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Title: XC: The reason why you cant get that super cheap advance ticket Post by: ChrisB on June 22, 2011, 15:20:03 Proof if any was needed that at least one TOC uses Advance fare quotas to restrict the number of passengers on their services!
From Penalty Fare Appeal.co.uk (http://www.penaltyfareappeal.co.uk/wordpress/?p=1926) Quote So here^s the story, you spend ages getting the other half to agree to a trip to some far flung place in the middle of the British Countryside. You then have another argument about how much its gonna cost to get to this far flung place. But you then have a clever idea, lets go by rail. We all know that Crosscountry have super cheap tickets. But alas you cant find any cheap tickets because you want to travel on a Sunday. So you try Friday, nope no luck. Monday morning? Nope. You give up and go back to having your other half shout at you for even considering such a stupid idea. So just why cant you get these cheap tickets? Crosscountry would have you believe that is because the tickets have already been purchased and that there is a limited number available. But that^s wrong. We have been sent a screenshot of the Crosscountry internal intranet (http://www.penaltyfareappeal.co.uk/wordpress/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/xc_intranet_revenue_ss.jpg) which states the following: As a direct result of feedback and the information provided by by Train Managers and Senior conductors in completing passenger counts in Avantix, and what many of you have said about the quantity of advance purchase tickets available on morning services, the advance purchase tickets policy has been standardised as follows. Mon-Thu start of service until 09:30 no cheap advance fares anywhere on our network. Fri ^ from 1200 onwards no cheap advance fares anywhere on our network. Sat ^ managed based on demand for individual trains. Sun ^ no cheap advance fares anywhere on our network. So when Crosscountry claims that all the tickets have been taken, they are lying and its because there were no cheap tickets in the first place! So next time you see an advert for Crosscountry claiming to have hundreds of cheap tickets on their network, complain to the ASA for them misleading you and send them a screenshot of Crosscountry^s own internal intranet which clearly states they don^t have hundreds of cheap tickets. Title: Re: XC: The reason why you cant get that super cheap advance ticket Post by: IndustryInsider on June 22, 2011, 15:29:23 Proof if any was needed that at least one TOC uses Advance fare quotas to restrict the number of passengers on their services! Well, no proof was needed was it? Advance fares exist in order to quota control passenger levels and therefore by default help to restrict the number of passengers on busier trains. It's a shame that XC and the franchise world they and others live in doesn't try to provide extra capacity to cope with extra demand rather than continually trying to dampen it, but hey that's not exactly breaking news either, is it? Title: Re: XC: The reason why you cant get that super cheap advance ticket Post by: ChrisB on June 22, 2011, 15:31:46 Blame the DfT.....
Title: Re: XC: The reason why you cant get that super cheap advance ticket Post by: paul7575 on June 22, 2011, 17:38:47 It does now seem though that 'no cheap Advance' actually means 'no cheapest Advance'.
There is no evidence of Advance fares having disappeared completely at those times, if you check future weekend dates using your choice of journey planner... Paul Title: Re: XC: The reason why you cant get that super cheap advance ticket Post by: brompton rail on June 22, 2011, 18:01:33 Advance tickets exist to fill empty seats, not to provide cheap travel for those who book ahead! My experience of XC and East Coast is that far too many Advance tickets are sold resulting in full trains and particularly no seats for those passengers who have paid twice, three times and more by buying Anytime tickets. Do any other businesses rip off their premium customers?
Title: Re: XC: The reason why you cant get that super cheap advance ticket Post by: inspector_blakey on June 22, 2011, 19:32:55 Depends on what you'd define as "ripping off" premium customers, I suppose. If I book a transatlantic flight a few months ahead of time there's a very good chance I will end up sitting next to someone who has paid vastly more than me for exactly the same service, especially if I've taken the opportunity to purchase one of the very cheap upgrades that are sometimes on offer to fill up space in the premium cabins that would otherwise go unused.
The passenger who has paid hugely more for their ticket isn't at any reduced risk of being denied boarding through overbooking either, since as far as I can tell that's all based on how far in advance you check in (in my case, 24 hours ahead online). Nor will they receive any kind of preferential treatment on-board since the cabin staff have no idea who has paid what for their seat. So, exactly the same service and hugely differing prices certainly isn't confined to the railway industry! Title: Re: XC: The reason why you cant get that super cheap advance ticket Post by: ChrisB on June 22, 2011, 22:19:22 But you're guaranteed an airline seat regardless of how much you've paid
The point being made here is that the less you pay, the better your chance of a seat! Indeed, walk up and pay full price on the day, amd you moght not get a seat! Title: Re: XC: The reason why you cant get that super cheap advance ticket Post by: johoare on June 22, 2011, 22:23:33 But you're guaranteed an airline seat regardless of how much you've paid You're guaranteed a seat yes.. But maybe not on the plane you were booked on.. since (some) airlines routinely overbook their flights.. Title: Re: XC: The reason why you cant get that super cheap advance ticket Post by: readytostart on June 23, 2011, 14:48:56 It does now seem though that 'no cheap Advance' actually means 'no cheapest Advance'. There is no evidence of Advance fares having disappeared completely at those times, if you check future weekend dates using your choice of journey planner... Paul Correct, although the lowest tier advance tickets were removed at the busiest times a lot of the advance quotas were actually increased at peak times to maximise revenue share on routes where we carry longer distance commuters alongside other operators. This page is printed from the "Coffee Shop" forum at http://gwr.passenger.chat which is provided by a customer of Great Western Railway. Views expressed are those of the individual posters concerned. Visit www.gwr.com for the official Great Western Railway website. Please contact the administrators of this site if you feel that content provided contravenes our posting rules ( see http://railcustomer.info/1761 ). The forum is hosted by Well House Consultants - http://www.wellho.net |