13 hours Ago By Charlotte Minett
Read This Smelly food and replacement bus services among top train woes By Charlotte Minett Comment Published 15th Apr 2025, 11:19 BST Smelly food – and having to stand in standard when the First Class carriage is empty – are Brits’ biggest train ‘icks’. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues.
Please try again later. Submitting..
. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Notice and Terms of Service apply. A poll, of 2,000 adults, discovered the top 20 ‘rail fails’, also include noisy passengers, loud music or videos being played and unclear announcements over the tannoy.
Similarly, seats being taken up with luggage or being used as a footrest are familiar annoyances. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad While the top three most irritating rail dislikes are costly tickets (35%), delays (34%) and overcrowding (24%). Almost half (43%) are already bracing for rail transport this Easter to be disrupted.
Marc Pell, managing director at temporary car insurance provider Tempcover, which commissioned the research, said: “The research highlights the very real frustrations many endure with UK train travel. "The quality of a journey significantly impacts overall enjoyment, and unreliable services take away from people’s precious time. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad “Over a four-day Easter holiday, no-one wants their plans derailed.
” The top three 'rail fails' being the costly tickets, delays, and overcrowding. | Joe Pepler/PinPep/SWNS Delays, disruptions, and the rise of the alternative road trip The research went on to find two in 10 experience delays or cancellations on services most times they travel by train – with 11% having experienced a hold-up of more than four hours. And the average time passengers have had to wait on a rail replacement bus service is 41 minutes, while 20% have done so for an hour or more.
The average price of tickets costs almost £110 – with 80% citing train ticket prices as expensive. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad To make things even worse, 44% have witnessed someone playing loud music in their carriage, and 42% have come across a rude passenger during their travels. But staff are the silver lining, with 49% saying they are helpful, according to the OnePoll stats.
Furthermore, 51% would rather drive than catch a train – as you can get straight to your destination (49%), have your own space (38%) and it’s seen as more reliable (35%). Marc Pell, of Tempcover, added: “This Easter, car sharing is another way to visit friends and family. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad “This is where temporary car insurance can really help.
Just borrow a car, get insured in minutes and you can travel on your own terms whenever you want – evening or day, on or off-peak.” TOP 20 ‘RAIL FAILS’: 1.Expensive or overpriced tickets 2.
Delays and cancellations 3.Overcrowding 4.Lack of available seats and having to stand 5.
Replacement bus services 6.Unreliable timetables 7.Noisy passengers 8.
Lack of toilets or dirty toilets 9.Dirty trains 10.People taking up extra seats with bags 11.
Drunken passengers 12.People putting feet on seats 13.People playing loud music/videos 14.
Slow trains or too many stops 15.People blocking doors when trying to get on/off 16.Noisy children or crying babies 17.
People eating smelly food 18.Unclear announcements 19.Plenty of room in first class with the people in standard being packed in like sardines 20.
Passengers with a visibly contagious illness Continue Reading Related topics: Easter Food Music Standard People Disruptions Tickets Trains Car insurance Comment Comment Guidelines National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.
.
