Flexi Season Ticket Disappointment

[chuffachoo]

Completely pathetic post, but I'm feeling let down and angry after getting my hopes up,

AIBU to be disappointed that the gov have complete ignored PT workers, who are mainly women, in there new flexi ticket scheme?

So I was pretty excited that today is the day that National Rail released it's new part-time season ticket for people who don't travel 5days a week.

I currently work 4 days, 3 days in the office and one day at home. But have been stuck paying for a 5 day season tickets (this is cheaper and less hassle than getting a daily ticket 3 days a week). Having to pay for 5 days travel on top of nursery fees means I barely take a penny home.

So today I was expecting to be able to buy a monthly ticket that entitled me to travel 3 times each week for a % discount. Meaning this month I'd potentially take a meaningful amount of my wages home.

However that's not the case. Instead the flexi ticket is purely aimed at people that are allowed to WFH most days and just have to pop into the office occasionally. It entitles you to 8 days travel in 28days - two days a week. Travel 3 or more days a week and it works out more expensive.

Since returning to work I've been wishing there was a part time season ticket and it's make a huge difference to my finances. I really got my hopes up, but it turns out that yet again as a working mum I've been forgotten.

This really could have been an opportunity for the government to make it possible for more women (who want to) to be able to afford to return to work after children. Instead it's a policy to line the pockets of full time workers (who as a general rule haven't lost 20-40% of their wages) and can now work from home most days.

Do split tickets not help?

The reality is the train company needs to keep running trains so has tried to figure out an option that allows for some flexibility but does not mean they are running at a loss. Won’t suit everyone’s circumstances.

Most people I know who have the flexible working option will be asked to go in 3 days a week. I agree the new scheme should be designed to be cheaper for people who have to travel 3 days.

I’ll have to go into at least twice a fortnight so I guess I’ll do single tickets.

I don’t think this is gendered either. OP assumed, without knowing any details, that they were aiming a new product at one market, and it’s turned out to be another (people like me who will be commuting a couple of times a week maximum at some point when WFH is ). It’s not intended to “line the pockets of full time workers”, it’s intended to line the pockets of the train company. The prices of both childcare and train travel in this country are ludicrous, but this particular product isn’t discriminatory or negative.

I feel like I need a spreadsheet to work this out. Or the maths spelt out simply. But is it not just that the discount on the 5/7 option has a better discount?

DH is likely to go in once a week but he was already on single tickets because he only went in three times, and he had a Senior Railcard meaning a season ticket hasn't been a saving for quite some time.

I don’t understand. Could you use a numerical example?

Round here, a daily ticket is around £20 and a season ticket gives around a 15 percent discount against 5 days, so cheaper to buy 4 if you only need 4 days, or a season ticket if you need 5.

I had presumed a flexi ticket would offer a discount against buying 2 day returns.

So if you needed 3 days it would be better to buy the flexi and then one more.

I have clearly understood wrong, but how does it work?

In my example I am not allowing for any benefit of the weekend travel with a weekly - perhaps I should but I wouldn’t use it much so I haven’t.

I’m not sure why you’re outraged now. When these were first floated months ago this was the model. Then again a few weeks ago.

Neither is it a working mum issue. It affects everyone who works 3/4 days and as it says in the BBC article, requires planning and thinking from everybody.

Nah I’m not with you on this one.

You chose to live far away from your office.
You chose to work PT.
Your choice to buy this ticket and replace when needed but you’re bitching as the saving isn’t as good as you would have liked.

The rail service is going to go to shit - it’s not going to keep going with peak time service levels and 1/4 passengers at the same cost…

So the problem is that the new ticket doesn't save you any more money than your current ticket?

YABU - not every ticket will be suited for everyone and this one is based on FT workers who are now WFH more than they were previously but still need to go in occasionally.

This ticket is to add a flexible option for FT workers who now still need to go into the office occasionally but can't guarantee the regularity so can't avail themselves of cheap advance tickets. My ExDH used to work 3 days a week in the office and 2 days from home, now he has effectively flipped his work week so he only goes into the office one day a week and WFH the other four. However, sometimes he has to go in for client meetings or there is stuff he has to do in the office that he can't do at home or he's working with a coworker who is in the office and it's easier to go in and work in person than coordinate remotely etc. All of these things are on an adhoc basis so this kind of flexible ticket would be perfect for him if his commute was long enough - he would use it for his one day a week office day but then the other 4 would be available as and when he needed for meetings etc without having to pay day rates if something is scheduled last minute.

I work 5 days a week and take the bus. The option is a weekly ticket for £11.50, single tickets £1.50 each way or £3.40 day tickets ... depending on the week depends on which option I choose to suit me. Some weeks I work fully during the day so get the bus there and back, so a weekly ticket is best; other weeks I finish late so I only get the bus to work since the buses finish running before my shift ends so buying single tickets is better; and other weeks I work late but have other commitments some days where I will use multiple buses so a combination of a couple of day tickets and single tickets is cheaper than a weekly ticket.

I could just pay £11 a week and eat the cost for the weeks I don't use the full value as it is offset by the weeks I get twice the value of my ticket but why pay more if the company is giving me enough options to mix and match to suit my needs?

Sorry, read the OP again. So buying a 5 day ticket is cheaper than 3 dailies? That is a massive discount and not usual for commuter routes round here.

YANBU - how incredibly underwhelming. This is 100% a case where the reality doesn't look anything like the expectation.
Personally I was hoping for something that worries for us, hospital workers who go 3 or 4 things a week. Using this system works cost us extra.

Despite what some say, these issues do disproportionately affect women.

Just to show how easy it is to set something up, you could give 50% discount on monthly tickets where usage is unlimited, 40% discount for max of 4 days travel, 30% discount for max 3 days travel and 15% discount for max 2 journeys per week. That took me 10 seconds to imagine up.

The thing is these issues will continue to disproportionately affected women while women still choose to go part time or choose to have children with a man who refuses to do his fair share of childcare or choose not to build financial independence of their own. If you are financially independent, pursue a career and have children when you can afford them you don't have to go part time, how many men do? It's a choice to be a SAHM or go part time, that choice has some down sides, just as it's a choice to go back full time (and if it's not why did you have children with him?) and that will have down sides. There are so many women on her who put themselves in very precarious positions and then complain about it, despite thread after thread advising the opposite

Fully agree OP. This new ticket only works for those who travel once or 2 days a week. If you travel 3 days a week, you are still better off buying a monthly travel card as before and spending £££. It's very disappointing.

Instead it's a policy to line the pockets of full time workers

I don't think many commuters, paying a lot for travel, will think they are having their pockets lined!

@Bigtruth have you run the numbers to see if the travel companies would actually cover their costs doing that? Weirdly they don’t just imagine stuff up.

Don’t see why buying 8 trips every 3 weeks won’t work here.

@LemonTT

Don’t see why buying 8 trips every 3 weeks won’t work here.

It will. You buy your 8 trips and then buy a new set of 8 when it runs out. This is actually a lot better for anyone who might vary the number of days they spend in the office each week. And for anyone else they still get a discount off the full ticket price. But I guess some people will always find something to moan about.

@Pinkcadillac

Fully agree OP. This new ticket only works for those who travel once or 2 days a week. If you travel 3 days a week, you are still better off buying a monthly travel card as before and spending £££. It's very disappointing.

It’s not a bad thing that the ticket works for people who travel once or twice a week. There are lots of them!

I am also disappointed with the new flexi option. I have agreed with my employer to a slightly later start meaning I don't have to pay for peak hours and daily tickets twice a week work out a lot cheaper. Also disappointed with those PPs dismissing the fact that this affects women more. Sadly that's the reality, childcare costs plus juggling full/ part time working are issues that disproportionately affects women in the workplace.

Your season ticket must be an astonishingly good deal if it's cheaper than buying 3 daily tickets. Ours offers about a 5% saving on buying 5 daily tickets.

DH has been buying flexi tickets for years, I didn't realise they weren't widely available. He basically charges a smart card with daily tickets, at the same 5% discount, to use as and when he needs them.

This isn’t to do with part time vs full time since you could reduce your hours to 3 days a week with 2 in the office and 1 at home and it would benefit you then, it’s just that it’s not aimed at your current particular set up. Can’t you ask to do 2 days at home? My organisation has said we will need to do 2 days a week in the office regardless of if we are full or part time.

There will be plenty of women out there who work 2 days a week part time, claiming it’s basically discriminating against women because you have chosen to work part time and happen to need 3 days a week instead of 2 is daft. I get being disappointed about the ticket but they can’t please everyone I guess.

So your objection is that the discount on the 5 day season ticket is so generous that this is cheaper option than using the carnet option 3 days a week, and you might as well keep buying the 5 day season ticket rather than switching.

I'm amazed at a season ticket discount so generous that it's cheaper than buying just 3 day tickets. I don't think that's typical