Great Western Railway Avis 2 751

Another truly useless performance by GWR. In 2026, why the UK rail network remains permanently at the mercy of points failures is a mystery. GWR’s relentless inability to manage their service around delays is breathtaking. No urgency, no apparent attempt to get everyone on board a train and away from the station as quickly as possible. Trains due to leave after ours leaving long before it. Pathetic updates telling us it will be “just another five minutes later”, when everyone knows that’s a lie. Then we sit outside of Oxford, a station far too small for the number of passengers it handles, because there were no platforms free. Then, a GWR special, the “we’re going to sit on the platform, pointlessly, for more than five minutes, long after everyone has got off or on the train.” No other train company does this. The contempt GWR appear to have for their customers knows no boundaries. But we get a £4 refund for a service more than an hour late for what should be a 90 minute journey. What a world.

The new ticketing system is a nightmare for those of us who do not have modern smartphones. The mobile app is not compatible with older phones and you cant get your ticket, the one you've already paid for, without the app unless you pay a ridiculously large fee for delivery or go to the station to collect it. Email delivery is no longer an option.
The young lady on customer "service" was pleasant and as helpful as she could be but the manager refused to speak to me (Isn't that his job?). They have promised to send me new tickets by email but it took over half an hour on the phone, mostly listening to awful music, (carefully selected to make you give up?) and I still have to wait another few hours. Good job I'm not about to travel. I shall drive in future! Does anybody care? I doubt it.

Shortly after writing this (although probably not prompted by it) I received a phone call from a very helpful lady told me they were unable to send a pdf as planned because my journey included another rail company but she showed me how to download and print my original tickets from the web site - NOT the app - so all ended well eventually. I've upgraded from one to two stars. I've got my tickets but it really shouldn't be that difficult.

important commuter trains to London area regularly cancelled, disputing work for thousands of people in the south. Rush hour trains are always so packed full that many people have to stand in doorways for their journeys, despite paying often over £40 for a day ticket. Staff are very uninterested in helping and the refund system is a scam. They have no real customer support service and clearly don't care about everyone despising them as they have a monopoly.

We were in First Class and i am disabled and Peter the Customer Host on the 19:36 from paddington, helped me a lot with boarding and my experience and overall gave me amazing customer service and delivered with his strong irish smile as he must do to everyone so thank you very much for him and GWR

Absolute rude african conductor on train
He goes by the name dave.
I used the trains alot,i got on this train 19.07 from lancing going to clapham juntion.
This train conductor dave didnt let me sit down i was also carrying a heavy bag.
He asked for my ticket straight away,
I replied let me sit down and i will show the ticket.
He was not having it
Dave was absolutley rude and had a big attitude problem.
I wil recommend dont use these trains in the evenings.

I use Gwr all the time with my senior railcard 🚆👍
I took my bike this Sunday Which weights a tone, Marcus the Train inspector could not of been more helpful, he's a credit to you!
On my return journey from Starcross I was half way across the bridge carrying my ridiculously heavy bike in a total panic as train was pulled in !
However, Poppy the train inspector kindly waited for me to board as trains are hourly from Starcross! Kindness Matters and is free ! Thank you Marcus and Poppy💜👵🏻

Congratulations, you guys are the worst trainline in Europe - late at best, cancelled most of the time and with prices competing witn airline tickets.
Train service in this country is so backwards, it is a joke.

I'm on the 14:00 from Bristol to Paddington (5th of April) - we've hit a severe delay due to an incident on the line. Peter and Amaka the train hosts have been so cheerful and sweet to EVERYBODY, despite frustrated passengers and difficult circumstances. This is the way to treat your customers - what lovely people!! 💜

We unfortunately got stuck on a train from Bath Spa at 2:13 to Didcot as there was a fatality on the line! We got regularly informed and kept updated on what was happening l, we sat in 1st class and we were looked after so well by Peter and Amaka they made she we had food and drinks and kept us updated as much as they could!

terrible with refunds department. GWR DO NOT MAKE ANY REFUNDS OF TKTS, even if they say the tkts unused are able to get a refund, it is not true. THEY DO ALL THE POSSIBLE TO AVOIDING PAYING YOUR MONEY BACK.

Zero stars would be more appropriate. Truly awful service and company. Always massive delays, cancellations, carriages removed, overcrowding, no buffet or refreshments when busy. The people who run this company and profit from it should be ashamed. Unfortunately there is no alternative for rail travel, making it a monopoly, and these reviews completely redundant. Can’t believer customers have to pay for this crap

The whatsapp conversation was not fruitful last friday. During the engagement no satisfiable solution was reached. This is not a complaint about the particular customer support personnel's behaviour, but the underlying systemic faults. I deem that the business model is based on scamming vulnerable customers because as a vulnerable customer I have been victimized by GWR. They believe that such scam is alright. On the other hand, I believe that scamming should not exist.
My ideology against yours. But the power to issue a review is in my hands. So I hereby issue a 1 star score. For the whole world to see and witness this unfairness.

I can scarcely rember a GWR train I've been on that HASN'T had some form of disruption.

Delays are constant, cancellations are a given, and good luck finding a seat!

If the services were more affordable, and more often, the issues I have with GWR would be less obvious. But paying premium prices for services that are systemically vulnerable to delays and cancellations is unacceptable.
The best part, delay repay; which you can only assume is deliberately inadequate, in the hopes you don't bother trying to claim the shrapnel they are legally obliged to throw at you.

If you can avoid it (not everybody can) do so at all costs. Walk if you have to, you'll get there sooner.

On three recent journeys, GWR has offered exemplary service -- above and beyond. On two of the journeys, my daughter was travelling with a newborn, a pram, a large heavy rucksack and two carrier bags. GWR escorted her to her carriage, with her luggage on a cart, got her a seat and noted the seat number so that they could arrange for her to be met at the other end. She felt welcome, cared for and supported. On the third more recent journey, I was travelling from Bristol Temple Meads to London with my seven year old grandson (and our rucksacks). We arrived at the barrier with less than seven minutes to catching our train (and I'm elderly and move slowly). An amazing GWR staff member at the ticket barrier took our bags (and us) to the lift, running ahead to push the button and hold the lift, and then put us onto our train (which i would have been too flapped to identify quickly). He was totally amazing and we wouldn't have caught our train without him. bless you, GWR.

THIS WAS APPAULING

Even after contacting GWR there is no resposibility taken for what i can only describe as the worst train journey of our lives.

9 carts down to 5, from paddington to cardiff on a hot day, completely overflowing. No acces to water, no toilet acess, no seats for 2 hours. The walkways were completely full as well as the connecting sections where the exits are. Its was completely unsafe. The cart was being thrown about due to the weight of overcroding. The temperature was very difficult to handle. I was very thirsty and in diar need of the toilet but had no chance of getting to use either. I was advised i should have booked specific seats, hoever as usual the reservation system was down so it would habe been pointless, This has been to case on every GWR train we've ever taken.

My partner has a spinal injury and has been further0 injured due to the lack of space and seats, with severe axiety and huge amounts of stress.

Contacting GWR and explaining this has let me nowhere. I have asked for a refund and they have taken no responsibility saying

"Our colleagues are trained to monitor and manage the number of people on the train effectively. This is not dependent on a set number of seated or standing passengers and the Health and Safety Executive guidelines do not restrict the number of passengers allowed on any one train".

This is not acceptable, and not safe.

Will not be booking GWR again

Paid for first class open return tickets from Port Talbot to Cardiff on the Swansea to Paddington service.
Train was advertised as "on time" on GWR's web site but once at Port Talbot parkway I discovered it marked as "delayed" and then eventually "cancelled" with no explanation except for some unintelligible muffled nonsense over the tannoy, in the Welsh language, which 90% of Port Talbot people can't speak.
Shortly afterwards the train sped past the platform at full speed, empty. So there was clearly nothing wrong with it. I fail to see why cancelling the service would have saved the company any money as an empty train surely uses as much fuel as an occupied one.
The following four carriage train to Manchester was also delayed, but I was forced to get on it or I would have missed the event I was wishing to attend.
In effect standard class, having paid first class.

The journey home was little better. The train was not cancelled. I got a first class seat. The attendant asked if I would like refreshments and I politely explained that normally I'd say "no thankyou" but having had my first class train cancelled in the morning with no explanation or compensation I would appreciate double refreshments.

First class refreshments are typically sandwiches, crisps, biscuits, cakes, pastries, teas, coffees, graze boxes, sometimes even alcoholic drinks and wine.

Tonight I was provided with a coffee, one packet of two oat biscuits, a stale slice of fruit cake and two vegan pastries with yellow reduced price stickers as their use by date was today.

That's what GWR regards as first class customer service.

The sooner British Rail is nationalised and prioritises customer service over profits the better.

This company is an absolute JOKE.

audacity of woman in first class to kick me out of first class even though the train was delayed by over 20 mins. leave me alone like

I’ve travelled several times recently on the Cardiff to London Paddington route with Great Western Railway, and on each occasion I’ve found the seating to be consistently uncomfortable.

This is not a one-off issue. Across multiple journeys, the seats appear to have the same design flaw: a raised metal frame or bar within the seat structure combined with very thin, firm cushioning. This creates pressure points and makes it difficult to sit comfortably for the duration of the journey.

Given the ticket prices on this route, I would expect a significantly higher standard of comfort, particularly on intercity services where passengers are seated for extended periods.

I would encourage GWR to review the seat design and consider improvements, as it has a noticeable negative impact on the overall travel experience.

We just wanted to leave a review from our family after travelling from Cardiff to Bristol with Great Western Railway.

Nicola, who was working on our train, was honestly amazing. From the moment we got on she was so friendly, chatty and welcoming, it instantly made the journey feel more relaxed.

When she found out it was our son’s birthday, she went above and beyond. She brought him over a little bag of Cheddars and even gave him a fiver out of her own pocket, which completely made his day (and ours too). It was such a kind and genuine gesture that we’ll never forget.

She also took the time to help us with advice about travelling with a pram, which made things so much easier for us as parents.

It’s rare you come across someone who cares that much, and Nicola is a real credit to the team. Because of her, we’ll definitely be choosing the train more often.

Thank you again for making a special day even better!

I have had a bad experience with GWR revenue protection officers yesterday at Trowbridge Train station in Wiltshire. They have been blocking the exits. I am asking: what the hell is that!? Their behaviour was like the Gestapo. The officers from GWR as I saw were extremely aggressive and thuggish and confrontational etc. These practices should not be allowed and it is shameful for your company.