Southern Rail is to strike this week. This is why I hate it

Members of Southern Rail, consistently rated as one of Britain’s worst rail networks, have announced three separate 24 hour strikes in opposition to a change that will do nothing but benefit customer service on future journeys.

The strikes are planned for April 26th and the 10th and 12th of May.

For such a strike to be planned is testament to the mediocre experience Southern provides to its passengers on a daily basis.

Southern was recently rated the 3rd worst network

Currently conductors do not often interact with customers as they have to be positioned by the doors. This is especially problematic for passengers should they need to make an inquiry or purchase tickets for future journey.

Proposed changes would see the driver being able to operate the doors allowing the conductor to spend far greater time with the passengers. On a vast number of occasions it has only been my honesty that has made me buy a ticket for a Southern journey with it often easy to travel without a ticket.

With huge levels of tourism and international students in Brighton there is huge demand for a more passenger friendly conductor frequently present to answer any queries such as the classic ‘Does this Train stop at Falmer?’

What makes the strikes more intolerable is that proposed changes would lead to less members of staff needing to be present and so freeing up numbers which would reduce disruption and delay. How could this not benefit Britain’s worst punctual rail network?

The Brighton to London service is the most delayed in the UK

A number of routes will have no Southern service, including some that Sussex students, staff and visitors may use to travel to and from campus:
•Haywards Heath to Lewes
•Preston Park to Hove
•Lewes to Seaford
•Chichester to Portsmouth Harbour and Southampton Central

Southern say that a limited service will operate in both directions between approximately 7.30am and 6.30pm on a number of other routes, including some that may be used by Sussex students, staff and visitors when travelling to and from campus:
•London Victoria to Gatwick Airport
•Brighton to Bognor Regis
•Brighton to Falmer