The other point is that I know many people have contacted me over this, and asked me to keep up the good work,but as far as some authorities are concerned, I am just one person - why should they take any notice of me? So if you feel strongly about this, I think you need to start pushing, and the only people now who will be able to put pressure on FGW is the Office of Rail Regulation. So they are the ones to contact. I think we should be campaigning for FGW to lose its franchise. None of the train companies is faultless, but FGW really doesn't seem to care about its passengers.
It's not just the cramped conditions - we were on a train the day before yesterday, and some of the seats were so close together that I don't see how larger size people could have sat in them. But it's the way they treat people who don't fit into their vision of the ideal traveller. I am becoming increasingly convinced that a lot of these changes at Bath Spa are to deter cyclists, whom FGW seems to dislike heartily. I am told that some guards will only let two bikes on to some trains, and some guards refuse to take them at all. I suspect, too, that wheelchair passengers and those with mobility problems, who require special assistance from station staff are also regarded as a pain, and the changes at Bath Spa may will deter them. FGW's policy is to run stations on as few staff as possible, so you can see that if, like my late Mum, you needed help to get on the train, that means you are messing up this corporate plan. What really annoys me is that they are using the very act that was designed to protect people like my Mum to put them off using the station!
So, I think it's now time for you, the reader, to contact the ORR, expressing your views. Here are the contact details.
Office of Rail Regulation
One Kemble Street
London
WC2B 4AN
Tel: 020 7282 2000
Email: contact.cct@orr.gsi.gov.uk
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