Great Western Coffee Shop

Have you noticed the print on these ticket fade away after about three weeks, is this due to poor printing or due to going through the ticket gates or the Paper used on the tickets?
They never before did the print seems to fade away.
Mine is due to run out on 24/04/08 and almost unreadable.
Not yet been stop  ::)
Still works in the ticket gates  8)

It fades on railcards too which is the more frustrating. Asked at NTA if they replace if they become illegible but was told that they won't as they hold no record on Local Railcards. Was told to "look after it better". I keep it in the wallet they provided - didn't want to point this out as the futility of the situation had already dawned on me.

I have noticed that a bunch of tickets printed by the Bath ticket machines which I had left in by fleece pocket for a coupel of months have started loosing their print.  A couple of the tickets are now effectively blank.  If I could figure out how to get my printer to accept such small tickets, I could print my own tickets (which would of course be forgery as well as illegal under the ticketing rules). 

Isn't it the magnetic strip on the back of the ticket that contains the vital information that a barrier machine needs to read?

I think the printed front of the ticket is just for a possible visual inspection on board - if that fades, surely it doesn't invalidate the ticket?

The front is required for it to be valid really ;) - if it's blank what guard is really going to accept it?

A regular who sees you getting on every day and knows your ticket was getting hard to read?

And if they are anything like the Cotswolds lot - if they see you every day they dont even bother asking to see it!  many look at you and say, dont bother!

But what about that ONE time you don't have a regular guard? Such as a trainee....

Trainee would be accompanied by a regular guard, surely?  ;)

Your question was what guard is really going to accept a blank ticket?
I answered it, you could get a replacement that day but a Guard who knows you might let you on in the morning.

You're all wildly missing the point I'm trying to make.

OK, you have a blank season ticket (or very worn down). You normally get regulars who know you on train A, you either get train B or guard C get on train A in the morning. Guard C is drafted in from another depot and has never seen you before. He does a ticket check. What are the chances of guard C accepting a ticket he's never seen before in his life that he can't read? Low!

No, you've made a fair point, Tom!  ;)

Do any of our staff members here have any comments as to what they would do, in such circumstances?

Get it replaced in ticket office.