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Birmingham Railway Fares - 2017

norfolk brummie

norfolk brummie

gone but not forgotten
The current railway system in the U.K. appears to be going through the most confusing period in its history. There are now so many companies involved in running our rail network. Almost weekly, we hear depressing news of delays, over crowding, buses being used, price increases.

Gone are the days when the four main companies, then British Rail ran the system, and life was much less complicated.

Today, there are excellent deals available, but one has to surf the internet for hours to find the best one.

Quite often, the rail traveller is frustrated, not just by time tables, the cause of delays, but more importantly, how to obtain the best possible money deal on a given journey.

Yesterday, I was talking to a business man, who's son lives and works in Birmingham, as a company executive.

Recently the son, with a colleague, had to make a journey from Birmingham to Newcastle. Form New Street, to Newcastle, was a total cost of £600 return for them.

After further investigation they found that, by travelling to Birmingham International, catching a plane to Amsterdam, and then on to Newcastle, it would cost £400, a saving of over £200, and almost the same journey time !

For me to travel from Norwich to Birmingham, via Peterborough, the cost is much higher than for me to travel to London, then back up to Birmingham. Yes, it is longer, and less convenient, and I travel many more miles, but I save a lot of money.

I thought that opening this thread may assist other fellow rail sufferers to discuss their problems, ideas, or suggestions, that maybe to the benefit all of us, especially those that are less computer orientated. I find that the younger generation take all this travel searching for granted, and know the system, (our grand daughter often assists me), but 'it ain't easy'.

Eddie
 
Eddie, that's a really good post. My husband always spends a long time checking before booking tickets. It's well worth it and sometimes the earlier you can book, the cheaper it is too. We're getting a Senior Railpass soon as we have done in the past. Apparently there is a third off until the end of May so we're leaving it as close as we can to that date so it will last longer. It's always worth looking for party rates as 4 of us often travel together and they can be cheaper too.
 
I do very little long journeys nowadays, apart from my 2 annual holidays, and they are by air (best way to travel), but on the odd occasion I do, I tend to use a coach, slower but far cheaper. I find the railway's completely and utterly confusing, not to mention expensive. My sister in law said a friend found it cheaper to fly to Edinburgh than go by rail (Birmingham airport only 3 miles away). Eric
 
Lady P.
Havrn't heard of the reduction till may, which is a shame, as i renewed mine a fortnight ago , though got it for 3 years, which almost was a third off 3x iyear. My journeys to Birmingham , of which there are quite a few, are largely one day trips. However, there is no such thing as a day return from Reading to Birmingham. However you can get one from reading to Banbury, Banbury to Leamington and then one from Leamington to Birmingham, which works out as 2/3rds the cost of an off peak fare if I didn't know what to do for a 1 day trip
 
Lady Penelope said:
Eddie, that's a really good post. My husband always spends a long time checking before booking tickets. It's well worth it and sometimes the earlier you can book, the cheaper it is too. We're getting a Senior Railpass soon as we have done in the past. Apparently there is a third off until the end of May so we're leaving it as close as we can to that date so it will last longer. It's always worth looking for party rates as 4 of us often travel together and they can be cheaper too.
Click to expand...
Maybe they're a bit more stingy here in Surrey but I could only find an offer of a 10% reduction on a 1-year senior railcard if bought online before 20th May 2017. The cost would therefore be £27 instead of £30. The three-year card costs £70, so still a substantial reduction from that of the discounted 1-year card. Dave.
 
Any country that has a successful railway system (from the traveller's point of view), has it run by just one organisation. In 1969 I had occasion to make a business train journey from Halsingborg right across Sweden to Stockholm. My companion for that journey was a young lady who had been Karlheinz Stockhausen's secretary for the Institute of Contemporary Composers Conference that had just finished. That discussion was a wondrous tale on its own, but the conversation turned to discussing railways.

She said that only a few weeks previously the Swedish Railways were more like British Railways in the shambles days, with slow trains and poor food. Then a new authority took charge and amongst other things, the meals were now cooked fresh on the train. We had an excellent meal served hot at a very reasonable charge and the train was spot on time. I made several train journeys that week, including a night sleeper through to Germany and all were excellent. It proves it can be done.

Maurice
 
Birmingham New Street to Reading return is £46.30 on the London Midland website. With Cross Country Trains. So you don't need to change trains if going with Cross Country.

One way each way on the National Rail Enquiries app it's £26 Birmingham New Street to Reading (if booked in advance). The return single fare is coming up as £26. Later ones showing up as £20.30.
 
Personally I think part of the problem is having so many different rail companies causing confusion. I believe it should be one single organization, as it once was under British Rail when providing a reliable and affordable service took priority over profit. In fact I think this should apply to all forms of Public Transport. Also why should you have to book in advance or on Line (some of us who are not to PC wise might find this difficult) why can't we simply purchase our ticket at the station as we once did ? Eric
 
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Has been more investment now in infrastructure with Network Rail than during the British Rail days. New stations are being built. Old ones refurbished / modernised.

Diesel and electric trains being refurbished, new stock ordered.
 
Ellbrown
The price is the same on the crosscountry website. I have a senior pass so the price, if I did not split ticket, would be £36.35, whereas it is £21.93 (or a few pence different, can't remember exactly)
 
Hi Farmer Dave, no they're not more stingy in your neck of the woods - I just misunderstood what my husband said! Senior moment again. It's 10% reduction until the end of May ((£3) not 30%. Sorry.
Mike - that's not so bad then is it?
Now we've got to decide where we're going this year and if it's worth having the Senior Rail pass. We quite often go to Lichfield and we have to pay from Blake Street which costs, for the two of us, over £7 which is nearly the same as the whole trip from home. Not much saving but the rail pass would knock some off. Or we could go on the bus.
Think I'll leave the maths to Parker this time....
 
I have been following this thread with interest. I travel by train quite regularly and am amazed by the disparity in fares. I have a senior rail card and where possible use it to travel first class. I booked a one way ticket on line today, with Abellio Greater Anglia, for travel on Wednesday, from my local station at in East Herts to North Walsham via London Liverpool St and Norwich. It Cost £11.60. This is first class travel for the 2 hour London to Norwich leg. I am informed on the booking that I have saved £69.60! This happens on many of my rail journeys. If I had bought my ticket on Wednesday morning it would have been a very different cost. I appreciate that I am getting a bargain, but feel that the whole ticketing system, whether with rail cards or not, is ethically flawed. Not everyone has access to a computer, credit card etc or knows that they are travelling a couple of days in advance. When I travel to Stratford upon Avon on Chilton line it can cost more to travel into and across London than the journey from Marylebone to Stratford!
 
Virgin Trains / Chiltern Railways seem to be having a bargain Birmingham to London single ticket price war!





Yet any other single journey would cost more for less of a distance.
 
There are three ways to get from Birmingham to London by train.
Virgin by the direct route to Euston usually more expensive but quicker. London Midland via Northampton to Euston or Chiltern to Marylebone.
A few years ago I needed to book tickets for three day trips to London over a two week period. I ended up travelling by all three routes as each was cheaper on different days of the week..

I have just discovered that at some times it is cheaper to go via Tamworth!!!

Next month I am going to Edinburgh for a few days. Last year I did the same journey travelling Virgin both ways. This time I shall be going out by Virgin as they had a ticket sale on but I could not get a cheap ticket back by Virgin so I am coming back by Cross Country.

I do not know if it is still the case but last year I came back from Euston on the London Midland train just after 6.00pm several times and the first class fare was cheaper than the standard class but you have to run to get a seat as soon as the platform is announced.

In reply to Maurice (Sospiri) I have travelled cheaper in first class in Sweden than standard class but that was a few years ago. I plan to make a similar journey in August.
 
David,

I can see me running to get a seat as soon as the platform is announced - not! Due to deafness I won"t hear the announcement, and due to arthritis I haven't run for a number of years. What a crazy system.

Maurice
 
My grumble about the railways is that my taxes subsidise them but I never use them :(.

Happy enough to pay for the NHS etc. but can't see why people from rural lower wage communities should be paying the fares for high earners commuting into their well paid jobs in London.
 
Eric,

It could equally be argued that many people don't have children, but still pay for the education of other peoples, and a myriad other things like this. I pay tax on my meagre pension, but I don't even live in the UK. But any minute now the mods will rap our knuckles for straying off topic, so I won't say another word! :) :) :)

Maurice
 
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