All Line Rail Pass

[glynn80]

I have just been browsing the FRPP and come across this product

All-Line Rail Pass

This is a twelve month Season Ticket has unrestricted validity on all Train Company services, either in First Class or in Standard accommodation as indicated on the Pass.

It can only be purchased upon direct application to Rail Settlement Plan and is not on sale to the general public.

The Pass will be issued to a named individual or to a 'Bearer’; the name or the word 'Bearer' will be written on the back of the ticket in the space provided.

The named Pass holder must also be in possession of a Season Ticket Photocard.

The Season Ticket holder's Photocard number should be shown in the space on the pass, unless it is a 'Bearer' pass, where no Photocard is required.

If the named Pass holder is unable to show a Photocard, the pass should be withdrawn and treated in the normal way. The 'Bearer' pass holder does not require a Photocard.

Has anyone ever heard of this product before or even seen one personally?

Also anyone have any idea what the criteria of issue are and what price the ticket would be issued at?

 

[John @ home]

I have just been browsing the FRPP and come across this product

[snip]

Has anyone ever heard of this product before or even seen one personally?

Also anyone have any idea what the criteria of issue are and what price the ticket would be issued at?

This is not wholly new. The last printed edition of the National Fares Manual, NFM 98, said (pages D1 and D2)

Impersonal Season Tickets (Bearer Passes)
Impersonal Season Tickets may be transferred from one passenger to another. They may be purchased for use by private individuals or the employees of a particular company.
Prices may be calculated from the normal season ticket prices shown in sections B & C.

Fares set by ATW, FCC*, FSR, MML, NCH, NIW, NT, PSC, PSY, PTW, PWY, SWT, VWC, VXC.
7D Price × 1.5 × [Period factor]

Fares set by GWR, GXR, RMS, PMR, PWM, RCL, SET.
Refer enquiries to the Train Company contacts listed in Section A.

Fares set by XEC, c2c, LER, STS.
Not available

Fares set by SN
Pass customer details to 067 54963. Annual Season Tickets only.

* Train Company fares offices may offer non-standard prices on application to the contact listed in Section A.

 

[A60K]

I think it's the fact that there's a All Line Annual Season available that is the really interesting point - from what I remember, such a product was last available around 1992-ish, after which it was only possible to buy a maximum 14 day pass.

I take it that the price being charged is rather more than the approx £3300 that Deutsche Bahn will charge for an All Line Annual Season for Germany...

 

[mathmo]

The question is: is it cheaper than the Berwick-on-Tweed to London Terminals annual season, at £17516 standard class/£29776 first class?!?

 

[Mojo]

Interesting that there is no price given - I wonder if the pricing is variable, depending on who you are.

 

[Broken Viking]

Interesting also that it's only available direct from Rail Settlement Plan and is "not for sale to the general public". I'm half tempted to write to RSP outlining my interest and enquiring about prices, but I can already see their response being something like "Thankyou for your enquiry, however you are not elegible to purchase this type of ticket" or whatever... :roll:

Dear Gods! Back when I used to play World of Warcraft I often found a lot of elitism in the game...But all of the elitism across every single WoW realm server could never compete with the elitism inherant in ATOC, RSP and other official railway bodies!

National Fail: All your base are belong to us, and all your consumer rights are belong to us too.

 

[First class]

These do exist, and anybody can get one. Those with PRIV facilities can obtain one quite easily, by contacting the person who deals with your staff travel facilities in HR.

Although I can't remember the exact price, but it was around £25,000 Standard!- the last one I saw was issued on a purple ticket with Rail Rover on the bottom right. The gentleman who owned it seemed unsurprised I had examined his ticket particularly vigoursly.

 

[dan_atki]

Although I can't remember the exact price, but it was around £25,000 Standard!

Interesting that it costs almost 50% more than the equivalent of 26 14-day ALRs - £16,900.

I'm guessing this was the bearer version based on what John said about the price of such seasons above costing 1.5 times a season ticket. I'd presume the photocard version was cheaper.

I think the 'general public' thing is a sign it should not be offered to be sold in stations and nor can it probably be sold there. People must apply for it, and in that process probably state their intentions of using such a ticket.

 

[maddeningcrowds]

Are the all line rovers transferrable?

 

[Broken Viking]

These do exist, and anybody can get one. Those with PRIV facilities can obtain one quite easily, by contacting the person who deals with your staff travel facilities in HR.

Might it be worth me making enquiries direct with RSP then? If there's enough interest, I might write an open letter to them asking about prices for the various types of Pass available and post any responses that I get here. 8)

Interesting that it costs [£25,000 Standard] almost 50% more than the equivalent of 26 14-day ALRs - £16,900. I'm guessing this was the bearer version based on what John said about the price of such seasons above costing 1.5 times a season ticket. I'd presume the photocard version was cheaper.

That's why I'd consider writing an enquiry to RSP about it. Although photocard and bearer versions offer the same service, the transferrable nature of the bearer version means that a company with fifty travelling executives could get away with only buying two passes per year that would be shared between all company staff, and therefore having an extra "suppliment" for the much more flexible bearer version is reasonable in my view.

Are the all line rovers transferrable?

To my knowlege, conventional Rovers aren't. The one that I had recently - Though being printed on standard ticket stock - Had my name printed on it, although strangely enough it didn't bear my photocard number...And in practice might've been transferrable to someone else with a photocard bearing my surname and first initial.
Obviously, the "Bearer" seasons and rovers outlined above are a different case, but then those are probabally geared more towards corporate use by executives etc...Hence the transferrable nature of those, and the premium for this service included in the cost.

 

[First class]

Update:

Product no longer available and will be removed from FRPP asap.

It was available as a travel pass for people who were required to travel for work under sponsorship by the industry. (eg ACORP)

It has only recently appeared in FRPP, following the amalgamation of all the previous paper publications into the one electronic manual, and was included in error as it is no longer available and hasn’t been available for some time.

Apologies for any confusion this has caused, but as a result of your email, I have requested that the manual is updated to avoid creating further confusion.

With kind regards

Deborah

Deborah Daly
RSP Service Manager

 

[glynn80]

Ah nice to know, thanks for the stethompson90!!