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Old September 26th, 2007, 02:09 PM posted to misc.transport.rail.europe,rec.travel.europe
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Default Tickets to San Sebastian via Hendaye and Irun

On Sep 25, 10:56 pm, "M.G.Schram" wrote:
Anyone any ideas why this ridiculous state of affairs exists ? It's
already daft that Renfe can operate from Spain to Hendaye (but not
FROM Hendaye to Spain), and SNCF can operate to Irun but not FROM Irun
to France.

It is an international agreement from an ancient age for every
Spanisch/French border, that each national railway can run its trains to the
other side with passengers, but have to return empty. The return journey
has to be made with the other railway. This way each railway has only to
issue "national" tickets for local travel. And are completely independ for
timetabling. It also simplifies the customs checking. And the train
employees could rest in there own nation. At the time these where very
important issues and the border crossing was a serious matter with little
trafic.

Now it is a very stupid way to run things, certainly when the trains are not
frequent.

Greetings,

MARC


A couple of years back I caught a train from Vigo in Spain to Poro in
Portugal. The ticket office in Vigo actually sold me two tickets - one
from Vigo to the border and another from the border to Porto. In Spain
a Spanish conductor clipped my ticket and over the border the train
changed conductors and a Portuguese conductor clipped the other
ticket.

On the way back, the person at the ticket office in Porto told me that
he couldn't sell me a ticket all the way to Vigo, but only to the
border. I would then have to buy a ticket from the border to Vigo on
the train once the Spanish conductor got on. Curiously, the
combination of the two tickets this way cost a different amount than
they had in the opposite direction.

It seemed absurd though. One currency, no border checks, and a single
train, but two tickets and two conductors.