Looking at ways to get my Mum from Ludlow to a funeral in Wilmslow, whilst being COVID compliant. She asked me to drive her and my sister and whilst I'd love the chance to go drive somewhere the English rules say that funeral attendees can't car share with people outside their bubble, and due to geography it's my sister who's in my Mum's support bubble.
So the train is a possibility but how busy is it? If it's a few people per carriage then it's not going to be a big risk, I'd imagine.
I live in Ludlow and have used that line a lot, but not since the pandemic started. The trains are small, usually only 2 carriages but IME not usually that busy. A caveat however, most of my journeys have been mid week in the middle of the day. On the rare occasions I've been on it at the weekend, especially Friday or Sunday evenings it has been a lot busier. Not sure if this is still the case during lockdown. The blokes in the Ticket office in Ludlow are friendly and will go out of their way to help. If you ask I'm sure they'll have a good idea of how busy a specific train is likely to be.
I've used it a lot too, just not during pandemic.
Lots of space between a few groups early July '20 between Newport and Shrewsbury, when there was conflicting rules regarding face coverings between Wales and England.
The carshare for funerals thing... that is to get everyone to turn up one car per a household... locally... it's not really about trips across counties, is it. The train seems the worst option in terms of transmission risk. Not attending at all the best option in terms of transmission risk. Them being collected by car by you (all with masks on and windows slightly open) the middle compromise to go for, whatever the rules say, if they really must attend. I've missed a lot of family funerals these last twelve months, as none were local.
One of my neighbours from a few doors down is a driver on that route regularly, he said it's very quiet at the moment . Most of the few passengers get on at Cardiff to come back up this way, the only time it gets really packed is when the kids are at school as a lot get on at Church Stretton to go to Ludlow.
He's driving it from Manchester to past Cardiff and then back again the same day. As above most times it's just two carriages, if you drop lucky sometimes they put another one on but they probably won't happen in these quiet times.
There is still a trolley service for drinks and snacks.
Probably not the answer your after but to be honest I would just get a covid test one of those lateral ones most cities have walk-in ones get the result in an hour and drive myself. Yes it’s out of the bubble rules but safer for all involved.
@GRAEMEJONES that's really good info thanks.
It would be me, my mum and sister in the same car for approx 5 hours which is obviously going to be tricky. It's my aunt, so my mum clearly wants to go. She's been vaccinated but my sister hasn't. I don't know if we went and got tests that would excuse us from the rules? I've got a reasonable chance of getting stopped if I drive around up North in a car registered 150 miles away, I think.
I've not been on the Crewe line but on recent journeys from Shrewsbury to Chester (and then on to Bangor) the carriages have been nearly empty - no more than 5 people at a time, often just 2 or 3 of us.
Shrewsbury station has seemed quiet despite me being there at what I'd expect to be fairly busy times around 9am or 5.30 pm.
Train driver here, not in that area (further north) but trains are generally very quiet. Fridays and Saturdays are busier than during the week, quietest times are probably about 10-11am and after 7pm.
Official govt figures put passenger numbers at about 14% of normal, but I think that's probably higher around London bringing the average numbers travelling higher than reality in a lot of places.
I’ve got a reasonable chance of getting stopped if I drive around up North in a car registered 150 miles away, I think.
Zero chance.
