Kent & East Sussex Railway

Please feel free to come and do it, then!

 

If someone told us what the loco was I'd happily plonk it up on social media for you!

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That is part of the issue, though. Who is that "someone"?! You have to set up the communication channels to get the right information to the right people. They may have to chase it, when others are busy doing more important things (like fixing locos).

You can't just sit there and say "someone send it to me".

 

An attitude that is all too prevalent in the heritage movement. Someone offers to do something and all they get is a knock back. I presume someone on the KESR fulfils the post of roster clerk so how long would it take them to text the roster to someone who is willing to put the info on social media?

 

The limitless reserves of the "They department" will clearly pick this up...

The other problem with the preservation movement is people complaining when people don't jump to the latest hobby horse and say it's a knock-back....

 

Sounds like an impasse, making a mountain of a molehill comes to mind. Well we as a family will be down sussex later in the year and we all like to know what ee are likely to go behind is all I can say, so it's not the enthusiast but you could lose a whole group travelling.

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But this is the problem, if the information is up and wrong, what would you do?

 

That's always a risk for heritage, typical we've found 99% of the time it is pretty correct though for those that do publish, it is amazingly rare that there are last minute failures.

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You just make the post say "This is the plan, however, we reserve the right to change this due to unforeseen circumstances and operational necessities". Then if people get cross at you because "Facebook said it would be X but Y is running instead" you say "Facebook also said this might have to change"

 

As per my previous post, thank you for volunteering to come and do those things.

 

That's not answering the question though, if you turned up having planned your day out and the loco advertised wasn't running, would you all get back in the car and leave, or having gone to the effort of getting there, just settled for what was available? I don't think there's a right or wrong answer, I'm just curious as how the minority who this seems really important to would act?

I don't get many opportunities to visit 'foreign' lines, much less ride them. For me personally, if I've made the effort to get there and possibly convinced a couple on non-railway minded companions to come along too I'm more than likely to take a trip on whatever's available.

 

We'd normally travel but depending on the substitute and response of the staff on what went wrong could end up feeling disappointed and might influence us on further visits. I think only had an unexpected haulage once , not KESR, and that was well explained by nice friendly staff.

Re KESR if we're in doubt we go to Bodiam Castle as we're NT members anyway and if we don't like what's on we go round the castle and move on. Not happenned yet I might say but last year was a close run decision!

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Wow. Customer service not your strong point I guess.

 

To us part of the heritage experience is making you feel welcome, enthusiasm to explain to people, an interest in taking about the heritage, an interest in explaing what is going on, interesting locos and stock, that's what entices us back. We have visited some lines because we were I the area as something that we ought to do and the enthusiasm shown means that rather than an odd visit we now try and go every time we are holidaying in the vicinity. Equally we've been to some where that spirit isn't there and we don't make the effort to repeat visit for some time. So yes customer service all round is pretty important.

 

As somebody who is already an active volunteer at two other heritage railways and who is based in the East Midlands rather than Kent, I am afraid I may be a bit too thinly spread and geographically isolated to be the person you are looking for. Thank you for thinking of me though!

 

Explain please?
I always thought promising that someone else would do something without their agreement, and thus innevitable failure is pretty poor customer service.

Whar certainly is poor is the continual suggestion that simply saying "x should be done" without thought or willingness to resource and then blame others for not making it happen is in anyway constructive.

I very much doubt that the volunteers at the KESR are twiddling their thumbs, so doing that is either making someone's day longer and/or taking them away from what else needs doing.

 

1) The result of that, social media being what it is, is likely to be it being a much bigger negative story.

2) what is the difference between that and simply saying "these locomotives are the ones we have serviceable this [month/year]", it's no less accurate?

For the avoidance of doubt, I am not saying I wouldn't like to know what's running, but I also appreciate why it might not be done, and why it's not a priority.

 

Point 1 would be fair, were it not for the large number of other heritage railways that do publish their loco rosters in some way shape or form and evidently have not received enough negative press to stop. Unless people around Tenterden are particularly nasty and unable to accept changes of plan?

Point 2 - it is more accurate, particularly if you have a larger fleet. Let's say you have 5 locos available for traffic and need 2 every day. If you have no other information, you have a 40% chance of picking a day when a given loco is running. If you want to see a particular loco that might be too big of a risk - whereas if you're told "we are planning on running locos A and B on these dates" it allows you to make plans based on a greater chance than the loco you want to see will actually be in operation. True, it might then mean you are more disappointed if the loco isn't ultimately in use, but in terms of accuracy (or perhaps specificity is the better word to use here) it is a better option than just "we have locos A B C D and E available for traffic and 2 of them will be in use on any given day"

 

There’s a bit of me that thinks:

1) In a perfect world, loco rosters would be published, because even if it is only marginal, it might be the difference between gaining a passenger and not.

2) In reality, resources are stretched so there a valid operational reasons why it may be difficult to do.

3) A director of the KESR has committed to investigate and see what is possible.

Given the above, and especially point 3, is there any point to further discussion? There’s an issue, it is thorny to fix but someone in a position of influence has committed to at least see if anything is possible. So to me it is a question of wait and see, and maybe by time the main season starts, for those for whom it’s an issue will either be pleasantly surprised, or else will have a clearer picture of what the operational challenges are.

Until then, this discussion has descended to the level of “it’s important” “No it’s not, you’re just being over-entitled”. No-one is going to win that argument.

Now, about the livery choices for Rolvenden’s proposed new-build Leader …

Tom

 

Just wanted to say, whoever replied to my email, thank you for the response for my question of your Midgets of Steam event, I will be hoping to make a visit for that.
Though when I 1st read it, it did make me chuckle quite a bit, must be something about the word midget that makes a lanky mug like me giggle like a school girl.