CME - 2019

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86259 'Les ross/Peter Pan' passes red bank before the fun began

 

Received my letter from RTC this morning re. Saturday's failure, now described as "a problem with a valve which could only be repaired once the locomotive was cold". Offers £35 goodwill discount against a new booking. Have to say I'm a bit underwhelmed with that amount, given that similar or larger amounts are regularly offered as "special offers" for short periods, but maybe I'm being churlish/unrealistic. What do others think?

 

That's better than you get from Pathfinder and Torbay Express Ltd (£15 cash or £30 as credit notes); and £20 credit from UKRT for Standard Class ticketholders. Steam Dreams is only £15 or possibly up to 3x that if one books on another train - under certain circumstances agreed 'on the day'.

 

Bearing in mind they have no obligation to offer anything I think that’s ok

 

RTC were not obliged to offer anything but they came up with a discount of £35 (or almost 33% discount on the price of a standard class CME ticket). Seems ok to me.

 

Yes Alan that had also occurred to me especially as they have been throwing discounts around

 

Agree totally. Add to that I'd be surprised if many hadn't used the discount codes that have been available since last November to book the train in the first place. We used the £30 discount so only paid £79 for 2 of our tickets and used the £40 LVE offer so only paid £69 on the late added third. Got no intention of using the offered discount.

 

If you are a promoter and not getting much if anything off the cost of the train then it's quite difficult to do any more than a voucher perhaps for the difference between what you may have charged for steam versus diesel on the most similar tour unless getting hard cash offered by a third party.

The only steam TOC who tends to be more open to discounting trains in this situation is DB Cargo but that is perhaps slightly offset by the fact they have traditionally been a more expensive operator in the first place.

One can generally sympathise with a promoter in this position. The grief received post event, even if the majority aren't vocal or even understand, is unwelcome if your office is already busy trying to ensure other trips continue to run as advertised. An incident such as this happening on the day (and indeed anything where passengers get anything less than 50% of the expected steam or less than one direction on a round trip) will usually generate dozens of complaint/negative letters of correspondence each of which will take up 15-30 minutes of somebody's time to answer typically and sometimes longer.

 

Weather up here from today gladly dampens any fire risk for weekend, Saturday is rain, then heavy rain for S&C from 3.00 pm on wards, just as they south bounds are due.

 

Just had an email from RTC the loco for tomorrow will now be 35018.

Andrew

 

Not sure that's good news having had to put up with BIL's no show last week and a diesel hauled day. Perhaps they should send it out with 61306 on the front just in case....

 

Great news !

 

That was pretty freak to be fair, conditions for the S&C return will be better in the hands of a class 8 !

 

Didn't someone complain recently about double headers?

 

Don't get sarcasm based humour obviously.....

 

My first time on Les Ross but to ride on B.I.L. definitely a experience on the C.M.E. It will be nice to hear her barking over Shap and S.A.C. and a rattly pacer to Hebdon Bridge and whatever on to Preston from Brighouse this morning. I'm booked on the C.M.E. from Preston. Davo56F

 

Blowing off past Shap Wells.

 

Yes she was and I think early into Citadel.