Discount rail journeys to Weymouth - by First Great Western / Wiltshire Council

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

From This Is Wiltshire:

Discount rail journeys to Weymouth offered by First Great Western and Wiltshire Council


Councillor Horace Prickett promoting the discounted rail tickets for the service between Weymouth and Westbury now available to senior citizens Photo: Trevor Porter

Senior citizens can now enjoy discounted train tickets between Weymouth and Westbury with a national bus pass, thanks to First Great Western and Wiltshire Council.

First Great Western is offering a 34 per cent discount on all standard off-peak and anytime single and return rail tickets to holders of English Nation-al Concessionary Travel Scheme passes.

The passes are issued by Wiltshire Council and allow free off-peak bus travel, but will now also mean discounted tickets between Westbury and Weymouth, with travel available with all train operators.

Discounts are available at times when the bus pass is valid ^ 9.30am-11pm on Mondays to Fridays and all day at weekends and public holidays. Journeys with discounted tickets must start within these times.

Cllr Horace Prickett, Wiltshire Council portfolio holder for transport, said: ^This is clearly a great offer for people who wish to have a nice day out. First Great Western set up the scheme in association with the Heart of Wessex Community Rail Partnership, which is financially supported by Wiltshire Council. Senior citizens can get free bus travel to the station with the bus pass, before getting a big discount on train travel to Weymouth where they can enjoy the beach and dip their toes in the sea.^

The discount scheme is also available between Swindon and Worcester Foregate Street via Stroud.

[Richard Fairhurst]

So we now have 34% discounts offered to: bus pass holders, Senior Railcard holders, young people, students, two people travelling together, three or more people travelling together, families, people in the South-East, people in the Cotswolds, people in Devon and Cornwall, disabled people, people in Pembrokeshire, people in Aberystwyth, soldiers, season ticket holders, and probably some I've forgotten.

Would it not be simpler (and probably revenue-neutral) just to get rid of all these flipping railcards and cut Off-Peak fares by 34%?

[Red Squirrel]

So we now have 34% discounts offered to: bus pass holders, Senior Railcard holders, young people, students, two people travelling together, three or more people travelling together, families, people in the South-East, people in the Cotswolds, people in Devon and Cornwall, disabled people, people in Pembrokeshire, people in Aberystwyth, soldiers, season ticket holders, and probably some I've forgotten.

Would it not be simpler (and probably revenue-neutral) just to get rid of all these flipping railcards and cut Off-Peak fares by 34%?

I presume someone somewhere has given this some thought..!

Personally I am marginally more inclined to travel because I have paid for a Family Railcard and want to get my money's worth! And of course they make money on selling the railcards too.

[stuving]

What it says on the Wiltshire Council website is this:

First Great Western Trains is currently offering bus pass holders a discount of one third off standard off-peak fares between Worcester and Swindon via Stroud, and between Westbury and Weymouth. The offer is for one year trial period starting 2 September 2012.

There's no mention of this being extended, nor indeed any recent news on the Wiltshire Council website. Does This Is Wiltshire have a peculiar local definition of "news"?

[grahame]

There's no mention of this being extended, nor indeed any recent news on the Wiltshire Council website. Does This Is Wiltshire have a peculiar local definition of "news"?

The news is that the scheme is indefinitely continued, based on the evaluation report a couple of weeks ago that it was revenue positive. But I fear that the baby was thrown out, leaving only the bathwater to be published in the article. 

With Weymouth - Westbury and Swindon - Worcester covered by this scheme which is not only reveue positive but also passenger generating, would in not be an idea to extent is so it covers journeys Weymouth - Westbury - Swindon - Worcester, rather than leaving a gap in the middle?    I'm sure that with some publicity help the middle section would be able to bring a lot of non-rail using pensioners onto the trains, to occupy seats that we're working to fill and are already an operation cost.

[grahame]

Would it not be simpler (and probably revenue-neutral) just to get rid of all these flipping railcards and cut Off-Peak fares by 34%?

I presume someone somewhere has given this some thought..!

Personally I am marginally more inclined to travel because I have paid for a Family Railcard and want to get my money's worth! And of course they make money on selling the railcards too.

It would be much easier to have a single type of railcard - a "loyalty" card - that anyone can buy in their name for x pounds per annum.   It would give them a y% discount from off-peak fares, and a z% discount for up to v adults and w children traveling with them as a group.

People would use their loyalty cards; perhaps you could have (but are we re-complicating) two levels - a 30 pound card (for 30% off) and a 150 pound card for 50% off?

[WSW Frome]

I must try to read the evaluation report on this bus pass scheme. It is surprising that it has been continued  since it must be a cost to local authorities at times of lower budgets. Anyway good news for those who benefit but I will be surprised to see any further (widespread) extensions. (NB Heart of Wales etc.)

I saw a comment recently that Senior Railcards are a subsidy for oldies. This is not true since all the railcards are a commercial product designed to increase business with an upfront fee and increased ridership/revenue. This has been true ever since the first student railcards were introduced in the 1970's and presumably has the correct effect otherwise the cards would not keep multiplying.

I do agree that the multiple railcards are now becoming a farce and a universal scheme such as in The Netherlands or Belgium would be simpler for all concerned. In NL the annual cost to any adult is around EUR60 with a 40% discount on "all" normal ticket types (essentially singles + day/weekend returns). The only restriction is no travel before 09.00 Mo-Fr. Up to 4 people can use the discount in a group. There are even some international extensions available. I wonder if ATOC^» (Association of Train Operating Companies See - here) ever thought about a simplification and evaluated the cost/benefit? 

 

[grahame]

I must try to read the evaluation report on this bus pass scheme. It is surprising that it has been continued  since it must be a cost to local authorities at times of lower budgets.

I was struck by that too.  But the report says that the scheme is not abstractive, so perhaps there is only a peppercorn cost to local authorities?   

The title / press release says "Wiltshire council" ... but the route concerned only has Westbury station in Wiltshire, with the rest being in Somerset and Dorset.   The other route involved - Swindon to Worcester - passes through the Wiltshire Council area, without stopping at any stations there.   Hardly likely to attract subsidy from Wiltshire Council, even of the peppercorn type!

[stuving]

The report is here.

The "cost" was borne entirely by FGW^▸ (First Great Western). But it generated more revenue than it lost, according to the report. AFAICS^▸ (As Far As I Can See), neither the marginal cost of carrying more passengers nor the potential loss of Railcard purchases was included, but they would not alter the conclusion.

So the question of payments from the council does not arise (unless they have some kind of revenue support deal with FGW).

Of course ENCTS^▸ (English National Concessionary Travel Scheme) does not, in theory, cost the local council or the bus operator anything either.

[grahame]

Just taken a phone call enquiring about the application of this scheme to the TransWilts, as the advert on the rolling screen there says (it is reported) that it applies across FGW^▸ (First Great Western).  Checked with FGW Twitter who confirm still not applicable SWI^» (Swindon - next trains)-WSB^» (Westbury - next trains).  Has anyone else seen the advert, and does it look as if it might confuse a rail newcomer?   (Can someone at Swindon take a look for me please  - Thanks)

Turns out my enquirer wants to take the grandchildren to Weymouth in a party of 2 old and 2 child ... went away happier when I told him to get a groupsave 3 + child to get the same reduction from Melksham, but he did ask why it had to be so complicated ...