could return to London one hour earlier and therefore make a class 444 available for another route.

Posted by Anon 15/09/2011 15:55:43

Question: 140

Is there any way of knowing when the Portsmouth to Waterloo trains are white or blue? Could you mark it in the timetable, say with blue lettering for blue trains?

The seats are killing my back. I just have to avoid them.

Posted by Andrew Trenchard 14/09/2011 14:58:48

Question: 139

When will SWT cease to use the class 450 rolling stock on the Portsmouth line? Passengers are fed up with a 3rd class service.

Posted by Graham Henderson 14/09/2011 17:45:43

Question: 138

Very concerned about possible closure of Templecombe Ticket office. Personal\service and advice is an integral\part of rail travel. Not everyone makes simple journeys up to London and back, and not everyone is on the internet. The cost of rail travel goes up, but the service (in its totality) goes down

Posted by Richard Gaunt 15/09/2011 14:18:26

Question: 137

Sir, I find it incredible that SWT are stil persisiting with the 450 rolling stock! It continues to be uncomfortable and frankly not even average sized people fit into the 2-seat formation never mind the 3-seat formation.

On every train I travel, there are seats left vacant simply because people cannot fit into them! In addittion many seats are taken up by bicycles stored in the area taking up at least 3 seats. I know that the 450s are supposed to have more seats than the other trains, but this is not the case in reality, as many are not used because of the cramped space.

When will these trains be phased out?

Posted 14/09/2011 16:41:03

Question: 136

Dear Mr Pitt, Your predecessor Stewart Palmer admitted the seating in the Class 450s was very uncomfortable. Do you agree with him?

Posted by Harold Sweeney 14/09/2011 15:15:06

Question: 135

Why is your position on Portsmouth 450s so entrenched? I don't understand why you don't listen and act on what your passengers are telling you.

Posted by Joe West 15/09/2011 09:43:38

Question: 134

I see a new (albeit temporary) footbridge has appeared overnight at Earlsfield recently. Any chance that we could have one at Wimbledon, because the stairs to the existing one are dangerously congested with passengers changing trains?

(While you're looking at Wimbledon, please make the summary departure boards on the platform scroll to two pages, like he ones on the bridge do - at times of late running it is not uncommon for those trains that are running on time to never make it onto the first page before they actually arrive!)

Posted 15/09/2011 15:22:22

Question: 133

I appreciate that it may be some time before more carriages are added to the services to Waterloo that will ease overcrowding, but my biggest issue with crowded carriages in the morning is not being able to reach anything to hold on to. On the journey between Clapham Junction and Waterloo the trains can lurch sideways a fair bit when changing tracks. When you're a slight and not very tall female this isn't much fun. How hard would it be to retro-fit straps or more poles above to hold on (especially in the vestibules) even if it was only on the shorter routes.

Posted 15/09/2011 15:36:09

Question: 132

Why do you persist in using the white 444 trains on some off peak outer suburban services to Alton and Basingstoke, where there are no capacity issues. The constant complaints you receive about use of the blue 450 trains on main line trains to Portsmouth seem fully justified when your greatest rolling stock asset is seemingly so misused, having been originally specified and built for mainline longer distance use. Whilst most commuters can appreciate the difficulties in coping with peak demand how can you justify such decisions in the off peak.

Posted 15/09/2011 09:53:57