First's off-peak Bristol to London rip-off
First Great Western is forcing Bristol passengers to wait another hour before they can buy the cheapest fare on the company's trains to London.
Passengers can currently travel between Bristol and London Paddington from 9am for £49 but from next month this fare will not be available until 10am, as part of a new "super off peak" ticket.
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Those customers using the new tickets will also have to return before 3pm or after 7pm to avoid paying an additional cost.
If customers wish to travel between 8.30am and 10am they must pay £59 for an "off peak" ticket – a 20 per cent price hike – and must not return between 4pm and 7pm.
The 8.30am service, which First described as a "lightly loaded" service, has been changed from a £153 "peak ticket" to a £59 "off peak" ticket with the same restrictions on return times.
First have introduced half-price single fares, allowing customers to travel out in peak time and back in off peak.
That would mean a cost to the passenger of £106 if they travelled at 9am and returned at 6pm – £47 less than the full peak fare but the same amount more than an off peak return.
The company is also increasing car parking fees by 12 per cent to £9.30 for 24 hours and charging customers 10 per cent more if they buy an advance ticket over the counter or via a third party.
First says it has introduced the new pricing structure for tickets bought on the day of travel, which comes into force on September 6, to encourage more customers to use their less busy services to make rail travel safer and more comfortable.
The company says it has not increased car parking charges for three years and is charging more for advance tickets over the counter to encourage more people to buy tickets via its website at a 10 per cent discount.
But First has been criticised for making the process of finding the cheapest ticket too complex for passengers by Chris Irwin, chairman of pressure group TravelWatch SouthWest.
Mr Irwin is calling for the Government to block the fare rises, saying passengers will have to buy more expensive tickets or be priced off trains all together.
He said: "These fare changes attempt to disguise some very bad news for passengers with a dash of good news. We welcome the cut in the price of off peak single tickets. But we deplore FirstGroup's decision to restrict the availability of the cheapest turn-up-and-go return tickets. Hard-pressed passengers will be priced off the trains. This is legalised mugging. The Government must step in."
Philip Haigh, business editor for Rail magazine, said it was possible to travel cheaply on a train but that rail companies were making it increasingly difficult for passengers. He said: "This suggests they are trying to tweak conditions and tighten things up so they raise more money, which is the ultimate for any business.
"There are still cheap fares kicking about but rail companies don't make it very easy. What First are doing is making the whole thing more complex and harder for passengers to understand.
"They will be able to claim that cheap tickets are still available but passengers will be confused. It just makes the whole job of travelling for value for money that much harder.
"It also increases the risk that a passenger ends up on the wrong train and gets penalised for an honest mistake.
"In general terms the rail industry has made much of its efforts to simplify fares prompted by the Government, but all they have done is change some of the names around – underneath the system is just as complex as it was before."
Independent rail consumer watchdog Passenger Focus agrees that First has made it difficult for passengers to locate the best deal. Director Ashwin Kumar said: "This adds even more complexity to an already complicated system.
"Passengers who have to travel at these times will find it hard to believe they are being asked to pay such increases when inflation is so low.
"This comes on top of First Great Western increasing their car-parking charges by up to 25 per cent.
"The reduction in off peak single fares at least allows passengers to mix and match different ticket types in one return journey.
"But passengers shouldn't have to wade through a forest of complexity to get the best deal.
"Families with children wanting a day out in London will be particularly hard hit, as the new super off peak ticket doesn't allow a return from London between 3 and 7pm.
"These changes expose the fact that the off peak fare regulation introduced at the time of privatisation does nothing to stop train companies progressively reducing the times at which we can use these tickets."
A spokesman for First Great Western said: "In the current economic climate the challenge we face is to balance the need to encourage customers to use our services whilst ensuring we generate enough income and manage capacity on busy trains.
"Peak trains can be very busy and that can cause problems in terms of passenger comfort and safety. This means encouraging customers to use quieter trains and this will often be families and those on leisure getting the best deals.
"We have lots of different types of customers who have lots of different needs. By offering different types of tickets we hope to encourage more of them to use our services but we have to do so within the parameters of the agreement between the industry and Passenger Focus."
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by richard, bristol
Monday, August 24 2009, 3:23PM
“As a regular traveller to london myself, I am very familar with the line between Bristol and London. I normally go up during the week and often at times that would be most expensive to buy a walk-up fare. But these are not the only fares available to customers, and it makes me sick when I hear people going on about "train fares are getting more and more expensive" etc. Not only are the walk-up fares a true reflection of the cost of you travelling on that train they are not the only fares available. Advance fares are available in large numbers for every train in the timetable, they represent excellent value for money and a wise idea for us as every advance ticket guarantees a seat on the train you are booked on. The staff on-board are very friendly, the trains themselves are kept very clean, and, unlike travelling by car & arriving in central london at lunchtimes, you dont have to worry about the extortionate parking costs or the spectre of the congestion charge. On top of that, when you arrive at Paddington, you are rarely more than 15 minutes from wherever you need to get to. If you want a cramped, uncomfortable coach that takes you to a horrible station in 3 hours and leaves you outside of central london needing 2 changes to get to london zoo with the restless kids, go get your £2 megabus ticket. If you prefer no change on the tube, a comfortable seat, playpacks to keep the kids busy while you doze off for a catnap, arriving in a smart, well-lit and pleasent station where you can have your lunch without leaving the station, and then get a tube to the front gate (or even walk there) of the zoo, buy your ticket in advance and see little more than £60 quid leave your pocket. YOU get what YOU PAY for.”
by Tim, Bristol
Monday, August 24 2009, 3:14PM
“@ PeteM, Bristol.
Couldn't agree more, the trouble with privatization is that these private companies will expect their trurnover to support year on year growth for their profits, this means that unless passenger numbers suddenly rise drastically enough over the course of the year (which couldn't really happen as it'd cripple the rail service) there will be increases in fares.
The Franchise model may encourage competition between providers, and in theory *should* lead to an improved service, but the reality is that most operators are just out to rinse every last possible penny from their customers, it doesn't matter how much competition there is amongst operators when they're all as bad as each other.
All this doesn't mean renationalisation is the way forwards, but the trains being tun "at cost" without the operator always having to push for record year on year profits every year would certainly help my wallet.”
by william morgan, bristol
Sunday, August 16 2009, 11:26AM
“I booked my train journey from Weston Super Mare to Brighton via the internet. I arrived at Bristol Temple Meads Station before 1pm. I asked which train went to Reading and I was directed to the appropriate train. When the train pulled away, a voice came over the speaker and announced that internet tickets cannot be used on this service and that anyone using them would have to pay again. The train I was on was the 1.09pm and the train I should have been on was the 1pm. Given that First Great Western have 2 trains leaving Temple Meads for Reading at almost the same time is bound to cause confusion. Also the fact that First great Western announce that internet tickets cannot be used on this service is a clear indication that there has been problems in the past, otherwise they would not make the announcement.
I explained the problem to Steve Robinson (the train manager) when he checked the tickets. He told me that I should have looked for him as soon as I was aware of the problem. I told him that I intended to sort the problem out as soon as the ticket man asked for my ticket. You should also be aware that the reason why I choose the train service instead of the coach service is because I thought it would be less stressful. When I sit on a train I like to be left alone. I don't want the stress of having to find the train manager. Steve Robinson then told me that if I did not pay for a ticket I would have to leave the train at the next stop. The only reason why I paid was because I did not want to get the Police involved and I had along way to travel. However, I feel First Great western company has cheated me. I had to pay an extra £37 which I needed to buy a motor bike in Brighton. The fact that FGW took this money from me, totally ruined my day. I asked Steve Robinson if he would take my drivers license details and we could settle the matter later, but he refused. He told me that if he found anyone else on the train with internet tickets he would give me my money back, but because I was apparently the only one, he seems to be implying that I have been negligent. However, as I have already pointed out, if there was no possibility of confusion, FGW not making the internet announcement over the speaker.
When I initially wrote to First Great Western's complaints department they said they would compensate me if I provided them with the tickets.I did this and they sent me a letter making excuses.
I will never use their services again.”
by James, Redland, Bristol
Saturday, August 15 2009, 12:18PM
“hmm 10% off a 20% fare increase sounds to me like a 10% rise even if booking online..”
by Ian, Horfield
Saturday, August 15 2009, 12:07AM
“If these privatised railways are so bad why are passenger numbers higher than they ever were under British Rail?”
by Mark, Bristol
Friday, August 14 2009, 2:27PM
“Indeed Pete. In the current climate..... surely the best thing to do would get more people onto the trains by charging less, providing a better option for people.
Not raising prices for those people who have less choice than to pay!!”
by PeteM, Bristol
Friday, August 14 2009, 2:10PM
“It makes me laugh how First trot out the ¿current economic climate¿ excuse for both train and bus fare rises etc, as if they wouldn¿t be doing so in better times. I mean, last year it was fuel prices, the year before something else, another thing one before that. Let¿s face it, come hell or high water, the one thing you can be dead certain of in life is First taking the p*** out of the general public.”
by Mark, Bristol
Friday, August 14 2009, 2:10PM
“Anil - if it was a case of there being less seats so the value of them goes up, that would be understandable. But in most cases this isnt true, the train could be empty and you would be charged a normal rate. This does not encourage people to get the train at all.
Should be one fare no matter when or how you buy it (maybe a small reduction for online).”
by anil, island gdns
Friday, August 14 2009, 12:30PM
“Richard Somerset and Thomas BS2 - you are so right.
Travelling to london on a weekly basis, I have an idea roughly when I have to make the trips. I get a coach from Bristol, or train from Bath. The cheapest return on a train from Bath is 19 gbp - 2 x 9.50 singles. Cheapest coach from Bristol to London has been 1 gbp single. The rail tickets were booked 10 days in advance; the coach tickets about 2 weeks ahead. I'm off to london today - booked the coach ticket on tuesday - cost 7gbp.
If you leave things to the last minute, you'll just get standard fares. These are the most expensive. I don't think that First are doing their best for customers, but having said that, it's unrealistic to expect everything cheap all the time.”
by Mark, weston-super-mare
Friday, August 14 2009, 11:58AM
“FAO: Bemused, Bristol - unfortunately Virgin trains no longer serves this region anymore - but dont think that they were any cheaper !”