General Category > Tandems
Tandems on Trains
simonp:
East coast trains: "What's a tandem?". Eventually they agreed it'd be fine in their guard's van (which is massive).
First Great Western: "Tandems are not allowed on any services." "What, even though your website says otherwise?" "Oh yes, so it does. Well I don't know which services do, and it's up to the discretion of the train manager anyway whether to let any bike on."
They put me through to after-sales, who have no idea, and failed to get through to someone who might. I've to call back at another time.
:facepalm:
JohnHamilton:
S&S Couplings. Useful for trains, hire cars, getting up Travelodge stairs. Wouldn't buy another tandem without them now.
Tandem club has a useful page on tandems on trains.
Tim Hall:
--- Quote from: simonp on 22 February, 2012, 07:18:54 pm ---East coast trains: "What's a tandem?". Eventually they agreed it'd be fine in their guard's van (which is massive).
First Great Western: "Tandems are not allowed on any services." "What, even though your website says otherwise?" "Oh yes, so it does. Well I don't know which services do, and it's up to the discretion of the train manager anyway whether to let any bike on."
They put me through to after-sales, who have no idea, and failed to get through to someone who might. I've to call back at another time.
:facepalm:
--- End quote ---
When we took the tandem down to darkest Cornwall from Paddington with FGW, I found I had to book two spaces. Which wasda bit odd, as the spaces were next to each other and the tandem is, as its name implies, arranged in a longitudinal fashion. The guards train managers were equally puzzled, and were expecting a brace of bicycles each time.
simonp:
I think what you get is a random answer since they probably get asked this once in a blue moon.
Chris S:
The Big Problem with First Great Western is, despite using very similar looking rolling stock to East Coast (rower40 will be along in a minute to put me right on this), it's configured differently so the bike space involves a set of vertical hangers (not at all Tandem Friendly) rather than the East Coastian carriage shaped bike park with Sheffield stands.
ETA: What this means is, if we were car-less, and heading West, we would probably ride over a few days before an audax ride. In fairness to The Train Companies - tandems are rather a large and unwieldy things to have to accommodate.
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