Great Western Coffee Shop

I am going to start purchasing a season ticket soon for a journey I am going to be making 5 - 6 days a week for the foreseeable future.

The season ticket I was quoted for was ^53.50 Standard Class & ^80.35 First Class for 7 Days. This will be fine to start with until the new year where I will start to purchase Monthly Seasons.

However on FGW's website for Season Tickets and NRES. The First Class option doesn't exist. Despite the ticket office clerk telling me there were both First and Standard Class season tickets available.

Considering the FOR with Disabled Railcard is ^24.80 per day, a season @ ^80.35 seems a good deal to me.

Anyhow. I intend to start my journey from Frome on the 06:05 HST in the morning, changing onto a SWT service at Westbury. Only the TVM will be available (if it's working) at this time. I have poked the TVM in advance and discovered that only the Standard Class ticket is available.

So armed with my photocard in advance. If I travel on this service in the morning. How do I purchase this First Class season if I am not able to beforehand at a ticket office? This could become a problem as it is possible I may only have a definite commencement date on the Sunday Evening coming!

Whilst I know hindsight is wonderful. But in 12 months there will become at least one occasion where I won't be able to purchase the ticket in advance in time. With the monthly season being around ^300 I wouldn't mind booking it online so senior trouts can get those Necter points! But it's just not there!

So could someone advise what would be the best procedure? Purchase that FOR and excess to season at the end of the journey as per what the NRCoC and Penalty Fare Rules 2002 suggest? Or board the train and sit in First Class and see if the TM/Guard can get the avantix to sell me the ticket?

You won't, I think, get an Advantix to sell a monthly season as the ticket needs registering to your photocard number. It can sell weekly tickets.

Renewals on weeklies from Friday afternoon or the previous afternoon if not renewing for a Monday. Renewals of Monthlies can be made in the days preceding the expiry, assuming no break of validity.

You don't say where to / from - could you buy in early in the opposite direction? Can you get that direction online or at the TVM or ticket office from the other end?

Quote from http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/seasontickets.aspx#149017


Also worth pointing out that weekly tickets do not get logged on your season ticket file so changing from a weekly to a monthly would not count as a renewal as far as the tvm goes... while the guards machine can do it... they shouldn't as they have no link to the season ticket database

Different rules seem to exist these days -

Chiltern offer weeklies to start on a Monday from 4pm on the previous Friday, both from ticket offices & TVMs. For example

Frome ticket office is usually open well before the 0605 departs (despite its advertised opening time of 0630) and I rarely have any trouble buying my season ticket there before boarding the train. From several years' experience in using this particular train I would estimate that you have a 90% chance of being able to buy your season ticket from Frome booking office immediately before departure. On the other 10% of occasions, (e.g. if the regular staff member is away) then a plan B is required. If the guard cannot sell you the season ticket you require, he or she will sell you a single and you can upgrade it to a season at a ticket office. I note that you are planning to take a South West Trains service from Westbury. The first such train leaves Westbury at 0709, so during your 50-ish minutes' wait you would have time to have a cup of tea, read the Metro then go to Westbury ticket office (it opens at 0655) and exchange your single ticket for the appropriate season.

Guards machines will allow a weekly no issues, and never been told this is an issue by management - but monthly's will not show on the system to be sold - nothing to do with commission i'm sure  ;).

Honestly nothing to do with commision, the avantix machines have no way of transfering the information to the season ticket database ... this is not required for weeklys and even if sold at a station the weekly will not show up on the customers record sheet.

also just to add that my original quote missed out that when renewing a weekly you can do it from 1200 on the friday as long as the current ticket is held but not if it is a fresh issue or if there is any break in continuity

oh yes you can at Chiltern, from their TVMs

Adding a valid from date to seasons would negate the need for these purchasing restrictions?

That's a far amount of software work, rearranging ticket layout & gate software admin to read it - if the extra data can/could be accommodated on the magnetic strip of course

Unlikely to ever happen then, with smart ticketing "just around the corner".

indeed. Quite a long corner I reckon though.

Thanks for the responses everyone.

Having had discussions with a forum member outside of the forum itself. It was perhaps suggested that a First Class Season isn't offered because the route has a very limited amount of trains with First Class seating.

The Route in question - Frome - Bristol Parkway has a First Anytime Single so should I come across the 10% Ticket Office Closure as BandHcommuter mentions (Which in my personal experience has been closure 100% for the very few occasions I have used this train) Then I will buy this and upgrade to a season at BPW. The idea was to initially go to Filton Abbey Wood which is much closer - But a daily walk of 1 mile is good exercise so I will stay on till BPW on those hideous Voyager Obects :)

Return Journey again is based on 2 trains. Only 1 of which does not have First Class seating from Westbury onwards.

Based on the Season to Filton Abbey Wood and Bristol Parkway being the same price. It makes sense to buy onwards to BPW that way I can end short at Filton if I wish. This will also allow me to split tickets at BPW for journeys further afield which will be much more convenient for me in the future.

So again, many thanks all :)

Ok so I have a query on the Monthly Compensation side of things.

Am I right in thinking that compensation for delay is only paid if the overall advertised service % falls below a threshold?

So in theory a void day declared because of a points failure at Weston-Super-Mare would mean I would be issued this even though my journey does not even traverse this area? As this is part of the West-of-England regional route?

Now lets assume the 19:20 BPW - FRO is cancelled twice a week, but as all other journeys ran without too many issues; the reliability threshold is still within the limits of acceptability meaning no compensation?


Now for hypothetical reasons, the reliability and punctuality thresholds for InterCity services between Bristol Temple Meads - London Paddington falls below the charter requirements. So discounts are offered. Even though my season ticket is predominantly West-of-England services. It is valid on these InterCity services - even more so that they are trains with the exception of a small handful with First Class seating.

---

So to summerise - the 19:20 in January was cancelled 4 times which immediately causes at least 1 hour delay as you get lumbered with the 20:49 Bristol Temple Meads - Weymouth. But the punctuality threshold doesn't fall lower... Thats just tough?

Pretty much, yes.  I remember making a post about two years ago summarising Delay Repay vs Passenger Charter based on my SWT commute.  Overall, I was finding Passenger Charter void days were not taking into account quite long delays that I suffered (especially on those journeys outside the peak period or at weekends).

Just to add that London Overground once sold me a brand new season ticket with new photocard at 08:30 on a Friday, to start on Monday.  The guy did comment he had never sold a paper season before, so as long as "computer didn't say no", he was happy to issue it.

I think this was one of the reasons whilst I was a commuter on SWT I chose weeklies over longer seasons due to the "more generous" recompense when things when wrong (i.e. RTVs).