So I’m stuck.
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Meanwhile I am sort of moving past Sens, adding extra delay
Does SNCF possibly think we might want to know what the hell is going on?
No! That would be far too much effort!
And it is at moments like this that you realise that
COMPULSORY RESERVATION TRAINS ARE SHIT
I will happily stand the whole way from Paris to Liège, because better that than not getting there at all
But as the Eurostar is compulsory reservation I am likely not allowed on it
My need to get to my destination is higher than the mild inconvenience to some other passenger if I am standing beside them in an aisle
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And it is at moments like this that you realise that
COMPULSORY RESERVATION TRAINS ARE SHIT
I will happily stand the whole way from Paris to Liège, because better that than not getting there at all
But as the Eurostar is compulsory reservation I am likely not allowed on it
My need to get to my destination is higher than the mild inconvenience to some other passenger if I am standing beside them in an aisle
@jon or even just setting up camp on the floor. I’ve done that when desperate to get somewhere or when Avantis service fell apart.
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@jon or even just setting up camp on the floor. I’ve done that when desperate to get somewhere or when Avantis service fell apart.
@technicalotter @jon Yeah, just sit on the floor like it's Germany.
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@jon FWIW the amendment the senate voted through requires TOCs to accommodate delayed passengers _even if there are no seats_. unclear if it applies to international trips too. iirc coming into effect late 2027
« En cas d’absence de place disponible dans cet autre train, le voyageur se voit proposer de monter à bord, sans garantie de place assise, sous réserve du respect des obligations de sécurité incombant à l’entreprise ferroviaire concernée. »
https://www.senat.fr/amendements/2025-2026/524/Amdt_119.html
@bovine3dom @jon It wouldn't achieve much IMO:
- "sous réserve du respect des obligations de sécurité"
so SNCF could just claim every standing passenger is a breach of safety.
- This would be French law, not for cross-border journeys, so Eurostar could just tell the passengers to f*** off.
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@bovine3dom @jon It wouldn't achieve much IMO:
- "sous réserve du respect des obligations de sécurité" so SNCF could just claim every standing passenger is a breach of safety.
- This would be French law, not for cross-border journeys, so Eurostar could just tell the passengers to f*** off.@cycling_on_rails i am a hopeless optimist
i think they would at least have to write down somewhere that standing up is a breach of safety and then the senat could come back angrily and abolish the SNCF and we would all live happily ever after
technicolour eurostars yeah could be exempt. but it's a good precedent for getting it transposed into EU law...
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@partim Now just left Sens. Eurostar to BXL, IC to Liege, then Drielanden to Maastricht.
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And it is at moments like this that you realise that
COMPULSORY RESERVATION TRAINS ARE SHIT
I will happily stand the whole way from Paris to Liège, because better that than not getting there at all
But as the Eurostar is compulsory reservation I am likely not allowed on it
My need to get to my destination is higher than the mild inconvenience to some other passenger if I am standing beside them in an aisle
@jon I once had to wait two additional hours in Paris when going from Cologne to Rouen: After the Eurostar to Paris broke and I already had hours delay SNCF didn't let me onto the connecting train to Rouen in St Lazare because I didn't have the printed "Hop on the next train" paper required for this. it forced me to go back to Gare du Nord to get the HOTNT from Eurostar. Thanks for nothing
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@jon I once had to wait two additional hours in Paris when going from Cologne to Rouen: After the Eurostar to Paris broke and I already had hours delay SNCF didn't let me onto the connecting train to Rouen in St Lazare because I didn't have the printed "Hop on the next train" paper required for this. it forced me to go back to Gare du Nord to get the HOTNT from Eurostar. Thanks for nothing
@jon People in Germany like to rant about Deutsche Bahn, they don't know SNCF/Eurostar ...
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@jon I once had to wait two additional hours in Paris when going from Cologne to Rouen: After the Eurostar to Paris broke and I already had hours delay SNCF didn't let me onto the connecting train to Rouen in St Lazare because I didn't have the printed "Hop on the next train" paper required for this. it forced me to go back to Gare du Nord to get the HOTNT from Eurostar. Thanks for nothing
@footils why do you matter? You’re a passenger. The railway would work better without you!
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@jon People in Germany like to rant about Deutsche Bahn, they don't know SNCF/Eurostar ...
@footils Right. Exactly. DB’s attitude is better at least.
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@technicalotter @jon Yeah, just sit on the floor like it's Germany.
@J2 average northern rail experience
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And it is at moments like this that you realise that
COMPULSORY RESERVATION TRAINS ARE SHIT
I will happily stand the whole way from Paris to Liège, because better that than not getting there at all
But as the Eurostar is compulsory reservation I am likely not allowed on it
My need to get to my destination is higher than the mild inconvenience to some other passenger if I am standing beside them in an aisle
@jon At some point it does become miserable - when people can't even get to their assigned seats or to the toilets/catering. But that's the British railway experience where any disruption gives you the "it's 1975 and this is the last helicopter out of Saigon" experience
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And it is at moments like this that you realise that
COMPULSORY RESERVATION TRAINS ARE SHIT
I will happily stand the whole way from Paris to Liège, because better that than not getting there at all
But as the Eurostar is compulsory reservation I am likely not allowed on it
My need to get to my destination is higher than the mild inconvenience to some other passenger if I am standing beside them in an aisle
@jon but still there‘s heaps of people in countries Like Germany asking for compulsory reservations…
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@jon At some point it does become miserable - when people can't even get to their assigned seats or to the toilets/catering. But that's the British railway experience where any disruption gives you the "it's 1975 and this is the last helicopter out of Saigon" experience
@flangey Sure. But how many passengers from Laroche Migennes need a Eurostar to Liege? I agree there’s a limit, but a few can work!
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The train manager was friendly. So I’m on my #CrossBorderRail to Liège. In the bar for now…
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The train manager was friendly. So I’m on my #CrossBorderRail to Liège. In the bar for now…
@jon But you're right, having to rely on the courtesy of train staff is a terrible position to be in. That's what makes people take their car instead.
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The train manager was friendly. So I’m on my #CrossBorderRail to Liège. In the bar for now…
Sometimes in the bar is the best place to be, only beaten by having service direct to your seat.
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The train manager was friendly. So I’m on my #CrossBorderRail to Liège. In the bar for now…
@jon Great outcome. Or will they throw you out if you don't order every 15 minutes? Pace yourself!
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The train manager was friendly. So I’m on my #CrossBorderRail to Liège. In the bar for now…
Also I increased the chances of this working by knowing what type of Eurostar - Thalys runs the Köln service, and waiting right beside it before the platform was announced. That meant I was the first to see the train manager. That ought not be necessary! #CrossBorderRail
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Also I increased the chances of this working by knowing what type of Eurostar - Thalys runs the Köln service, and waiting right beside it before the platform was announced. That meant I was the first to see the train manager. That ought not be necessary! #CrossBorderRail
@jon this is why I say we should never book a train ticket, but buy a train ticket.
