January Fares - Who's got what rises?

[whole diary]

[ChrisB]

So, what rises are there from your stations?

[grahame]

Here are a couple to get you (and me) started ...

Day Return, Melksham to Swindon. Up from 8.20 to 8.60; + 4.87%

Peak Single, Swindon to Salisbury using direct through train at 06:15. Up from 53.00 to 56.00; + 5.66%

[Pedros]

My Season Ticket: Swindon- Guildford is up from ^5812 to ^6160 (5.98% increase)

[lordgoata]

My monthly season has gone from ^135.55 to ^151 - 11.4% *BUT* that's only because for the past 12 months its had a 5% discount That's gonna hurt next year *crosses fingers for another 12 months of discounts*

I think the full price was about ^142, so that's around 6.3% in reality.

[ChrisB]

This is what FGW^▸ (First Great Western) have to say.....
http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/About-Us/~/media/PDF/Press%20Releases/FaresIncreaseJan12.pdf

First Great Western comment on fares
increase ^ January 2012
First Great Western has committed to a three-point plan to keep its fares as
low as possible when ticket prices change in January 2012.
This year, First Great Western will be:
- implementing the Chancellor's decision to limit average regulated fares to
RPI^▸ (Revenue Protection Inspector (or Retail Price Index, depending on the context))+1%
- waiving the option to use 'average fare baskets' to raise some fares above
this figure
- imposing the same limit on unregulated fares, which train operators can set
independently of government policy
In addition, the price of the best value Standard Advance Purchase fares,
which account for 1.1 million ticket sales every year, will be frozen.
The decision means most fares will change in line with additional fuel and
running costs the train company faces, plus the percentage point requested
by the government. Some fares will not rise at all.
The change is half that seen by motorists who, according to the RAC, have
seen the average cost of running a car soar by some 12% in the past year.
First Great Western Managing Director Mark Hopwood said: "We recognise
the challenges the current economic climate brings, and we have worked hard
to limit the impact of fares changes on customers. Many fares across our
network won't rise at all, and those that do - whether regulated or unregulated
- will not rise above the formula set by government.
"With the average cost of running a car soaring by 12% in the past year, we
hope our decision will encourage even more people to recognise the value
that train travel offers."

[IndustryInsider]

All very noble of FGW^▸ (First Great Western) to freeze advance fares, but that simply means the ever-growing gulf between advance and on-the-day purchases widens.  In the long term that can't be good?

[grahame]

All very noble of FGW^▸ (First Great Western) to freeze advance fares, but that simply means the ever-growing gulf between advance and on-the-day purchases widens.  In the long term that can't be good?

I noted that Mark Hopwood said they have frozen the Best Value advanced fares - so only the cheapest tier, right?   

Quick "fag packet" calculation gave me a figure of over 110 million seats per year on FGW services (does anyone have a true figure), so the freeze applies to less than 1% of seats - right.  And there are still price increases for passengers who have to stand, as I (under)stand it.

Personally,  I would have preferred the flexibility of the averages fare basket to have been used to reduce some of the anomolies that we take full advantage of here, but confuse the heck out of many people and mean that some services are uneconomic to run.   I posted earlier in this thread about fare rises Melksham -> Swindon and Swindon -> Salisbury.  Actually, if every fare on the line had gone up by a pound single and 2 pounds return, it would have provide enough extra income (if the money was retained by FGW) to make the difference between a loss and a profit in the second year of an appropriate TransWilts service.  Dear FGW Managers, Polititians, and DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) Admins - I would be delighted to go through the details of these figures with you.

[ChrisB]

My take on this is that FGW^▸ (First Great Western) are keeping sweet with the DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) in order to get a favourable entry into the rebidding process....

In answer to Graham - yes, that's also my take. The lowest Advance band has been frozen only.

Be careful though - they say they haven't *exceeded* the 6% marker - but say some haven't changed. So closure of some gaps can be done, although not as quickly as if they'd gone over 6% with some fares.

[Glovidge]

Disgraceful rise in prices yet again. I fully intend to make my feelings known by initiially refusing to pay the new walk-up fares. How can it be cheaper to get to mainland Europe than take a 200 mile journey in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom)? How can you justify above inflation ticket price increases when many people didn't even get a 1% pay rise

Its a friggin' disgrace at a time when people are meant to abandon their cars to save the planet. FGW^▸ (First Great Western) and the rest of these cowboy monopolisers know they have your average commuter by the short and curlies. I'd love to pay an extra 5% on extortionate fares to stand cramped in a smelly carriage, much the same as everyone has done for the last 5 years

[Rhydgaled]

A suposedly green government cannot justify their above inflation fare rises anymore. They might have had a point when they were saying the nation's finances cannot cope with funding the railways and fares needed to rise a bit. However, now they are raising the fares more (RPI^▸ (Revenue Protection Inspector (or Retail Price Index, depending on the context))+3% rather than RPI+1%) and seem to have found that they do have some money to spend after all. At the autumn statement, they of course reverted to RPI+1% for one year, but isn't the RPI+3% fares rocket coming back after that? I don't suggest a fare drop, that would put too much presure on finances, but what I want to see is an RPI+0 formula used for fares.


Anyway, going back to the autumn statement, a very large image on this page (click on it to make it large enough to be readable) (EDIT: see beneath for link, didn't work right) shows just how much reducing the rise back to RPI+1% saved. Compare that to the amount of money they found autumn statement's subsidy to motorists, a fuel duty cut costing more PER YEAR than the estimate for the entire anounced GWML^▸ (Great Western Main Line) electrification project to Cardiff, Bristol and Oxford. Glovidge is right, it really is a disgrace at a time when people are meant to abandon their cars to save the planet.

http://waronthemotorist.wordpress.com/2011/12/02/what-is-missing-from-this-graphic/#more-2315

[inspector_blakey]

I fully intend to make my feelings known by initiially refusing to pay the new walk-up fares.

Good luck with that.

How can it be cheaper to get to mainland Europe than take a 200 mile journey in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom)?

If you compare like with like I'd guess it probably isn't. I'm sure you can quote me a two-week advance, Thursdays only (before 0500) flight on Ryanair to a tin shack next to a grass airfield somewhere in Europe that works out cheaper than a 200 mile walk-up train fare. However if you compare walk-up fares on different modes of transport I would guess that the train comes out looking reasoanbly favourable. Equally, if you want to book a train on the same basis that you'd book a plane then there are no doubt some very cheap advance tickets you could get.

I'm happy to be corrected on the above, by the way, if you can actually provide some meaningful numbers that back up the bile you've just spewed.

[JayMac]

I've just done a couple of checks so far; on Standard Class walk-up fares for Bristol TM^‡(resolve) - London Terminals.

Route: Any Permitted:
Super Off Peak Return, was ^48.80, from 2nd January ^51.50. An increase of 5.53%

Off Peak Return, was ^61.00, from 2nd January ^64.50. An increase of 5.73%

Anytime Return, was ^169, from 2nd January ^179. An increase of 5.92%


And one of my regular trips, Shirehampton - London Terminals: Route: Warmster/Salsbry:

Off Peak Day Return, was ^29.50, from 2nd January ^31.00. An increase of 5.08%

That fare is priced by First Great Western, whilst the same ticket type from Bristol Temple Meads is priced by South West Trains and has gone up from ^43 to ^45.60 which is an increase of 6.04%. It remains the case that for a slower (via Salisbury) journey from Bristol, Bath, Bradford-on-Avon, Trowbridge, Westbury and Warminster to London Terminals, it is considerably cheaper to buy your ticket from a Severn Beach line station.



Oh, and nice to see fares on the Severn Beach Line frozen. 

[Glovidge]

Bile I've spewed? So as part of an integrated greener transport policy you think price rises on public transport well above the rate of inflation will encourage people to ditch their cars and let the train take the strain? Great forward thinking for an greener, safer planet.

Or knowing that you can get a flight to Scotland for approximately the same price as a train journey in peak hours encourages people to be more carbon efficient?

Apologies for my "bile." Heres some more bile why on earth can't they open up first class carriages to the general smelly chavs like me who congregate in the vestibules causing health and safety problems at peak hours?

Of course I'm no industry insider just someone fed up with being ripped off for a continually sh*t service that is rarely punctual, often cramped and has had no marked improvements in 5 years. Espeically when one uses public transport abroad.

Rip Off Britain

[JayMac]

This is what FGW^▸ (First Great Western) have to say.....
http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/About-Us/~/media/PDF/Press%20Releases/FaresIncreaseJan12.pdf

Welcome news that FGW have capped all rises to 6% or less and also welcome news that Advance Purchase fares are frozen. Although it should be noted that AP quotas can be manipulated to allow for stealth rises. But generally they've sugared the pill quite well.

That said, the cynic in me thinks FGW may well be on a charm offensive. There's a certain franchise ITT^▸ (Invitation to Tender) coming up....

[old original]

Rule 1 - It's business not charity.