Farringdon / London Terminals Season ticket

[capslock]

Hi all - first post so apologies if I misjudge any etiquette.

I suspect that this may not be a new dilemma on these forums, but any other threads I've found on this subject are quite old now, and what with the redevelopment of Farringdon, things may have changed. So here goes...

Having just moved house down to Reigate, my regular commute is due to become Reigate to Farringdon, travelling via Redhill. I therefore need to buy a season ticket to Farringdon, as, I believe, a London Terminals ticket is still not valid at Farringdon?

However, trains from Redhill to Farringdon are infrequent, and if I miss one or one is cancelled (a frequent occurence on FCC) I'm faced with either waiting a long time for the next or travelling to London Bridge or Victoria, and getting the tube. Also, as I typically have meetings all over London, it may be that at the end of day I find myself coming back from Victoria, or Waterloo... but then a Farringdon season ticket isn't valid from these stations.

So, which ticket should I buy that allows me to travel to Farringdon and London terminals, without paying over the odds? I heard it mentioned elsewhere that a ticket to West Hampstead was one way of overcoming this with a cheaper fare as all of the above are valid 'stopping short' stations? Is this still the case?

Help? I need to get in before the increase! Thanks in advance...

 

[button_boxer]

Exactly where in relation to Farringdon do you need to be? City Thameslink is valid on a London Terminals ticket and is only ten minutes walk south of Farringdon, would that be an option?

 

[yorkie]

Welcome to the forum

If you want complete flexibility, then I suggest a Reigate - London Zones 1-6 Travelcard, an Annual Gold Card Season is currently £2844.00 (this price will rise on 2 January 2012).

An annual season to West Hampstead Stations is £2500.00 however the route on this ticket is "London Not Und".

An annual season to Farringdon is £2356.00 however the route on this ticket is "Not Underground".

You could get the Season just to Farringdon, and get an Oyster card to use PAYG on LU. The 2012 single fare for a Zone 1 journey using LU is £2.00, although if you do this and register your Oyster card with an annual Gold Card discount, and touch in at a time considered to be off peak then this reduces to £1.30. As the difference between these fares is £488, it would take 244 single LU journeys to fill the gap, so if you think you will make less than 244 single LU journeys in a year, the Farringdon ticket may be cheaper.

It is worth considering what other journeys you will make, including leisure journeys. An annual Travelcard can prove very useful depending on how often you travel to London.

 

[capslock]

Exactly where in relation to Farringdon do you need to be? City Thameslink is valid on a London Terminals ticket and is only ten minutes walk south of Farringdon, would that be an option?

Possibly. I'm based about 10 minutes walk north of Farringdon. Although it still seems a pointlessly annoying exercise for the sake of one station.

Could I travel through to Kings Cross with a Terminals ticket? Would I get a Penalty Fare if checked between City and Kings Cross Thameslink?

Thanks for your response.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Welcome to the forum

If you want complete flexibility, then I suggest a Reigate - London Zones 1-6 Travelcard, an Annual Gold Card Season is currently £2844.00 (this price will rise on 2 January 2012).

An annual season to West Hampstead Stations is £2500.00 however the route on this ticket is "London Not Und".

An annual season to Farringdon is £2356.00 however the route on this ticket is "Not Underground".

You could get the Season just to Farringdon, and get an Oyster card to use PAYG on LU. The 2012 single fare for a Zone 1 journey using LU is £2.00, although if you do this and register your Oyster card with an annual Gold Card discount, and touch in at a time considered to be off peak then this reduces to £1.30. As the difference between these fares is £488, it would take 244 single LU journeys to fill the gap, so if you think you will make less than 244 single LU journeys in a year, the Farringdon ticket may be cheaper.

It is worth considering what other journeys you will make, including leisure journeys. An annual Travelcard can prove very useful depending on how often you travel to London.

Thanks for such a thorough response - appreciated.

Is there an equivalent of a London Terminals + Zone 1 travelcard only? Presumably that would also let me through the barriers at Farringdon, albeit I resent paying the premium for it

 

[b0b]

Could I travel through to Kings Cross with a Terminals ticket? Would I get a Penalty Fare if checked between City and Kings Cross Thameslink?

Yes you could be liable with a London Terminals ticket from the south.

 

[Mike395]

In addition, it would almost certainly would not be worth the risk, as there are barriers on exit at St Pancras - London Terminals tickets may (Im not 100% sure mind) be set to auto-reject

 

[87015]

In addition, it would almost certainly would not be worth the risk, as there are barriers on exit at St Pancras - London Terminals tickets may (Im not 100% sure mind) be set to auto-reject

Nope they let all London Terminals tickets through. So does upstairs

 

[button_boxer]

Is there an equivalent of a London Terminals + Zone 1 travelcard only? Presumably that would also let me through the barriers at Farringdon, albeit I resent paying the premium for it

Not really. All "out-boundary" travelcards have to include all the zones you pass through (i.e. you can get a Reigate to zone 1-6 or 2-6 but not 1-2). You'd have to buy a rail season ticket to London Terminals and a separate zone 1-2 in-boundary travelcard, which together would cost more than the out-boundary Reigate to 1-6.

 

[capslock]

Sigh - this is so frustrating! Why in the name of all that's logical, is Farringdon not considered a London terminal? I mean, they're expanding Thameslink services, extending the station massively and connecting it with Crossrail; it's going to be a major London... terminus FFS! And yet it carries a £500 a year premium for anyone who has to commute into it!

 

[RJ]

Over the last couple of years, they've gotten rid of point (outside of London) to point (inside London) season tickets with validity on the underground, though anyone doing their homework will find the anomalies that still exist.

I used to commute from South London to Farringdon. Some early morning trains only went as far as City Thameslink. Provided you sit at the front of the train, it's not a very long walk at all.

 

[button_boxer]

If I'm reading the maps right, could you get the Farringdon season (which is the same price as the London Terminals one) and then on the days when you find you need to use Victoria or Waterloo buy a paper zones 1-3 day travelcard? The TC would cover Victoria to Streatham Common and your season (which is valid via Elephant and Castle) would cover you from there with no need for the train to stop at the changeover point.

 

[island]

No he couldn't, on the grounds that there are no one-day zone 1-3 travelcards He could get a zone 1-4 one (or for that matter zone 1-6, £5.30 either way at current prices with a Gold card).

 

[capslock]

Thanks for all your replies guys. It still seems to me that there is a clear anomaly with Farringdon, especially as it's role is becoming much expanded. It clearly is a London terminus, insofar as commuter train journeys into London terminate there. I just don't understand why they need to make it so complicated. What's it going to be like with the arrival of Crossrail, and later expanded services.

The options should quite simply be a London Zone 1 destination - which applies to any mainline station but not including London Underground. So what if you travel to Kings Cross from the south? The more exceptions, the more frustration and misunderstandings, the more b*ggering about and more everyone's time is wasted.

Hey ho - anyway, I've decided to go for the London to Farringdon season ticket return, and get a 1-4 travelcard on the days where it's required, on the grounds that I might be able to claim them back from my employer as travel required for work, which is not part of my daily commute.

Thanks again.