Rules, rules, rules, ....

[Davidc]

Fairly sure that this has nothing to do with privatisation and was also the case before.

If it was in the conditions it certainly wasn't enforced and the lower cost option of buying tickets beyond the destination was encouraged and advised.

 

[theclaud]

Difference being, these were (presumably) not advance tickets, therefore break of journey was allowed.

Moreover getting to Vauxhall from either Brighton or Chichester is more difficult, involving a change, that may be why it was cheaper.

I've bought tickets to Victoria on the day (i.e. not advance), at a discount, then got off at Clapham Junction - and had the ticket scrutinised at the barrier. No problem.

Browsing through the discount advance tickets, I've been amazed at how cheap some of them are. Recently I bought an advance ticket, Leicester to London, for what I thought was reasonable (about £20). I now find you can get them for as little as £1! At that price, obviously a massive loss leader, I think it's reasonable that you should have to accept stringent T&C's. The important thing is to know what they are. But it appears, the provider has no obligation to put them in large print etc. etc... Caveat emptor...

I don't buy this. I'm something of a train ticket nerd, and quite good at getting the cheap deals, but essentially they are just an excuse to charge extortionate fares and then use the existence of sometimes entirely theoretical cheap ones to misrepresent the cost of rail travel. I'd much rather have all tickets priced reasonably than have to gamble between the silly extremes. It's a straightforward case for stringent regulation. It's impossible, in most ticket-buying situations, even to find the T&Cs that apply to the ticket you are buying. I frequently travel short and have yet to be stopped for it - I would certainly refuse to pay a fine on the spot.

 

[Davidc]

I would certainly refuse to pay a fine on the spot.

I agree. I'd be prepared to force them to prosecute as I'd be reasonably sure, at the acceptable risk level, they wouldn't try, and if they did they'd lose

I like you frequently (well about once every 8 weeks) do this so one day perhaps ...

 

[Gerry Attrick]

Difference being, these were (presumably) not advance tickets, therefore break of journey was allowed.

Moreover getting to Vauxhall from either Brighton or Chichester is more difficult, involving a change, that may be why it was cheaper.

I've bought tickets to Victoria on the day (i.e. not advance), at a discount, then got off at Clapham Junction - and had the ticket scrutinised at the barrier. No problem.

Browsing through the discount advance tickets, I've been amazed at how cheap some of them are. Recently I bought an advance ticket, Leicester to London, for what I thought was reasonable (about £20). I now find you can get them for as little as £1! At that price, obviously a massive loss leader, I think it's reasonable that you should have to accept stringent T&C's. The important thing is to know what they are. But it appears, the provider has no obligation to put them in large print etc. etc... Caveat emptor...

I'm amazed at how expensive some of them are. Only today I was quoted £55 for a return journey from my local station to York next month. I can drive there in an hour!

 

[661-Pete]

I don't buy this. I'm something of a train ticket nerd, and quite good at getting the cheap deals, but essentially they are just an excuse to charge extortionate fares and then use the existence of sometimes entirely theoretical cheap ones to misrepresent the cost of rail travel. I'd much rather have all tickets priced reasonably than have to gamble between the silly extremes. It's a straightforward case for stringent regulation. It's impossible, in most ticket-buying situations, even to find the T&Cs that apply to the ticket you are buying. I frequently travel short and have yet to be stopped for it - I would certainly refuse to pay a fine on the spot.

OK, but you can't have it both ways, Claud. Either you buy the ultra-cheap tickets and swallow your principles, or you refuse to pander to that 'cheap and nasty trick', and pay the full fare each time!

Maybe these ultra cheap tickets are used as a subterfuge, as you say, to drive down the stated 'average' price of a ticket, but I very much doubt it - especially seeing as these low fares are not on the main National Rail website - only on the bucket shops.

And I don't think that abolishing the cheap fares would drive full-price tickets down. A few years ago, before the
'net, the best you could get were 'saver' tickets, which were discounted from the full fare, but not nearly as much. Even then, full price tickets were extortionate measured against the cost of living....

 

[Sheffield_Tiger]

WHy don't trains just run a sensible-price straightforward service?

I'm lucky...Sheffield to Hull is my main journey (on Saturdays for football) and it is never more complex than turning up, buying a ticket, boarding the train and burying my head in a book

Cost £21.50 - less petrol/car running costs, no parking worries and I can read a book and relax

If it works for routes between Sheffield and Bridlington/Scarborough why can't it be the same elsewhere?

 

[swee'pea99]

What's a university prof doing travelling first class? I thought they were all poor.

 

[slowmotion]

It does seem to be a bit sad that rail companies use Ryanair tactics when setting ticket prices. All my long distance trips are by road. The reality (for me) is that a motor is cheaper, nearly always faster door-to-door, and an awful lot less stressful. That's a pretty damning verdict on the rail system.