| Archived Save the Train forum articles - 2005 to 2010. See below
Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4318 Written by admin (Graham Ellis) on Thursday, 15th March 2007 I am crossposting this from elsewhere ... it stuck me that I may have not described this little gem here in the past There are TWO different fares / routes from Swindon to Salisbury - Any route and "Via Bath" - and via Bath is cheaper - much cheaper. So if you're at Swindon at 18:30 tonight and want to travel on the 18:42 to Westbury and change there for Salisbury, you'll pay 30 pounds for a saver single (the ordinary single is 41.50). Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4322 Written by admin (Graham Ellis) on Thursday, 15th March 2007 Perhaps I should add that if you want to travel on the 18:42, you can get a cheap day single to Westbury for 10.60, then pay 8.70 for a regular single to Salisbury - so that's 19.30 rather that 30.00 if you book a through ticket. Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4325 Written by James on Thursday, 15th March 2007 What would be so wrong about posting fare tips, not our fault there is such big loop holes in the system! Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4326 Written by admin (Graham Ellis) on Thursday, 15th March 2007 [quote author=James link=topic=1631.msg4325#msg4325 date=1173978312] What would be so wrong about posting fare tips, not our fault there is such big loop holes in the system! [/quote] Because part of what I (personally) want to achieve is a rail service that works for everyone - for the TOC, for organisations that provide subsidy (if any), and for customers. Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4337 Written by tramway on Friday, 16th March 2007 [quote author=Graham Ellis link=topic=1631.msg4322#msg4322 date=1173964843] Perhaps I should add that if you want to travel on the 18:42, you can get a cheap day single to Westbury for 10.60, then pay 8.70 for a regular single to Salisbury - so that's 19.30 rather that 30.00 if you book a through ticket. Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4349 Written by courgettelawn on Saturday, 17th March 2007 50p a mile! You could get a taxi for that. The problem, as I see it, is that train companies have become too used to turning over large profits on the basis of their subsidies and the near monopolies they have on the lines they operate. Even if the planners did want to reduce 'reliance' on subsidies by allowing 'commercially-based' setting of fares, it would not actually improve a) the service or b) the numbers travelling by train rather than road, especially for shorter journeys. Rail employees enjoy high salary levels compared to many other professions and I can't see a reduction in their salaries in real terms being an option. Therefore the profits turned over for the benefit of directors and shareholders must be capped in some way or the planners should seriously consider instituting non-profitmaking train companies to run our regional services. Why not use the principle of the mutual building society? The service is run for the benefit of passengers and it is _they_ who share in the profit _and_ get a direct say in the direction of the company. The current system is never going to be workable for the benefit of passengers current and future. This is at the heart of the matter, the current system and strategy just does not work and will not ever work in its current form. Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4351 Written by admin (Graham Ellis) on Saturday, 17th March 2007 [quote author=courgettelawn link=topic=1631.msg4349#msg4349 date=1174123737] 50p a mile! Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4354 Written by Ruthg on Saturday, 17th March 2007 I was looking for ticket options on the internet yesterday for Frome - Bath Spa, going out yesterday and coming back today. National Rail Enquiries showed I could get an Open Return for Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4357 Written by Trowres on Saturday, 17th March 2007 Ruth, I tried www.nationalrail.co.uk and could only find the single fare from Frome to Bath. Strange if it gave you an open return... Next thing to try was Castle Cary-Bath. This has: Open single: Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4359 Written by Trowres on Saturday, 17th March 2007 Ruth, This one is quite entertaining... As you say, a Single from Frome to Bath is Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4360 Written by Trowres on Saturday, 17th March 2007 [quote] I've not seen any case studies that have made any allowance for the loss of connecting income when consider the TransWilts[/quote] [glow=green,2,300]Not like you to miss something like that, Graham[/glow] ::) Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4364 Written by Ruthg on Sunday, 18th March 2007 [quote author=Trowres link=topic=1631.msg4357#msg4357 date=1174164410] I tried www.nationalrail.co.uk and could only find the single fare from Frome to Bath. Strange if it gave you an open return...Something wrong with the system, I think...[/quote] I think you might be right, I've just re-queried Frome-Bath Spa and that Open Return option has disappeared. :-\ Thanks for the Chippenham tip. :) Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4373 Written by admin (Graham Ellis) on Sunday, 18th March 2007 [quote author=Trowres link=topic=1631.msg4360#msg4360 date=1174166276] [quote] I've not seen any case studies that have made any allowance for the loss of connecting income when consider the TransWilts[/quote] [glow=green,2,300]Not like you to miss something like that, Graham[/glow] ::) [/quote] I wouldn't say I "missed" it as such ... I'm just not sure how I could evaluate the figures and come up with reasonable estimates. Let me show you what I mean ... """If 15% of the 110,000 journeys were long distance ones that were lost to the railway when they TransWilts service was cut right back, and each of those journeys had brought the railway 50 pounds of income, then the loss to the railway as a whole was a staggering 425,000 pounds.""" There are immediate arguments: a) What proportion of journeys WERE long distance (from talking to travellers on the services that I used the most, around 30%) b) What was the average cost of such a journey? Re: Save money - change at Bath - 1631/4388 Written by tramway on Tuesday, 20th March 2007 [quote] If you haven't looked at Doe's pages they will give some indication of the options to look at before even considering going anywhere near a booking office. A classic, although this may not still be the case, was it was considerably cheaper to but tickets starting at Castle Carey to Paddington, than from Westbury. I haven't had the opportunity to check the current situation. [/quote] I came across the article I was thinking about in a February edition of RAIL. "Annual season ticket from Westbury to London link to index of articles |
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Save the Train was the campaign to bring an approriate train service back to and through Melksham. Most big contributors are still around writing at the Coffee shop forum where new members are very welcome. The train has been saved - sort of - we have stepped back up from an unusable service to a poorish one but it's doing very well. We did that through setting up the TransWilts Community Rail Partnership. That fulfilled its early objectives; it has been taken over by local and regional government types who are now doing medium and long term work. The team from this forun can also be found at the Melksham Rail User Group (which was the Melksham Rail Development Group at the time these articles were written and we had no users. We mustn't loose sight, though, that the train service remains poor and needs our community support in marketing and campaigning to keep it going in a positive direction ... and all the more so when we're expecting to find a different normallity once we get out of the Coronavirus Pandemic and head for zero carbon via the climate crisis. Yes, it's saved ... it's now a key community facility ... the need for enhancement and the strong and near-universal local support remain, and the rail industry and goverment remain slow to move and provide the enhancements even to level us up with other towns. Please support the Melksham Rail User Group - now very much in partnership rather than protest with the rail industry and local government, including GWR, TransWilts and unitary and town councils. And please use the trains and buses, and cycle and walk when you can. -- Graham Ellis, (webmaster), February 2021 | |||
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