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Disingenuous departure board at London Victoria
- Thread starter Ken_Ilworth
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At JFK in New York if you want to leave the airport by subway or railroad you are charged $8.25 as your leave the free Airtrain people mover. You pay your subway or train fare on top.
Oslo and Vienna airports have the same situation with a dedicated airport train on the same route being about double the price but only marginally slower. Not sure about entrapment but the local options there are not advertised.
That's completely different though. It is akin to the tube (as well as Crossrail and HEx) being free between Heathrow terminals then being charged when leaving.
Cricketer8for9
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To repeat it’s completely the right thing to do if there’s no fare differential (and a 15 min service as was the case when the Gatwick Express was originally introduced). It’s completely wrong now.
Gaelan
Member
Paris Orly has the prominent €9.70 Orlyval to Antony RER station, and a tiny seemingly-forgotten tram stop in a corner somewhere that gets you to the edge of the metro 7 line for €2. Significant difference in journey times, though - more of a HEx/Piccadilly situation than a HEx/Crossrail situation.
Bertie the bus
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The railway is heavily subsidised. There might be an argument for subsidy for a social railway but there certainly isn't an argument to subsidise people on business trips and going on foreign holidays, so if they are charged more for a dedicated service there is absolutely nothing wrong with it. It isn't as though Gatwick Airport stops aren't displayed on the departure board for other services. They are and the photo in the OP is just a specially selected partial photo of the departure board to try and make a point.
Of course there is if those activities produce wider economic benefits (which they do). This is why the railway is subsidised in the first place….
Certainly a little sneaky!
When was this? Do you know who they were employed by / representing? And what was the price? is anyone here in a position to buy one of these tickets?
It hasn't been a dedicated service for years!
Also, the TSA doesn't allow GTR to do this.
Are you aware GTR extended premium pricing to nearby stations such as Horley, even if you don't take the GX? In order to be charged the premium, you just have to use platforms 13/14.
The point stands with or without a wide-angle panoramic view! In contrast, none of your points stand to scrutiny, in my opinion.
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Trainguy34
Member
Not even that, ever if you just use the 13/14 gateline, luckily if a non GX train goes from those platforms they say to use other gatelines to avoid getting incorrectly charged
sometimes say!
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Trainguy34
Member
Fair point, luckily I've rarely had the 'pleasure' of Southern from Victoria, never 13/14 though
Mcr Warrior
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Vaguely recall, on an inbound domestic flight into Gatwick Airport some years ago, and not necessarily operated by British Airways, that (full price?) Gatwick Express single rail tickets were available from the onboard crew. This was offered as a "beat the ticket queue" service. Was over a decade ago, mind you.
Feuillesmortes
Member
I think only Easyjet do this route and their website says 20% discount on Gatwick Express so it could be part of that arrangement
Do you have a link please?
It's not mentioned at https://www.easyjet.com/en/help/preparing-to-fly/gatwick-airport
Gaelan
Member
Which also raises the question of whether you can avoid the premium even if it is a GX train - is there some sort of removable barrier? I wasn’t aware of the PAYG rules having any notion of tapping in in the wrong place.
Feuillesmortes
Member
I can't see a version in English! I have quoted the relevant section below
translated from the easyjet website said:
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So your argument is people shouldn't be shown the fastest services to their destination is that right? Where else does that apply?
Well for a start this is wrong. It's not dedicated. These are the only fast services to Brighton most of the time and nearly all of them serve somewhere other than just London Victoria abd Gatwick Airport.
As far as your argument goes about luggage that'd be reasonable if the prices were the same, but unfortunately it doesn't hold any water because people who don't want to pay ridiculous prices take their luggage on the other services. Abd before you say "well, at least there's a bit less luggage", consider that actually the idea of a "dedicated" service would only really work if it went to a better range of central London and City stations, rather than just Victoria which is less central.
Mcr Warrior
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Was that webpage last updated some time around 2007?
I think that this is something you've just made up to make yourself sound good.
Indeed; it states there will be a link in the booking confirmation email but I see no evidence of that still being the case today.
If anyone is offered a ticket by an airline it would be very useful to hear more information about that.
OneOfThe48
Member
There is also a sign above the gate line telling people to use the other, correct, gates but that’s only useful if people look at it
Most people from Victoria aren't going beyond Crystal Palace.
And GatEx has a lot of the hallmarks of a strong retail provision, as much as that doesn't conform to the traditional (right!) way of looking at rail marketing.
Same issue with Heathrow Express at Paddington.
A Gatwick Express uniform? How can Gatwick Express afford to have staff at airports around the world?
I would be surprised if they were actually wearing GX uniform in Pisa!
They were described as being an "agent" (of GTR); I refer you to this definition:
agent
1. a person who acts for or represents another: 2. a person who represents an…
That was the suggestion being made (as well as being said to be an "agent").
It would seem very odd to me; even if they did have agents, Pisa would not be on the list of places I would have them (I'd look at the heaviest route traffic, which is probably a major European capital).
Presumably that is what was being described.
Seems a little odd they’d be walking up and down the airport queue flogging tickets before people had even boarded the aircraft, but AIUI the cabin crew earn commission on this kind of thing, so are incentivised do the hard sell.
Deepgreen
Established Member
The point is that it is NOT the "fastest" at many junctures, depending on the juxtaposition of trains at the time. 'Direct' train might be better. Leaving Gatwick off the main departures board is very poor, and typical of the approach to selective passenger information that has developed under privatisation. Sometimes a few minutes is important for airport passengers who may have cut it fine (for reasons outside their control). Essentially, this is the railway telling passengers what it wants to, rather than the facts.
While I agree with that and I personally normally use the quicker Penge East service, I'd bet more go Sydenham Corrdior stations than Box Hill. Is it really right to have Streatham Hill, West Norwood, Gipsy Hill and Crystal Palace (all will be the same train), but not Sydenham, which has a 50% of being the right train? Change one for Sydenham or even just London Bridge and you've basically covered every station.
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