Train trickets - unlimited travel for a day or a week

[spionfox]

So to sum up, the rail network is a bit of a minefield really isn't it.

I'm not a socialist but surely it is crying out for re-nationalisation.

 

[bocadillo]

So to sum up, the rail network is a bit of a minefield really isn't it.

I'm not a socialist but surely it is crying out for re-nationalisation.

Seriously, I'm not sure that the particular aspect of the matter under discussion was any better in BR days. For those who have the time and patience to take advantage of the offers now available, rail travel is probably cheaper than it has ever been. Others might also appreciate the real value of it, if they factored the total cost of the alternatives into their calculations. For those who need to travel at short notice and to their own timetable, rail and other forms of public transport will rarely be a viable alternative.

 

[Siouxsie]

And Heathrow Express. And Heathrow Connect between Hayes & Harlington and Heathrow Terminals 1,2,3. They don't seem to want to make it too easy.
:icon_wink

A couple of years ago, being a very inexperienced train traveller, I trusted the ticket office at Harborough station when I asked to buy a return ticket to Heathrow. I duly boarded the trains as instructed on the print out they gave me and got fined by the ticket inspector on the Heathrow Express as my ticket wasn't valid.
I paid up and argued my case with Midland Mainline (or whoever it was at the time) when I returned from my holiday, and eventually got my money refunded.

 

[bocadillo]

A couple of years ago, being a very inexperienced train traveller, I trusted the ticket office at Harborough station when I asked to buy a return ticket to Heathrow. I duly boarded the trains as instructed on the print out they gave me and got fined by the ticket inspector on the Heathrow Express as my ticket wasn't valid.
I paid up and argued my case with Midland Mainline (or whoever it was at the time) when I returned from my holiday, and eventually got my money refunded.

It was the Heathrow Express conductor that got it wrong. Tickets from Market Harborough to Heathrow are valid on Heathrow Express; print-outs can not be produced for 'invalid' journeys. You should have refused to pay.

 

[Siouxsie]

It was the Heathrow Express conductor that got it wrong. Tickets from Market Harborough to Heathrow are valid on Heathrow Express; print-outs can not be produced for 'invalid' journeys. You should have refused to pay.

That's interesting. I showed him my print -out, receipts, tickets...and he was quite rude to me. As I travel by train perhaps once every 2 years on average I didn't have enough knowledge to argue and didn't particularly want to be thrown off and miss my flight.

 

[bocadillo]

If you had a Day TravelCard it would not have been valid on Heathrow Express - you would have to use the tube (Piccadilly line). But there is no Day Travelcard from Market Harborough.

What is not realised is that many conductors/ticket inspectors work on commission. They rely on the public not being absolutely certain that there ticket is valid and bully people into paying again/paying a penalty fare - you said this one was rude to you and I'm not all that surprised to hear it.

In the early days of the High Speed service through Kent, I witnessed a woman with a ticket for Liverpool being surcharged by the conductor who insisted her ticket was not valid because it did not say ' includes HS1' on it. I intervened and pointed out to him that my ticket (to Leicester) did not say 'includes HS1' on it either and that he had not tried to surcharge me when he inspected my ticket. I told him that he knew full well that it was only London tickets that needed the 'includes HS1' designation. Exit conductor and the woman kept her £4 in her purse.

You should also be aware that neither a conductor nor a ticket-inspector can throw you off a train.

 

[spionfox]

If you had a Day TravelCard it would not have been valid on Heathrow Express - you would have to use the tube (Piccadilly line). But there is no Day Travelcard from Market Harborough.

What is not realised is that many conductors/ticket inspectors work on commission. They rely on the public not being absolutely certain that there ticket is valid and bully people into paying again/paying a penalty fare - you said this one was rude to you and I'm not all that surprised to hear it.

In the early days of the High Speed service through Kent, I witnessed a woman with a ticket for Liverpool being surcharged by the conductor who insisted her ticket was not valid because it did not say ' includes HS1' on it. I intervened and pointed out to him that my ticket (to Leicester) did not say 'includes HS1' on it either and that he had not tried to surcharge me when he inspected my ticket. I told him that he knew full well that it was only London tickets that needed the 'includes HS1' designation. Exit conductor and the woman kept her £4 in her purse.

You should also be aware that neither a conductor nor a ticket-inspector can throw you off a train.

Bastard conductor.

It's no wonder a lot of folk get confused by our railway set up. Shambles for the infrequent traveller.