Carnet Tickets for the Abbey line
 

From Silverlink web site

Carnet Tickets for the Abbey Line

A new era began for the Watford-St Albans Abbey Line today (3
September) when Chairman of the Abbey Line Community Rail Partnership
Councillor Aislinn Lee launched the new Carnet ticket for the route.

The scheme has been devised and developed by Silverlink Trains on
behalf of the Abbey Line Community Rail Partnership. A Carnet is a
book of 10 single tickets costing £23.90 and represents a 35% saving
per journey over the Standard Single fare between St Albans Abbey and
Watford Junction, or a 10% saving over the Standard Return. It is
primarily aimed at customers travelling the length of the line but
also represents a saving for some intermediate journeys.

Announcing the start of the Carnet scheme Councillor Aislinn Lee said:
"The carnet ticket is another way of further improving the service we
provide to Abbey Line users. Not only does it provide excellent value
for money but also means that passengers can avoid queuing for tickets
and reduce their total travelling time.

"We hope that incentives such as this will encourage even more people
to use the line, meaning less people will be travelling by car and
congestion on the county's roads will reduce."

Joining Councillor Lee at the launch, Silverlink County Route Director
Mark Steward said, "The Carnet is a package designed to present the
railway better within the community that it serves. The activities of
the Abbey Line CRP have already begun to stimulate growth in passenger
numbers - a key objective of the government's Community Rail
Development Strategy - but the short journey time and the number of
intermediate stations means that it is not always possible for all
passengers to purchase a ticket on the train. For many customers,
this means queuing at the Excess Fares Window at Watford Junction to
buy a ticket, which adds time to their journey. Being able to buy
tickets in advance will make the whole travel experience much more
attractive and will also help in achieving the overall DfT target of
doubling passenger numbers on community rail routes in 5 years. "

Carnets can be purchased from the booking office at Watford Junction,
and, soon, from local outlets in St Albans including the Tourist
Office.

Details of normal ticket prices compared with the carnet can be found
here, and more information about the carnet is available in leaflet
form at Watford Junction and at local outlets in St Albans. It can
also be obtained from National Rail Enquiries 08457 48 49 50.

.................................................. ...............................................
John Burke
WRUG