Bungle73:863064 said:And so dies the idea of a walk up railway...
So what do want? Advance fares to be abolished and everyone has to pay through the nose to travel anywhere? You still wouldn't be guaranteed a seat. This whole "I've paid more so I'm more entitled to seat" argument smacks of jealousy from people who didn't bother to make an effort against people who did to me.
Do your posts need to be quite so aggressive?
I agree with your basic point - the amount you've paid shouldn't affect whether you get a seat or not.
Advance tickets and Anytime tickets are different products which suit different needs. Advance tickets guarantee you a seat and cost less, but they're obviously much less flexible. Anytime tickets allow you to travel anytime, and give you access to multiple routes, breaks of journey, etc etc
It's not necessarily a question of 'planning', as you suggest - there are many reasons that a traveller might not be able to predict in advance when they need to travel. They may have other needs, or may be travelling on a flow with no advance fares.
Final point - advance and anytime tickets complement one another. Advance tickets ensure that trains run throughout the day, by spreading demand. Giving a reservation with the ticket ties people to that train, ensuring a minimum level of occupancy.This then means that there are more services, so the traveller with flexible needs has more options. Meanwhile, the higher anytime ticket subsidies the cost of the journey that advance fare holders are making.
So advance tickets ensure the train runs, abd anytime tickets ensure that it is profitable! Given that the tickets support one another, suggesting that the holder of one type is more deserving than the other is, IMO, wrong