New structure for British railways

[phil-b259]

2 hours ago, Classsix T said:

Sorry Phil, that doesn't wash and I'll not kowtow to any such. Trainline specifically state that they'll do "cheaper/easier" that's anyway you wanna swing it. They're literally hawking tickets (bulk bought) to the public. "Easier' perhaps, cheaper? I doubt it. Besides, us arguing the toss doesn't disprove the fact that a customer can't easily purchase a minimal rate" piece". Unless, as you say, TOCs have been handicapped in what they can offer.

 

C6T. 

 

 

I wasn't talking about 'The Trainline' - a private company who have been fleecing passengers for years and for whom nothing has changed with the creation of GBR

 

I was talking about GBR the new state entity which will be responsible for ticketing matters and the disappearance of TOC specific tickets (seemingly under DfT instruction). For these entities 'simplification' of ticketing will most likely result in more expensive fares being paid.as per Government policy of ensuring  passengers rather than taxpayers pay more towards paying the railways costs

 

What 'The Trainline' claim or don't claim is a matter for the advertising standards authority. They have always been rip off merchants and will continue to be so.

 

 

Edited February 16, 2022 by phil-b259

[62613]

4 hours ago, phil-b259 said:

 

 

I wasn't talking about 'The Trainline' - a private company who have been fleecing passengers for years and for whom nothing has changed with the creation of GBR

 

I was talking about GBR the new state entity which will be responsible for ticketing matters and the disappearance of TOC specific tickets (seemingly under DfT instruction). For these entities 'simplification' of ticketing will most likely result in more expensive fares being paid.as per Government policy of ensuring  passengers rather than taxpayers pay more towards paying the railways costs

 

What 'The Trainline' claim or don't claim is a matter for the advertising standards authority. They have always been rip off merchants and will continue to be so.

 

Rail passengers don't contribute through taxes? Although I know what you mean, it's government policy that rail users should contribute more to the costs of their journeys ( a silly idea on many levels, IMHO), everyone pays taxes of some sort; the whole idea of taxpayers as a separate group from others in the country, first touted by the 1979 government, is a crackpot idea, and needs nailing, fast.

 

[Paul.Uni]

@Classsix T The "saving" that trainline offer is the difference between the ticket you buy and an Anytime ticket. It will be the exact same ticket that a TOC will sell you.

 

Third party sites can offer split ticketing, but as far as I am aware trainline doesn't do that.

Edited February 16, 2022 by Paul.Uni

[The Stationmaster]

14 hours ago, Classsix T said:

Is this why I'm seeing more ads on TV for the trainline.con, sorry, .com?

 

That a bulk buyer of pre-order tickets can now "offer" (not guarantee) alleged inexpensive hassle-free tickets because direct to TOC buying has been made unnecessarily cumbersome?

 

Ahh, capitalism, welcome to the debate.

 

Wasn't it a stated aim of GBR to make ticket purchases simpler? I hadn't read that to mean going to a monkey tout rather than the organ grinder.

 

C6T. 

You're seeing more ads for Trainline because its most recent purchasers are gettinga bit worried about the share price and what the GBR tickering approach might mean for their business.  Most people I l know who are in the know when it comes to purchasing tickets avoid Trainline like the plague and go to TOC websites where they can usually find better deals.

 

My son, who is pretty sharp when it comes to buying train tickets both in Britain and across Europe went to Liverpool to watch foot ball recently and he had no trouble at all booking a split ticket via a TOC website which saved him a lot of money (and yes he travelled on an appropriate train stopping at the stations the split required).  The only good thing I have come across with Trainline is that they have been prepared to refund people when they have to rebook a journey for reasons beyond their control at short notice as I saw some years ago when our ship's arrival port was altered from Swansea to Greenock at a few day's notice and several fellow passengers had to rebook trains home accordingly.

[Gwiwer]

Has Trainline ceased charging a hidden booking fee then?  It was once the case that if you found a TOC fare anywhere else Trainline would offer the same ticket at a slight premium of, say £5, but not advertise the fact that this was their "take".  I know a number of people removed their app when this was discovered.  It is usually cheaper to book via the TOC concerned though this relies upon one knowing who that might be and for many journeys more than one TOC will be available and / or required.  I usually advise anyone who can be flexible with travel to consult NR's Cheapest Fare Finder page (which includes split ticketing) and decide if the trains offered match their needs.  If not then go to the main NR journey planner.  

 

2 hours ago, The Stationmaster said:

he travelled on an appropriate train stopping at the stations the split required

Not now required.  It used to be a condition that the split coincided with a booked station stop though one was not obliged to alight.  It was occasionally necessary to swap seats if the subsequent portion of the journey on the same train was reserved in a different seat.  

 

Since a few years ago it has not been a requirement that the train calls at the "split" location though it should be routed through there.  That makes policing difficult because the customer doesn't necessarily know which way a train is routed.  Let's take an example.  London Terminals to Portsmouth Harbour.  The obvious route is from Waterloo and apparently via Guildford but one train every hour runs via Basingstoke.  So if the ticket was split across Liss (where neither of them actually stop) how is the customer to know?  

 

Other routes are also available.  There remains a ticketing minefield because TOC-specific tickets, which tend to be cheaper, are often valid only on slower less-direct trains.  Tickets marked "Southern Only" may not be use on SWR trains via any route.  These are for the Victoria-via-Horsham service to Portsmouth.  Some tickets are endorsed "Only valid via Barnham" or "Route Three Bridges" instead which means absolutely nothing to the customer but also restrict them to the Southern service.  Oddly perhaps all of those are also valid for the even less direct routes via Hove or Brighton with a change there.