Management

Peak rail times inconsistent

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Management
Written by Catherine Murray   
Thursday, 26 August 2010
Train companies accused of confusing passengers with peak rates, some starting at 3pm.

A research report by Which? magazine shows train companies are "charging peak rates well outside busy travel times" and making travel "very confusing" for passengers.

The watchdog has revealed that train companies have vastly different rules on what constitutes peak-time travel. Some major operators, including Virgin and East Coast, start their 'evening peak' from mid-afternoon (3pm), said Which?. East Coast’s evening peak now lasts four hours, as a result.

In comparison to this however, other operators, including Chiltern and Merseyrail, do not have an evening peak at all, Which? said.

The magazine urged commuters to to their research, saying, "It can pay to choose where you depart from." The fact that different tickets have different restrictions is also confusing, Which? said.

Super off-peak tickets are also subject to more restrictions than normal off-peak tickets and other restrictions vary according to destinations and the train company that is offering the service. Which? outlined some examples:

  • East Coast’s morning peak to London ends at 10.05, unless you’re travelling first class (07.59), with an off-peak day return or travelcard (09.54), or super off-peak (11.17).
  • Others are more straightforward – Merseyrail’s morning peak ends at 09.30, as does Northern’s at Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester.
  • Travelling with Virgin, the earliest you can arrive off-peak at London Euston from Oxenholme in the Lake District is 10.12.
  • Peak from Penrith (one stop and 30 miles from Oxenholme) to London Euston lasts an hour longer. "Virgin says this is due to timetabling constraints caused by the Department of Transport," said Which?.

Which? commented, "You'd be forgiven for not knowing if you're coming or going, yet Atoc claims 'four out of five passengers are happy with their journey'."

The Association of Train Operating Companies (Atoc) said most people were able to buy the right ticket and get on the right train without any problems, the BBC reports.

Richard Scott, BBC transport correspondent, commented in their report that some train companies have recently been expanding the peak times, squeezing off-peak travellers into smaller time slots.

One argument is that this manages demand by encouraging people off crowded services onto less busy trains. Of course it is also a way to make more money, he said in the BBC report.

Redesignating trains as "peak"allows train companies to increase fares without needing permission from the regulator, the BBC report explains.

An Atoc spokesman told the BBC that "Demand differs greatly at different times in different parts of the country, so it's not surprising that peak times vary.

"Millions of people travel on the railways every week and the overwhelming majority buy the right ticket and get on the right train with no problem whatsoever," the spokesperson said.
 
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