Those Off-Peak Train Time Changes…
Trying to navigate the prices of trains in the UK is an absolute mess. For all the £5 ticket deals and cheap seats on offer, actually getting them is more a matter of luck and timing – or planning your train trips more than six months in advance.
That forward planning is something I only rarely get the luxury to do. My trips to London from Edinburgh are usually at two or three weeks notice, and at that distance the price of the train is between £70 and £100. Given the airfare is usually £70-£130, the timetable is usually the key.
But a note to American Airlines, themselves and BA reduced the AAdvantage Miles that these flights earn. Before that change i would have defaulted to flying every time, even with the slight premium on fares.
So the sneaky changes of no putting up the off-peak train tickets, but reducing the hours where off-peak applies meant I thought I would have to look, yet again, at how I travel. for Edinburgh-London trains, at least on the East Coast, none of the changes affect what is regarded as an off-peak train.
But the effect on shorter journeys into London, especially commuters, is going to be another increased cost to be endured by many in 2009. By pushing more people into Peak trains, they’ll gather more fare income from those forced to travel to get to work.
Expect more ‘tightening’ of prices in 2009. Rather than prices going up, which is obvious, there will be less cut price seats and services, smaller portions, and increased charges in other areas (e.g. car parking).
And it wouldn’t surprise me if the Government’s March budget has a lot of these hidden increases as well.
January 4, 2009; Politics;
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