First of all, thanks all of you for your suggestions. Especially Barry
who looks as though he has discovered the most cost-effective. Today
is 8 May and I will be putting it to the test in about an hour. I was
going to do it over the weekend but didn't go out as I was far busier
moving house than I had anticipated!

In the end, I am going to get it starting tomorrow as I have already
paid £3.10 today for a Bowes Green - Finsbury Park return for today.
So by Barry's calculation, the changeover should cost me £105.91, will
be good to see if this happens!

What I find enfuriating is that no one at any ticket office could tell
me this. I knew better and thought about asking on UTL because in the
past I have found people here to be so much more knowledgeable, and
again this has been proven correct. But why are the staff so rubbish
about giving the correct info? Is it their fault, for not reading up
on all the leaflets or paying attention during the training? Is it
the fault of their employers, for not training them adequately? Is it
the fault of TfL for making it all so complicated in the first place?
Humorously, is it the fault of privatisation for creating a system
where there's no joined-up thinking any more and different lines are
owned by different private companies who are after making a profit
rather than giving us a public service? The cynic would also wonder
whether it's an intentional method of making it complicated so that
some people end up buying the more expensive option and then end up
with even more money. In fact, there may be some truth in that. The
only way I see it is, it certainly didn't use to be as bad as this,
and certainly in my parents' day, if they had a query like mine they
would have had more helpful and accurate information.

Well, let's see if they get it right and I am not met with blank
stares in an hour's time when I ask for my Z123 changeover until 30
December, and expect to pay just £105.91 for it.

I bought my Oyster originally in Moorgate, so I don't hold out much
hope after this morning's experience, if that was suggestive of the
(mis)information I am going to get later. I'll explain. This morning I
got to Bowes Park, to get an extension to Z2 (plus, I hoped, with the
discount from having my annual Gold card with me). I was expecting it
to cost £1.15, which is what it cost me the other night to go up
there. He wanted £2.30, which I thought was ridiculous. That's what I
was expecting a return to be. Why, I asked? The guy this morning (who
was also really unpleasant in attitude) said it was because you only
get a discount with the Gold card if it's off-peak. Huh? The time had
just gone 09:30, the next train was not until 09:43. I said it was
after 09:30, he told me that the off-peak period starts at 10 a.m. I
thought this was weird but perhaps this was some kind of policy on
First Capital Connect I was unaware of. But what I couldn't understand
was, even if he was right, if it normally costs £1.15 (and I still
have my old extension from Z2 that I bought from Moorgate station a
few nights before), how could the Gold Card save 50%? Surely the
discount wasn't that good. Anyway, I was really annoyed about having
to pay £2.30 for a single journey that shouldn't cost me more than
£1.15, so I asked how much a return would be for later today. He asked
what time today, I said tonight, he said £3.70, so it would be cheaper
for me to get the extension tonight using my Gold card discount. I
asked him to double-check and then amazingly he said that the return
was in fact £3.10. Which I bought. Still more than I was expecting
but it was just 80p more whereas had I indeed done two separate
journeys it would have been £1.15 more.

The funny thing is, I'm looking at the card and it says on it "off
peak day return". Errm, so it IS off-peak between 9:30 and 10:00 then?
So why could I not get the Gold Card discount?

Then I got to Moorgate. I felt mildly mischevious and, armed with
knowledge garnered on UTL, explained my conundrum to the guy at the
gates in Moorgate. I said I had a Z12 annual, and the paper Return
Bowes Park to Finsbury Park, and was worried whether I would be
charged £4 from my £20 emergency top-up if I touch in at Moorgate and
not started the journey. The guy said that I would, as I had expected
he would. He was a nice chap, but simply misinformed (and misinforming
others): he said that in fact, I should have got off my train in
Finsbury Park, touched in, got back on the train (there's only three
or four an hour, and only two an hour in the evenings, so this would
be most inconvenient), and then I would not be charged £4 for having a
non-started journey. I reminded him that I did have a Z12 annual
season ticket and he said yes, I would be charged £4 from my PAYG top-
up that I also have on there. So he waved me through. He was a nice
chap and wished me luck in trying to make head or tail of it, and
recommended I speak to one of the ticket sellers to find out what I
can do in future journeys. Errm, no, I think I'll ask UTL between you
and me ;-))

But it does go to show the level of (mis)information you can get. So
those who don't know about UTL, what hope do they have, when TfL's own
staff really cannot give the correct answer?? Ouch!

Well, I'm off now to try my luck at Moorgate, which I think is where I
bought my yearly. Thanks Barry for the great advice.

TRISTÁN