Just Trains Tfw Class 142 And 2019 Timetable

I beg to differ, as a frequent user of the TfW services between Manchester Airport and Newton le Willows there are a couple of guards who manually do announcements in all known languages, including Welsh. It is quite amusing watching foreign tourists getting on at the Airport then hearing Welsh for the first time

 

That sounds more like showing off than anything official. And whether in Wales or England, IMHO the English should always come first to accommodate the 99% who don’t speak Welsh!

 

Are announcements in French on a Eurostar to Paris at St Pancras "showing off"? Which announcements should come first, English or French?

 

English in Britain, French in France. However misses the point that Welsh is not that widely spoken even in certain parts of Wales. I mean, you don't hear announcements in Gaelic in Scotland or (AFAIK) Irish Gaelic in Ireland.

 

So if I get on the Eurostar at Paris as a non-French speaker I'm not going to know if the buffet is open until I am half way through the Channel Tunnel? That's a funny way to run a railway.

Whatever non-Welsh speakers think of the use of Welsh in Wales, its use in Welsh life is prescribed in Welsh Law and TFW's commitment can be read at https://tfw.wales/about-us/our-culture/community-partnerships/welsh-language

 

Well if you have the skill, flaunt it. It's the same when I am working a flight to Greece, Germany or The Netherlands, I'll do my PA's in English but then follow up with the local language. (We can actually get paid for speaking other languages however I am not fully fluent so have never taken the test, I do it to be helpful - and show off).

 

Hello - TfW guards opinion on announcement's. Whilst “all languages” aren’t officially endorsed, being able to help people in their native language won’t get you in trouble. That being said, Welsh, being the language of Wales, is encouraged to be used. Even for events, any “pre-worded” announcements are provided in both Welsh and English for those that are comfortable speaking Welsh.

Last I checked Welsh is spoken by around 20% of the Welsh population fluently, more concentrated in the West and North regions. It is also the official language of Wales and there is laws around bilingual information. The Welsh language is as important as any language in my eyes.
Thank you.

 

Now do it in Welsh.

 

If I paid more attention to my Welsh lessons in school, then I would I wish I did now

But whilst I usually agree with OldVern i must say that it’s distasteful to say we shouldn’t do announcements in Welsh because “99% don’t speak Welsh” more or less, 1 in 5 people in Wales do and efforts are being made to make that number larger. On that topic, during the pandemic, Welsh was the fastest growing language in the UK according to Duolingo.

Also - the annual population survey estimates 27.4% (at least 1 in 4) are Welsh speakers as of December 2024.

 

No, I specifically said "forcing". If it's their native language, then it's not forcing them, is it?

 

That number would be considerably higher if it wasn't such a bloody difficult language

Anyway, I think we are all getting a tad off topic here folks

 

I get it. You're saying it's only abuse if you ask non-Welsh speakers to learn Welsh in Wales which is a skill they need for many jobs in Wales.

 

Just seeing this. So here’s a “slight” history lesson, back when queen vic was on the throne, anyone caught speaking Welsh in school would be given a “Welsh Not” sign. reports are that it was used as early as 1798 until early 1900s. This sign would be passed from pupil to pupil if someone else was caught speaking Welsh. If you had the Welsh Not sign on, you would be paddled/whipped or publicly shamed at the end of the school day.

I respect this is off topic to train sim, but for anyone that didn’t grow up in wales, I think it would be something (if you’re interested in history) to learn about. Might give some perspective on the Welsh Governments efforts to revive the language.

 

"Ask" is not the same as some areas being essentially deserts of English language education, hence you end up with amusing stuff like https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy852jq7v25o

We wouldn't encourage Yiddish schools in Stamford Hill or Urdu ones in Manningham.

The end would inveitably be ghettoisation with all three, just a much prettier one in North Wales.

Yes the current policy is an over-reaction to the worse ones of the past (although should be seen in the context of corporal punishment being normal in school back in the day). The right policy is to have freedom of choice, and let Welsh compete on its merits versus the global lingua franca.

 

This thread has gone seriously 'off the rails'.

 

Yes I think we are getting into Overclockers UK Speaker's Corner territory here! I expect most of it will be archived away to Off Topic or nuked tomorrow morning...

 

I'll let it lie..

 

no you misunderstood the reply giving

if you board a eurostar in paris gar du nord.
When they do announcements they will do them in French first then repeat them in english

vice versa if you board the train at st pancras the english announcements are done first followed by the french.

they dont just speak french until the tunnel then change to english the other side

 

Having lived in Merthyr Tydfil for much of my childhood and spent many joyful days riding a Pacer from there down to Barry Island, I can confirm that I never remembered hearing Welsh on the announcements. In fact most of the time I don't really remember hearing announcements at all, only really for when the train was delayed by some kind of fault.