Alex McWhirter has his say on the issues facing rail passengers
In July 2011, Virgin Atlantic called for air passenger duty on domestic routes to be raised from what was then £12 to £20 to discourage short-haul flying. Two years on, it seems to have changed tack. It has launched a Little Red offshoot, specifically intended for short routes (see businesstraveller.com/tried-and-tested for a review). It’s because the airline needs “feeder traffic” for its long-haul flights at London Heathrow. Now that Bmi has gone, it is reluctant to rely on rival British Airways to carry out this task.
So Little Red’s raison d’être is to carry transfer passengers. Nevertheless, it is adding more than 2,000 seats a day to the Manchester, Aberdeen and Edinburgh routes. Transfer passengers can’t fill them all so the remainder will be sold off at keen prices to domestic travellers.
Should the TOCs (train operating companies) be concerned at the possibility of losing passengers? Neither Aberdeen nor Manchester face a problem. Lengthy rail journey times mean that most business people already take the “high road” to the Granite City. In the case of Manchester, the train easily scores by virtue of frequency (there are departures every 20 minutes) and keen prices for Advance tickets and Off-Peak savers.
The TOC that does need to worry is East Coast. In recent years it has reversed historical traffic losses to air. East Coast tells Business Traveller that it held a rail market share of 14 per cent in 2011 but by 2012 this had leapt to 23 per cent, which is a significant achievement. It expects a further increase this year.
But East Coast will find it tough. Little Red flies six times daily between Heathrow and Edinburgh with 174-seater A320s, adding more than 1,000 seats every day to the route. Its pricing will be competitive and it brings a fresh new brand to the market.
Strangely, Little Red is playing down any competitive threat – perhaps because the Virgin Group intends to bid for the franchise, which is currently held by the government. Speaking at the launch of the Edinburgh route, Virgin Atlantic’s founder and chairman, Sir Richard Branson, said he didn’t think the new route would affect any future bid to run the East Coast rail line.
“These flights are primarily London based and the two areas are different markets,” he said. “We would like to bid for the East Coast… we think we have a plan that will benefit the travelling public.”
For its part, East Coast stresses it will compete with its journey frequency – services run once or twice every hour, with the fastest journey times varying between four hours and four hours 21 minutes. Other selling points are pricing, free food and drink in first class on weekdays, and you can work on board.
One of its key deals for business people is the £229 Scottish Executive return ticket. It provides first class travel, complimentary meals and so on. Passengers booking this ticket to London also receive a free Zone 1 and 2 Travelcard. The only restriction is that it must be booked by 1800 on the day before travel. The return can be left open-dated so can be used on a “walk-up” basis (within a month). Otherwise, opt for Advance fares.
But what if company travel policy restricts you to standard class? In that case, there’s an Off-Peak ticket (valid on all trains despite the Off-Peak title) priced at £201, or a Super Off-Peak return at £126.70. The latter is restricted to less busy services from Monday to Friday. It’s not of much use if you plan on taking a day trip to Edinburgh as the first available service at 0930 does not reach the Scottish capital until 1415. But if you are planning to stay a day or so away then it’s a great offer for its walk-up flexibility.
At weekends, most standard class tickets (including Advance) can be upgraded to first for a £25 supplement. Note that the first class catering is limited to snacks at weekends and alcoholic drinks have to be paid for.
But, ultimately, providing Heathrow is handy, only air enables you to undertake a day trip at reasonable times.
