Laura, Avanti Train Manager

I was travelling back from Edinburgh the other week by train. I got to the station only to hear that my train had been cancelled. It wasn't 

a prospect I relished as my disabilities make it very difficult for me to use public transport.

A BTP officer was helping me to get some help when the station announced that a different train was going to try and get us as far south as possible. 

The train was fully packed and I wondered if it was going to be able to pull the load...but it did just fine.

Someone let me have a seat that became free, right across from the Train Manager's cabin.

An announcement told us that the crew running this train should have gone off duty at Edinburgh but volunteered to keep going to get us as far south as possible.

There was a severe shortage of train drivers on the day and worried passengers kept approaching the train manager to find alternative routes, myself included; some of the passengers were trying to get to flights at various airports.

Laura addressed every request patiently, phoned up other sources, found connections for people and then announced them in case other passengers were after the same information.

I was so impressed by her and her crew's ability to crisis manage with some pro-activity that I didn't bother claiming the latest train compensation. Every member of staff on the other 3 changes had great, helpful attitudes too.

They're all a credit to the UK train networks.

Villayat Wolf Sunkmanitu