Seems like an anomaly................what is the point of the fare?

[whole diary]

[Mookiemoo]

Just been looking up the cost of single first class fares from Reading to Worcester .........

journey Planner reveals:

Off Peak - 57.40
Anytime - 43.50

no, knowing how it works, I SUSPECT the 57.40 is route Stroud or Evesham and the 43.50 is route Evesham.  Yet the journey planner only returns direct Worcester trains (or change at Oxford).

Except if i force it to go via stroud it comes up with 52.50 so that cant be it....

So- why would you buy an off peak for 14 quid more than an anytime? 

[TheLastMinute]

The 43.50 fare is a 1st Anytime Day Single and the other is a 1st Off-peak day return, there being no off peak 1st single fare on this route.

TLM

[Tim]

Having spend 3 hours of my weekend trying to figure out what fares are valid from Worcester to Brighton travelling via Bath (Motherin law, making trip and meeting wife in Bath) an avioding Reading (to save money), I reckon I have a understand them a bit more than I did.  

I think that the expensive off peak fare if it is any permitted might be valid via Birmingham (ie, Euston, BNS^▸ (Barnes (not Birmingham New Street)), Worcester).  The anytime fare will be routed via Stroud or Evesham.  There seem to be three routes south of Worcester - (any permitted (which allows you to go via Birmingham), NOT birmingham (which allows you to go via Stroud, Evesham or Birstol TM^‡(resolve)) and via Stroud/evesham)

[Mookiemoo]

Thanks

I suppose you can commend it for giving you the cheap return option even though you only look for a single journey

Still as clear as mud

[Tim]

I suppose you can commend it for giving you the cheap return option even though you only look for a single journey

But you asked for a single.  Offering a return might be commentable if it was cheaper than the return, but if it os more expensive why offer it.

Angel, I know you work with computers.  I hate the things, but it tickles me that the ticket websites say "two singles might be cheaper - click here to check".  Surely checking to see if two singles are cheaper than a return is exactly the kind of thing that a computer ought to be able to do and do better than a human. 

[JayMac]

Having spend 3 hours of my weekend trying to figure out what fares are valid from Worcester to Brighton travelling via Bath (Motherin law, making trip and meeting wife in Bath) an avioding Reading (to save money), I reckon I have a understand them a bit more than I did.  

I think that the expensive off peak fare if it is any permitted might be valid via Birmingham (ie, Euston, BNS^▸ (Barnes (not Birmingham New Street)), Worcester).  The anytime fare will be routed via Stroud or Evesham.  There seem to be three routes south of Worcester - (any permitted (which allows you to go via Birmingham), NOT birmingham (which allows you to go via Stroud, Evesham or Birstol TM^‡(resolve)) and via Stroud/evesham)

Nope. Both the fares Angel quoted are Route: EVESHAM. There are no fares available RDG^‡(resolve)-WOS^» (Worcester Shrub Hill - next trains)/WOF via BHM at all. At least not that I can find online, or using my NFM^▸ (National Fares Manual) CD^▸ (Capital Delivery)-Rom. You would need to buy multiple tickets for a journey via BHM, if you wished to travel through Banbury or via London.

Having said that, a Route: EVESHAM/STROUD ticket does appear to allow travel via Bristol and Cheltenham at no additional cost. This is a little strange as Bristol is way off either the Evesham or Stroud routes. So you can travel RDG-BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains), BPW-CNM^» (Cheltenham Spa - next trains), CNM-WOF/WOS on this ticket. Little point doing it this way on an first class ticket though as the final leg is going to be in a standard class only Class 15x. 

[Tim]

Having said that, a Route: EVESHAM/STROUD ticket does appear to allow travel via Bristol and Cheltenham at no additional cost. This is a little strange as Bristol is way off either the Evesham or Stroud routes. So you can travel RDG^‡(resolve)-BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains), BPW-CNM^» (Cheltenham Spa - next trains), CNM-WOF/WOS^» (Worcester Shrub Hill - next trains) on this ticket. Little point doing it this way on an first class ticket though as the final leg is going to be in a standard class only Class 15x. 

How can that be so?  Is it an error in the website or an easement?

[JayMac]

Having said that, a Route: EVESHAM/STROUD ticket does appear to allow travel via Bristol and Cheltenham at no additional cost. This is a little strange as Bristol is way off either the Evesham or Stroud routes. So you can travel RDG^‡(resolve)-BPW^» (Bristol Parkway - next trains), BPW-CNM^» (Cheltenham Spa - next trains), CNM-WOF/WOS^» (Worcester Shrub Hill - next trains) on this ticket. Little point doing it this way on an first class ticket though as the final leg is going to be in a standard class only Class 15x. 

How can that be so?  Is it an error in the website or an easement?

It is indeed a strange one. There are no easements listed in the Routeing Guide (excepting during engineering works) But the NRES^▸ (National Rail Enquiry Service) journey planner does allow you to travel via BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains)/BPW on the EVESHAM/STROUD fare.

Note options 1 and 3 below: