Travel Costs

MEM62

I am on an enforced medical break from driving.  I need to travel between Basingstoke and West Drayton to get to work. I stroll up to buy a ticket on my first day and was asked for the princely sum of £47.00. (Hardly encourages people out of their cars, does it?) The guy at the ticket counter stated that there was no cheaper fare.   

A few days later I needed to travel from West Drayton to Reading one-way.  I wen to the counter to purchase a ticket only to be told that, as he was obliged to offer the cheapest option, it would be cheaper to 'tap-in, tap-out' using my debit card as the ticket would cost £10.70 and the tap-in, tap-out has a max charge of £7.50. 

Some additional checking seems to indicate that the max daily charge for an anytime day return between Reading and West Drayton (capped) is £15.60. The return from Basingstoke to Reading is £10.20 - thus, I can complete the return  journey for £25.80.

I am not the thickest individual on the planet but I am also not a frequent user of train services so my question is, is my assumption correct that I could get a return to From Basingstoke to Reading and tap-in, tap-out between Reading and West Drayton for a total cost of £25.80?  Or am I missing something?   

   

TadleyBaggie

Of course you can do that. However it's possible to get even cheaper. By using:

https://trainsplit.com/

for that return journey it reckons £23.20 is the cheapest price.

DullGreyGuy

It will depend on how many journeys you are doing a week. 

According to SWR on a Mon-Sunday basis they cap your weekly costs to the cheapest of which of the following would be available for the journeys you actually made:

i. Standard Anytime Single & Return (Peak)
ii. Standard Off Peak Single & Return (Off Peak)
iii. Super Off Peak Day Single & Return (Super Off Peak/Evening Out)
iv. Weekly Season Ticket
v. Oyster fares for journeys made wholly within the London zones 1-6


A weekly Basingstoke to West Drayton via Reading is season ticket is £122 so in principle thats your overall cap

Can't see anywhere doing West Drayton to Reading anytime return for £15.60, £15.40 is the off peak rate for a return so would work if you are outside normal commuting hours

MilesT6060842

Even cheaper (but may not suit your work times):  Flightline 730/731 bus from Basingstoke to Heathrow (£3 I think single), then Lizzie line tap on/off Heathrow to West Drayton (or maybe get a return ticket for that leg, or a season ticket--unclear if you can get a season ticket that includes gold card, Lizzie doesn't follow all the rules for a train, worth checking on nationalrail website, also to see if railcards would be helpful for singles in the evening).

The bus is relatively new, it's an express service starting at "The Malls" (next to Basingstoke train station, not the bus station) and making limited calls on the outskirts of Basingstoke (annoyingly does not route via Hook town centre which could be useful for me)

Review: https://busandtrainuser.com/tag/flightline-730/
Timetable/tracking: https://bustimes.org/services/730-frimley-camberley-bagshot-heathrow

MEM62

Thanks for al the responses.  From Feb 1st I am only going to be in the office two days per week which help.  I'll take a look at the various options suggested.  Hopefully, the next six months will pass quickly.   

martindow

The 730/ 731 bus involves two £3 tickets although you stay on the same bus for the whole journey.

Details here and a link to the timetable

https://www.reading-buses.co.uk/flightline-timetables-and-fares

MEM62

Solution.  I am travelling between Basingstoke and Bracknell, where a colleague lives, and travelling in with him.  Basingstoke / West Drayton = £47.  Basingstoke / Bracknell = £17.10.