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Best option for Brentwood to Z1?

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EM2

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Thinking of moving out of town a bit further and wondered what the most cost-effective combination is for travel from Brentwood into Zone 1, travelling in on the 05:32 for the early shift.
Is a Brentwood-Z1 to Z6 season the best way to go?
 
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CatfordCat

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Depends where work is, really.

A Brentwood - Liverpool Street terminal season ticket would be cheaper than the travelcard option, but if you're then going to have to pay separately for travel between Liverpool Street and work twice a day, it probably won't.

If the journey to work is bus rather than underground, it might just be cheaper to do Oyster PAYG on the bus bit. And if it's close enough to walk more often than not, then again it may be worth doing the point to point season ticket.

Also (and I suspect it may not be an option if you work silly hours) bear in mind that a zone 1 to 6 travelcard is valid on TfL bus 498 all the way to Brentwood (so's Oyster PAYG) so the cheapest if not quickest option would be 498 across the London boundary then get the train from Harold Wood / Gidea Park / Romford.
 

EM2

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Work is at St Pancras (but might change, although still in Z1), so likely to be Underground from Liverpool Street.
The first 498 doesn't leave early enough to be of any use on early shift.
 

MikeWh

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Thinking of moving out of town a bit further and wondered what the most cost-effective combination is for travel from Brentwood into Zone 1, travelling in on the 05:32 for the early shift.
Is a Brentwood-Z1 to Z6 season the best way to go?

If you touch in at the start of your journey before 0630 then you'll be charged off-peak fares. Likewise if you touch in before 1600 on the way home. This may well make a season ticket less attractive.
 

EM2

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If you touch in at the start of your journey before 0630 then you'll be charged off-peak fares. Likewise if you touch in before 1600 on the way home. This may well make a season ticket less attractive.
Thanks, Mike.
The season ticket is subsidised, so that's a big help, but I'm just wondering if I'm better have a Z1-6 season, then PAYG from Brentwood into Z6.
If I do that though, where do I touch out? Is it a question of 'off and on again'?

EDIT - I can just add PAYG funds to the Oyster my season is issued on, can't I?
 
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MikeWh

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Thanks, Mike.
The season ticket is subsidised, so that's a big help, but I'm just wondering if I'm better have a Z1-6 season, then PAYG from Brentwood into Z6.
If I do that though, where do I touch out? Is it a question of 'off and on again'?

EDIT - I can just add PAYG funds to the Oyster my season is issued on, can't I?

Yes. Just touch in at Brentwood and out at Liverpool Street and it will charge the required single fare from Brentwood to BZ6.
 

EM2

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Yes. Just touch in at Brentwood and out at Liverpool Street and it will charge the required single fare from Brentwood to BZ6.
So that's £2 each way (with GOLDC discount), I think?
On nights, I probably won't make the 0630 cut-off on the way home, so that'd be £2.95 with GOLDC?
 

MikeWh

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So that's £2 each way (with GOLDC discount), I think?
On nights, I probably won't make the 0630 cut-off on the way home, so that'd be £2.95 with GOLDC?

If you start your journey home between 0630-0930 then the extension fare will be the full peak adult fare. Only the disabled railcard discounts peak fares. As your extension only relates to the last section of the journey you can split it at Romford or Harold Wood such that the paying bit starts after 0930. Just get off, touch out and touch back in again. If you use validators then you'll need to wait a minute before touching back in.
 

MikeWh

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There's no way I'm waiting at Romford until 9:30 when my shift finished at 6:15 :D

Ah, ok. Remember, it's the touch in time that's important, not the train you catch. Also, there is 1-2 minutes grace before peak charges kick in to avoid "but the station clock said ..." complaints, so you usually have until 0632. Will it really take 15 minutes to get to the station?
 

EM2

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Yes, even the 06:40 is cutting it fine sometimes.
Assuming I get out on time, it's three to five minutes walk to the tube platform, then nine minutes on the tube, and another minute or so to walk to the departure platform at LST (usually 16).
But that also assumes there's no wait for a tube, and no slow running!

The whole thing is also complicated by the shift pattern. Some pay periods I'll be working all four weeks, sometimes it'll be three. Some weeks I'll work five days, some I'll work six and some I'll work seven.

Might need to pop into a travel centre and have a chat, see what makes the best sense.
 

MikeWh

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it's three to five minutes walk to the tube platform,

Where you will have touched in and started your off-peak journey. You'll be absolutely fine.
 

MikeWh

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Oh, OK. I thought it would have been when I start the leg where the charging
would be in force. That helps quite a bit.

It's a common misconception, but the journey is treated as a whole and the charge relates to the extra bit of the whole journey. This can sometimes have undesirable side effects, but in your case you'll benefit.
 
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