Well, this is disheartening. Caitlin Fitzsimmons at Roaming Tales reports that First Great Western rail company has abolished its shared sleeper compartments and plans to charge a singles supplement for solo travelers who use them. As is typical when a company takes away a service that people want and need, First Great Western tries to spin it as a positive move toward “increasing passenger privacy.” Oh, please. No one is putting a gun to any solo traveler’s head and saying “You MUST share a sleeper compartment with a stranger”. It’s a CHOICE. Options are always a good thing for solo travelers on a tight budget. All that’s required is a locker for personal items, and individuals can bring their own padlocks.
Thanks for limiting our options, First Great Western. I suppose we should consider ourselves lucky they only want 40 British pounds for a solo rather than the 60 total that a couple would pay, but that extra 10 pounds could really hurt a solo traveler on a budget….Why does it feel as though the travel industry consistently wants to punish those of us who travel alone? Some people don’t actually have a choice in the matter; they don’t have anyone to travel with. The only consolation I take from this is that if enough solos do continue to travel with them, they will lose revenue with this new policy, as they will be getting only 40 pounds for the compartments instead of 60.
Caitlin’s point about the environment is also well taken. I would love nothing better than to see us all go back to traveling more extensively by rail instead of autos and air in the next 20 years, since it’s obvious the world’s oil crisis isn’t going to be solved any time soon, nor does anyone seem to be rushing to come up with a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly replacement for oil as a fuel source. But if it becomes just as expensive (or more so) to travel by train, that’s not going to be a viable option for most people.
The only way around this policy that I see is for solo travelers planning a train trip to somehow connect via the Internet with other solos traveling the same route at the same time, book the compartment, and claim to be traveling together. Does anyone know of a good travel networking site where solos can connect before a trip for shared accommodations outside of a tour group?
