Re: New Fares in NSW

[Mr Simpson <mdoyle@mail.usyd.edu.au>]

David Proctor wrote:

> Mr Simpson wrote in message <372C4FC4.B219E7D0@mail.usyd.edu.au>...
>
> >i agree, but i think its simply too hard to administer, as how on earth
> will
> >they check that the offpeak commuters actually don't travel during the
> >restricted period, since a restriction can't be placed on selling the
> ticket (it
> >can be bought any time.. used later) nor on putting the ticket through
> gates (no
> >guarantee there are gates in use etc).
>
> Firstly, beef up revenue protection staff - they are almost non-existent.
> Since SillyRail claim that 85% of passengers go through gated stations, all
> it would require is a concerted campaign on their part to ensure that staff
> do the jobs that they are paid to do (i.e. make passengers with magnetic
> tickets use the gates) - it is amazing the number of people you see at some
> city stations who merely show their ticket to barrier staff and walk through
> the wide gate. If the staff actually did what they are paid to do, this
> owuld not be so much of a problem.
>
> >such a restriction would open up a new
> >world of fare evasion - its bad enough as it is.besides.. what hours would
> you
> >define as evening peak? in the morning everyone is through by 9.. in the
> arvo
> >journeys can start at 2-3 for industry and the school kids; 4-5 for other
> >businesses and then 6 or later for others
>
> I think some of the morning restrictions are a joke too - why put a peak
> restriction on a return from Blacktown to Penrith at 8am for example? The
> trains are less than full, and it is not inconveniencing anyone! There are
> countless other examples. At least they are halfway flexible with regard to
> some (but by no means ALL) trains that arrive in the City after 9am.
>

very true - once again ; they have to some up with some sort of rule, and no
matter what they come up with  it will always have unfair exceptions. i guess
the idea is to have the rule benefit as many people as possible, and
inconvenience as few as possible and keep the *amount* of inconvenience to a
minimum; i think that was the point i was trying to make; a new afternoon peak
rule will also cause this sort of  anomoly

> For the afternoon peak, I would define it as any train that leaves a certain
> business centre (I would define them as City (the usual stations),
> Chatswood, Parramatta and Bankstown between 4pm and 6pm in any direction -
> this then allows people working in those business districts to be provided
> with services that are not full of people paying just over half fare.

what about the people with return tickets bought at 10am, but do the return
journey at 5pm or whatever?
thats the sort of example i meant, unfortunately there's more chance of that
than the person getting up early enough to do a return to penrith casually?

Homer