Train ticket puzzle.

[lilgoth89]

its a puzzle when using the train line
i can get from lichfield to brighton ( 182 miles though london, 3 trains ) for £10
but from lichfield to march (109 miles, two trains) it costs £48

[Throbbi]

Originally Posted by lilgoth89

its a puzzle when using the train line
i can get from lichfield to brighton ( 182 miles though london, 3 trains ) for £10
but from lichfield to march (109 miles, two trains) it costs £48

Because it's our all-powerful, worshipped capital where the streets are paved with gold!! You must pay for the privilege of visiting heathen! At least, that's what it always seems like.

[lilgoth89]

nah i think its coz the train has to pass through stone first and they are worried that you will walk on XD so they try to fill the train with as many people as possible XD

[Throbbi]

Originally Posted by lilgoth89

nah i think its coz the train has to pass through stone first and they are worried that you will walk on XD so they try to fill the train with as many people as possible XD

Doesn't count, I'm not from here originally, it's you Boley Park lot

[lilgoth89]

well its a good job im not from boley park then :P

also do you think we derailed the talk on train tickets ?
ill get my coat...

[Throbbi]

It is ultimately stupid though, a friend at work frequently visits his girlfriend in london on the weekends and from Stafford pays something absurd like £8. And yet it's around £12 to Birmingham.

[Showerhead]

It gets even weirder when it's cheaper to pay for each stage of the journey separately than for a single that takes you right the way through.

[KRONOS]

I ended up getting a return as I was bamboozled by the various companies which seem to be offering much the same prices except one company which promised 43% cheaper tickets but was actually more expensive by £15.

Interesting points raised so far,but at the end of the day the NHS will be paying but getting the money back from them can be fraught with difficulties but I am used to dealing with the massive bureaucracy that is the NHS.

I was actually turned down once because they said my appointment was not with a recognised NHS hospital even though I sent the original appointment letter which had in blue the NHS logo and the name of a famous hospital on it.

Anyway just need to wait on the tickets which hopefully will reach me before the 12th December.

[Carrie]

Originally Posted by Margo Baggins

Not had so much luck in that respect

<---- No one gives this guy the benefit of the doubt!

Try wearing a skirt then (Kilts don't count )

Originally Posted by Throbbi

Because it's our all-powerful, worshipped capital where the streets are paved with gold!! You must pay for the privilege of visiting heathen! At least, that's what it always seems like.

Too right!

[Guinevere]

Originally Posted by yodasarmpit

It's quite bad when driving would be cheaper than getting the train.
What incentive is there to travel anywhere by train?

There isn't.

Our family spends a lot of time up in Edinburgh and for about 18mo we had to take the train or fly because our daughter health meant she was uncomfortable with a 8hr drive.

Now she can handle the drive again it's a lot more convenient and a LOT cheaper for us to drive, and that's with us taking our camper van that uses about £100 of diesel each way.

If we go by train it's:

Taxi + Train + Tube + Tube + Train + Taxi

And for a family of four that's works out costing a lot more.

[sp4nky]

Originally Posted by yodasarmpit

What incentive is there to travel anywhere by train?

If travelling by myself, I would much rather get the train than drive. On a train you can sleep, watch a movie, listen to music, read a book, look at the scenery (not all at the same time) whereas if you're driving, you have to pay attention to the road, are often delayed in traffic, and generally get frustrated by other people's ineptitude.

[Puk]

Dont know if you guys have come across this before, I've used the app once but to be honest forgot about it till i found this thread, worth a play with.

http://splitticket.moneysavingexpert.com/

[Ending Credits]

£75 for a one way ticket from Durham to Kings Cross, with a railcard.

[CrazyJoe]

I paid £9.95 to go from Glasgow to Thurso with my railcard, it's all about buying in advance.

[CarlT2001]

Single from Horsham To Clapham Junction - £13.30. Single from Clapham Junction to Horsham - £14.60. Odd.

I just don't have the patience to drive into the Capital. Plus, I can have a few sherberts.

[mucgoo]

Is one of those off-peak?

[ch424]

Originally Posted by yodasarmpit

What incentive is there to travel anywhere by train?

If you live in a city and want to go to other cities, they've excellent. If you live in a little village a car is probably best. I spend a lot of time travelling between Oxford, London, Cambridge and Sheffield. For me, the train is:
- Cheaper than having a car. Insurance and buying/maintaining a car would be £1500/year before I'd even driven it anywhere. Even if I did a train trip every weekend it'd come to less than £1400.
- Faster. Always. No need to find a parking space either.
- More reliable. Yes, trains are sometimes late, but less often than there's an accident/queue/roadworks/rush hour on the M1/M4/M11/A14.
- More comfortable. On the train I can read, do some work or sleep. In the car I can't do any of those if I'm driving, and the others are awkward if I'm a passenger.

[KRONOS]

Made my journey to Leeds and that was certainly an eye opener. Bear in mind that the last time I did a longish (3 hour) train journey was 20 years ago. I did not reserve my seat which meant that at any stop on my way down to Leeds and the return leg I could have been asked to move.

Leg room,where has that gone then? I am only 5'10" and I was uncomfortable. One other thing I noticed, overcrowding seemed to be prevalent and according to a fellow traveller the norm. Oh and what happened to the buffet car? I can remember many a happy and slightly inebriated hour spent there.