Trouble with the conductor

On the train too early: man has to pay twice for his ticket

Wrong purchase or not? The passenger would have expected more goodwill from the conductor.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Doris Seebacher ZVG Privat)

An ÖBB customer from Lower Austria is annoyed because the ticket he bought shortly before departure was only valid two hours later. He therefore had to buy another ticket from the conductor.

Heinz K. was looking forward to a trip to Maria Anzbach in the district of St. Pölten - environmentally conscious, comfortable and stress-free by train. In Wiener Neustadt, he bought his ticket from the ÖBB ticket machine shortly before the start of his journey and paid 20.80 euros - assuming that his ticket was valid immediately. Shortly afterwards, he boarded the train at 10.10 am.

Nasty surprise at the ticket inspection
Soon afterwards, the conductor came to check the tickets. However, he pointed out to K. that his ticket was only valid from 11.33 am. And that he would therefore have to buy a new ticket, which would be valid from now on.

"In hindsight, I think that the ticket would be valid within two hours before and after 11.33 a.m. - i.e. from 9.33 a.m. to 1.33 p.m. - according to the print. Despite my clear objections, the train attendant insisted that I buy a new ticket for the route I had already paid for," says the annoyed passenger.

Wrong purchase or not? The passenger would have expected more goodwill from the conductor.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Doris Seebacher ZVG Privat)

He also doesn't remember entering a time when buying the ticket. "I followed the menu at the ticket machine and I certainly didn't enter a two-hour delay and therefore a waiting time at the station," K asserts.

I paid and am now one experience richer. My conclusion: ÖBB, no thanks!

Heinz K., Ex-ÖBB-Fahrgast

ÖBB: "Ticket was not yet valid"
ÖBB very much regrets this incident, but emphasizes that the train attendant acted correctly in this case. "After inspecting the ticket, it turns out that the passenger purchased it at 9.40 am - with a selected start of validity from 11.33 am. However, he then used an earlier connection. At the time of the check, the ticket was therefore not yet valid," says the railroad press office. And further: "ÖBB has been working for a long time to make the rules for starting a journey more flexible in order to avoid precisely such situations in future."

Unfortunately, it was too late for Heinz K. He was left with a bitter aftertaste of the "overly strict ticket inspector" and one more unpleasant experience with ÖBB. He will avoid train journeys in future.