Are MML fares too high for the quality of service on offer?

[Starmill]

The new Corby electric service is now available on NRES.
Enquiring for times and fares from Wellingborough to London at 10.45 on Thursday 13th May (pre electric service) the fare shown is £24 for several departures.
A similar enquiry for Thurs 20th May (new electric service) the fare shown is £48 for similarly timed departures.
So for the new service (3 + 2 seats, no buffet, more stops) the fare doubles from that charged on a class 222.
I don't understand that...

Presumably it's because the cheaper fare is quota controlled. £48 is the flexible single fare for trains arriving in London after 1130. It's possible that cheaper tickets will be on sale closer to the time. They may also not be.

 

[Ianno87]

The new Corby electric service is now available on NRES.
Enquiring for times and fares from Wellingborough to London at 10.45 on Thursday 13th May (pre electric service) the fare shown is £24 for several departures.
A similar enquiry for Thurs 20th May (new electric service) the fare shown is £48 for similarly timed departures.
So for the new service (3 + 2 seats, no buffet, more stops) the fare doubles from that charged on a class 222.
I don't understand that...

Presumably it's because the cheaper fare is quota controlled. £48 is the flexible single fare for trains arriving in London after 1130. It's possible that cheaper tickets will be on sale closer to the time. They may also not be.

Yes, would suspect it's a simple case of Advances not having been released for sale yet.

 

[CyrusWuff]

The new Corby electric service is now available on NRES.
Enquiring for times and fares from Wellingborough to London at 10.45 on Thursday 13th May (pre electric service) the fare shown is £24 for several departures.
A similar enquiry for Thurs 20th May (new electric service) the fare shown is £48 for similarly timed departures.
So for the new service (3 + 2 seats, no buffet, more stops) the fare doubles from that charged on a class 222.
I don't understand that...

Looking at the NRE Booking Horizons page, EMR only have reservations open until Saturday 15th May (11th April for Sundays) at the moment. The £48.50 ticket is the normal Super Off-Peak Single.

 

[Merle Haggard]

Looking at the NRE Booking Horizons page, EMR only have reservations open until Saturday 15th May (11th April for Sundays) at the moment. The £48.50 ticket is the normal Super Off-Peak Single.

Thanks, that seems relevant; 15th May is ten weeks hence, so that may be the relevance rather than the electric service.

 

[STINT47]

Looking at the NRE Booking Horizons page, EMR only have reservations open until Saturday 15th May (11th April for Sundays) at the moment. The £48.50 ticket is the normal Super Off-Peak Single.

I may be wrong but I was under the impression that timetables and reservations had to be finalised at 12 weeks before. EMR seem to be well outside of this.

 

[alistairlees]

I may be wrong but I was under the impression that timetables and reservations had to be finalised at 12 weeks before. EMR seem to be well outside of this.

It’s not been like that for at least a year. And it won’t be back to 12 weeks for at least another year. Timetable planning is well behind.

 

[Ianno87]

Timetable planning is well behind.

Understandably so, with the volume of short term changes they've been dealing with throughout the period of hostilities.



NEW POST BELOW

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

One thing that occurs to me - seat reservations on EMR are currently suspended, due to you-know-what.

Makes me wonder whether the Corby service will offer seat reservations or (more likely) will remind counted place only. (I suspect reserved seats will return on services via Leicester).

 

[WesternLancer]

Firstly the class 360s and Meridians are as near as damn it the same age.
Secondly, the distance from Wellingborough to London is more or less identical to that from Northampton and pretty much identical trains (the class 350s, some of which have had a refurb consisting essentially of fitting power sockets, new seat covers and a deep clean) are used from there. Indeed Portsmouth is further and similar (classes 444 and 450) DC sister trains are used from there.
Thirdly, there is a fair likelihood that the delayed class 360 refurbishment is in the main due to late release of the stock due to delays in arrivals of new replacement trains at GA.

And fares equivalent from Northampton and Portsmouth? Isn't one of the beefs (flagged up previously) that there is a notable discrepancy in price that is not favourable to EMR travelers for reasons previously explained.

 

[Wolfie]

And fares equivalent from Northampton and Portsmouth? Isn't one of the beefs (flagged up previously) that there is a notable discrepancy in price that is not favourable to EMR travelers for reasons previously explained.

If there was then l must have missed that. I can see that paying a premium fare for the same level of comfort (l've not looked at respective timetables for speed and frequency of service which are other highly relevant factors) might grate.

 

[InTheEastMids]

If there was then l must have missed that. I can see that paying a premium fare for the same level of comfort

Annual season ticket prices to London:
Bedford - £5804
Northampton - £6096
Portsmouth & Southsea - £6112
Wellingborough - £7780

 

[Nottingham59]

premium fare for the same level of comfort

Annual season to London Terminals from Wellingborough: £6852; from Northampton: £6096. Not that much in it.

Anytime Return: WEL: £106; NMP: £65.80, so a big difference there.

 

[Wolfie]

Annual season to London Terminals from Wellingborough: £6852; from Northampton: £6096. Not that much in it.

Anytime Return: WEL: £106; NMP: £65.80, so a big difference there.

I am confused at the different Wellingborough ST prices (by £1k) being quoted by different posters though.

 

[Nottingham59]

different Wellingborough ST prices (by £1k) being quoted by different posters though.

£6852 to London Terminals; £7780 to Travelcard Zones 1-6

 

[Wolfie]

£6852 to London Terminals; £7780 to Travelcard Zones 1-6

TY. Mixing those up is more than a little misleading.

 

[WesternLancer]

If there was then l must have missed that. I can see that paying a premium fare for the same level of comfort (l've not looked at respective timetables for speed and frequency of service which are other highly relevant factors) might grate.

Yes, as posted - all dates back to BR NSE fares vs BR Intercity fares - but it's not really going to be an 'intercity' type of service, but this is baked in now of course.

 

[akm]

Annual season ticket prices to London:
Bedford - £5804
Northampton - £6096
Portsmouth & Southsea - £6112
Wellingborough - £7780

Need to make sure we're comparing like with like.

Bedford: you've quoted the 7DS AAA MILTN KEYNS, which pushes the price up. There's a cheaper 7DS Any Permitted which is only 5100
Northampton is fine at 6096
Portsmouth & Southsea you've quoted the Travelcard price (more expensive) on the THREE BRIDGES route (slower and cheaper). The 7DS Any Permitted (without travelcard) comes to 5688
Wellingborough (as noted already) you've quoted the Travelcard price. The 7DS Any Permitted (without travelcard) comes to 6852

 

[Merle Haggard]

Didn't Portsmouth commuters have a campaign about the unsuitability of 450s for their commute to London? Wasn't that the reason for the expensive and unsuccessful attempt to refurbish the 442 (now replaced by another scheme) an acceptance by SWT that the argument had merit?

Wonder what the Portsmouth commuter would have made of a dc version of the 360s - Portsmouth trains have been through-gangwayed since the 4 COR in ?1937...

 

[Bletchleyite]

Need to make sure we're comparing like with like.

Bedford: you've quoted the 7DS AAA MILTN KEYNS, which pushes the price up. There's a cheaper 7DS Any Permitted which is only 5100
Northampton is fine at 6096
Portsmouth & Southsea you've quoted the Travelcard price (more expensive) on the THREE BRIDGES route (slower and cheaper). The 7DS Any Permitted (without travelcard) comes to 5688
Wellingborough (as noted already) you've quoted the Travelcard price. The 7DS Any Permitted (without travelcard) comes to 6852

That's a bit high but not excessive. What is excessive is the Anytime Day Return from "Market Ketteringborough" compared with Northampton (and that causes a lot of car journeys to Northampton).

 

[CyrusWuff]

Whilst it's more noticeable on the MML, especially since Wellingborough is now only served by the Corby services, similar jumps occur pretty much everywhere upon crossing the Network Area boundary.

GEML: Manningtree - London Terminals: £6208 Annual, £62.30 Anytime Day Return; Ipswich - London Terminals: £7124 Annual, £86.40 Anytime Return
ECML: Huntingdon - London Terminals: £5748 Annual, £49.70 Anytime Day Return; Peterborough - London Terminals: £8436 Annual, £121.20 Anytime Short Return (£7116 Annual, £64.70 Anytime Return for the GN&TL Only option)
WCML: Long Buckby - London Terminals: £6096 Annual, £65.80 Anytime Day Return; Rugby - London Terminals: £8840 Annual, £149.80 Anytime Return
Chiltern: Banbury - London Terminals: £6276 Annual, £86.90 Anytime Return; Leamington Spa - London Terminals (via Banbury): £8724 Annual, £119.00 Anytime Return
GWML: Didcot Parkway - London Terminals: £5544 Annual, £70.30 Anytime Day Return; Swindon - London Terminals: £9512 Annual, £145.60 Anytime Return
Berks & Hants: Bedwyn - London Terminals: £5544 Annual, £66.60 Anytime Day Return; Pewsey - London Terminals: £6944 Annual, £126.60 Anytime Return

Going way back to NFM64 (September 1996) for the examples given back in post 70, plus Rugby:

Bedford Stations - London Terminals: £2708 Annual, £25.10 Standard Day Return
Wellingborough - London Terminals: £3808 Annual, £31.00 Standard Open Return
Northampton - London Terminals: £2836 Annual, £31.60 Standard Day Return
Rugby - London Terminals: £4448 Annual, £42.50 Standard Open Return
Portsmouth Stations - London Terminals: £2932 Annual, £35.10 Standard Day Return