Why can't I get some sort of discount on London Underground?

Bakez

I go to a university outside London (Nottingham), however my 'home' in London is actually in zone 6.

This year I've not been able to secure a paid summer placement, so instead I am doing charity volunteer work in central london. This means I need to commute from zones 6 to 1 and back every day during peak hours. From the looks of things I can't get any sort of discount and a weekly pass for an adult is £47.60. I simply cannot afford to spend £50 a week + lunch expenses for volunteering with no pay back...

Other than phoning up and cancelling my volunteer work so I sit on my !!!! all summer and do nothing, is there any discount available that I can get being a 20 year old student?

dmg24

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tickets/14312.aspx

The university must be registered with TFL, which I am guessing (but don't know for sure) that Nottingham would not be?

Bakez

I very much doubt it is

[Deleted User]

If you have a railcard you can get a discount on daily travel cards and Oyster cards - but not on monthly passes.

Perhapse you could ask the charity if they have any deals or concessions for travel?

probably too far to walk, but you could think about cycling

melancholly

the only option is to go for trains where possible and use a young person's railcard as they allow you to use it at peak times in July and August.

in terms of lunch - a packed lunch will save you a fortune!

MrsManda

Depending on where you are volunteering you could ask if you could start later so you can travel off peak and register your railcard on your oyster card for daily tickets.
Also ask the placement if they can provide something towards your expenses.

As melancolly said, to reduce your lunch costs take a packed lunch. I study in London and when I bought lunch it worked out at about ~£5 (using discounts and offers) per day. Making sandwiches/pasta pots at home and taking a bottle of water reduced the cost to >£5 per week.

dzug1

Well without any discount zone 6 to zone 1 is £4.40 peak on Oyster PAYG - so that brings the cost down to £44 on a 5 day week. If both journeys are off peak you can almost halve that. So unless you need extra journeys that's a small saving.

If your journey is practical by bus then Oyster PAYG will cost less than £20 a week.

anotherginger

get a young persons railcard and register it on your oyster card.

if you are volunteering can you negotiate that you come in later/leave earlier so that you can avoid some of the peak hours?

atypical

dmg24 wrote: »

The university must be registered with TFL, which I am guessing (but don't know for sure) that Nottingham would not be?

It isn't, you can see the list when you try to apply. The requirement for a University to qualify is that:

"Your establishment is located in the London area or, if outside, you have students enrolled and attending courses who live in London but commute on a regular basis to and from your establishment"

bitsandpieces

Won't the place you're volunteering for pay your expenses? Certainly ask them about this, especially if your considering dropping out because of this.

And take sandwiches - buying lunch in London can be expensive.

minerva_windsong

I agree about linking your railcard (if you've got one) to your Oyster card, trying to negotiate your hours and bringing your own lunch.

Alternatively, could you buy a pass to 'London Terminals' if you have a nearby mainline train station, and then get the Tube through central London (zone 1)? Or if your nearest mainline station in central London is close to your placement, perhaps even walk? Or - and this is a long shot - sleep on a friend/relative in a different zone's couch/floor to help save money?