"Sam" wrote in message
oups.com...


Hi all,

Is this really right? Buying a travelcard with a train ticket costs
just £4.00 - better than the standard Travelcard price, and better
even than the Oyster pay-as-you-go capped price (which I believe is 50p
less than the equivalent Travelcard).


Its a bit of an illusion really and clever marketing on the part of BR and
their successors. They rely on you thinking you have just bought a cheap
travelcard, because you compare it with a ticket to your normal terminus + a
travelcard, but the Railway are getting their agreed share of total
Travelcard sales anyway so no longer really need to charge you for travel
on their train within the zones as well.

In some cases you are actually paying a bit more than you need, e.g. a
couple of years back I worked out that I could save nearly a couple of quid
with a CDR to Surbiton from Winchester, then a separately purchased all
zones Travelcard, but to get from Winchester to Surbiton often required two
changes, so it just wasn't worth the hassle/time. Also of course the
railcard discount is only available on the separate travelcard if bought at
weekends because of the £10.00 rule.

At the moment the extra for a travelcard over my normal Waterloo ticket is
only £3.30...

Paul