FGW full timetable book

[Mojo]

From the May timetable change FGW replaced their range of lettered timetable books for certain areas and mini-timetables for certain routes with 40 new timetables all for different routes.

There was planned to be a £2.50 charge for the full timetable with all times, but Passenger Focus apparently kicked up a fuss and it is supposed to be available free of charge if you write to FGW, who will post it to you.

I haven't seen it available anywhere on their website, so below please see the PDF files for the full book - complete with the £2.50 price tag

http://www.railforums.co.uk/personal/GW09M_A5_Compiled_r.pdf - full TT (6MB)
http://www.railforums.co.uk/personal/GW09M_Tome COVER_r.pdf - cover & info

 

[Bill Badger]

There was planned to be a £2.50 charge for the full timetable with all times

SWT are charging £4 for theirs

Does anyone know for certain if TOCs do have to provide these books free of charge on request? Certainly it has always been free in the past, although increasingly difficult to obtain.

 

[LilLoaf]

Do Crosscontry or Virgin trains do one?

I never knew these existed.

I used to have the huge National rail timetable ("the bible") from WHSmiths priced at £12-£14 depending on the year but i don't get this anymore.

 

[dan_atki]

SWT are charging £4 for theirs

A new charge they introduced for this edition which got me rather irate at the time I found out too. I'm not against paying for the book (it costs TOCs a lot of money to produce!) but a quarter of the cost of the NRT for a tenth of the pages... no. Maybe we should let Passenger Focus know, and maybe they'll do something about it too!

It was apparent in the past they were considering charging for it and I even made a point of asking them to produce a PDF version for their website if this was to happen - they said it was an option being considered.

Does anyone know for certain if TOCs do have to provide these books free of charge on request? Certainly it has always been free in the past, although increasingly difficult to obtain.

I have seen a Southeastern version being used by a member of staff on the information point at London Victoria and often wondered if writing to them would result in me receiving one. It makes better sense for leisure travellers to have all the information in one book!

 

[voyagerdude220]

Do Crosscontry or Virgin trains do one?

Around 2001-2002 (rough guess), I picked up a free copy of a full Virgin Trains timetable from Paignton (or Torquay), and found it extremely good because it had every single VT service in it.

As for now, i've a feeling that VT don't do them anymore. I've never seen a (Arriva) XC full timetable before.

 

[adc82140]

I definately remember paying 30p many years ago for a Network SouthEast timetable of all servies out of Waterloo, so charging for a timetable is nothing new. Doesn't make it any less of a cheek though

 

[Techniquest]

From the May timetable change FGW replaced their range of lettered timetable books for certain areas and mini-timetables for certain routes with 40 new timetables all for different routes.

There was planned to be a £2.50 charge for the full timetable with all times, but Passenger Focus apparently kicked up a fuss and it is supposed to be available free of charge if you write to FGW, who will post it to you.

Any idea what address you need to write to and specifically ask for? I'm already sick of having to look through dozens of timetables, and the London to Bristol/Weston-super-Mare/South Wales being in a little tiny fold-out timetable is dreadfully annoying as it refuses to fold up right half the time and never ever folds back the way it came.

I was much rathering the old 5/6 timetable booklets, never had a need really for the little tiny things. It might be obvious I was surprised by this whole new way of doing timetables, which to me makes no sense as to find the full service for routes in this area you now need multiple timetables whereas before it is far easier to work out connections and so forth.

This, combined with the new Weekend First scheme, has annoyed me endlessly. The latter doesn't bother me so much because I don't like the plastic seats and I find Standard Class perfectly comfortable. A view which I've expressed plenty of times before. But this new way of doing the timetables is very annoying.

Good on Passenger Focus for kicking up a fuss about the ching for the timetable book as well!

Thanks for posting the links Mojo, although I still want to get a paper version. So much easier to flick through a single timetable book to plan moves and connections than scroll through a PDF!

 

[Mojo]

No idea who to write to - I suppose Customer Services and they'd forward it on to whoever deals with it.

 

[Techniquest]

OK, thanks, will try to get onto them tomorrow then. Ta again for posting the thread!

 

[Bill Badger]

Does anyone know for certain if TOCs do have to provide these books free of charge on request? Certainly it has always been free in the past, although increasingly difficult to obtain.

Answering my own question

I've been advised that TOCs are required to provide printed timetable information free of charge but can make a charge to cover costs where the information provided is in effect addditional to what they have to provide.

 

[dave_wm]

After sending FGW a message on their customer services page, I recieved one of the new timetable booklets in the post today (free!), and very good it is too.

Still says £2.50 on the front though...

 

[dan_atki]

I've been advised that TOCs are required to provide printed timetable information free of charge but can make a charge to cover costs where the information provided is in effect addditional to what they have to provide.

Fair to say that the £4.00 (+£1.00 P&P if you need it) SWT are charging for their's is excessive then?

 

[fgwrich]

Fair to say that the £4.00 (+£1.00 P&P if you need it) SWT are charging for their's is excessive then?

Dont forget this is SWT here...There already going over the top on pricing with everything...

 

[dan_atki]

Dont forget this is SWT here...There already going over the top on pricing with everything...

Paying for the production of a 300 page book is acceptable. When they are profitting from selling it at what most would consider to be an unreasonable price* is another matter entirely...

* Bare in mind this is a quarter of the cost of the NRT, for about one tenth of the pages.

 

[thefab444]

It also doesn't include some tables it used to, for example a cut-down but useful version of the XC timetable, or the SC/SN timetable.

 

[Matt Taylor]

Paying for the production of a 300 page book is acceptable.

Their printed timetable is effectively a sales brochure similar to what you would find in a travel agent and as such I think it should be free. Imagine the uproar if Argos started charging for their catalogues!

 

[me123]

Paying for the production of a 300 page book is acceptable. When they are profitting from selling it at what most would consider to be an unreasonable price* is another matter entirely...

For me, that would only be the case if they still produced the individual timetables for free. Then you could say that the information is free, but you can get it all in one place for a small charge.

Then again, who'd pay?

 

[dan_atki]

Their printed timetable is effectively a sales brochure similar to what you would find in a travel agent and as such I think it should be free. Imagine the uproar if Argos started charging for their catalogues!

Good point! Although I'm sure the counter would be that such 'sales' information is contained in other printed timetables... sort of like getting Ibiza, Majorca, and Madrid travel brochures for free as opposed to one of Spain and the Balearics, which would be available at a charge.

For me, that would only be the case if they still produced the individual timetables for free. Then you could say that the information is free, but you can get it all in one place for a small charge.

Then again, who'd pay?

Let's put some more perspective on the matter.

SWT produce 26 pocket timetables available for free, FGW 40.
SWT's timetable book is about 300 pages long, FGW's is 450.
SWT's book is £4.00, FGW's was going to be £2.50.

Fair to say that £4.00 is a bit extreme?

Around £2.00 would be fine - it's a handy book but they don't have to produce it as the information is available in printed form elsewhere.

Not so sure if charging for it to be posted is acceptable either to be perfectly honest. If I tried asking for all 26 pocket timetables in large print form to be posted to me would I get charged for P&P?

 

[me123]

Yup, £4 is extreme. TBH, I wasn't considering your specific case when I was replying