First Great Western

Do not book with this company ever. They send you to train stations to collect tickets which do not have machines to collect them from, I find this quite confusing and inconvenient! The customer service is also shocking as well, saying they will sort things out to keep you quiet, and never actually doing anything about it. Overall do not book with this company, it will cause you great hassle and inconvenience.

Took a weeks holiday but decided we would leave the car at home and use the train to go to several different places that we have always wanted to return to,Bristol,Bath,Plymouth,Exeter to name a few.we decided to go to Bristol on the first day, we had to stand all the way there and stand all the way coming back.Not enough carriages for the amount of passengers,for the price they charge for the ticket thought it was disgusting. We only managed one day of the train for the rest of the week we shall be using the car, at least we get to sit down.

I use that company once a week from Gloucester to London and back.

The fare range is limited, and overpriced.

The train are usually quite dirty at the end of the day. The litter bin provided at each end of the carriages are obviously too small, so travellers don't bother and leave their rubbish at their place.

Toilets flush are usually faulty, as well as taps. Basic hygiene is not possible, despite the high price.

The most disturbing is the number of standing passengers in the second class from London to reading and sometimes up to Didcot Parkway.

When you consider the emptiness of the first class, it is shocking.

Why 3 1st class coaches for only 5 second class ones ?

I booked my train journey from Weston Super Mare to Brighton via the internet. I arrived at Bristol Temple Meads Station before 1pm. I asked which train went to Reading and I was directed to the appropriate train. When the train pulled away, a voice came over the speaker and announced that internet tickets cannot be used on this service and that anyone using them would have to pay again. The train I was on was the 1.09pm and the train I should have been on was the 1pm. Given that First Great Western have 2 trains leaving Temple Meads for Reading at almost the same time is bound to cause confusion. Also the fact that First great Western announce that internet tickets cannot be used on this service is a clear indication that there has been problems in the past, otherwise they would not make the announcement.

I explained the problem to the train manager when he checked the tickets. He told me that I should have looked for him as soon as I was aware of the problem. I told him that I intended to sort the problem out as soon as the ticket man asked for my ticket. You should also be aware that the reason why I choose the train service instead of the coach service is because I thought it would be less stressful. When I sit on a train I like to be left alone. I don't want the stress of having to find the train manager. He then told me that if I did not pay for a ticket I would have to leave the train at the next stop. The only reason why I paid was because I did not want to get the Police involved and I had along way to travel. However, I feel First Great western company has cheated me. I had to pay an extra £37 which I needed to buy a motor bike in Brighton. The fact that FGW took this money from me, totally ruined my day. I asked Steve Robinson if he would take my drivers license details and we could settle the matter later, but he refused. He told me that if he found anyone else on the train with internet tickets he would give me my money back, but because I was apparently the only one, he seems to be implying that I have been negligent. However, as I have already pointed out, if there was no possibility of confusion, FGW not making the internet announcement over the speaker.

When I initially wrote to First Great Western's complaints department they said they would compensate me if I provided them with the tickets.I did this and they sent me a letter making excuses.

I will never use their services again.

The First Great Western service is generally good, apart from when incidents occur. Then it seems like the trains just disappear, leaving hundreds of commuters stranded on platforms, building up for the next train to appear. I regularly take this train, and on many occasions I find myself thinking this is it, I'm going to be crushed to death. There needs to be more carriages, and I recently read in an article in the metro, that this service is the second most over crowded train in England. It's crazy trying to get on at Ealing Broadway on the way home. It's not only the lack of carriages that cause problems, but also the passengers themselves. I find it so frustrating when I am constantly being pushed onto trains, even though people can see that there is enough space for everyone, sheer lack of common sense. I feel sorry for the elderly, the young and the pregnant. They have no chance.

My wife and I used your sleeper service last night (03/10/10) from Paddington to Exeter for the first time and was very impressed. The whole process of booking, collecting tickets, being greeted by the Sleeper Stewardess and the births was excellent. All very clean and comfortable and really appreciated. We were awoken with a nice breakfast too. We will DEFINATELY be using this service again. Please thank all the staff concerned!!!!!