Integrating fares

[Waverley125]

I know i touched on this topic, but this had got me so wound up i think it deserves a thread all its own.

I travel on the railways a lot, and the next month or so presents two important journeys-one to see my football team (Leeds United) play away at Crewe, and secondly to go to Mancester for my university interview. All fares quoted involve a YP railcard

Stamford-Crewe: £26.65 OPR (changing at Bham New St), XC & VT/LM

Stamford-Nuneaton: £8.25 OPR XC
Nuneaton-Crewe: £6.60 LM
Total: £14.85

different route, but the point is valid. However, on the same route:

Stamford-Bham: £10.55 OPR XC
Bham-Crewe: £5.30 2 Advance Singles VT
Total: £15.85

so one pays an extra £10.80 for the ease of using a sinle ticket. Now for us who know the system these chinks are relativley easy to find, but for many passengers (such as my friends & relatives) they are not. For instance, last summer i did WBQ-Glasgow Cent. for under £15 on two advance singles. Looking up the walk on fare was something ridiculous like £55.

Similarly, Grantham-Manchester Piccadilly (must arrive before 11am)

Grantham-Manchester Anytime: £36.95 EMT

Grantham-Leeds: 2 Adv. Sing: £14.60 NXEC
Leeds-Manchester: 2 Adv. Sing: £10.60 TPE
Total: £25.20

While these use advances, so are not as valid as the Stamford-Crewe example, this is still a big jump, and needs to be considered. Currently i am going to Manchester alone, but if I am accompanied i will certainly drive since the costs of this journey on the necessary trains, plus £10 parking at Grantham, make the altogether more preferable journey (along virtually the same route, since I would go A1, M62) prohibitivley expensive.

 

[glynn80]

I know i touched on this topic, but this had got me so wound up i think it deserves a thread all its own.

I travel on the railways a lot, and the next month or so presents two important journeys-one to see my football team (Leeds United) play away at Crewe, and secondly to go to Mancester for my university interview. All fares quoted involve a YP railcard

Stamford-Crewe: £26.65 OPR (changing at Bham New St), XC & VT/LM

Stamford-Nuneaton: £8.25 OPR XC
Nuneaton-Crewe: £6.60 LM
Total: £14.85

different route, but the point is valid. However, on the same route:

Stamford-Bham: £10.55 OPR XC
Bham-Crewe: £5.30 2 Advance Singles VT
Total: £15.85

so one pays an extra £10.80 for the ease of using a sinle ticket. Now for us who know the system these chinks are relativley easy to find, but for many passengers (such as my friends & relatives) they are not. For instance, last summer i did WBQ-Glasgow Cent. for under £15 on two advance singles. Looking up the walk on fare was something ridiculous like £55.

Similarly, Grantham-Manchester Piccadilly (must arrive before 11am)

Grantham-Manchester Anytime: £36.95 EMT

Grantham-Leeds: 2 Adv. Sing: £14.60 NXEC
Leeds-Manchester: 2 Adv. Sing: £10.60 TPE
Total: £25.20

While these use advances, so are not as valid as the Stamford-Crewe example, this is still a big jump, and needs to be considered. Currently i am going to Manchester alone, but if I am accompanied i will certainly drive since the costs of this journey on the necessary trains, plus £10 parking at Grantham, make the altogether more preferable journey (along virtually the same route, since I would go A1, M62) prohibitivley expensive.

Your whole argument makes no sense. If you are comparing the prices of Anytime tickets with that of Advance tickets and then surprised that there is a price difference then you really have no clue on any aspect of the UK fares system or economics as a whole.

I'll keep it simple for you but basically the reason you pay £36.95 for an Anytime Return from Grantham to Manchester and then £25.20 for a combination of Advances is that one gives MORE validity than the other. The Anytime is valid on any train and via any permitted route in the routeing guide, this is a useful feature to many who like to use our railways on a turn up and go basis. It is also a safe option as if any particular train or even a connection to get to the station is late on their journey, they can catch the next service without question as their ticket is valid on any train.

Your combination is practically the opposite. You are only allowed to use one train service- the one printed on your reservation and thus only allowed to use a single route to get to your destination. If you miss your first connection it is likely not only the first Advance ticket becomes useless but also the connecting second ticket. Also if one of your services is late and you miss your connection it could be an issue getting your ticket accepted onto the next available service to your destination seeing as your ticket is restricted to one particular service.

The extra £12.00 is certainly not a large jump for this extra validity and in this case seems pretty good value, on some operators the difference between the fixed and flexible tickets can be as large as £250 so you don't really have much to complain about.

Also just to clarify another point made by yourself, you state "the walk on fare" was around £55.00 but the OPR ticket you quote earlier was also a walk on fare. A walk on fare is not as you believe just Anytime tickets but those you can purchase on the day for travel immediately

 

[t0ffeeman]

How about going via Derby & Stoke? Would have thought that would offer the cheapest walk on fares...

 

[Waverley125]

havn't looked up the fares for that route.

My point is mainly towards the first-that the OPR between two points is more expensive than two split OPRs, so one is paying a premium for using only one ticket.