Bikes on trains: 3 easy questions

[Kim]

If you travel on East Coast trains, you need to book.  They are miserable buggers who will demand to see your reservation and possibly not let you on the train without it.

Same goes for Virgin.

And on the odd occasion that CrossCountry are running a HST, they're a lot happier about letting your bike on if you've got one.

Services where no staff interaction is required to access the bike space (eg. Voyagers and most commuter services), spaces are de-facto first come first served, and bookings count for very little.

[rower40]

Regards 'which end of the train is the bike space?', I never rely on station staff, as they get it wrong 50% of the time, IME.

If in doubt when boarding long trains, I stand up platform somewhere with a view of the train entering the station, and try to spot the 'bike' symbol as the train passes. If I get the wrong end of the train, I have the additional time of the train pulling in to the platform and coming to a halt in which to begin frantically wheeling machine and self to the other end of the platform.

If it's a Voyager or Meridian, then the Dellner coupler cover is painted yellow at the First-class end.  The Bike space is at the other end.  (Meridian - non-dangly bike space is at the far end of the last vehicle.  Voyager - dangly bike space is as the far end of the penultimate vehicle.)

(I will attempt to find clickable links to photos of both yellow-painted and non-yellow-painted Dellner couplers!)

[Karla]

Bike spaces are in Coach F on a Virgin Voyager, but Coach D on a Cross Country Voyager.

If you travel on East Coast trains, you need to book.  They are miserable buggers who will demand to see your reservation and possibly not let you on the train without it.

Same goes for Virgin.

And on the odd occasion that CrossCountry are running a HST, they're a lot happier about letting your bike on if you've got one.

Services where no staff interaction is required to access the bike space (eg. Voyagers and most commuter services), spaces are de-facto first come first served, and bookings count for very little.

Ah yes, I'd forgotten my time living on the wrong side of the country. 

Virgin Pendolinos are just as bad as East Coast HSTs because both require you to ask the miserable bugger of a conductor to unlock a door to let you on the train.  Virgin Voyagers are not so bad, because although booking is theoretically compulsory, the bike spaces are in the main part of the train so you can sneak your bike on without anyone looking, lock it and disappear down the other end of the carriage. 

[rower40]

Bike spaces are in Coach F on a Virgin Voyager, but Coach D on a Cross Country Voyager.

Oops Yes, you're quite right.  Since the transfer of X-country from Virgin to Arriva, and what with me having only minimal interaction with the West Coast Main Line, I'd forgotten that Virgin still operate Voyagers.

[Wowbagger]

On Saturday the guard advised us to take our luggage off the bikes because of the danger of yoofs with BMXs and light fingers getting on and helping themselves to our luggage. We took all but one of the panniers into the train with us.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Regards 'which end of the train is the bike space?', I never rely on station staff, as they get it wrong 50% of the time, IME.

If in doubt when boarding long trains, I stand up platform somewhere with a view of the train entering the station, and try to spot the 'bike' symbol as the train passes. If I get the wrong end of the train, I have the additional time of the train pulling in to the platform and coming to a halt in which to begin frantically wheeling machine and self to the other end of the platform.

If it's a Voyager or Meridian, then the Dellner coupler cover is painted yellow at the First-class end.  The Bike space is at the other end.  (Meridian - non-dangly bike space is at the far end of the last vehicle.  Voyager - dangly bike space is as the far end of the penultimate vehicle.)

(I will attempt to find clickable links to photos of both yellow-painted and non-yellow-painted Dellner couplers!)

Dellner coupler? 

On GW HSTs the bike space is always at the non-London end of the train. Helpfully, they have blue bike in a circle signs on the platforms to indicate roughly where this will stop.

[Cudzoziemiec]

My bike and I intend to help some trains have their railway adventures this summer, but we need to settle a few points of uncertainty first.

1. Luggage. The "Cycling by train" leaflet says take luggage off your bike. This seems a good idea if you only have one item, but if you have, say, two panniers, a bar bag and a big bulk strapped to the rack top, it's not really practical to carry that much through the carriage, and reattaching it to the bike on a swaying train could be difficult and delaying. Also, I'm not sure if this advice is TOC-specific (the leaflet I'm referring to is from FGW). What do people actually do?

2. Locking. The same leaflet says you mustn't lock your bike to any part of the train. That's sensible. But it recommends you to lock your bike to itself while in the bike compartment on those trains that have them. Again, I'm wondering how practical this is and whether theft of bikes from trains is really a problem? Obviously when it's a local train where your bike goes in a fold-down seat place this isn't a problem at all.

3. Booking. The only one of the many train-booking websites that can book you a bike place seems to be East Coast. Nothing wrong with it as far as I can tell, but I wondered if there were any others that people know of or use?

Thanks.

1. This is because of width problems, I guess.  You'd never get six loaded touring bikes side-by-side on an HST.  No-one insists that you unload, though; I stuck my bike on at Didcot last Sunday with no problems since there were only two other bikes in there and I was only going one stop since I had a bad case of CBA-into-this-headwind that morning.  In practice finding the time to unload would be the main problem, since my panniers are double secured with bungees and it takes a couple of minutes' grovelling to free them.

They did when I boarded at Bristol Temple Meads. They said - announced through the tannoy - that it was a security risk and would be unloaded! No problem at Didcot though, and I guess there wouldn't be at other intermediate stations unless the train has a long stop.

[rogerzilla]

On GW HSTs the bike space is always at the non-London end of the train. Helpfully, they have blue bike in a circle signs on the platforms to indicate roughly where this will stop.

Unless you get the dreaded "This train is in reverse formation" announcement, normally made just as it draws to a halt and you've already twigged that something is amiss.

[Arch]

I was once wheeling my bike over the footbridge at Berwick, when a member of staff was walking the other way. He stopped and made a point of telling me that the next train south (which I was heading to catch) would be formed backwards, and which end of the platform to go to. 

Sometimes, just sometimes, railway staff are helpful!

[frankly frankie]

I never rely on station staff, as they get it wrong 50% of the time, IME.

Far more than 50% at my nearest main line station.  The platform staff, announcer and display screens all get it wrong, in unison (so at least the platform staff have an excuse). In fact it's very, very hard to believe someone somewhere isn't doing it on purpose (to enjoy the spectacle of two groups of passengers running for the opposite end of the train, and meeting halfway on a crowded platform - or even better, the same two groups sorting themselves out on the crowded train itself).

As mentioned upthread, once you know how, you can identify if the approaching train is arriving 1st-class end first, or not.  That gives you an extra minute or so to wander in the right direction.

[Kim]

If it's a Voyager or Meridian, then the Dellner coupler cover is painted yellow at the First-class end.  The Bike space is at the other end.  (Meridian - non-dangly bike space is at the far end of the last vehicle.  Voyager - dangly bike space is as the far end of the penultimate vehicle.)

(I will attempt to find clickable links to photos of both yellow-painted and non-yellow-painted Dellner couplers!)

Dellner coupler? 

I've had a stab at this with the help of Google Image search...

Here's a yellow one (on a Voyager at Mordor Central, no less):


Here's a non-yellow one:


Bikes go at this end.

[rower40]

Dellner coupler? 

Clicky_ONE shows two Meridians, both with first-class end towards the camera.  Note the yellow stripe just above the coupler.

Whereas Clicky_TWO shows one in York station with the first-class end away from the camera.  The equivalent bit at the near end is not painted yellow.

And, as usual, Kim beats me to it and does it better.

[Karla]

Of course, voyagers are short enough to get to the other end in time.  If you're at the wrong end of a HST, make sure to remove your Look cleats before running!

[Cudzoziemiec]

It would seem HSTs don't have Dellner couplers, painted or otherwise, so you don't know it's the wrong end till it's in the platform. Just to add to the fun.

Thanks to Kim and Rower for enlightenment on this point of cycle-rail interaction.

[mcshroom]

I think the Grand Central ones have couplers, but the FGW ones don't.

[Canardly]

What is wrong in placing a bloody great big sign on the side which says something complicated like........ BIKES HERE

[rogerzilla]

If you're travelling first class you have to buy a Brompton, otherwise it's a long walk through the unwashed masses to retrieve your bike.

[Cudzoziemiec]

What is wrong in placing a bloody great big sign on the side which says something complicated like........ BIKES HERE

FGW do this, cept it's a bike doodle in a not particularly big blue circle. You can't spot it really till the train's at the platform but it's better than nothing.

[Kim]

What is wrong in placing a bloody great big sign on the side which says something complicated like........ BIKES HERE

To be fair, they do put small blue signs on the side.  Mostly.  But by the time you've spotted them, you've got less time to fight your way (through the crowd which has just doubled in size as people get off) to the other end of the platform.

Southern trains deserve special mention for painting the entire door of the bike compartment a different colour.  Which would be great if there was any contrast at all between it and the normal door colour (they're both shades of Dark Poo, AFAICS).   


Anything that actually worked would be far too German.

[mcshroom]

Northern have an annoying habit of leaving the cycle logos to fade or peel off so you're left loking for shapes in the dirt.

[Canardly]

God forbid that suppliers should actually be concerned about users of the service...........

[Karla]

Eh Roger?  The East Coast HSTs I've used have had 1st class next to the bike spaces.  The only problem for Little Lord Fauntleroy is that he has to endure me pushing past him to get to my space with the rest of the proles.

Northern have an annoying habit of leaving the cycle logos to fade or peel off so you're left loking for shapes in the dirt.

The flip side is that you could put your bike anywhere on the train and they probably wouldn't bat an eyelid.

[essexian]

Holy thread resurrection Batperson……

Sorry to drag a dead thread back up but wondered if it was worth starting a new one for a simple question…..

East Midlands Trains….what they like for bikes?

I have read their cycle regs which state a maximum of two bikes will be allowed on the services I am going to use next week but how strictly do they enforce this?

I am planning to take the 10.50 from East Midlands Parkway to Nottingham and then the 11.45 from there to Skegness on Monday and the 16.11 from Skegness back to Nottingham the same day (or perhaps the 17.30).

Does anyone know if I face problems doing so without booking a bike space…it looks like you have to give them 10 days notice you need a space ( I might have misread this).

Also, any idea what type of trains are used for this service and where the bike goes. If its too much bother, I might just take my folder but would prefer using a full sizer.

Finally, can anyone recommend a cycle ride in the area for Monday afternoon…. About 20 miles with no mountains please.   

[Tom B]

East Midlands Trains….what they like for bikes?

Used them to travel MCR-Norwich and back last September. We got bike reservations a week or so before but there were no checks or comments at all on the trains. Used the same service to go to East Anglia in 2008 (don't know if it was run by EM then) - had no train-specific reservation on the way out and nothing on the way back but no-one asked or challenged.

[hellymedic]

Thread resurrection:
David is travelling between Luton (well Mill Hill Broadway actually but we're familiar with FCC aka Thameslink) and Leicester tomorrow.
East Midlands Trains website is ambiguous about the need for bike reservations. What are they like?