Tom Page

Retro gamer, saxophonist, Simpsons nerd. ‘Looks a bit like Piers Morgan’ - Susie Dent

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway This has been going on for weeks now and shows absolutely no sign of getting any better. When is this going to get sorted?

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway I know you can only relay what you’ve been officially told, but based on what I’ve been told by WMT, Network Rail and my MP, I’d happily bet my mortgage on these trains not running until the temperature goes under 25C at the very earliest.

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway Appreciate that - I’ve asked my MP about this and the answer he got from WMT and NR was basically what I said above that it’s a fundamental issue with the track, and that there is ‘no quick fix’, which is why I’m trying to add some context to how long this will go on for.

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@DrArtsemKaralek @WestMidRailway It’s not because of that from what I’ve been told by WMT, Network Rail and my MP - it’s because the track between Hednesford and Rugeley is fundamentally broken, and can’t handle anything when the weather gets warm. Doesn’t make this daily fiasco any easier to stomach though…!

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway That was a week ago, and they were all scheduled to run this morning according to the app? The forecast didn’t change that much today…

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway Once again, mass cancellations mean I’m unable to get home to Rugeley tonight. What is going on with this line? It’s been a regular occurrence for weeks.

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway Also, I know this isn’t your fault personally, but I’m sick to death of going to work and not knowing from one day to the next how much of a pain the journey home’s going to be. Well, I do know at this point…

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway Thanks, although I already know why it’s happening. my question was what’s being done about it. Based on the record of the past month, we should assume that if the temperature goes to about 23 degrees or above, then Rugeley’s not getting any trains. Is that a fair assessment?

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway @katie246 In Birmingham right now, it’s 25 degrees and cloudy. How does this qualify as ‘severe weather’?

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway Thanks - given that the trains to Rugeley were a complete write-off during the last hot spell, can I assume it’s going to be same story next week?

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway Are the replacement buses from Hednesford stopping at Rugeley Town, or are the just going to Rugeley Trent Valley? Can we expect this to be a problem every day next week as well given the forecast?

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway Thanks Leah - final question for now: are there any plans at all to resolve this, given it’s probably not the only hot spell we’re getting this year? I’m just wondering if this is worth raising to my MP, since this basically means our area has no train service in hot weather.

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway Also, is there a set temperature at which you stop running the service to Rugeley? If there is, then I can at least look at the forecast and work out for myself which days the train isn’t going to be an option.

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway Thanks for the update - if you know this is a long term problem, shouldn’t you be upfront and say the service is of no use in hot weather, and not let people pay to travel into Birmingham in the morning only to then tell them later on that there’s no train to get them home?

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway I’d appreciate a reply to this, as this is now 3 working days in a row when there are no afternoon trains to Rugeley Town available at all, so I’d really like to know when I can start relying on the train to get to work again, or should I forget the trains entirely until autumn?

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@WestMidRailway This has happened every single day since Friday - what’s being done to stop this from happening, so that I can confidently get the train from Rugeley whenever the temperature goes over 25 degrees?

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@Tesco I had vouchers for Slim Fast to use at your store today, which clearly say I can use several in 1 go, however your till would only take 1. After a long chat with one of your (very helpful) staff, we couldn’t get a way for it to work, so I couldn’t use them. Not impressed!

[Tom Page @ThirdClassMale]

@philhaigh_ Gutted by this news - I met him in Dictionary Corner on Countdown last year, and he was every bit as delightful as he always seemed on TV.