A few years ago I was traveling from UK to Romans France, I arrived on the last BA flight and purchased a ticket at the airport train station Lyons, to Valence, Standing on the platform, I waited and waited and at about midnight, decided to go back to the ticket office that was just closing and the man inside told me that the service had been cancelled and the train didnt stop and SNCF would give me a bus ticket to Lyons so I could get a train there, I had to get a taxi home that cost 300 earos they didnt compensate me. This was my first nasty experience on French and Italian train systems, which I find very poorly managed and filthy, the toilets rarely work, smell, no water, and it is impossible to book on internet, the information that you get at stations ticket desks is also unreliable. My latest nasty experience was last weekend in Italy, I went to Milan to see a sick friend, it was hard enough getting the train over there, with the usual dissinformetion and late trains so missing connections. When it came time to leave, the day before I went to the Trainitalia ticket desk and asked for a ticket for the Saturday 5,30 o'clock train to Chambury, I was told they could not sell me one because I was to late but to go to Milan central station and buy the ticket on the train. Next day I went to the station but on the departure signboard it indicated the train had been cancelled and on further investigation there was a coach to transport passengers to Chambury, I made my way to the coach and was informed they would not let me travel on it even though it was only 3/4 full because I did not have a ticket. I returned to the ticket desk at the station to find out all trains accross the Alps had been cancelled this month because the lines were up for maintenance. By this time I was mad. I eventually managed to get an alternative way to civilisation. The point is the train systems in Europe are becoming unusable, probably because of privatisation, in America if they privatise any system they make sure there is copetition between the companies, her in Europe as everything is on a smaller scale we do not have that luxery, I certainly would not send my child on its own to travel Europe these days, as the train operators will dump them anywhere.
