BZ ticket on Gatwick Express

[yorkie]

If you have a Day Travelcard, you are meant to get the BZ6 ticket, rather than East Croydon, if the train doesn't call at East Croydon. But if you ask for BZ6 and are sold East Croydon, I'd suggest Southern are happy to accept such tickets on their non-stop services.

The issuing of tickets to/from named stations when you ask for a Boundary Zone location is not unique to Southern by any means.

But if anyone has evidence that Southern are deliberately selling the wrong ticket to catch people out on their express route, that is serious and needs to be dealt with appropriately, I'd suggest contacting Southern initially and then go to London Travelwatch, your MP, and the (theoretical) regulator the DfT if it persists.

 

[Tetchytyke]

I have a Z1-6 annual Travelcard, so it makes no difference to me whatsoever.

 

[talldave]

I have a Z1-6 annual Travelcard, so it makes no difference to me whatsoever.

True, my earlier post only applies to my Day paper Travelcard approach.

I should have made that clearer, but I'm in Oslo and still recovering from the shock of using a proper airport - city centre rail service. Here they use slick modern trains built in this century with video screens running news & travel updates. The services runs every 10 minutes and to time!!! The Southern management team responsible for fobbing off Gatwick travellers with a shabby, clapped out, frequently delayed service should come over here to see how it should be done.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Just a quick update on my bargain BZ ticket experiences on the Gatport Airwick Express.

After being brave enough to gamble on the barriers at Victoria I've determined that the Travelcard works the GatEx barriers in both directions. So the barriers obviously discriminate by routing rather than destination.

Since the BZ tickets work the Gatwick barriers it is possible to do the entire journey using just ticket barriers .

The Southern ticket machines at Gatwick will sell an Off Peak BZ6 ticket from 09:10 onwards. Which gives just enough time to catch the 09:20.

Yesterday there were two ticket inspectors on the 09:20 and they didn't make any comment on my ticket combination.

On a festive note, I've used Travelcards from Turkey Street and Angel Road so far - not sure if there are any more festive stations I can use?!

 

[andythebrave]

Ewell West.

 

[Kite159]

I would imagine the barriers at Victoria won't reject standard travelcards due to the chance of a regular southern service departing/arriving from the gatwick express platforms

 

[ATW Alex 101]

The GatEx branded platforms at Victoria do indeed accept travelcards no problem.

 

[Kite159]

Although they appear to be fenced off which makes it hard to try and spot which 442s are in the station. Travelcard worked with no issue at the barrier, no ticket checks on either services (regular southern on the way back due to half-hourly gatwick express services), only saw (and heard) from the guard after east croydon.

 

[yorkie]

That wasn't a Guard, as the trains are DOO (Driver Only Operated).

DOO doesn't necessarily mean that there is no-one selling tickets (on the contrary; see Strathclyde electrics) and they used to employ 'Train Hosts' who would sell tickets on-board.

According to Southern's promotional video*, Bruno and co will still be on the train and sell you tickets at no extra cost. Needless to say, ticket barriers are considered by Southern and the DafT to be far more effective than mere human beings, and consequently there are rarely checks made on Southern' Gatwick Express route trains. Southern probably also decided that threatening tourists with Penalty Fares would be a great PR move too.

* Just about all the propaganda in that video says is false except perhaps the coffee is the same... can anyone confirm?

 

[Kite159]

The 'guard' on a Victoria-Brighton service (double 377/6) was threatening tourists with penalty fares for daring to sit in the '1st' class area. There was me thinking Southern had a weekend first upgrade available.

 

[Merseysider]

That video was one of the cringiest things I have ever watched. The staff didn't come across as genuine at all, rather they'd been sat down for half an hour and told to memorise their lines.

There's a 2115 Vic - Gatwick 2145 costing £20.
There's a 2117 Vic - Gatwick 2148 costing £15.

Guess which one's got Gatwick Express on the side of it?

 

[yorkie]

The 'guard' on a Victoria-Brighton service...

The entire route is equipped for DOO.

... threatening tourists with penalty fares for daring to sit in the '1st' class area.

I am fairly sure Southern's Guards cannot issue PFs. It is considered bad practice for Guards to issue PFs (though some companies do engage in bad practice, admittedly!) and Southern aren't that bad.

There was me thinking Southern had a weekend first upgrade available.

They do.

Perhaps a complaint could be sent to Southern.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

That video was one of the cringiest things I have ever watched. The staff didn't come across as genuine at all, rather they'd been sat down for half an hour and told to memorise their lines.

There's a 2115 Vic - Gatwick 2145 costing £20.
There's a 2117 Vic - Gatwick 2148 costing £15.

Guess which one's got Gatwick Express on the side of it?

Neither.

Southern's trains that run all Gatwick Express route and some Brighton Express route services merely have 'Express' on the side.

 

[Merseysider]

Neither.

Southern's trains that run all Gatwick Express route and some Brighton Express route services merely have 'Express' on the side.

Cough pedant cough

 

[Kite159]

Hence why I put it as 'guard', what else would you call them?

Southern customer services are a bit of a joke, if I complain they will only come back with a template response which ignores the original query.

Keep the gatwick express services, but ditch the so-called premium to travel on older stock (the decision to replace the 460s with 442s must be up there as one of the worst decisions)

 

[talldave]

Agree, the Gatwick Express used to have two unique selling points: a dedicated airport to city service and modern rolling stock. Southern have taken both those away and left an embarrassing service using clapped out rubbish.

Back on BZ6 tickets, I've been booking from another station where the fares in the other direction are muvh lower. More bonkers pricing.

 

[hassaanhc]

Agree, the Gatwick Express used to have two unique selling points: a dedicated airport to city service and modern rolling stock. Southern have taken both those away and left an embarrassing service using clapped out rubbish.

Back on BZ6 tickets, I've been booking from another station where the fares in the other direction are muvh lower. More bonkers pricing.

Quite a bit of that kind of pricing where Gatwick Airport is involved. I found one a few weeks ago involving an Anytime Return (not the Day one), where splitting and Oyster or 2x singles for the London bit would save at least £7

 

[hairyhandedfool]

....(the decision to replace the 460s with 442s must be up there as one of the worst decisions)

Agree, the Gatwick Express used to have two unique selling points: a dedicated airport to city service and modern rolling stock. Southern have taken both those away and left an embarrassing service using clapped out rubbish.....

IIRC, it was the DfT who said that the Gatwick Express had to start running down to Brighton and because of that there weren't enough 460s.

 

[Tetchytyke]

Agree, the Gatwick Express used to have two unique selling points: a dedicated airport to city service and modern rolling stock. Southern have taken both those away and left an embarrassing service using clapped out rubbish.

Nothing to do with Southern and everything to do with the inept idiots at DafT.

DafT didn't want a specific Gatwick Express service at all, they wanted everything down to Brighton, which is why the 460s went. It was, IIRC, only lobbying from Gatwick Airport that kept the existing off-peak service as it is, and the compromise was the 442s and peak-time extensions to Brighton or Three Bridges.

I still don't agree that the 442s are "clapped out rubbish" though. Luggage space is a little bit of an issue but apart from that they are good comfortable trains internally.

 

[talldave]

Compared to other European cities such as Oslo and Stockholm, the Gatwick Express offering is pathetic. From above posts it's the DfT who should be ashamed of this national embarrassment.

 

[Tetchytyke]

That depends what you're comparing it to. Gatwick is not the main airport for London, Heathrow is, and the dedicated Heathrow Express train is clean, modern and fast.

Munich just uses a normal S-Bahn train, Hamburg didn't have a rail link at all until 2011, Paris CdG just uses the normal RER.

 

[TEW]

I used a Boundary Zone 6 ticket plus Travelcard on Gatwick Express yesterday. Upon arrival at Victoria on the return my Travelcard did not work the barriers but I showed both tickets to the gateline staff and they let me through without comment.

 

[Kite159]

That depends what you're comparing it to. Gatwick is not the main airport for London, Heathrow is, and the dedicated Heathrow Express train is clean, modern and fast.

Munich just uses a normal S-Bahn train, Hamburg didn't have a rail link at all until 2011, Paris CdG just uses the normal RER.

And costs just as much as the Gatwick express.

Although would a BZ6 to Heathrow ticket work on the Express services?

 

[hairyhandedfool]

....Although would a BZ6 to Heathrow ticket work on the Express services?

No, travelcards are not valid on Heathrow Express.

 

[Kite159]

Ah well.

Unlike Gatwick there isn't a cheaper alternative with a comparable journey time (Piccy line is cheaper but takes a lot longer)

 

[Deerfold]

Ah well.

Unlike Gatwick there isn't a cheaper alternative with a comparable journey time (Piccy line is cheaper but takes a lot longer)

Heathrow Connect isn't that bad. Express takes 15 minutes, Connect is 22-32 minutes to T123.

 

[bb21]

Ah well.

Unlike Gatwick there isn't a cheaper alternative with a comparable journey time (Piccy line is cheaper but takes a lot longer)

... which makes Transport for Edinburgh's comparison between Heathrow Express and the tram when they tried to justify the premium fare charged to the airport farcical.

GatEx branded services are subject to the NRCoC, whereas HEX services are not, hence the difference in treatment of Boundary Zone fares.

 

[Kite159]

£9.90 compared to £21 for a single.

Why did I think the Connect was around £15?

---

The Edinburgh Tram Airport ticket, must be one of the most expensive pieces of light-rail track

 

[talldave]

The reverse function on brfares is a godsend when looking into BZ fares. Tomorrow I'll be using a "backwards" anytime return for £13 that would cost over £24 the correct way around. I only need a single but the backwards return is still cheaper than a single the correct way around.

(Writing this on a 442 gatex service, already past its arrival time and nowhere near Victoria. So glad I haven't paid the criminal premium fare for the privilege of being on just another delayed service from Brighton. )

 

[yorkie]

The reverse function on brfares is a godsend when looking into BZ fares. Tomorrow I'll be using a "backwards" anytime return for £13 that would cost over £24 the correct way around. I only need a single but the backwards return is still cheaper than a single the correct way around.

There is no requirement to use both outward & return portions, so I agree that a return can be purchased and ether outward or return portion can be chucked away (though the outward isn't valid without an unused return, the return is valid by itself)