Train GraphicClick on the map to explore geographics
 
I need help
FAQ
Emergency
About .
Travel & transport from BBC stories as at 08:15 28 Mar 2024
* Easter travel warning as millions set to hit roads
- What contributed to the Baltimore Bridge collapse?
- Man suffers life-threatening injuries after train stabbing
Read about the forum [here].
Register [here] - it's free.
What do I gain from registering? [here]
 02/06/24 - Summer Timetable starts
17/08/24 - Bus to Imber
27/09/25 - 200 years of passenger trains

On this day
28th Mar (1988)
Formal end to carrying coffins by BR (link)

Train RunningCancelled
06:28 London Paddington to Weston-Super-Mare
06:57 Swansea to London Paddington
07:28 London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads
07:38 Exeter St Davids to Okehampton
07:43 Swansea to London Paddington
07:54 Looe to Liskeard
08:18 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
08:25 Okehampton to Exeter Central
08:30 London Paddington to Weston-Super-Mare
08:30 Liskeard to Looe
09:00 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington
09:05 Looe to Liskeard
09:12 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
09:29 Weston-Super-Mare to London Paddington
09:30 London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads
10:15 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
10:30 London Paddington to Weston-Super-Mare
10:41 Cardiff Central to London Paddington
11:00 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington
11:16 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
11:23 Weston-Super-Mare to London Paddington
11:30 London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads
11:50 Cardiff Central to London Paddington
12:15 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
12:30 London Paddington to Weston-Super-Mare
Short Run
04:54 Plymouth to London Paddington
05:40 Bristol Temple Meads to Penzance
06:12 Frome to London Paddington
06:18 Yeovil Pen Mill to Filton Abbey Wood
06:48 Cheltenham Spa to London Paddington
06:54 Taunton to London Paddington
07:12 London Paddington to Cardiff Central
07:25 Okehampton to Exeter Central
08:34 Exeter Central to Okehampton
09:35 Exeter Central to Okehampton
09:50 Cardiff Central to London Paddington
Delayed
05:03 Penzance to London Paddington
05:23 London Paddington to Swansea
05:33 Plymouth to London Paddington
05:55 Plymouth to London Paddington
06:00 London Paddington to Penzance
06:30 Bristol Temple Meads to London Paddington
06:38 Weymouth to Gloucester
06:50 Westbury to Weymouth
09:25 Okehampton to Exeter Central
09:37 London Paddington to Paignton
10:04 London Paddington to Penzance
10:23 London Paddington to Oxford
10:25 Okehampton to Exeter Central
10:35 London Paddington to Exeter St Davids
PollsOpen and recent polls
Closed 2024-03-25 Easter Escape - to where?
Abbreviation pageAcronymns and abbreviations
Stn ComparatorStation Comparator
Rail newsNews Now - live rail news feed
Site Style 1 2 3 4
Next departures • Bristol Temple MeadsBath SpaChippenhamSwindonDidcot ParkwayReadingLondon PaddingtonMelksham
Exeter St DavidsTauntonWestburyTrowbridgeBristol ParkwayCardiff CentralOxfordCheltenham SpaBirmingham New Street
March 28, 2024, 08:15:52 *
Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Forgotten your username or password? - get a reminder
Most recently liked subjects
[155] West Wiltshire Bus Changes April 2024
[124] would you like your own LIVE train station departure board?
[85] Return of the BRUTE?
[67] Infrastructure problems in Thames Valley causing disruption el...
[53] Reversing Beeching - bring heritage and freight lines into the...
[29] CrossCountry upgrade will see 25% more rail seats
 
News: the Great Western Coffee Shop ... keeping you up to date with travel around the South West
 
   Home   Help Search Calendar Login Register  
Pages: 1 [2]
  Print  
Author Topic: Unfair pricing system for Swindon commuters  (Read 18337 times)
Mookiemoo
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 3117


View Profile Email
« Reply #15 on: November 02, 2007, 12:33:38 »

I spent a long journey home playing about on national rail - taking all the stops between WOS» (Worcester Shrub Hill - next trains) and PAD» (Paddington (London) - next trains) and working out a variety of breaks at stations.

Breaking the ticket at oxford was the cheapest by far. But only for first class.  Standard doesnt get the same reduction if they break the ticket.

But if there is something i've missed I'd appreicate it.
Logged

Ditched former sig - now I need to think of something amusing - brain hurts -I'll steal from the master himself - Einstein:

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe."

"Gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love"
Tickets Please
Sr. Member
****
Posts: 104


View Profile
« Reply #16 on: November 02, 2007, 18:52:30 »

the guard is wrong - two season tickets are valid as long as the train calls where they split and obviously they do at oxford.

who is this super guard you refer to ? does he walk with a limp on the count of his false leg by any chance ?

Logged

Any comments made are mine and not that of my employer. My comments do not necessarily reflect the views of my employers and should be taken as my personal opinion.
Mookiemoo
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 3117


View Profile Email
« Reply #17 on: November 02, 2007, 19:33:40 »

the guard is wrong - two season tickets are valid as long as the train calls where they split and obviously they do at oxford.

who is this super guard you refer to ? does he walk with a limp on the count of his false leg by any chance ?



didnt say he was a super guard - just that he's well known on the line I use on the morning trains and has been doing it years (and most of the passengers like him).  I would have thought he knew the rules.

And if anyone asked if his name began with a Z and ended in Q, I could not possibly comment.

Edit by Graham - it does NOT start in a Z and end in a Q, of course.  There are times when we will mention a name - a manager to contact, an authority who has made a statement - but rarely specific operational staff.  And if it's improper to name them, it's certainly improper to hint at their name!
« Last Edit: November 04, 2007, 15:58:47 by grahame » Logged

Ditched former sig - now I need to think of something amusing - brain hurts -I'll steal from the master himself - Einstein:

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe."

"Gravitation is not responsible for people falling in love"
vacman
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 2530


View Profile
« Reply #18 on: November 02, 2007, 22:48:06 »

the guard is wrong - two season tickets are valid as long as the train calls where they split and obviously they do at oxford.

who is this super guard you refer to ? does he walk with a limp on the count of his false leg by any chance ?



didnt say he was a super guard - just that he's well known on the line I use on the morning trains and has been doing it years (and most of the passengers like him).  I would have thought he knew the rules.

And if anyone asked if his name began with a Z and ended in Q, I could not possibly comment.
Trust me, plenty of my colleagues who have been on the railway since Brunel built the GW (Great Western) don't have a clue about tickets!
It tends to be the younger jobsworths like me that know the system inside out!  Wink
« Last Edit: November 04, 2007, 15:59:14 by grahame » Logged
Tickets Please
Sr. Member
****
Posts: 104


View Profile
« Reply #19 on: November 03, 2007, 11:14:56 »

yes well I know exactally who you are refering to. I would get a copy of the National Conditions of Carriage and point him to condition 19 which states:

19. Using a combination of tickets
You may use two or more tickets for one journey as long as together they cover
the entire journey and one of the following applies:
(a) they are both Zonal Tickets (unless special conditions prohibit their use);
(b) the train you are in calls at the station where you change from one ticket to
another; or
(c) one of the tickets is a Season Ticket (which for this purpose does not include Season
Tickets or travel passes issued on behalf of a passenger transport executive or
local authority) or a leisure travel pass, and the other ticket(s) is/are not.

And he should know better, he works those trains enough.
Logged

Any comments made are mine and not that of my employer. My comments do not necessarily reflect the views of my employers and should be taken as my personal opinion.
Tim
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 2738


View Profile
« Reply #20 on: November 21, 2007, 16:51:56 »

The danger of working our fares on a per hour basis that when your train is delayed your journey becomes better value!

fares in teh former Network SouthEast area which includes Didcot, Oxford and even Worcester, but not bristol, or Swindon are generally cheaper.  This was a policy decision by BR (British Rail(ways)).  The crazy thing about fares is the fares set today are still based on those set by BR decades ago.  For example, BR charged higher fares on teh ECMl than teh WCML (West Coast Main Line) because it ran faster and newer trains.  Now we have faster and new trains on teh WCML but the price defferential still exists.  The current fares are neither the fairest for the passenger nor, I belive the most profitable for the companies.

All fares need to be scrapped and worked out from scratch on a per mile basis with upward adjustment for fast and frequent services and downward adjustments for poorer services.  higher fares could also be charged to control overcrowding but only on the condition that the extra revenue generated is ring fenced for alleviating teh overcrowding.
Logged
Nitrox
Newbie
*
Posts: 2


View Profile
« Reply #21 on: December 30, 2007, 19:35:07 »

I would love to hear from anyone who has thought of a way round them. For about ^30 less a month you can get separate season tickets to and from didcot parkway but it's not that much difference. I have heard that some people drive from Swindon to Didcot and get the train there rather than paying the higher fare price, but seeing as it is a good hours drive to Didcot this can't be a solution for regular commuters.

I concur ! I too will be moving to Swindon in the Spring (from Newbury) and have been doing a fair bit of research in to the various commuting options available to London.  I considered the driving to Didcot thing but having tried this journey the other night decided that this was not an option for me (that B4507 is an awful road to drive on and not a drive I want to face first thing in the morning nor last thing at night)  It took at least 25 minutes just to get to Wantage and I couldn't be bothered to go any further having made my mind up about that particular journey already !

Although I don't need to go to London every day of the working week, I would certainly need to go at least 2 days, sometimes 3 days per week.  They are not set days each week.  FGW (First Great Western) do not offer Day Return's from Swindon to London, for what reason I don't know (in order to maximise revenue I assume ?); but I would be interested to know what the reason is if anyone knows ?  What has distance got to do with anything ?

So we are faced with the option of a Standard Open Return costing ^98.00 (which IMHO (in my humble opinion) is just simply outrageous) and, erm, that's it. ^98.00. Lovely.

How obtuse is it, however, that a Day Return between Swindon and Didcot costs ^30.00 and a Day Return from Didcot to London costs ^42.20.  A combined saving of ^25.80.  I am aware of the 'train has to stop at Didcot' for this to be valid but with the exception of about 2 services, all trains from Swindon-London-Swindon call at Didcot.  I don't understand how they can justify charging ^98.00 when this is a valid alternative ?

I have also priced the weekly and monthly season ticket options and have come to the conclusion that based on the number of times I will travel it is probably just about more cost efficient to buy a monthly season ticket but was left totally confused having called the FGW Telesales number to clarify the costs etc.  Having already been in possession of a monthly season ticket on the Newbury to London route, I am aware that, on renewal, FGW give a 5% discount.  Now, I must confess, I am not entirely certain why this is so, I have a feeling it has something to do with FGW's punctuality performance, but I stand to be corrected.  When I asked about the renewal discount, the agent said that this would be down to the discretion of the person selling me the ticket at the tme ??! WTF ?  When I asked why the discounts were given, there was a stony silence.  Is this some unwritten rule that, although FGW have to adhere to it they do not make a point of acknowledging it ?  So I said to the agent, did it depend on the tone of my voice, the colour of my socks or something but again she reiterated her point about it being down to the discretion of the ticket agent at the time.  Either they do give a discount or they b****y don't !!  Why is this all shrouded in FGW mystery ?

Logged
vacman
Hero Member
*****
Posts: 2530


View Profile
« Reply #22 on: December 30, 2007, 22:08:12 »

I would love to hear from anyone who has thought of a way round them. For about ^30 less a month you can get separate season tickets to and from didcot parkway but it's not that much difference. I have heard that some people drive from Swindon to Didcot and get the train there rather than paying the higher fare price, but seeing as it is a good hours drive to Didcot this can't be a solution for regular commuters.

I concur ! I too will be moving to Swindon in the Spring (from Newbury) and have been doing a fair bit of research in to the various commuting options available to London.  I considered the driving to Didcot thing but having tried this journey the other night decided that this was not an option for me (that B4507 is an awful road to drive on and not a drive I want to face first thing in the morning nor last thing at night)  It took at least 25 minutes just to get to Wantage and I couldn't be bothered to go any further having made my mind up about that particular journey already !

Although I don't need to go to London every day of the working week, I would certainly need to go at least 2 days, sometimes 3 days per week.  They are not set days each week.  FGW (First Great Western) do not offer Day Return's from Swindon to London, for what reason I don't know (in order to maximise revenue I assume ?); but I would be interested to know what the reason is if anyone knows ?  What has distance got to do with anything ?

So we are faced with the option of a Standard Open Return costing ^98.00 (which IMHO (in my humble opinion) is just simply outrageous) and, erm, that's it. ^98.00. Lovely.

How obtuse is it, however, that a Day Return between Swindon and Didcot costs ^30.00 and a Day Return from Didcot to London costs ^42.20.  A combined saving of ^25.80.  I am aware of the 'train has to stop at Didcot' for this to be valid but with the exception of about 2 services, all trains from Swindon-London-Swindon call at Didcot.  I don't understand how they can justify charging ^98.00 when this is a valid alternative ?

I have also priced the weekly and monthly season ticket options and have come to the conclusion that based on the number of times I will travel it is probably just about more cost efficient to buy a monthly season ticket but was left totally confused having called the FGW Telesales number to clarify the costs etc.  Having already been in possession of a monthly season ticket on the Newbury to London route, I am aware that, on renewal, FGW give a 5% discount.  Now, I must confess, I am not entirely certain why this is so, I have a feeling it has something to do with FGW's punctuality performance, but I stand to be corrected.  When I asked about the renewal discount, the agent said that this would be down to the discretion of the person selling me the ticket at the tme ??! WTF ?  When I asked why the discounts were given, there was a stony silence.  Is this some unwritten rule that, although FGW have to adhere to it they do not make a point of acknowledging it ?  So I said to the agent, did it depend on the tone of my voice, the colour of my socks or something but again she reiterated her point about it being down to the discretion of the ticket agent at the time.  Either they do give a discount or they b****y don't !!  Why is this all shrouded in FGW mystery ?


The 5% discount is triggered by the monthly performance of the TOC (Train Operating Company) who sets the fare, if the PPM(resolve) (I think this stands for Public Performance Measure) is lower than the government's target for that period then everyone in the effected area gets the discount when they renew their season, it's not down to the disgression of the individual ticket seller! Was it someone in India that you spoke to by any chance??  Wink
Logged
SusanW
Jr. Member
**
Posts: 18


View Profile Email
« Reply #23 on: January 31, 2008, 16:56:48 »

Thanks for everyone's head-scratching and comments.

Welcome to the world of Swindon commuting Nitrox. I am in exactly the same boat as you - tend to commute into London between 2 and 4 days a week and I buy a monthly season ticket.

You're right - it's impossible to drive to Didcot and continue the journey that way, although it might be cheaper.

I've recently written to Andrew Haines (FGW (First Great Western) chief exec) to request a review of the fare discrepancies between Swindon and nearby stations such as Didcot - am waiting for some reply.

The 5% renewal is due to the poor punctuality of their trains - up until last week you got 5% or 10% depending on how bad they'd been (nearly always 5%) but now you actually get 10% or 20% - FGW finally agreed that they've been a pile of pants. The reason why there might be a query over your renewal is that although you're renewing a season ticket, you're not renewing it like for like, and FGW may well argue that that's not a straight renewal. I know that I lost my 5% the first time I renewed after moving from Oxford. 

Hope this helps! And yes, all the call centres are on the other side of the world...
Logged
Do you have something you would like to add to this thread, or would you like to raise a new question at the Coffee Shop? Please [register] (it is free) if you have not done so before, or login (at the top of this page) if you already have an account - we would love to read what you have to say!

You can find out more about how this forum works [here] - that will link you to a copy of the forum agreement that you can read before you join, and tell you very much more about how we operate. We are an independent forum, provided and run by customers of Great Western Railway, for customers of Great Western Railway and we welcome railway professionals as members too, in either a personal or official capacity. Views expressed in posts are not necessarily the views of the operators of the forum.

As well as posting messages onto existing threads, and starting new subjects, members can communicate with each other through personal messages if they wish. And once members have made a certain number of posts, they will automatically be admitted to the "frequent posters club", where subjects not-for-public-domain are discussed; anything from the occasional rant to meetups we may be having ...

 
Pages: 1 [2]
  Print  
 
Jump to:  

Powered by MySQL Powered by PHP Powered by SMF 1.1.2 | SMF © 2006-2007, Simple Machines LLC Valid XHTML 1.0! Valid CSS!
This forum is provided by customers of Great Western Railway (formerly First Great Western), and the views expressed are those of the individual posters concerned. Visit www.gwr.com for the official Great Western Railway website. Please contact the administrators of this site if you feel that the content provided by one of our posters contravenes our posting rules (email link to report). Forum hosted by Well House Consultants

Jump to top of pageJump to Forum Home Page