Train ticket price absurdity
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at 14:40 by AMcWhirter.
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Cedric_StatherbyParticipantI recently had to buy a ticket to Lancaster on the day – hence an Anytime ticket. I know, very expensive, but occasionally one has no choice. and because it was up and back in a day, and I needed to work on the train, I enquired about first class.
The quoted price (from London) was £239 each way (yes, £478 return). This is a lot of money. But what makes it even more absurd is that the ticket clerk at Euston said “I can sell you a ticket to Inverness – it’s cheaper”. And indeed a first class single to Inverness (more than twice as far) is “only” £232.
I know very few people buy rail tickets on the day, and sorting out such idiocies is probably not high on the rail operators’ list. But this really is crazy. Can anyone explain it?
17 Jul 2015
at 08:59
NTarrantParticipantCedric – prices are set by the TOC’s that generally operate the majority of the services over a section of a line. A lot of pricing became market based in the 80’s and things have kind of spiralled from there.
This is no different to split ticketing to obtain a cheaper fare. The clerk is very switched on and customer focused. Some years ago now at my local station I asked for a return to Luton to be told it was £62.00, to which I said hang on its only £47.00 to Leicester, I’ll have return to Leicester, the clerk argued that I had asked for Luton. Endless to say an argument ensued whilst a big queue formed. I got a ticket to Leicester
17 Jul 2015
at 09:07
MartynSinclairParticipantIn the days of electronic ticket gates, are you able to join the train at Lancaster or could the TOC refuse boarding, similar to airlines when a leg or portion of the ticketed route is missed..?
17 Jul 2015
at 09:12
AMcWhirterParticipantCedric –
As noted by NTarrant, Virgin West Coast sets the fares for London-Lancaster. It does not operate to Inverness so prices to the latter will be set by other TOCs.
Virgin West Coast’s fares policy is similar to “old airline” pricing many years ago before LCCs appeared on the scene.
In other words, there are very cheap fares (some might claim they are too cheap) if you book ahead and qualify for an Advance ticket or, if you require a “walk-up” flexible ticket, you travel standard class off-peak.
Buying on the day and travelling at peak hours means you will pay over the odds.
A London-Lancaster peak hour flexible return costs £478 first and £340 standard class.
But if you travel from 09.30hrs when off-peak fares become available, although the first class price remains unchanged, the standard class price falls to just £90 return.
Canny travellers travellin ex-London in the peak circumvent the system by buying a one-way ticket to Lancaster and then returning the same day by buying a standard class off-peak return which costs £90. They then throw away the unused return half after they arrive back in London.
I know it’s not ideal but that’s the only way to save money on a Virgin West Coast day return which cannot be booked in advance.
17 Jul 2015
at 11:11
seasonedtravellerParticipantA few years ago, I could get an advance purchase Leeds to London, ticket in First for just £35.00.
Having to travel Leeds to Peterborough one week, I looked at the ticket prices and was amazed to see £85.00
So I booked the Kings Cross @ £35.00 and simply got off at Peterborough.
As with NTarrant (above) – a huge row involving 3 rail staff when the barrier wouldnt let me through and they insisted I paid the additional fare….. after 10 mins of arguing back and forth….. I didn’t pay.I found the whole situation ludicrous,
Edited to add – I have just booked LH from MAN to ORD in Business class outward & First return – the price of the First was some £300 cheaper than the business seat???
I was expecting an error message but it seems like the booking has gone through……Make sense of that?17 Jul 2015
at 11:32
Carajillo2SugarParticipantseasonedtraveller – it’s probably due to lack of availability of the cheaper Business Class seats on your chosen flight/date. If the cheaper First Class (A/cl) seats are available, the price can undercut C/cl or J/cl, which are both Business Class fares.
Worth checking how much First both ways would cost.
17 Jul 2015
at 12:29
TimFitzgeraldTCParticipantSeasonedTraveller
You aren’t technically allowed to break a journey on an advance ticket. So they are in their rights to ask you to pay the difference.
However on a turn up and pay ticket (Super Saver / Saver / Any Time fare) you can break the journey. On the return portion you are allowed to break your journey on a return overnight as well (e.g – London Lancaster – Birmingham – London).
So in situation of NTarrant – you can buy a ticket to Leicester and break journey at Luton (and you don’t have to complete journey outbound). Likewise you could buy a ticket in First Class from Inverness to London but decide to board at Lancaster on a non Advance ticket.
I had an issue with Southern where the single fare Victoria to Brighton was £23. So I asked that they sell me an Super Off Peak Brighton to Victoria return ticket that at time was £10 and I would only use return (perfectly allowable). The ticket office refused (which was illegal) and as I didn’t have time to buy online on my phone and pick up from ticket machine I paid the fare. An email to the MD and a profuse apology got a full refund and a credit to a future ticket.
17 Jul 2015
at 13:26
SimonS1ParticipantProvided you know the rules, gaming the train companies is much easier than flying.
I went into London from Sussex yesterday at 08.30 and the combination of a single to E Croydon and an off peak travel card saved me about £15 on a £50 fare.
Pays to do your research though as railway regulations are byzantine and some ticket office staff don’t know their arse from their elbow.
On the case seasonedtraveller uses above, this is not permitted, and as the train companies get pressed to deliver their payments to treasury there is mid and more crackdown. The was a recent article in the paper about a family who got on the train to Newcastle Airport at Darlington not Doncaster (ie one stop closer) with advance tickets and were forced to buy new tickets as the advance ones do not permit short journeys.
17 Jul 2015
at 13:37
canuckladParticipantAbsurdity is one word for it……….
Illogical is another……………
Overpriced yet another…….
Overcomplicated, yet another
Disgraceful……………………..Devious and manipulative can also be added to my list, but maybe I’ve gone too far !
Ultimately, when it’s normally cheaper to fly than letting the train take the strain, you know that something isn’t right in the state of Denmark !!
17 Jul 2015
at 14:09
WillieWelshParticipantOn the subject of ticket prices though slightly off topic, has anyone else noticed the price hikes of unregulated fares on the East Coast since Virgin took over? I’m finding the EDI to York and south is at least £20 more no matter how far I book in advance.
I’ve been rediscovering my love of driving.
17 Jul 2015
at 14:13
AMcWhirterParticipantWillieWelsh –
By “unregulated” I assume you mean promotional fares like Advance tickets ?
In which case, yes. It was featured on BBC Radio 4 You and Yours about a month ago. A canny Leeds-KX traveller found that it was more difficult to book the cheaper Advance tickets.
What seems to have happened, and please correct me if I am wrong, is that right now, although the price tiers remain the same, the number of seats allocated to each price tier has been reduced. It therefore means that there will be less availability within a given tier.
As has been covered in this Forum previously, Virgin East Coast is paying a huge franchise to the govt (£3.3 billion over eight years) so one imagines this is the result.
The present range of (regulated/unregulated) fares was set by govt-run East Coast so, other than by tinkering with seat availability within the price tiers, I suspect we have yet to see Virgin East Coast’s real influence on pricing.
17 Jul 2015
at 14:40 -
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