Cheap advance train tickets - a bit of a joke?

dr830

It seems when they advertise 'advance london tickets from £8' or so, what they really mean is out of 500 or so tickets for a particular train journey, a couple of tickets are selling for the lowest price, and the rest are selling at or near full price. Are train companies allows to advertise like this? It seems a very cheeky advertising gimmick.

Any other tickets that aren't minimum price, once you've bought the out and return tickets, not to mention the underground, the price exceeds that of just buying an open ticket on the day on travel.

On an aside note, I'm sure the guise of 'advance' tickets makes a lot of money for train companies. Given how strict they are about travelling on your specified train, they must be raking it in from customers who missed their train and thought they could get the next one (not forgetting conductors rarely allow use of railcards when buying tickets on the train), or those decided not to travel in the end due to a change of plans etc. Train companies are a business, after all, and the last time I checked, the main objective of private business is profit.

Mr_Thrifty

that's if the train bothers to turn up at all

Mids_Costcutter

dr830 wrote: »

not forgetting conductors rarely allow use of railcards when buying tickets on the train

If there was no ticket office at the station at which you began your journey or if the ticket office was closed and there was no ticket machine, then you need to buy a ticket on the train and railcard discounts should apply. Where are conductors refusing to apply railcard discounts? I would definitely complain about this. I have bought tickets on a train and received Family Railcard discounts.

There doesn't seem to be any further information on this in the National Rail Conditions of Carriage. Can anyone corroborate my account?

Jeff_Bridges_hair

Mids_Costcutter wrote: »

If there was no ticket office at the station at which you began your journey or if the ticket office was closed and there was no ticket machine, then you need to buy a ticket on the train and railcard discounts should apply. Where are conductors refusing to apply railcard discounts? I would definitely complain about this. I have bought tickets on a train and received Family Railcard discounts.

There doesn't seem to be any further information on this in the National Rail Conditions of Carriage. Can anyone corroborate my account?

This is correct. However, should there be an opportunity to purchase beforehand but you still bought on the train then in most cases where the station and service wasnt in a PF area then you would only be offered the full standard fare.

Least i think I worded that right. Its pretty late

p00hsticks

Mids_Costcutter wrote: »

If there was no ticket office at the station at which you began your journey or if the ticket office was closed and there was no ticket machine, then you need to buy a ticket on the train and railcard discounts should apply. Where are conductors refusing to apply railcard discounts? I would definitely complain about this. I have bought tickets on a train and received Family Railcard discounts.

What you say is true, but those companies covering the longer cross-country routes (e.g Virgin, Cross-country) won't be stopping at these small local stations with no ticket office / machines, so everyone on board will have had the opportunity to have bought a ticket before boarding.

I can't comment on other companies / routes, but you aren't able to use railcards to buy a ticket from the conductor on board Virgin trains on the Manchester/Euston route