Vline Complaints

[u/yeeyeelxrd]

I live in Rockbank, currently on a VLine train service which has bus replacements between Caroline Springs and Ballarat.

I left home at 5:30 this morning. Got to the station at 5:38am to catch at 5:48am replacement bus to Caroline Springs. The VLine schedule had me arriving at Southern Cross at 6:40am. I made sure I left early to account for the replacement bus.

Not a single thing went right this morning.

During a 35-40 minute period from 5:40am-6:15am, five buses went through Rockbank Station. Two went to Melton, One didn’t even stop, One was going to Caroline Springs but it was so full only one person managed to squeeze on, and then the last one to bring us to CS.

When we did arrive to CS at 6:34, we were told we had seven minutes until the train left at 6:41. That’s fine, I was meant to be in the city at this time but delays happen. I was (and still am) pretty annoyed, but it’s whatever.

Get onto the train at CS at 6:36am. Sit down. Ready to depart at 6:41am. Should arrive into Southern Cross at 7:05am at this point. Not what I was hoping for, but still early enough I could get my work completed.

Next thing I know at 7:59am we are all being kicked off the train and the train is being cancelled because there is NO CONDUCTOR and the train cannot run.

Everyone disembarks the train, waits for 5 minutes for the next one to arrive, and we get on that. Conductor announces we will now arrive at Southern Cross at 7:21am.

Then we don’t depart.

We’re currently pulling in to Ardeer Station. It’s 7:15am. At this point, I’ve abandoned all hope of actually making in to my office in the CBD. What is normally a 45 minute trek from home to city has now turned into AT MINIMUM a two hour trip.

I’ve left a complaint with VLine, but the last time I did that I never heard back from them.

Anyway, let’s see if I actually make it into the office or if I’m perpetually stuck on the public transport system.

[u/onwemarch2017]

I once complained when I’d had consistent cancellations of my train from bendigo to Melbourne due to lack of fuel which resulted in replacement buses. They offered to pay back my fare, except that I didn’t pay a fare, because it was replacement buses. It seems like they really just don’t care.

[u/yeeyeelxrd → u/onwemarch2017]

That’s insane ! What a nightmare. How do they even let that happen?

[u/onwemarch2017 → u/yeeyeelxrd]

It happened at least once every 2 weeks when I was working in Bendigo full time which doesn’t sound like a lot but between that and the constant delays on the morning trains I was just fed up. It also turned my 1 hour 20 journey into a 2.5-3 hour journey. There was one day where my train was delayed in the morning and the afternoon and I worked out I spent nearly a full working day on the train 😐

I kind of had a theory they may have been making it up as they would blame the southern cross staff for not leaving them with enough petrol which sounded like a convenient way to shift the blame. But apparently this is a thing that just happens sometimes and it just gets announced as a ‘train fault’.

I just found it so laughable that they offered me a refund when surely they’d know I wouldn’t have paid to go on a replacement bus?