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Express to Frankfurt
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National Travel's first service to Europe by Martin Hayes
BRITAIN'S road transport links with the Continent were strengthened last weekend with the first journey of National Travel (NBC) Ltd's express coach service to Frankfurt, the first regular scheduled run to an EEC destination by a British operator.
The origins of the service date back some time, but licensing approval was not forthcoming until last month and was fiercely opposed by other transport operators. However, assuming the London-Frankfurt service which began last weekend for a twomonth trial is a success, there seems no doubt that National Travel will develop other direct links with Continental destinations. And already at least one independent is considering direct express services across the Channel. A timetable for the service accompanies this article but the bald figures do not tell the full story. In fact the scheduled times seemed a little at variance with the facts in several instances. For example, the journeys between Victoria and King's Cross coach stations were scheduled at 35 and 30 minutes respectively for the outward and return journeys but took 43 and 19 minutes. There were several instances where similar discrepancies occurred. But this ceased to surprise me when I discovered that only one proving run had taken place. That had been midweek and largely during the daytime when operating conditions were considerably different.
It appears that its main purpose was to provide a vehicle for the German press launch of the service, and as a result the first run last week took on the air of a pioneering trip. For instance the crew only discovered an internal light dimming control when we reached Frankfurt. Had it been an inaugural run with only press and National Travel personnel on board then this might be understandable. However, there were 13 fare-paying passengers going to Germany and 11 coming back.
One of the reasons why coach travel over long distances has only now begun to really develop in Europe has been the lack of a decent road system. Journey times thus suffered markedly over the comparable rail services. Not surprisingly then, the National Travel planners have used Continental motorways extensively. However, they have chosen one of the longest ferry routes. This is the lightly used Harwich-Ostend service of Belgian Marine which takes nearly five hours. Its light traffic is probably the reason for its use; an attractive rate has doubtless been evolved for coach and passengers. National Travel also says it expects to attract a lot of passengers from the large hinterland served by pick-up points at Chelmsford and Colchester.
Why there should be more people interested in going to Frankfurt by coach from these areas than from, say. the Medway towns and Canterbury, is not explained. However, this aside, the Harwich-Ostend route is operated by a particularly pleasant vessel, the Koningin Fabiola, which has good, clean facilities.
The first National Travel service left Victoria coach station last Friday at lunch time. As well as a party of five press men, four National Bus people and two drivers there were 13 fare-paying passengers. These were a mixed bunch, most of whom had seen the service previewed in press reports. There were a couple sporting the blazers of the New Delhi Golf Club's 1973 German tour for instance, and several single people of both sexes. Most remarkable was a family of four Americans who had decided on the spur of the moment to look up some longlost relations in Germany. Not only did they complete the round trip — a total of 37 hours travelling in 54 hours — as I did, but they travelled from and to Stirling, Scotland by coach before and afterwards.
Although we arrived at Harwich only four minutes behind schedule there proved to be only just enough time to complete formalities. In fact we were the last vehicle on the ferry, which sailed literally within minutes of our boarding. It was when we first began our journey through Europe that it became clear that there had been something lacking in detail planning. We needed to refuel the 34-gallon tank but could not at first find a filling station. Not only did the quest for dery waste about 25 minutes, it also resulted in our missing the correct route around Brussels. Mr John Jepson, National Travel's chief engineer, who was on the trip, said that he thought drivers would soon find suitable fuelling points when they became familiar with the route.
Having finally obtained fuel we continued to the German border at Aachen. This provided the first toilet stop on the Continent. Customs formalities were completed quickly and we were on our way again in little more than 15 minutes. The only intermediate set-down point in Germany is Cologne and we arrived there 50 minutes behind schedule. This delay was largely caused by the fuelling search. Na one got off the coach and we only paused for a second. On returning to the motorway we encountered some of the heaviest traffic — almost all holiday cars — I have ever seen, and this before 4 am. For the following two hours we spent most of the time crawling along at less than 35 mph and passed several serious accidents with bloodsplattered victims still wandering around. All this meant that we finally pulled into Frankfurt's Hauptbahnhof bus station 55 minutes late at 06.55. That was nearly 4+ hours since the last toilet stop.
National Travel was unfortunate that the press party spent much of its 17 hours in Germany on a coach tour organized by the local Europabus operator, Deutsche Touring Gesellschaft. The tour — lasting from 8.30 am to 6.30 pm — was in an air-conditioned Magirus Deutz which showed up several deficiencies in National's vehicle.
At a conference last month to launch the London-Frankfurt service, press representatives were shown a Bristol RE with a fully air-conditioned body, but the company's total fleet of five air-conditioned coaches is now fully occupied on Continental tours, so there was no air-conditioning on the coach used last weekend — an Eastern Coach Works-bodied Bristol RELH in Tillings /National livery. It had 42 semireclining Chapman seats in the 11.25m body. The coach was fitted with airsuspension and, I felt, coped quite well with the varied Continental road surfaces. It was also reasonably quiet apart from a slight, resonance when on the governor.
However, evidence of how good a coach could be was provided by the DTG vehicle, which incorporated several essential items omitted from the National coach. The Webasto air-conditioning system maintained the temperature at pleasant level even with soaring temperatures outside. Cooled air was distributed from slots along the bottom of the windows, which were fitted with blinds. The Magirus was rear-engined, like the Bristol, but considerably quieter. When cruising at 50 mph the only sound in the front half of the vehicle was some tyre roar. The ride over rough surfaces was excellent though I felt there was too much roll on tight corners. Seats were considerably more spacious for width and legs, and reclined further, too.
While in Frankfurt the National coach is garaged at the DTG premises, only a mile or so from the bus station. The German company — owned by the State railways, like most Europabus operators — also markets the London service in Germany. The National coach carries the Europabus symbol and in fact arrives in Frankfurt in time to connect with other coach services to Munich, Luxembourg and Switzerland. DTG — which operates over 100 coaches — provides cleaning facilities for the vehicle. A replacement coach could also be provided in case of breakdown.
National Travel does not feel it necessary to leave a supply of spares in Frankfurt. Instead the coach carries such items as gaskets, hoses, filters, fan belts, water pump, fuel lift pump, injectors, wipers, bulbs, mirrors, a throttle cable and replacement air suspension bags. There is also a comprehensive tool kit.
While in Frankfurt the drivers use a special hotel for coach drivers operated by DTG. On the first run the coach was crewed by one full-time driver and a National Travel area representative. Eventually, when enough drivers are familiar with the route, there may only be one driver. National Travel has calculated that one driver could legally drive the entire run if he picked up the vehicle at Harwich or possibly even Chelmsford. On the first run, however, the driving was shared. The off-duty man had to occupy whatever seat happened to be vacant.
The return run left Frankfurt at 00.15 on Sunday morning. First toilet stop was Cologne bus station at 03.15. I was told that the bus station toilet would be open but in fact it proved to be locked. The nearest one was a good 10 minutes walk away on the railway station which was decidedly unsavoury. It was clearly an unsuitable area for men to visit alone at night, let alone women. After a relatively lengthy stop while the stragglers found their way back we set off, only to stop again 30 minutes later. This time an autobahn service station was used for refuelling. However, this provided excellent, clean facilities with a cafeteria and extensive range of vending machines. Better advance preparation would have shown that this would be a far more preferable refreshment stop than Cologne.
This time there were no difficulties in circumnavigating Brussels and we arrived at Ostend an hour late after encountering heavy traffic on the motorway. Because the weather was excellent the 3+ hours we had to spend in Ostend did not seem too unpleasant, though there were only primitive toilet facilities available. However, in bad weather this would have seemed very much a wasted time. Tied as they are to the sailing of the Harwich-Ostend ferry, the National planners are clearly in a dilemma. Either the coach leaves Frankfurt later or there is all that time to spend in Ostend.
Running times The running times from Harwich had clearly been worked out in week-day traffic conditions and we finally arrived at Victoria 25 minutes early. This was despite a seven-minute stop at King's Cross.
The first run of the London-Frankfurt service demonstrated that "going Continental" is not as straightforward as it looks on paper. I felt that many of the shortcomings — though minor in themselves — should have been avoided by a company with National Travel's resources.
Much more unfortunate, in my view, is the choice of vehicle. Though this is a service designed to be competitive with the railways (the single fare of £12.50 compares with the cheapest rail fare of £14.05), there is no reason why passengers should not enjoy the same standards as those on other coach services.
The two essential items not used by National are air-conditioning and a toilet. It is no use arguing that air-conditioning is only useful on certain journeys. This is a service which operates only in summer months, after all. National Travel men told me that they did not regard a toilet as necessary because frequent stops were made. This is just not good enough. After all, the company fits toilets to vehicles running 110 miles from Birmingham to London. There might be some justification if the stops were made more regularly on the 400-mile trip (remember that 4+ hours without a break) and if they were all at autobahn service areas. In fact several of the stops offered only the most primitive toilets and no washing facilities.
It seems from advance figures — more than 10 passengers for each foreseeable journey — that the service could well prove profitable (break-even point is 14 to 18 passengers). But to make it the true success it deserves to be, and a worthwile foundation for a whole network of UK-Europe direct services, a number of simple improvements is needed. National Travel needs to prove that it is professional enough to make them — now.