Rail fares

[wheels]

Re the original point, it's always seemed a bit of an anomaly that off peak fares were only restricted on the outbound leg but you could travel on the peak time trains in the afternoon. Having a one and a half hour peak time in the afternoon at peak commuter time seems ok to me to be honest.

It's two and a half hours not one and a half and leave people stuck until 6.30pm. Equally it brings us into line with the rest of the country.

[alison]

Re the original point, it's always seemed a bit of an anomaly that off peak fares were only restricted on the outbound leg but you could travel on the peak time trains in the afternoon. Having a one and a half hour peak time in the afternoon at peak commuter time seems ok to me to be honest.

[wheels]

Don't generalise about the staff. The face of Rose Hill station is Tony and a more polite, courteous and helpful member of staff couldn't be found! It would make no difference if he wore a Northern, an Arriva, a Virgin or a British RaIl uniform. The dark days of snotty British Railways staff who expected a tip for carrying out a job for which they receive a wage are long past thank goodness. I have elderly relatives with limited mobility who are regularly transported across Euston by buggy and have their luggage carried from their carriage down a long platform at Euston all the way down the escalators and then down a few flights of stairs (no lifts) to the depths of the Northern Line who do this job quite cheerfully and who would consider you to be some kind of a pervert if you suddenly tried to place money in their hands. Try doing the same as the staff and think like someone living in the twenty first century.

You seem to be confused that is exactly the point I was making.

[Duke Fame]

Don't generalise about the staff. The face of Rose Hill station is Tony and a more polite, courteous and helpful member of staff couldn't be found! It would make no difference if he wore a Northern, an Arriva, a Virgin or a British RaIl uniform. The dark days of snotty British Railways staff who expected a tip for carrying out a job for which they receive a wage are long past thank goodness. I have elderly relatives with limited mobility who are regularly transported across Euston by buggy and have their luggage carried from their carriage down a long platform at Euston all the way down the escalators and then down a few flights of stairs (no lifts) to the depths of the Northern Line who do this job quite cheerfully and who would consider you to be some kind of a pervert if you suddenly tried to place money in their hands. Try doing the same as the staff and think like someone living in the twenty first century.

That's the point Mr Rambler. The privatisation has changed attitudes and the service has  improved accordingly. Nationalisation is a step backwards where the old attitudes will slowly come back and we'll have a service at 1970's standards, we'll be forced to drive Morris Marinas and our working day will be warming our hands on a brazier throwing stones at anyone who dares to work a full shift. 

Going forward, the answer to our line at Marple may be to allow the franchise to operate a Metrolink service which gets us away from the congestion of picadilly and increasing the number of services and the current slow route to Sheffield can operate from Marple or New Mills.

[marplerambler]

Leaving aside how bad any one particular private company is and Northern Rail is dreadful lets not get sentimental about British Rail, dirty trains, late trains rude and unpleasant staff,, porters who expected a tip.

Don't generalise about the staff. The face of Rose Hill station is Tony and a more polite, courteous and helpful member of staff couldn't be found! It would make no difference if he wore a Northern, an Arriva, a Virgin or a British RaIl uniform. The dark days of snotty British Railways staff who expected a tip for carrying out a job for which they receive a wage are long past thank goodness. I have elderly relatives with limited mobility who are regularly transported across Euston by buggy and have their luggage carried from their carriage down a long platform at Euston all the way down the escalators and then down a few flights of stairs (no lifts) to the depths of the Northern Line who do this job quite cheerfully and who would consider you to be some kind of a pervert if you suddenly tried to place money in their hands. Try doing the same as the staff and think like someone living in the twenty first century.

[wheels]

Leaving aside how bad any one particular private company is and Northern Rail is dreadful lets not get sentimental about British Rail, dirty trains, late trains rude and unpleasant staff,, porters who expected a tip. There was nothing good about BR although I do accept that the railways are of  strategic national importance and therefore need greater state intervention but not day to day management.

[Duke Fame]

The Northern Rail franchise is to be renewed in the the near future. Northern Rail already dump the country's grottiest  rolling stock on us (other than the cattle trucks used as trams in Manchester). If Northern Rail can't make a profit out the hugely congested and highly subsidised trains in Greater Manchester surely it is time for a different company to operate the franchise (or even better for the renationalisation of Britain's railways).

Renationalisation is an ideological folly. the rail service has improved since privatisation, demand for travel is up as services have improved. The unions are almost impotent and commuters no longer have the lottery of industrial action to deal with.

[marplerambler]

The Northern Rail franchise is to be renewed in the the near future. Northern Rail already dump the country's grottiest  rolling stock on us (other than the cattle trucks used as trams in Manchester). If Northern Rail can't make a profit out the hugely congested and highly subsidised trains in Greater Manchester surely it is time for a different company to operate the franchise (or even better for the renationalisation of Britain's railways).

[Victor M]

Does anyone know how this effects the concessionary rail pass?

[corium]

Off peak fares being restricted further from September

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-28761038