can i trust the british trains to be on time?

Question

OK stupid question, more to the point is should i risk the train actually being on time. Tomorrow i have to catch a train from woking at 10.46, however i have to get there first. Do i risk it and go for the 9.57 train which gets me there at 10.44 or play it safe and get the 9.18 train which gets me there at 9.59 in which case i will have to wait there for 50 minutes.

make my decision for me please

Answer 1

Get the early train, better yet set off walking now.

Answer 2

I see that loads of people have answered an knocked the railway here in Britain, which is not really fare especially when at this precise moment in time the trains are running at 90% on time or if you want the figuars then 6837 trains arrived on time and 683 train that have run late or being canciled!!!!!

Chiltern 100%
c2c 99%
Merseyrail 97%
Transpennine Express* 96%
Southeastern 95%
First Scotrail 95%
First Capital Connect 93%
one 92%
South West Trains 92%
Midland Main Line* 91%
Arriva Trains Wales 91%
Southern 90%
Northern 88%
Virgin West Coast* 88%
Silverlink 88%
Gatwick Express 87%
Virgin Cross Country* 87%
First Great Western 86%
Great North Eastern Railway* 80%
Central 79%

But in answer to your question I would go for the earlier train as then you are safe and if there is any train failures/cancelations you will not get caught out!

Answer 3

It's funny how so many people in Britain think we have such a bad service on the railways.
I've worked on the old British rail,Railtrack and now for Networkrail.
Most people I speak to say they prefered British rail becuse they remember (falsley) trains were more on time and there were "better" trains.
In the past 20 years I've worked on the railways in North West England I've seen lots of changes.
In fact now we have more trains(try thinking 4 times as many cars on a motorway and still having to keep the speeds and saftey levels up),we have cleaner trains,more enviromentally friendly trains too.
Looking back at our percentage of trains arriving on time for the past week only the long distance cross-country Virgin trains services failed to make the agreed 90% on time target,(try gettin a bus operator to do that!).

As to your own question....
It has been long agreed that a train that arrives within 5 mins of it's arrival time is still an on time arrival,so...
The train that arrives at 10.44 can still be considered as "on time" at 10.49,thereby missing your conecting train by 3 mins.
I would choose to use the earlier train to ensure you catch your connection.

Answer 4

Whenever I have had to get a train it has nearly always been on time and I get the train often too and have had no problems. I would, however, get the 9:18 train in case there is a delay at any point. You can always stay on the station platform or take time out for breakfast

Answer 5

It's a pain, but if you rely on the 2 minute connection there is I guess a 80% chance you will be waiting for the next train at Woking. Go for the earlier one and take a book to read.
NOTE: SOME trains are held up for connections, but don't count on it unless you know

Answer 6

All depends why you want to catch that train. If you're meeting up with someone then the earlier train and the wait, but if you're going up to Waterloo, the trains are so frequent you can turn up anytime you choose.

As well as doing journey planner www.nationalrail.co.uk also lets you see departure boards which may be worth checking out.

Answer 7

The Railway system has come on a long way, unfortunatley there are always problems somewhere on the network, a knock on in one place can cascade down onto other lines quickly. You should always give yourself plenty of time to get to a meeting or place with time to spare, same as if you was using any form of transport.
I would go for the middle option train the 09.57 if I was you, that way you have the option if you miss that one due to problems getting to the station.

Answer 8

Catch the earlier train. I'd never expect to make a two minute connection, and normally look for 10-15 minutes regardless of station size.

Answer 9

Easy to knock trains isn't it, as shown by some of the foolish answers given before. In fact, something like 90% of British trains run to time - probably a much better average than airlines, for example.

Answer 10

Chances are the train will be on time, however, how importnat is it that you get the second train? If its really important get the earlier one, sit on the platform and have a breakfast bun to eat and a coffee

Answer 11

To be on the safe side I would Wait 50 minutes. i have done that. waited 50 minutes for a train!!