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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To wonder why train companies can't offer part-time season tickets?

43 replies

Jims · 08/08/2013 13:11

Just today returned to work after DS2 and was looking up the cost of my train ticket for tge tear - nearly £4k!

I can't live closer as my husband works in the opposite direction and we both do fairly specialised jobs.

I know the train companies have no incentive to make it cheaper for part-timers but working 3 days in london it is only just cheaper to get an annual pass than paying daily.

Am i being unreasonable to think that train companies should be required to offer part-time tickets and/or carnets?

Surely in this world of part-timers and working at home, it would be good to have extra cash floating about in the economy too.

First great western when i asked on twitter said there wasn't a demand for these. Is that really right?!

OP posts:
Snazzyenjoyingsummer · 08/08/2013 13:15

I think you've nailed it in that there is no incentive. If they make it more financially attractive for people to commute less, they put themselves out of business.

gazzalw · 08/08/2013 13:17

I wonder if it's so much that there's no demand as that everyone just accepts the 'status quo' and hasn't bothered to challenge this....

You do have a point, OP! And a very reasoned one at that....

I am sure the answer is though that train companies would lose more money thro' part-time season tickets....

Not quite the same thing, but recently DS lost his school Oyster card. Whilst we awaited the arrival of the replacement one I had to fork out £25.00 for an adult (he's only 12) weekly bus pass....ridiculous. Why isn't there a child's one?

lljkk · 08/08/2013 13:20

I'd have one for sure! I commute 6-7 days/fortnight. Don't think they have technology for it, though.

raisah · 08/08/2013 13:21

Am in the same predicament & I am seriously considering changing jobs to be nearer home. After childcare & travel I have no money left for anything else and my husband has to pay for everything else. I woukd wekcome a p/t season ticket to free up some cash each month. I work to keep my cm ib business & to keep my job in case of redundancy.

CajaDeLaMemoria · 08/08/2013 13:24

It doesn't fit the business model, so they'd never do it. If I recall, there was a petition in Birmingham for one a while ago, but it got nowhere despite getting a lot of support.

Season tickets offer you the chance to save money if you use the train every day, or almost every day. You save on fares, but are likely to spend on the train or at the platform at least a few days a week. It keeps people using the services, and keeps the company in business.

If you commute less, there is no incentive. To save money, you'd need to use the train more = win for the train company. If they offered part-time season tickets, they'd be encouraging people to commute less, use their services less, and still save.

I hope I've explained that well enough. I've got some kind of sickness bug thats killed my brain!

nancerama · 08/08/2013 13:29

YANBU. DH and I used to work for the same company. Because of the long commute, our plan was to both work 3 (or maybe 4) day weeks when my maternity leave was up. This plan proved impossible because of the cost of travel. We would have had 2 season tickets, but only ever one used at a time, and we couldn't share a ticket because of the photo card issue.

Financially we were better off with me being a SAHM. It's such a pity.

nancerama · 08/08/2013 13:30

Oh, and FGW told me also there was no demand. Funny that.

I guess when there's not even room to stand on both feet on their rush hour services, they're not disparate for extra business ideas though.

LieweHeksie · 08/08/2013 13:30

I tried making a fuss about this when I was working 3 days a week. I suggested a pro-rata season ticket that was only valid on 3 set days a week.

The train companies wouldn't speak to me as they said they only discussed such issues with the rail user groups.

The rail user groups weren't interested.

I think there is an incentive. A full time season ticket is valid 7 days a week, and a part time season ticket wouldn't have all the perks of a full time season ticket as it wouldn't be valid on the non-nominated days.
And it would save the train companies the time an hassle of selling us individual tickets 3 days a week.

myfriendflicka · 08/08/2013 13:39

I absolutely agree - I am facing buying another season in September and it costs me more than five grand! (working full time at the moment, but have commuted and worked part-time in the past).

I would like to work part time but the fares just don't add up - obviously your money goes down, but proportionately the amount you spend on fares goes right up.

In a way it needs a test case of some sort, but obviously that's a risk. I think a lot of people would be interested, but at the moment we accept paying proportionately more to commute part time. And obviously it means more money for the train companies if they only have full time season tickets.

If you have a petition I'll sign it Grin

turkeyboots · 08/08/2013 13:40

London underground used to do a carnet. 10 single tickets which you bought in a pack at a discount. Something like that on the train would be great for me, as a once a week commuter.

vintagecakeisstillnice · 08/08/2013 13:42

I think they should all be like the oyster cards.

They could be programmed to only allow them to be used on Mon/Tue &Thur or whatever.

Still using paper tickets is very outdated, and the company would still have access to the money.

In fact they would most likely make out of it.

I only use my oyster card on the rare occasion I go in to London about 5-6 times a year, but I always have money on the card so they have access to that cash. Now my £10-15 isn't a lot but add that up. . .

ilovesooty · 08/08/2013 14:18

It's a great idea. I commute by train twice a week. My company pays but I still think it's worthy of a campaign.

DontmindifIdo · 08/08/2013 14:27

It would be a good idea! I returned 3 days a week after having ds and although it would have been £25 a month cheaper to buy individual tickets, I couldn't advance but them and queuing each day would make me regularly late. Another alternative would be letting you bulk advance buy tickets, say all the ones you'll need for a month, save them having to staff all those individual transactions- plus there's the odd day youll go into London on a non-work day to meet friends/shopping, I treated those as "free" as I'd already paid for a monthly ticket, if I had individual ones or a season ticket for a Monday only then I'd pay and they'd make a lot more from me over the year...

Sallyingforth · 08/08/2013 14:39

The train companies won't offer any tickets that they believe will cost them money. It's no longer a public service, it's a source of profit for shareholders.
There's another thread running about Post Office charges going up - they are being fattened up for privatisation and we can expect a similar attitude from them in the future.

dontyouknow · 08/08/2013 14:54

They don't offer them because it will lose them money!

Going to the office 4 days a week it was still cheaper to get a weekly or monthly card, which was always really annoying. I always wanted a 4 day a week travelcard!

Agree that I can't see that the technology is there - how would the barriers work with that ticket? They could do some sort of discount if you buy a few tickets to be used in the same week. But no incentive if it will lose them money! Also, in a lot of cases, mine included you can't threaten to take your business elsewhere as it often isn't practical to drive or get a bus, especially commuting to London.

Sallyingforth · 08/08/2013 15:07

No trouble at all with technology - the Oyster card readers record every use centrally and the computer blocks expired or stolen cards. Such a system could easily validate cards at particular times and days.

sparechange · 08/08/2013 15:08

As you and others said, there is no incentive for them to do it.

A few years ago, some of the train companies introduced off-peak season tickets, where you could get a further discount off the annual fee by not travelling before 09:30.

After a couple of years, they withdrew them, because the demand for them was greater than they had anticipated, and they lost too much money. So by taking them away, everyone was now stuck with the expensive option.

Lilymaid · 08/08/2013 15:13

There's certainly no advantage in working 4 days per week if you have a long commute. I used to work 3 days, but was able to travel into work off peak, so saved that way. Now I work full time but on a term time only contract, so am able to to buy tickets at monthly rates and never have to pay for the weeks I'm not working. But not many employers would go for that working pattern.

HairyPoppins · 08/08/2013 15:15

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Turniptwirl · 08/08/2013 16:38

Considering the ticket barriers never like my monthly ticket which is normal and valid, not sure the technology is there for a scheme that has tickets valid only on set days.

I think a way of buying 10 (or 20 or 50) single journeys would be very good. I would happily pay slightly more per journey than my season ticket if it worked out cheaper overall. I get a lift to work at least once a week and have been having lots of days off during the summer (annual leave). It would allow more flexibility for people who work part time or who get the train one way but have a lift the other way, or who split their week between 2 locations etc

lastnightiwenttomanderleyagain · 08/08/2013 16:55

Jims... I'm guessing by the train company and the ticket amount, you're from my neck of the woods. If so, I would suggest getting Teresa May involved. In addition to dealing with the police, immigration, deportation etc...she also manages to campaign pretty successfully for commuters in this area. Some of the suggestions above are definitely workable so it might be worth sending her a summary of ideas. Sadly i'm a full timer myself so stuck whatever they do...

Original poster
Jims · 08/08/2013 17:23

I know they don't do it because they'll lose cash, i was just a bit cross at the idea there wasn't the demand.

I was hoping this could be the next great mumsnet campaign after the bounty one Wink

Even if the technology isn't there for specific days, i'm sure the demand for carnets is. I'd happily buy a book of tickets in advance. I'd also happily not get as great a discount as a full season ticket holder, but to have to pay the same price when i only travel in 3 days frustrates me.

OP posts:
cumfy · 08/08/2013 17:31

Trouble is that demand is so high at rush hour that it's very much a seller's market.

AvengingGerbil · 08/08/2013 17:34

Couldn't agree more, OP. I'm less bothered about the discount element of the season ticket than by the faff of having to get to the station early on each of the three days I travel in order to buy the tickets.

What is worse, my local bus company run buses which do not give change. They also only do weekly tickets. So I have to have £13.20 in loose change available each week (or overpay them) in order to get the bus to the station in the first place.

The Carnet, like they have in Paris, is a great idea - just buy a bunch upfront and use as necessary. They wouldn't lose the companies money - they could just charge standard fares for the carnet tickets.

TheSquirrelofDoom · 08/08/2013 17:39

I commute between Exeter and Plymouth. Although I'm full time so buy monthly season tickets valid for all seven days, I have seen online that down here you can buy monthly season tickets that are valid for five days of the week - 3 set weekends and the weekend thrown in. My season ticket is valid on FGW and Crosscountry trains. I've just checked and they are sold by FGW online. So they're being a bit cheeky if they're saying that no such is ever possible... unless I've completely misunderstood!