Vintage Trains 2016/17 Tours

No VT didn't make the right choice, they should have run the train just like RTC has, VT have lost out as I know quite a few of the ones who were booked on their train either booked for today with RCT or the Tornado trip tomorrow even though it meant some had to travel up to London, they wanted a mainline steam trip out and VT failed them!

 

Agree Al.

So easy to be wise after the event. Especially from our armchairs.

 

Would you be saying that if your steamy Valentine's plans had been scuppered only to see another tour run as advertised?

 

Not being wise after the event as it was obvious to many since some days ago that today's Tangmere bash was likely to run as advertised. IMO VT and RTC bet on different outcomes of the (still on going) WCRC saga and RTC won the bet.

 

Interesting to see what happens if, as hoped, WCRC get the all clear to continue. What will survive of the VT plan for the early part of their programme? There were a couiple that really interested me but now I will not do them. The loss of sensible cost accommodation and advance fares makes it too great an investment now. On the oether hand I could have spent the money and WCRC could be off the rails. No win either way.

 

I think this is kind of a shame


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Video? I've posted no video.
And my original post was asking for opinions on the different approaches from VT and RTC to this weekend's tours, nothing to do with unassisted or not. If you're going to criticise please at least quote me correctly.

 

A few rumours from the lineside today, suggesting VT are without an operator, after WCR were unhappy about the lack of confidence shown in them by VT, after cancelling their Valentines tour. Hopefully Mr Mason can squash this rumour.

 

The silence from VT is deafening...

 

Bit rich of WCRC considering the havoc they caused to various promoters programmes and the resulting loss of customer confidence due their own rather major screw up, about time they accepted responsibility, took the deserved flack from promoters, passengers etc, and moved on in an adult manner, I seriously hope the suggestion of such pettiness is indeed wrong, as it would be beggars belief that WCRC would have the bare faced cheek to get the hump with a promoter looking to protect it's interests in current times, I know I haven't always seen eye to eye with Ben & Bob, but they have been seriously screwed in recent times by the TOC concerned as well as other promoters, if anything they should have been compensated for the loss of revenue due to last years ban, not beaten with a stick for not praying WCRC don't get banned like RTC and others, and they end up letting passengers down again through no fault of their own.

Total farce that paints WCRC in the worst possible light IMO, a new TOC can't get here soon enough...

 

In their current position WCRC should be keeping a low profile IMO, the events of last year and the knock on effect on promoters and passengers are well known facts, we have every right to be less than impressed with the current situation and they are in no position to take the moral high ground with anyone currently, even if this rumour is false, it doesn't change the fact that WCRC are very much not in many peoples goods books currently and should be looking to build new bridges, not burn even more.

Due to VT being out of action, I'm only booked on one steam run this year and don't see that number increasing much (not to mention having to endure Holyhead to do it), who wins out of me and many like me doing less tours due to the current situation ?, no one does, we all lose.

We could have (still could ?) lose the majority of mainline steam due to WCRC's actions, so I don't think being annoyed by their actions while defending what appears to be an innocent party thats heavily disrupted by them, is being unreasonable at all.

 

In what way are WCRC not keeping a low profile or are you saying that they are sanctioning or spreading this lineside rumour?

Entirely correct, but equally let's remember that for the last few years the majority of mainline steam has been facilitated by WCRC as no other TOC wanted to provide the service?

I am a huge fan of VT (in fact they are the only company I have travelled with for the last 10 years), however they have made this choice of their own choosing (and for entirely understandable reasons) however it is a commercial market and thus WCRC can choose to operate for whoever they want, that's life. Much as the desperate attempts to blacken WCRC for not operating tornado (where they have no obligation to do so) they hold the cards, its a free market, and in the absence of anyone else entering the market that's life.

Intriguing how these negative WCRC rumours become fact in 3-4 repetitions......

 

But where in my post did I criticise the addition of the diesel, especially as the caption to the pic I remarked that the 47 was just ticking over ? I simply stated that it likely gave '67 a big push leaving Stevenage to account for the rather rapid regaining of lost time in such a short distance. No judgement, just an observation.

 

I don't think that's a consistent statement. WCRC do indeed hold almost all the cards, and therefore it's not a free market. It's very nearly a monopoly, and for owners of vacuum-only braked locos, it is a monopoly. Indeed, since WCRC are not just a TOC, but also loco owners and tour promoters themselves, they could be seen as being in competition with their customers. That needn't be a problem, if WCRC deal with all their potential customers in an even-handed way. However, every now and then, we get stories like this one. Let's hope that this time, it is just rumour and speculation

 

According to the magazines, wasn't it steam dreams, NRM, and RTC who made the comment that they could run with DBS If required???
That seems more of a lack of confidence than just suspending bookings??

 

Agreed my terminology is poor. However the point remains that a) the fact that WCRC hold a virtual monopoly is not of their making and more to do with the fact that no one else wants to enter the market (even in its present perilous state where in theory a whole tract of customers are looking around which says a lot really) and b) on the VAC issue again the owners have chosen to be VAC only and just aligned themselves to a sole operator which is a jolly risky position to take and does not oblige WCRC to provide a commercial service to them.

I agree the whole market is skewed but it is what it is and without WCRC mainline steam would have been a shadow of what it has been for the last few years (a hypothesis I know), WCRC are a business and if they did choose not to operate for certain parties that's the way business works?

Anyway we shall see if this is fact or fiction.....