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What ticketing method would you use if returning to work for 1-2 days per week office travel?

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coursemyhorse

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We all have become accustomed to receiving the best ticket prices when buying season tickets since it is basically buying in bulk. This obviously encourages people to travel MORE and get their moneys worth. From September this model will no longer fit a large proportion of the population where a lot of people will move to a working week where they only commute into the office for typically 1,2 or 3 days a week. On the basis that ticket prices won't change to a fairer pay as you go type model and will remain the same in cost if not more, then how will you approach your ticket purchasing around September when we start a return to work? Do you feel the train companies will have to adapt and alter pricing or is this a pipe dream and completely unrealistic?

I had looked at this in the past doing some calculations and I came to realise that if you still have to go into the office 3 days a week, you may end up paying MORE than an annual season, if you switch to paying for 3 daily tickets such is the way pricing currently is.

The magic number seemed to be 2 days a week where you could make savings in travel by buying daily returns instead. The level of saving can be affected by whether you can travel off peak as well, and if you need the flexibility of a full travel card for London or just Oyster.

Some companies are telling employees they have an amount of time they must spend in the office each month on average. Like say roughly one third. How do you see your commute and office presence?

EDIT: I mentioned September as it's a time when summer holidays will be done and a lot of the jabs done hopefully and a time when I guess most people forsee a heavier return to work. But this could be any time during summer.
 
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Deafdoggie

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I suspect there will be no instant reaction from rail companies on fares. I have just been reading an article about one London firm who own a lot of office space in London and are not expecting many of their current clients to return, so are looking to convert at least some of it to housing. It'll take a while for the true new commuting pattern to settle down, but once it's apparent, rail companies may get more dynamic with their pricing. But don't expect anything major, and certainly nothing at all straight away.
Depending on who you listen to, either there will be nobody commuting or it will return to pre-covid levels. I suspect there will be a fall in commuters, but it's what size fall that matters
 

nickswift99

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My commute used to be a couple of days a week.

I used to purchase a combination of tickets, starting with a peak single in the morning and then using an off-peak single in the evening with a Network Railcard. For my journey this would be significantly cheaper than a Carnet.

If I was travelling 3 days then a weekly season was better. This sometimes meant I could start a ticket on a Tuesday or Wednesday and then use it the following Monday or Tuesday to maximise the usage.
 

Haywain

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The magic number seemed to be 2 days a week where you could make savings in travel by buying daily returns instead. The level of saving can be affected by whether you can travel off peak as well, and if you need the flexibility of a full travel card for London or just Oyster.
This is extremely variable depending on where you live or commute from. There are some places where a season ticket makes a saving over buying day tickets for 2 day, and some where it is only a saving over 4 days. There are likely to be new products offered to account for changes but they may not suit everybody so there will still be questions for people to ask themselves about the 'best' options.
 

Ianno87

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For when I travel to our London office, unless I have a specific meeting to be in for, I'll travel in off-peak with a Network Card discount, doing e-mails etc locally before heading for the train.
 

extendedpaul

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My son had an annual season ticket pre-COVID but is currently working three days a week at home and two days a week in his London office which could well become a permanent arrangement.

Because he has a 16-25 railcard he wasn't saving that much on his season ticket. His daily journeys currently cost about £32 (on HS1) if he returns home immediately after work. Once he starts seeing friends in London in the evening most work days he plans to buy advance tickets for the journeys home which will save him about £9 a day.

Overall that work pattern + socialising arrangement gains him close to £100 a week
 

Jurg

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Pre-covid I commuted by rail about 2 days per week, and other days either by car or working from home. I had a 12 month season ticket covering part of my journey, on gold card stock, and would buy a return ticket each day for the remainder.

Whilst this method cost me more for the work commutes, the savings on Off-Peak leisure journeys from the season ticket and gold card more than made up for it.

Post-Covid I expect my rail commutes would stay at around 2 days, so I could go for the same approach. The new carnets are likely to reduce the overall cost of my commute in any case, and it may end up better value using carnets for the whole journey rather than combining with the season, particularly if I'm doing fewer lrisure journeys for a while. I'll have to do my sums.
 

coursemyhorse

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I've not come across carnets before. From a quick google, they don't seem to apply to me as are only select locations it seems?
 

bubieyehyeh

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I had a hatton-lapworth season for a gold card. Depending on when travelling to office either bought:
peak single, gold card discount off-peak single return
weekly season if doing four days in 7.
peak return part way, then oyster if travelling off-peak both ways on oyster.
 

yorkie

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They will be everywhere (pretty much) shortly.
We we will need to prepare for a huge surge in Disputes & Prosecutions?

There was a time when accusations relating to carnets was perhaps our biggest cause of disputes.
Some companies are telling employees they have an amount of time they must spend in the office each month on average. Like say roughly one third. How do you see your commute and office presence?
That's beyond the scope of this forum section and is under discussion in other threads.
 

Bletchleyite

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We we will need to prepare for a huge surge in Disputes & Prosecutions?

There was a time when accusations relating to carnets was perhaps our biggest cause of disputes.

Are the new Carnets all to be on ITSO, though? The issues with Carnets are pretty much all to do with people validating paper tickets with a pen.
 
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