fgw breathtaking fares

[whole diary]

[tonya]

from 2nd january, up from ^6.20 to ^6.80  for a return from Bath to Bristol.
So how do we now interepret their fare reduction of Sept from then ^6:50 to ^6.20. I interpret it as another cycnnical and failed pr exercise. I think lots of commuters will be seriously disgrunteld with this new increase. I suspect we were prepared for the fare to return to ^6:60 but ...almost seven quid!
Will commuters now feel that this is the last straw and that they will now support a second fare strike?
I know that some of the FGW^▸ (First Great Western) staff who post on here have expressed cycnisism about these tactics, but it certainly had much of the the travelling public's support and that of the media, questions were asked in parliament and the perception was that trains increased in length as a result.
If they get away with this increase, it wil be way in excess of 7 quid next year.

[Jim]

Get the X39 then!

[Shazz]

Hate to put it this way but, stop being a cheapskate and pay the measly 60p more they ask you for?

At te end of the day, an extra 60p a day isnt exactly breaking the bank, especially as job salaries/wages go up with inflation.

Or if you're a regular commuter on that route, why not get yourself a season ticket?

[vacman]

If we we do have another fare strike then anyone I catch will be reported for fare evasion!

[simonw]

Is that a peak rate fare, or any time of day?

^6.80 for 12 mile rail journey corresponds favourably to non - peak rail fairs to Reading and London.

A season ticket will bring that price down a lot though.

Bristol to Reading is 72 miles and return prices are
Peak - ^70 approx
Off Peak - ^36 approx
! week season - ^150 which equates to ^30 per day.

[vacman]

Is that a peak rate fare, or any time of day?

^6.80 for 12 mile rail journey corresponds favourably to non - peak rail fairs to Reading and London.

A season ticket will bring that price down a lot though.

Bristol to Reading is 72 miles and return prices are
Peak - ^70 approx
Off Peak - ^36 approx
! week season - ^150 which equates to ^30 per day.

It's only Standard day/open fares and most first class fares, nearly all cheap days are staying the same by the look of it.

[Timmer]

I suggest that EVERYONE, not just those who travel on FGW^▸ (First Great Western), had better get used to these large fare increases every year from now on.

Call it a Rail Tax if you like for the privelege of travelling in style everyday, on modern, clean, spacious and frequent services...no wait a minute I must be thinking of Swiss or German railways but without the Tax. Because thats the only reason for these larger than usual rises in fares, its to pay the government the huge premiums promised by these companies desperate to run the UK^▸ (United Kingdom)'s rail system. Forget all this ATOC^» (Association of Train Operating Companies See - here) nonsense about needing more money to invest in the railways, they are doing that already as they have to as part of their franchise commitments.

Want to win a rail franchise? Then promise the pay the government big money. Except it won't be the company that wins the franchise that pays it it will be the passenger as where else is the money going to come from? certainly not from the shareholders profits.

Its not as if we haven't been warned that this would happen. All recently award franchises have indicated how much they will have to raise fares during the life of their franchise which as I say can only mean one thing...much higher rail fares.

[grahame]

6.80 return, Bristol to Bath, is 30p per mile.  And that compares to well over 50p per mile from Chippenham to London on a standard day return, and to rather less than that from Melksham to Swindon - also 6.80 but a longer journey that Bath Bristol.

I do not know the Bath / Bristol case, but I will say that the fares on the TransWilts could RISE at aaround 7% over the rate of inflation for 5 years with an appropriate service and that is part of the model for coming up with a service that's appropriate for the line.

I also once worked out that the franchise payment is the equivalent of a 2 pound payment for every single passenger journey that arrives or departs at Paddingto for the whole franchise duration.  Does anyone know the total number of FGW^▸ (First Great Western) passenger journeys per year so that we can work it out in relation to that?

There is no "one answer fits all".  I provide the information above to help fuel informed discussion, and would welcome further such data.

[tonya]

I think Timmer has hit the nail on the head. Fares are in effect a tax on travel, funding the exchequer, and have little to do with the real cost of travel. Also, I agree that fare comparisons need to be made with our European neighbours not with even more horrendously expensive fares on other routes in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom). To achive change we have to influence governement, and publicity that highlights the laughable failure of the franchise system will help to hasten the day when the governement comes up with a more sensible way to run the railway. Not saying that direct action will change the world overnight, but it has an effect.
And no I wouldn't like to take the x39 Jim. That's run by First too, and perhaps this system of pribvate monoploy is part of the problem.

[Jim]

It's ^6 RTN is it not?

[tonya]

The issue is how the governement runs what passes for public transport, not whether a bus is 80 pence cheaper than a train.
Any discusssion with someone from over the channel will soon come to transport and they all say how awful our trains are. Please don't take this personally, you probably work on the railways, and do a very difficult job running an overcrowded and by international standards, clapped out train network.I can see that working on the railways is often thankless and that staff can be abused by mindless morons of passengers who are either drunk or stupid, so you have my symapthies. But it could be all so different. Call me a dreamer, but didn't the government just find ^26 billion under their matress for Northen Rock, that they may or may not get back. The money is there if they choose to spend it on a decent train network.The public can help them to change their priorities.

[TerminalJunkie]

6.80 return, Bristol to Bath, is 30p per mile.

A Barnstaple to Penzance Cheap Day Return with a Devon and Cornwall Railcard is 3.4p per mile.

[12hoursunday]

If we we do have another fare strike then anyone I catch will be reported for fare evasion!

what load of baloany that fare strike was. A load of 'em buy season tickets and the rest refused to buy tickets to go to Bristol in the morning. No problem there then as the staff were instructed not to check tickets and to leave the gates open. However the card up the sleeve was to close the gates in the pm and the fools who never bought the returns in morning had to purchase a single in the afternoon . So lets say 5000 people done this 5000 x 10p (roughly the difference between the price of a single and return )= the cost to Great Western ^500  .

That MTLS^▸ (More Train Less Strain) lot crack me up!!

[Timmer]

It's ^6 RTN is it not?

What ^6 return on the X39 Bath-Bristol...you can't be serious. ^6 to travel on a bus? for that price I'd pay the extra 80p and travel on the train though the X39 does have the advantage of taking you all the way into Bristol.

[Lee]

Bath Chronicle article (link below.)
http://www.thisisbath.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=180730&command=displayContent&sourceNode=232315&home=yes&more_nodeId1=163047&contentPK=19153667