Luton DART

[travel_geek83]

Hi everyone,

I am wanting to book the Luton DART. I know this can be booked directly on the DART website, however I have seen on certain websites you can also book on the TOC website such as Thameslink.

Any particular reason the through fare is only available on certain TOCS between Luton Airport Parkway and LUA?

We use an online booking tool - 'Evolvi' and the destination is Luton Bus which of course has been discontinued. The fare matches the single DART fare of £4.90. Therefore I presume this will be okay to book?

Let me know about your thoughts!

Many thanks,
Richard

 

[Horizon22]

You want to go only on the DART? Or integrated with the train?

If it's the latter, just buy a ticket to "Luton Airport".

 

[travel_geek83]

If it's the latter, just buy a ticket to "Luton Airport".

Hello,
In our organisation we use an online rail booking tool called Evolvi. However it's still displaying as 'Luton Airport, Bus (LUA)' and the idea is to book on there rather than on DART. If we book on DART we have to pay and claim back and on Evolvi it's just billed to our organisation as per normal.

I presume if the fare is showing on Evolvi we can book. Even through it's showing as Bus? I guess when the ticket is printed it will just display Luton Airport?

Thanks
Richard

 

[Horizon22]

Should display correctly on ticket yes - LUA is the code. It's probably your organisation's rail booking system not updated.

 

[travel_geek83]

Should display correctly on ticket yes - LUA is the code. It's probably your organisation's rail booking system not updated.

Thank you - I thought that would be the case.

Do you know why some TOCS offer the Luton Airport Parkway - LUA fare and some don't?

I've noticed Thameslink offer it however LNER and EMR doesn't. Simply saying fare not found.

Just curious!

Thanks

 

[SargeNpton]

Try the code LPD instead of LUA. The latter was for the bus link but different ticketing arrangements are used for the DART.

 

[Watershed]

Thank you - I thought that would be the case.

Do you know why some TOCS offer the Luton Airport Parkway - LUA fare and some don't?

I've noticed Thameslink offer it however LNER and EMR doesn't. Simply saying fare not found.

Just curious!

Thanks

It's down to whether or not they have added the new location to their whitelist - they couldn't really operate with a blacklist, as there is loads of locations in the feeds that people can't or shouldn't be sold tickets to. Some retailers are quicker to do so than others; Thameslink of course are the operator that people are most likely to use in conjunction with a train journey to Luton Airport, so it's more of a priority for them than LNER.

I am a little bit surprised that EMR haven't put pressure on Trainline to updated their journey planner though, seeing as they have gone to the effort of silly "Luton Airport Express" branding.

 

[CyrusWuff]

Try the code LPD instead of LUA. The latter was for the bus link but different ticketing arrangements are used for the DART.

The location is still LUA/3667 (Luton Airport) for through fares. That Evolvi have failed to update their location database doesn't change that.

 

[stssts1985]

I bought an EMR Advance London StP - Luton Airport which is great and very good value @ £13.x
Just annoying that it is not available as an e-ticket
Such a free for all whether an eticket is available
Having before CovID always went paper ticket - I've swung a full 180 on it and now find collecting a ticket like buying a fare using shillings!!

 

[Wallsendmag]

Try LNER again now

 

[PeterY]

I live near Luton airport and it's easy to cycle to. Do I have pre book a ticket or pay on the day for DART ?

 

[stssts1985]

Try LNER again now

So LNER don't charge passengers for the DART? its the same price as parkway. Good to know.

 

[Edvid]

I live near Luton airport and it's easy to cycle to. Do I have pre book a ticket or pay on the day for DART ?

Pay on the day. You can even use contactless.

BTW, do you live in Luton? Residents (of which I am one) can buy DART-only singles for half-price, though they're only available on the DART site and you have to register for a concessionary account.

 

[Watershed]

I live near Luton airport and it's easy to cycle to. Do I have pre book a ticket or pay on the day for DART ?

In general, the cost of the DART (whether bought as a standalone or through fare) is the same whenever you buy your ticket. However, if you have a Railcard, that discount is also applied to the DART portion of the journey for certain Advance tickets.

 

[ItchyRsole]

Does anyone know if you can you use a staff leisure card on the Dart and if so how much?

Can’t seem to get any info on it.

 

[Gaelan]

Does anyone know if you can you use a staff leisure card on the Dart and if so how much?

Can’t seem to get any info on it.

Using BRfares and entering "staff travel card" (I'm aware they're different, but there isn't an option for the leisure card and I don't imagine it would be more generous), the only PRIV discounted fares for LTN-LUA are the "Smart SDR" and "Smart SDS" at £2.45 and £1.20 respectively. I believe this would be the fare for contactless/oyster, but the DART doesn't take Oyster and there's no way to apply a discount on contactless - so I think it's pretty safe to say there's no PRIV discount available.

Edit: I suppose this is GTR land so keyGo is a consideration as well - but I don't see anything online to suggest keyGo is valid on the DART either.

 

[ItchyRsole]

Using BRfares and entering "staff travel card" (I'm aware they're different, but there isn't an option for the leisure card and I don't imagine it would be more generous), the only PRIV discounted fares for LTN-LUA are the "Smart SDR" and "Smart SDS" at £2.45 and £1.20 respectively. I believe this would be the fare for contactless/oyster, but the DART doesn't take Oyster and there's no way to apply a discount on contactless - so I think it's pretty safe to say there's no PRIV discount available.

Edit: I suppose this is GTR land so KeyGo is a consideration as well - but I don't see anything online to suggest KeyGO is valid on the DART either.

Ah. Disappointing. Thanks mate.

 

[Watershed]

Does anyone know if you can you use a staff leisure card on the Dart and if so how much?

Can’t seem to get any info on it.

No, no discount. It's a severe downgrade compared to previously being allowed to use the bus link for free, but I suppose the airport won't make millions in profit by being generous...

 

[fandroid]

I believe that passengers with an ENTC ("bus pass") can get free travel (on DART), but only by booking on the DART website. That might extend to other UK home nations' concessionary cards too but that needs to be confirmed

 

[Edvid]

Those with disability/companion passes can also get free travel that way.

 

[Haywain]

No, no discount. It's a severe downgrade compared to previously being allowed to use the bus link for free, but I suppose the airport won't make millions in profit by being generous...

The bus link was operated by Thameslink/GTR, unlike the DART so a concession to rail staff was undetstandable. As for airport profits, they need to make a couple of hundred million to pay back the DART construction costs.

 

[Watershed]

The bus link was operated by Thameslink/GTR, unlike the DART so a concession to rail staff was undetstandable.

Perhaps so, but it still replaces a formerly TOC-contracted service on which staff travel facilities used to be available, and although there is clearly no legal entitlement to such facilities, it's still disappointing that the airport doesn't offer anything at all. Don't airport staff get a discount on rail travel - and couldn't a rail staff discount on the DART have been negotiated as part of that?

As for airport prifits, they need to make a couple of gundred million to pay back the DART construction costs.

That's one way of putting it, but the fare is clearly set far above the break-even level - after all, the costs of financing the DART can be amortised across many decades.

In reality it is little more than a stealth tax on arriving at the airport by public transport, seeing as the airport knows it can't raise landing/passenger fees (lest it discourages low-cost airlines). It's particularly disappointing for a council-owned airport to be engaging in such behaviour.

 

[Haywain]

Don't airport staff get a discount on rail travel

I'm not aware of any arrangement being in place.

 

[jon0844]

they need to make a couple of hundred million to pay back the DART construction costs.

But they don't need to do it in a fortnight!!

 

[Haywain]

But they don't need to do it in a fortnight!!

They're not carrying anything like enough people for there to be any chance of that happening.

the costs of financing the DART can be amortised across many decades.

The loans have to be paid back, and probably not over "many decades".

 

[MrJeeves]

Edit: I suppose this is GTR land so keyGo is a consideration as well - but I don't see anything online to suggest keyGo is valid on the DART either.

It works on the barriers, but you don't get charged at all after the fact from my test ride

 

[Cloud Strife]

The bus link was operated by Thameslink/GTR, unlike the DART so a concession to rail staff was undetstandable. As for airport profits, they need to make a couple of hundred million to pay back the DART construction costs.

Whether they'll even manage to pay it off is another question. I even question whether it was needed, given that most of the delays on the bus were caused by inefficient boarding processes.

 

[Haywain]

Whether they'll even manage to pay it off is another question. I even question whether it was needed, given that most of the delays on the bus were caused by inefficient boarding processes.

From a user perspective, not having to stand around at the front of the station in all sorts of weather is a huge improvement. Whether the airport really benefits only time will tell.

 

[Edvid]

Luton Rising have published stats on passenger numbers for the first 100* days.

More than 650,000 passengers have already saved themselves more than ten years of total journey time during the first 100 days of operation of the Luton DART.

[...]

Serving travellers who have arrived from more than 129 different stations on the national rail network, the busiest day on the Luton DART saw it carry more than 10,000 passengers and handle more than 18 per cent of all air passengers using the airport.

[...]

Figures reported by Luton Rising today also confirm:

• More than 2,600 travellers have signed up for the free concessionary travel that is available to Older Person Bus Pass and Disability Badge holders
• More than 1,300 people have registered for the half-price fares available to Luton residents, making more than 1,400 journeys on the Luton DART
• More than 4,000 commuting airport workers have completed more than 32,000 free journeys.

[* 5 July was day 101, pedantically speaking]

Luton DART passengers saving years of journey time - Luton Rising

More than 650,000 passengers have already saved themselves more than ten years of total journey time during the first 100 days of operation of the Luton DART.

lutonrising.org.uk

 

[Benjwri]

I'm not aware of any arrangement being in place.

Luton staff get 50% off some season tickets with Thameslink and East Midlands. More details here.

Thameslink​

• 50% off Thameslink weekly, monthly and annual season tickets (tickets can be bought online - or at the train station)

East Midlands and Luton Airport Express Trains​

• 50% off East Midlands Trains monthly and annual season tickets (including Luton Airport Express)

Most airports have a scheme, some like this and some like Gatwick, which offers a 25% discount on all travel on the GTR for an annual fee.