Sir, Pembrokeshire Rail Travellers Association is pleased to announce that Arriva Trains Wales have taken up another of PRTA's suggestions to improve Pembrokeshire's rail services. Until now, you have had to return to the station from which you started your journey. Now, if your outward journey is to a station beyond Carmarthen, you can return to a different station. If your ticket is from: A. Fishguard; B. Pembroke/Pembroke Dock; C. Milford Haven/Haverfordwest; you can return to one of the others without any extra payment. This will be useful to various people, for instance: 1. Fishguard people can use the bus to Haverfordwest to travel away, and return to Fishguard itself. 2. Those walking the coast path can leave from one station and return from another. 3. Neyland travellers can leave via Pembroke Dock and return via Milford, or vice-versa, in effect giving them a train every hour - the best train service in Pembrokeshire! 4. Pembroke passengers can catch the last train back to Haverfordwest (almost two hours later than the last Pembroke arrival) and arrange to be picked up there. Most rail fares went up in January. The fares situation is very complex: the Western Region Fares book, of some 2,000 pages, gives details of the 140 types of fares available nationally, of which only about 20 types are available here. Twenty-two people could be travelling with standard monthly return tickets from Haverfordwest to Woking, all paying a different fare, ranging from £18 to £204! (there are also first class and Groupsave fares). The Pembrokeshire Rail Travellers Association has published a booklet giving the new fares, which has been distributed to members. Information about fares is not easy to obtain. Other people may have a copy of our fares booklet by sending two second class stamps to me at 102 Priory Rd, Milford Haven SA73 2ED.
D. G. Watts, PRTA timetable and fares editor.