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123
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All across the Great Western territory / Fare's Fair / Re: "Tickets not available"
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on: February 17, 2023, 15:38:00
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Yes, you are probably correct to a degree, but your response almost seems to imply that you should take a legal advisor with you before setting out on a train journey. Perhaps my daughter should get a "two together" card.
You are answering my question from the same viewpoint as I was when I "queried" her statement regarding travel via SOU - you and I both have some experience of the peculiarities of the ticket system. My daughter, like the overwhelming majority of rail travellers, is not quite so au fait with the ticketing jungle.
She had been told by a TOC▸ website that a £48.60 ticket would take her to WMN» via SOU. I had checked that on the GWR▸ and NR» websites and found that to be correct. Why, then a couple of days later, should she have to read all the small print on her ticket as to what route she can use - having already been told that ? Also, I would hazard a guess and say that the ticket might well have carried the usual meaningless statement about "valid on any permitted route" (talk about blindingly obvious) ..............totally useless to the average rail traveller ! Routes printed on tickets are invariably sketchy to say the least. Would it have said NOT valid via SOU (or Weymouth ?) - more likely to have said via SAL, which it still was !
The web tells would-be passengers to check valid routes on the National Rail website - I did just that - and was told the route and fare, on the day in question, were both valid. Why check two days later that they still are valid ? The web also tells would be passengers that they can check on the National Routing Guide................how many people have even heard of that document, let alone how to use it ? ("PLEASE NOTE this guide is of necessity a complex document" - from the ATOC» website !) OR to ask the Ticket Seller (if there is one there). I did ask the very competent lady at WMN station this morning - she couldn't explain it either, but did (after a lot of keyboard bashing) offer a multi ticket route via SOU for £85.............NR couldn't offer any fare.
Had I not double checked her designated train (just to see if it was still running) my daughter could well have ended up putting forward a seemingly “the dog ate my homework” excuse - when a hungry dog actually did………………and still have got a large bill !!
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124
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All across the Great Western territory / Fare's Fair / "Tickets not available"
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on: February 17, 2023, 12:47:28
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My daughter was planning to travel from Kent to Warminster today. She had to cancel at the last minute - but the planned journey has come up with something I do not understand.
She checked the train times/fares a few days ago and found a service from Kent via WAE/WAT to WMN» on a Super Off Peak Return ticket...............but it said "via Southampton". This struck me as a bit odd - so I checked it online and it was there exactly as she had said. She intended to buy her ticket from the machine on her local station (often not manned) on the day of departure.
Last night I checked that the trains were still running OK and found that her chosen route now said "tickets not available". I could not find any fares quoted for her planned jouney.
Question: If I had not checked the status of her chosen train - what would have happened if she had purchased a Super Off Peak ticket (as the web site had told her a few days previously) and boarded this train ? I have now been told that "via SOU" is not a valid route so, she would not have had a valid ticket. A £100 Penalty fare + £?? to make the ticket valid ..............who knows ? That is assuming that the Guard/gate staff would have had a clue as to what was going on either!
She would have had absolutely no proof that she bought her ticket in good faith - and I also checked that this fare/route was valid. I assumed it was valid as the reduced service from WAT to SAL, (because of the problems at Hook) now meant that it was actually quicker to do this journey via SOU - no 58 min wait at SAL !
I have told her take a screen shot of any fares/routes that she is "offered" on the web in future.
Has anyone come across this sort of thing before ? or can offer an insight as to what is/was going on ?
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129
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All across the Great Western territory / Fare's Fair / Re: GWR Advance as an eticket
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on: January 21, 2023, 10:40:41
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As an aside: WMN» - CFR single, on the day - £16.95: two weeks prior, Split tickets, Advance plus "Evening Out Single" - £7.85.
Those evening out singles are really useful  . ... Portsmouth and Southsea to Melksham later in the day (e.g. Ferry arrival from Cherbourg) works well with a Romsey split. Especially as the "Evening" is deemed to start at 1200 ! |
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130
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All across the Great Western territory / Fare's Fair / Re: GWR Advance as an eticket
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on: January 21, 2023, 10:20:51
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I've used that card numerous times on line/with App with no problems.
My whole trip (above) is actually to Chandlers Ford, some time after collecting the ticket from the booking office I thought that I should have bought the ticket from ROM to CFR while I was there. I attempted to buy it on line this morning............worked perfectly ! When I checked on the App to see if the eticket was there, it was - along with the booking code for the WMN» - ROM leg !!! It couldn't send the ticket to my phone but it could send the booking code.................most odd !
As an aside: WMN - CFR single, on the day - £16.95: two weeks prior, Split tickets, Advance plus "Evening Out Single" - £7.85.
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131
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All across the Great Western territory / Fare's Fair / GWR Advance as an eticket
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on: January 19, 2023, 12:12:23
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I tried to buy an Advance ticket (WMN» to ROM for 31st Jan) from the GWR▸ website. It would not give me the option to have it as an eticket. The website clearly states that Advance tickets can be "collected" as an eticket. I tried the mobile App with the same result. I then tried entering some different Advance journeys on the same date - all of these were offered as etickets.
I have never had this problem before. Is the issuance of an eticket route or fare dependent ?
When I went to the station to collect the ticket, the machine wouldn't recognise my bank card - so I had to join the queue at the booking office. The "speed and convenience" of buying an eticket must have wasted about 2 hours of my time in total !! Progress ?
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