Season Ticket Question

[CPG]

In a recent thread on another part of this site, the OP was asking advice on costs of commuting between Leagrave (LEA) and Tonbridge (TON). Whilst I doubt that there is any real demand for such a journey, I was surprised that the first respondent stated that there was no season ticket option between the two stations, considering that they are both within the London and SE commuter area and only 63 miles apart and the journey requires no cross-London tube transfer. However, I checked the National Rail (NR) season ticket calculator and, sure enough, there is no season ticket fare option.

Purely out if interest, I tried a different start station option, well outside the L & SE area and more than twice the journey length. I was able to find a season ticket option from Shirehampton (SHH) to Tonbridge (151 miles) at £13,864 p.a., a commute clearly no one would do daily. The daily anytime return fare from SHH to TON is £279.00, but the annual season ticket option works out at £53.36 (usual NR calculation criteria), whilst from LEA to TON the anytime return is £54.40, with no direct season ticket option.

Why would there not be a season ticket option for a journey within the L & SE area, which maybe is unlikely but clearly doable (and at least one person has enquired about), but there is for a journey from outside the L & SE area which is clearly not a practical commute?

(mileages source RailMiles Mileage Engine)

 

[Haywain]

Why would there not be a season ticket option for a journey within the L & SE area, which maybe is unlikely but clearly doable (and at least one person has enquired about), but there is for a journey from outside the L & SE area which is clearly not a practical commute?

There are many cross-London journeys that do not have season ticket fares set for them but a formula for calculating them does exist.

 

[Watershed]

It's rather arbitrary which journeys have season tickets. But for journeys across London for which there is no through season ticket, there is internal staff guidance which sets out how a through season can be priced and sold.

The cost is calculated as the sum of an "outboundary" Travelcard seasons from both stations to London Zones 1-6, minus the cost of an "inboundary" Zones 1-6 Travelcard.

In the case of a LEA to TON journey the calculation for a weekly season would be £164.90 plus £154.50 less £78, so a total of £241.40. Obviously this is only slightly less than a daily though ticket, so you have to be consistently commuting 5 days a week (and perhaps going into London on the weekend) to make it worthwhile.

 

[30907]

Purely out if interest, I tried a different start station option, well outside the L & SE area and more than twice the journey length. I was able to find a season ticket option from Shirehampton (SHH) to Tonbridge (151 miles) at £13,864 p.a., a commute clearly no one would do daily. The daily anytime return fare from SHH to TON is £279.00, but the annual season ticket option works out at £53.36 (usual NR calculation criteria), whilst from LEA to TON the anytime return is £54.40, with no direct season ticket option.

The fare you quote is via Warminster-Salisbury for which the Anytime Return is £96.70, so you would need to travel thrice weekly to benefit from the season.
Via Paddington you would pay about £525/week which is 2x the daily price - a good bargain (or the SOR is overpriced, as you like).
That sort of discount over long distances is quite common, and used to assume that one would only need to visit the office in the City/one's chambers/etc when one's presence was demanded/one had an important luncheon date (excuse the stereotyping).

 

[Haywain]

In the case of a LEA to TON journey the calculation for a weekly season would be £164.90 plus £154.50 less £78, so a total of £241.40. Obviously this is only slightly less than a daily though ticket, so you have to be consistently commuting 5 days a week (and perhaps going into London on the weekend) to make it worthwhile.

There's perhaps an argument here that there should be a (cheaper) through ticket routed 'not Underground'.

 

[30907]

There's perhaps an argument here that there should be a (cheaper) through ticket routed 'not Underground'.

Possibly, but the quoted price is already less than the two relevant London season tickets and not very much more than Leagrave-Three Bridges which is a similar distance.

 

[CyrusWuff]

It certainly wouldn't hurt to ask Southeastern (given they price the normal fares for Leagrave - Tonbridge, rather than GTR) if they'd consider creating a through Season for the journey.