Coach prices

[Gazzableedsgull]

I know many (or a handful) die hard supporters will be planning to get the supporters coach to York and Southend respectively and also that I don't get the coach myself however I have an issue with the prices of travel to these games. I know it costs a fair amount of money to hire a coach and the people who organise it need to be reimbursed. My point is that with our situation being so precarious I can't see how many fans can justify paying £35 per person over the age of 12. Personally if I had a child over the age of 12 who would like to accompany me to an away game it would really put me off travelling and having to pay £70 before a match ticket was even bought.
Are there many parents and children traveling to these games from Torquay?
I think in future the club needs to look at and figure out a way to reward the people that fork out for traveling thousands of miles each season.

I'm interested in seeing what other supporters think? Or am I just being harsh?

I will be at York next week and I kind of already know we'll have about 20-30 supporters who mainly live up north and a small number travelling from Devon. If the club could somehow pay towards hire of a coach and advertise it on the OS then maybe a few more will be willing to travel up for a smaller fee? Would that sway any of you that's unsure about going?

[ferrarilover]

My fuel bill will be well over £100. The train would be eleventy billion pounds and full of the proletariat. A helicopter would be, dunno, a grand?

The "reward" is being a proper fan and supporting your team. Football is a hobby, there aren't any rewards other than the pleasure derived from the thing itself. If you're looking for something beyond that, you're in the wrong game.

The idea of the club paying for stuff gets lobbed about at least once a week and I'm beginning to think that it might be becoming reflective of society at large. The seemingly prevalent "can't someone else do it" attitude which pops up with every increasing regulatory is what will see us fall on our arses long before Kim and Vladimir can put us to the mushroom cloud shaped sword.

If you want to go to the York game on the coach, the price is £35. If you can't afford it or refuse to pay, you can't go on the coach and just either stay away, or find an alternative. That's how capitalism works. Things have a price, you choose to pay it or you don't.
For my tuppence, £35 for a 630 mile journey is bloody good value, especially considering it's a charter, rather than a scheduled service.

Matt.

[Gazzableedsgull]

Don't be so blunt Matt, it is an issue when people can't afford to go to the games. It affects atmosphere and the support that the players see. If they think the fans can't be arsed supporting them then the less passionate players may think why bother if they're not bothered?

It's with our poor run of form and the fact we're so adrift that I think things have gone wrong at all levels of the club this season and the supporters are the only people that are here for life. This could be our last season in FL for many years so why not pull out all the stops to salvage our season. Support goes a long way to achieving that.

I don't agree that supporters shouldn't be rewarded occasionally but don't forget that those who are choosing not to go to an away FL game this season more than likely won't bother next season if we aren't performing. Money has a lot to do with it. Don't get me wrong, I would pay it as it's just me I'm paying for but the families or parents and children or man and wife/partners will be put off watching us hundreds of miles away due to the cost alone.
As sad as it sounds for some people football isn't a priority anymore due to cost.

[bixieupnorth]

i think £35 is a fair price too mate, especially bearing in mind i paid £120 for an advance ticket from sheffield to newton abbot recently, and i think it was £23 to york from here too.

over 12 is a strange one, but on the balance of things i reckon people with children probably do ok as far as hand outs and discounts already?? child benefit, free schooling, family tickets for attractions and travel, free child meals at restaurants etc etc.

you can probably guess that i dont have any of the bloody noisy little things! but i'm not bitter about having to pay the same taxes as you parents out there!! what do i get back, nothing!

[sam_]

I think it's a joke, hardly advertises away support, I work part time at KFC, £35 is a weeks work, let alone a ticket or food

[taxilady]

I'm not going to York; it's too far away on a Tuesday night, & won't get back until too late in the early (ish) hours of Wednesday.Otherwise I think £35 is very good value. I believe the Travel Club runs at a loss quite often; you might argue that cheaper prices might mean that more people might go, but the bigger the coach the higher the cost etc.Sometimes people book the coach & then don't show up. It's advertised on the OS, the big screen & in the matchday programmes, Torquay United have recently posted a big loss, & have made redundancies. It's the home crowds that provide revenue for the club, so sadly that's where the priorities must lie.I'm not agin' you Gazza, or Sam; just the harsh realities of a stuttering economy. Sometimes my work takes me in the right direction for an away game; sometimes it doesn't : the coach is much cheaper than my fuel would be.

[teeboo100]

what a downright stupid and offensive thread when York city came to torquay this season there travel charges where 50 quid for return travel the price of a train ticket on a Tuesday to York city at the moment the cheepist is 148 and you wont be able to get back until late wednesday... The travel club took a coach to cheltenham on sat a 300 mile round trip and charged 20 quid door to door it didn't make a profit it merely covered the costs... So mite i ask gazza or sam how much do you think a fair price would be to charge people for a 630 mile around trip to york on a tuesday night when the coach price for the journey will be 1200 quid... I am genuinely interested as the travel club gets no support financially from torquay united... The last time torquay united ran the travel the best part of 15 years ago if there where not enough numbers the coach would be pulled sometimes while people would be waiting to go in the morning ... Since the travel club was formed every single away game barring friendly's irrespective of numbers some form of transport has been run... To insinuate that away fans are not going because of the rising costs of travel maby true but i dont think the answer is knocking the single most cheepist way to get to games gazza do you

[teeboo100]

Oh and sam if your average wage is 35 pound a week i presume your doing no more than 8 hours per week then if not the kfc are breaking the law I suggest that if you want to go to an away game try the train york city 148 quid sounds nice or cheltenham last sat at 37 quid then remember you have to get to the ground from the train station and back after the match so its either a 2 mile hike there and back or a tenner in cab fairs ...

[SuperNickyWroe]

£35 expensive??

dont talk wet.

[DJ Gull]

I know many (or a handful) die hard supporters will be planning to get the supporters coach to York and Southend respectively and also that I don't get the coach myself however I have an issue with the prices of travel to these games. I know it costs a fair amount of money to hire a coach and the people who organise it need to be reimbursed. My point is that with our situation being so precarious I can't see how many fans can justify paying £35 per person over the age of 12. Personally if I had a child over the age of 12 who would like to accompany me to an away game it would really put me off travelling and having to pay £70 before a match ticket was even bought.
Are there many parents and children traveling to these games from Torquay?
I think in future the club needs to look at and figure out a way to reward the people that fork out for traveling thousands of miles each season.

I'm interested in seeing what other supporters think? Or am I just being harsh?

I will be at York next week and I kind of already know we'll have about 20-30 supporters who mainly live up north and a small number travelling from Devon. If the club could somehow pay towards hire of a coach and advertise it on the OS then maybe a few more will be willing to travel up for a smaller fee? Would that sway any of you that's unsure about going?

I would rather they charged a bit more and had some spare cash for players wage budget to attract a decent player or two. You wouldn't be complaining about the travel price so much then if you were on your way to watch a team more likely to win the game.

[Gazzableedsgull]

Read my post properly, the issue is with over 12 price mainly. Christ some of you are right up your own arse, it was only a thought but being shot down for a concern I had, f***ing hell.

I think we should all be pre warned in a PM about posts coming up and then we get to vote to see if it's allowed to be made a thread? Would that make most of you happy?

[Gazzableedsgull]

what a downright stupid and offensive thread when York city came to torquay this season there travel charges where 50 quid for return travel the price of a train ticket on a Tuesday to York city at the moment the cheepist is 148 and you wont be able to get back until late wednesday... The travel club took a coach to cheltenham on sat a 300 mile round trip and charged 20 quid door to door it didn't make a profit it merely covered the costs... So mite i ask gazza or sam how much do you think a fair price would be to charge people for a 630 mile around trip to york on a tuesday night when the coach price for the journey will be 1200 quid... I am genuinely interested as the travel club gets no support financially from torquay united... The last time torquay united ran the travel the best part of 15 years ago if there where not enough numbers the coach would be pulled sometimes while people would be waiting to go in the morning ... Since the travel club was formed every single away game barring friendly's irrespective of numbers some form of transport has been run... To insinuate that away fans are not going because of the rising costs of travel maby true but i dont think the answer is knocking the single most cheepist way to get to games gazza do you

You've taken it way out of context, of course I appreciate what the travel club do and have travelled on it dozens of times in my youth. The issue is with the price for parents taking children that are put off watching us because of the price it would cost to take a family. You can throw numbers at me all you like but i just had a little idea that would create a better atmosphere for the upcoming long trips for our fans.
I would love to hear what you have to say to contribute to atmosphere and numbers at games?

[diamondgirl]

The cost of travel, by coach, is what it is. I think £35, (Return to York) for any age group, is very reasonable. Just because you are 12 years old does not make the fuel any cheaper. I drove to Cheltenham, from Brixham, on Sat. I used 7.5 galls. diesel. At £1.34 per litre that works out at a cost of approx. £45.60. £10 more for half the distance. At half time I spoke to a TUFC supporter who lives in the Manchester area. He told me that he had got the train down, to Cheltenham, and it had cost him £60 return. He said that to get down to Plainmoor, by train, is costing £100!! So, in the great scheme, of things, yes I do believe you are being extremely harsh in complaining about the cost of the supporters coach travel.

I do, also, understand that Steve B runs the coaches at a lose, ie He pays, out of his own pocket, the shortfall. Not a lot of people know that.

[diamondgirl]

You've taken it way out of context, of course I appreciate what the travel club do and have travelled on it dozens of times in my youth. The issue is with the price for parents taking children that are put off watching us because of the price it would cost to take a family.

Nice idea Gazza, fuly understand where you are coming from, but the question still remains. If you (The Royal You) are not going to pay for the travel, who is? It don't come free, someone has to foot the bill. As for creating an atmosphere, have you been to Plainmoor lately? Its like Torbay Hospital Morgue, even with 1500/2000 people, so I really dont imagine that 80 extra people on a coach outing will make that much difference. Sorry.

[Scott Brehaut]

I would love to hear what you have to say to contribute to atmosphere and numbers at games?

Teeboo does a lot to help contribute to atmosphere and numbers at games.

A LOT.