Maybe I'm going senile... (LM ad)

[LexyBoy]

... but I can't see a £26.50 return from London to Liverpool shown in the attached LM advert. All sources show £28 for the OPR, though it was £26.50 in the summer. Has the price gone up recently and the ad not been updated?

 

[barrykas]

... but I can't see a £26.50 return from London to Liverpool shown in the attached LM advert. All sources show £28 for the OPR, though it was £26.50 in the summer. Has the price gone up recently and the ad not been updated?

A quick bit of checking shows that the price increased with the launch of NFM13 on 2nd September. Naughty London Midland!

 

[IanD]

A quick bit of checking shows that the price increased with the launch of NFM13 on 2nd September. Naughty London Midland!

Maybe they charge you £26.50 to walk up to London

Shouldn't give them ideas really.

 

[LexyBoy]

Not just me then (I'm having a spesh day so best to check). I've emailed them though if our resident LMers see this they're welcome to see to it!

 

[bb21]

I don't have the time to check atm however iirc WMPTE fares are revised at the September fares round each year and past experience have indicated that LM do revise some of their own fares at that time of the year instead of January.

 

[IanD]

I don't have the time to check atm however iirc WMPTE fares are revised at the September fares round each year and past experience have indicated that LM do revise some of their own fares at that time of the year instead of January.

This year (as I think it was last year too) it's as well as January but apparently we won't mind because their Trent Valley trains are speeding up and are bypassing Northampton.

 

[87015]

This year (as I think it was last year too) it's as well as January but apparently we won't mind because their Trent Valley trains are speeding up and are bypassing Northampton.

LM tend to put their LM only fares up in May and September but not January, putting out a load of PR manure about how wonderful they are in January, but failing to mention that it is only to work the strategy of using those "frozen" fares to balance the "fares basket" so they can put the biggest rises possible on home counties seasons...

 

[LexyBoy]

Fair play to LM, I got a reply to my email the next day, and if you bring up that ad now it's been fixed. Although it's going up again in January... (to £29.00).

 

[IanD]

Fair play to LM, I got a reply to my email the next day, and if you bring up that ad now it's been fixed. Although it's going up again in January... (to £29.00).

Which is almost a 10% rise since last year. Bet they won't mention that in their publicity. Fair play?

 

[barrykas]

Which is almost a 10% rise since last year. Bet they won't mention that in their publicity. Fair play?

The joys of unregulated fares...See the Passenger Focus report on individual fare increases for more examples.

But then headlines like "Off-Peak Return from Birmingham to London with Chiltern Railways frozen" don't sell papers, unlike "Rail fares to soar by up to 17%". :roll:

The latter headline appeared in yesterday's Metro and referred to Bromley to Victoria Off-Peak, which is allegedly increasing from £9.70 to £11.40 (17.5%). Needless to say, it isn't...The only fares near that amount is an Anytime Day Return, which is increasing from £9.60 to £10.40 (8.3%). Passengers travelling Off-Peak would, of course, buy a Day Travelcard, which is increasing from £8.50 to £8.90 (4.7%).

Cheers,

Barry

 

[fadge]

Maybe they charge you £26.50 to walk up to London

Shouldn't give them ideas really.

New definition of a "walk up" fare?

Would they also have to provide a "walk down" fare to get you back from London?

 

[MikeWh]

Passengers travelling Off-Peak would, of course, buy a Day Travelcard, which is increasing from £8.50 to £8.90 (4.7%).

And the really sensible ones would get an Oyster card where the off-peak cap remains at £8.50.

 

[johnnycache]

LM tend to put their LM only fares up in May and September but not January, putting out a load of PR manure about how wonderful they are in January, but failing to mention that it is only to work the strategy of using those "frozen" fares to balance the "fares basket" so they can put the biggest rises possible on home counties seasons...

Just a few comments on this

London Midland will have three fares baskets. A London commuter basket. A West Midlands commuter basket. And a Protected Fare basket. Each one has to be "balanced" separately so they won't be able to raise fares less to Birmingham in order to raise fares more to London. Also "LM only" fares won't be in any basket. They will be unregulated. However TOCs do put out statements saying how much they are increasing fares each January (I work for Southern and they are increasing them by 4.2%) and i daresay LM's strategy of phasing increases around the year helps to make that number more palatable.

 

[island]

But then headlines like "Off-Peak Return from Birmingham to London with Chiltern Railways frozen" don't sell papers, unlike "Rail fares to soar by up to 17%". :roll:

Super Off-Peak, on the other hand, is up 10%.