Travelcards useless?

Zyx

I am going to be starting a new job and took a look at the pricing of travelcards thinking it might be a good idea to buy one instead of paying daily.

I will be traveling from Zone 1 to 4 and back.
In the morning it will cost £3.90 to get to work and to get home it will cost £2.80.
This means daily I will be paying £6.70.
In a week I will be paying £33.50 and yet the weekly travelcard for zone 1-4 costs £46.10.

Who are these travelcards meant for if a working individual taking a route on a daily working day basis saves money by not buying it? Are there that many people who literally spend every single day taking random trains here and there for a laugh?

MARTYM8`

The point of the travelcard is that you have complete freedom to travel on as many buses, tubes and trains as you like within your zones at any time 24 hours a day.

Will you go out in London in the evenings - incurring more tube/bus costs potentially - or get the bus to/from the station (e.g. if its raining or cold in winter). Or go into town at the weekends?

If yes - then its worth the extra. And you also have the convenience - never having to worry about the Oystercard caps/touching in and out/getting overcharged. And in London getting the tube places can often be far quicker than driving on crowded roads - and then getting parking.

Also will your employer offer you a season ticket loan - if you get an annual ticket the gap is much closer. Its about £1800 at present for an annual 1-4 card - or £37.50 a week assuming 4 weeks leave.

Ignoring the extortionate cost of London fares the travelcard offers you a lot of freedom - if you want to make the most of living in London. Or you could spend your time in zone 4.

FutureGirl

This is because the travel card can be used over the full 7 day week, not just the 5 days per week that the majority work.

MoneySavingNovice

MARTYM8` wrote: »

.......Will you go out in London in the evenings ......

How will that work if he lives in Glasgow for example?

Other cities other than London have zones and travel cards. Nowhere did it say that he lived in London!

Other than that I agree with what MARTYM8 has said

MARTYM8`

MoneySavingNovice wrote: »

How will that work if he lives in Glasgow for example?

Other cities other than London have zones and travel cards. Nowhere did it say that he lived in London!

Other than that I agree with what MARTYM8 has said

He obviously does live in London - as he quoted the exact zone 1-4 ticket prices! And travelcards are a London term for tube season tickets.

So my comments were well directed - as its obvious he is talking about a London commute.

wealdroam

Zyx wrote: »

I am going to be starting a new job and took a look at the pricing of travelcards thinking it might be a good idea to buy one instead of paying daily.

I will be traveling from Zone 1 to 4 and back.
In the morning it will cost £3.90 to get to work and to get home it will cost £2.80.
This means daily I will be paying £6.70.
In a week I will be paying £33.50 and yet the weekly travelcard for zone 1-4 costs £46.10.

Who are these travelcards meant for if a working individual taking a route on a daily working day basis saves money by not buying it? Are there that many people who literally spend every single day taking random trains here and there for a laugh?

For you, pay as you go appears to be more useful.
Do remember to keep enough credit on you card, won't you?

macman

Not everyone lives within walking distance of a tube or rail station. If you added the cost of a bus journey (two per day, 10 per week), then that adds £15 to the cost of single ticketing, so making the Travelcard £2.40 cheaper. If you have a bus journey at the destination end, add another £15 saving. Plus the weekend and evening usage. I don't know anyone who uses weekly Travelcards, only monthly or annual.

peachyprice

Zyx wrote: »

Who are these travelcards meant for if a working individual taking a route on a daily working day basis saves money by not buying it? Are there that many people who literally spend every single day taking random trains here and there for a laugh?

They're very fair from useless! They give unlimited travel 24/7.

They're aimed at people who use public transport not just for work but for their social travelling in the evening at at weekends too. I'm sure there are thousands of people in London who benefit greatly by buying a weekly Travelcard.

tim9966

Tourists as well will buy them.

cpheonix

wealdroam wrote: »

For you, pay as you go appears to be more useful.
Do remember to keep enough credit on you card, won't you?

I would even suggest using contactless (if have the facility) to avoid this issue. I've switched from my oyster to debit card and it's been so much more convenient purely for this (although getting cashback from my bank every time I use contactless is an added bonus!)

wealdroam

cpheonix wrote: »

I would even suggest using contactless (if have the facility) to avoid this issue. I've switched from my oyster to debit card and it's been so much more convenient purely for this (although getting cashback from my bank every time I use contactless is an added bonus!)

And that sounds like the best of both worlds... pay at the single journey rate unless, or until, you reach the weekly cap.

TfL say:

If you buy 7 Day Travelcards that start on a Monday, using a contactless payment card could be a convenient alternative. If you use the same card to pay for all your journeys all week until Sunday, your fares will be capped.

To benefit from Monday to Sunday capping, you'll need to:

Use the same contactless payment card for every journey for the whole week
Make sure to touch in and out on the yellow card reader (unless it's a bus or tram where you only have to touch in)
Start using your contactless payment card on a Monday for maximum benefit: Although you can buy a 7 Day Travelcard to start on any day of the week, Monday to Sunday capping always calculates your week of travel from a Monday and finishes on the following Sunday.