On Jun 18, 4:41*pm, "Paul Scott"
wrote:
John B wrote:
As any fule kno, the southern TOCs are insisting on PAYG fares being
higher than Tube fares:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8107537.stm
But the BBC has managed to pick the most radically stupid example it
could possibly have chosen:
[begin quote]
For example, between Finsbury Park and King's Cross it costs £2.20 on
the Tube whereas it costs £4.00 on rail.
[end quote]
1) rail and tube tickets are interavailable between FPK and KGX
2) hence the fare is gbp4 because that's the Tube paper ticket fare
for a Z12 single journey
3) ...and Oyster PAYG is ALREADY VALID between FPK and KGX at the
gbp2.20 fare!
I despair...
Agree - although perhaps it is Caroline Pidgeon who doesn't understand that
there are joint ticketing arrangements already in place?
Whatever, I've brought this 'factual error' to their attention via the BBC
'contact us' page...
Thanks - we shall see if they manage to comprehend it...
*If* it was in fact Caroline Pidgeon's error, I don't think it's one
that would be made by Val Shawcross (Chair of the Assembly Transport
Cttee), who very much comes across as being on the ball about her
brief.
This story almost certainly emanates from the LibDem machine - nothing
wrong with that in and of itself I suppose, though it is a bit of an
opportunity to bash the Mayor for something essentially outside of his
control. I long ago gave up on any thought of a universal fare scale -
indeed I'm not sure I ever thought it was a realistic aspiration - and
settled on the prospect of PAYG fares on NR being the same price as
their paper equivalents. The push for a universal fare scale can wait
for another day (if indeed it ever comes) - simply getting PAYG up and
running on the railways is the first order of priority.
That said, for normal Londoners who have not been observing the
ongoing saga of PAYG on NR, the expectation that PAYG fares would be
the same on Tube and NR is totally understandable. The LibDems appear
to simply be tapping into this sentiment.