Bikes on trains?

[mjr]

I’ve been looking on website is says the time bikes aren’t allowed are

Arriving from R at 7.45-9.45
(This doesn’t affect me) as I’m not arriving at that time I’m leaving at 9.12 not arriving

Leaving from R 16;30-19.00
(This doesn’t affect me) as I would be leaving from a different train station.

The thing is don’t get is I want to book my tickets in advance but once I click next is says reservations are not possible. Although it said between that line to book a reservation and if Said online, calling or at ticket office. So does this mean you have to reserve because it’s not very clear

Tell us which train and someone will know more but if that's GWR's site you're using, reservations not being possible usually means it's a local service with a commuter-style train, rather than an intercity with reservable seats.

 

[Randombiker9]

Tell us which train and someone will know more but if that's GWR's site you're using, reservations not being possible usually means it's a local service with a commuter-style train, rather than an intercity with reservable seats.

If it’s a local route l which it is? Does that mean you don’t have to book reservations? Or do you have to go the ticket office in advance

Ps nothing against folding bikes but there pretty ugly to me so that’s why I’ve never bothered with them

 

[Randombiker9]

seems pretty clear to me, ie you officially cant take a full size bike in peak times (as is the case on most trains)...

View attachment 445582

Get a Brompton, then no issues

I’m not leaving or arriving from or to London

As I told you there were certain times you can’t which don’t apply to me and it says in local area it says full size 2 spaces available. So how do you kniw if those spaces are full or not? If you can’t make reservations

 

[mjr]

As I told you there were certain times you can’t which don’t apply to me and it says in local area it says full size 2 spaces available. So how do you kniw if those spaces are full or not? If you can’t make reservations

You look when the train arrives. Yes, this sucks and can leave you stranded. GWR are complete cockwombles who have been told many times that the combination of a low bikes-per-train limit and no reservations makes their local services especially unattractive but they don't seem to care and (like most operators) seems to expect commuters to keep a bike at each end or get a folding bike.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Anywhere around London on a potential commuter route, you'll be unwelcome

I think that answer is more suitable

 

[mjr]

Don't lock your bike to any part of the train! If you lose your key or something, chaos will ensue and you could find yourself being at odds with the transport police for delaying a train. Someone I know locked his bike in the guard's van on a Virgin train, and then, by a series of unconnected mishaps, ended up having to get a different train to his destination - he got into a fair amount of trouble because they could not unload his bike.

Why didn't they just leave it on there until it got back to the depot with tools that would mince the lock? It's then the locker's problem to go fetch it from the depot.

I have locked my bike to the bike rack (or luggage rack if it's a folder) if it's going to be out of my sight (but I strongly prefer to keep it in sight, to the point of standing by it sometimes). Too many bikes have been nicked from trains, famously including the Cycling UK CEO's Brompton. I know that's not good and a breach of some train company terms, but my insurance requires it be locked so I don't see another reasonable option until the train operators accept responsibility for thefts from bike compartments.

 

[steverob]

I’m not leaving or arriving from or to London

As I told you there were certain times you can’t which don’t apply to me and it says in local area it says full size 2 spaces available. So how do you kniw if those spaces are full or not? If you can’t make reservations

While I can't say this is the same for GWR or not, for my local train service regardless of what station you got on at / are getting off at, whether you are allowed bikes on it or not applies to the times it reaches wherever the end of the line for that train is (whether that is London, Reading, or somewhere else).

Which can mean you get the slightly odd circumstances of the rules saying no full size bikes allowed between 1630 and 1900, but although your journey finishes at an intermediary station outside of these times (e.g. 1615), you can't take your bike on it, because the train carries on and reaches its final destination at 1645, which falls within the restricted times.

 

[Randombiker9]

You look when the train arrives. Yes, this sucks and can leave you stranded. GWR are complete cockwombles who have been told many times that the combination of a low bikes-per-train limit and no reservations makes their local services especially unattractive but they don't seem to care and (like most operators) seems to expect commuters to keep a bike at each end or get a folding bike.

Oi theire not cockwolbmes back when I was 16 I did my work experience in there station but this was before I cycled and I just never asked about bikes.
So i just asked about bikes and trains on their Facebook page as you can message them and they replied very fast and it says as long as it’s outside of peak times you can take your bicycle even full size on trains as long as you have your tickets you can turn up and go as it’s free. (That’s what I got told)

 

[Randombiker9]

While I can't say this is the same for GWR or not, for my local train service regardless of what station you got on at / are getting off at, whether you are allowed bikes on it or not applies to the times it reaches wherever the end of the line for that train is (whether that is London, Reading, or somewhere else).

Which can mean you get the slightly odd circumstances of the rules saying no full size bikes allowed between 1630 and 1900, but although your journey finishes at an intermediary station outside of these times (e.g. 1615), you can't take your bike on it, because the train carries on and reaches its final destination at 1645, which falls within the restricted times.

I’m guess not as when I messaged them and they asked which journey. They said the first off peak train is 08:20 in the morning.

They didn’t say anything for way back but as the long as your tickets are off peak you should be fine right?

 

[mjr]

People could start locking all their suitcases to the luggage racks as well, in case they get stolen. Then people could complain even more loudly about trains always being late. The fact is, the rules are that items must not be locked to the train - for very good reasons.

That's not in the current National Rail Conditions of Travel (aka "the rules"), is it?

Anyway, suitcases are usually cheaper and travel insurance doesn't usually require them to be locked to things, unlike bikes. Also, I'm quite clear that it should be the passenger's lookout to unlock in good time and deal with any consequences of not doing so, so it does not make the trains late.

 

[mjr]

Oi theire not cockwolbmes back when I was 16 I did my work experience in there station but this was before I cycled and I just never asked about bikes.
So i just asked about bikes and trains on their Facebook page as you can message them and they replied very fast and it says as long as it’s outside of peak times you can take your bicycle even full size on trains as long as you have your tickets you can turn up and go as it’s free. (That’s what I got told)

Did you ask them how you can tell if there's space available and what happens if not?

And you might not have been a cockwomble nor might anyone you worked with but this is clearly an example of institutional cockwomblery at GWR about cycling.

 

[BrumJim]

Fortunately, soon all new trains will soon be required to have 8 bike spaces.
https://cyclingindustry.news/european-parliament-backs-eight-spaces-for-bikes-on-trains/
For countries in the EU, that is.

 

[mjr]

@mjr whether it's in the conditions of carriage or not that you may not lock a bike to a train, it's certainly advertised on more than one TOC website that I've seen. (eg here and here) I've also read somewhere (can't remember where) that train staff could raise a security alert if they found this (my unreliable memory of unreliable source, so treat with pinch of salt).

Thameslink and Southeastern are the same company and tell you not to leave the bike unattended anyway, which I've always been OK doing on the trains under those brands. Thameslink seem pretty good, with their new trains having seatbelt-like extending straps for holding bikes to the carriage wall, like on some Belgian trains. But they can put whatever shoot they want on their websites - the national conditions are the rules.

The staff could raise a security alert for anything so that's situation normal. So I'd recommend not taking a bike painted to look as if it's made from sticks of dynamite!

 

[classic33]

Thameslink and Southeastern are the same company and tell you not to leave the bike unattended anyway, which I've always been OK doing on the trains under those brands. Thameslink seem pretty good, with their new trains having seatbelt-like extending straps for holding bikes to the carriage wall, like on some Belgian trains. But they can put whatever shoot they want on their websites - the national conditions are the rules.

The staff could raise a security alert for anything so that's situation normal. So I'd recommend not taking a bike painted to look as if it's made from sticks of dynamite!

Companies owned and operated by the same company, Govia Thameslink Railway.

 

[Randombiker9]

Yeah. Which js why someone people stand up with their bikes on Trains (although these are more likely bikes with no racks)