Paul Weaver wrote to uk.transport.london on Fri, 25 Mar 2005:

On Thu, 24 Mar 2005 13:20:18 +0000, Mrs Redboots wrote:
But how often is there (a) a very long queue

Always in peak

and (b) ticket machines out of order?

About 60% of the time one of them is out of order, about 30% of the time
they are both out of order, at least at my local station. Pay by card? No
choice but the ticket window.

From your original posting, it sounded as though you only go there once
in a blue moon.....

If I know I'm going to travel, and suspect there will be a queue at the
time of day I wish to go, I usually try to buy my ticket earlier in the
day, or even the previous day. And, of course, for many journeys,
buying in advance is a very great deal cheaper!


Most people dont want to plan travel in advance. The beuaty of a car is
"I need to travel, I travel". It's only on very long distance trips,
mainly airplanes, that people buy well in advance. For daily and weekly
tasks people travel spontaneously.

I think you'll find that those going on longer-distance rail journeys
now buy their tickets in advance, since, just like on an aeroplane, it
is a lot cheaper to do so (business travellers funding the rest of us,
as per usual). For local trips, of course, a Travelcard suffices....
--
"Mrs Redboots"
http://www.amsmyth.demon.co.uk/
Website updated 20 March 2005