I travel between London and Manchester or Leeds quite a lot on the train and often go with my 2 children (1 year old and 2 year old). It's usually fine. I put the pram in the spot for wheelchairs and I can have one or both of the kids strapped in there and manage the other.
I've always known that if a wheelchair user came on, I would have to fold the pram and vacate the spot, and I wouldn't have any problem with that. Don't get me wrong, it would be hard work, but I understand that their need is greater. However, in over 2 years it's never happened.
Last week, I travelled back from Manchester and put the pram in the vacant spot. There was a young and very able bodied man sat in the seat adjacent to it. I asked him if he wouldn't mind moving so that I could sit near the pram (there were plenty of spare seats elsewhere) and he politely refused, saying that he was comfortable and didn't want the hassle of moving. (He could only have been sat down for a couple of minutes before I got there). I was really quite surprised, as were the people around, who all started trying to help me by offering their seats, which although were not right next to the pram, were not too far away. The train manager was no help at all.
I actually ended up just standing or sitting on the floor near the pram while I dealt with the babies. This man had no shame!
This week when I went up to Manchester, I didn't want to take the risk of having that happen again, so emailed Virgin trains asking if it was possible to reserve a spot (stressing that I would happily vacate if a wheelchair user needed it), and the response that I got was that prams are not permitted on trains at all unless they are folded and stowed in the luggage areas. It is actually illegal to put a pram in a wheelchair area, even if no wheelchair users are present, as they may be required for immediate use.
The effect of this is that technically I should not be able to travel with my 2 children at all, as it would be so hard to manage (particularly as I'm pregnant). I'd do it if I absolutely have to (for example if a wheelchair user came on) but I really wouldn't want to make a habit of it.
It all seems a bit unfair and not particularly eco-friendly that train travel is not accessible to pram users. Luckily, due to the incompetence of Virgin, they took so long to respond that I had already completed my journey (with an illegally parked pram!) with no problems.
It's not as if you could just use an alternative company, as they have a monopoly on the line. What are people supposed to do if they can't drive? Should there be facilities for prams as well as wheelchairs?
WYO?
