Great Western Coffee Shop

A question for the smokers ...

When changing trains at a gated station, you'll often need to go out through the gates if you want a quick nicotine fix ... should be allowed (not sure on advance tickets?).     However, I have a report of their being some sort of time delay in break of journey so that when you exit you have to wait 5 minutes (?) before you're allowed back in?

Same question could apply to visiting loos which are outside the barrier, or a shop on the concourse or the ticked office or machines to pick up future tickets.

Is there a problem with going out and then back in within a couple of minutes? - I can't recall any conditions that suggest breaks of journey mustn't be short ... just that the train you resume on must be a valid train for your ticket.

It’s rare for any barriers to be programmed to allow break of journey, whatever the ticket type.  I’d always assume you’ll have to be let through manually.

Paul

I don't bother with ticket I allways ask the staff at the barrier who have allways obliged me ,usually have to show ticket on the way back in.

The time delay is to prevent pass back, staff on the barrier will either let you out and you use your ticket to re-enter, or vice versa.

Not had that sort of problem myself but my broken journeys are usually for more than a few minutes. As long as the gates are manned, I'm confident that the staff will let me though with a valid ticket even if the machine spits it out without opening the gate.

Mind you, when I read the thread title I did have a different impression of the topic matter!  :D

Yup, this is your answer. But often near 10mins where gates are programmed, some aren't. Always ask to be let out, explaining why & there shouldn't be a problem. Also to use shops on concourse

When I was in Worthing recently, I visited the cafe opposite the station. They said they don't have a toilet for customer use but said they can use those in the station, which means going through the barrier. When I went over and explained this to the station staff, they were very begrudging, intimating that they were really fed up with the cafe sending people over to use their facilities.

If you go to Waterloo (main) on a "London Terminals" ticket, the barriers will give the ticket back to you (as they should), hang onto it - the loos on the platforms at Waterloo East are free !!

Let people nip out for a pee and a smoke...……….I remember doing so on innumerable occasions having missed late night trains after too many ales and having to wait a long time for the next one...……...we were all young once...…...weren't we?  ;)

Pretty much always have problems at Cardiff Central and Bristol Temple Meads when popping to the shops that are located outside the gateline at both stations. Only with the barriers though. Staff have always been helpful though - never had an issue after explaining to someone.

I have the same problem with my annual ticket, if I try to go through the barrier twice within a couple of minutes, I assume it is to stop people handing tickets back to friends and people getting onto the station on the same ticket

Had the problem numerous times at Reading and Maidenhead where I have left the "station" to visit the shops outside (but still within) the station. Staff always let me straight back in, never had an issue regaining access. Did freak me out the first time I did it as I couldn't work out what had happened!

You should be okay as long as the gates don't swallow your card so that you have no proof to show the guards and then have to buy another one. Hang on, I hope no GWR senior management are taking notes here! 😯

When I went to Heathrow a couple of weeks ago, I got off a GWR service at Paddington, went through the barrier so I could go around to get on HEX. The barrier promptly ate my All Routes Heathrow Rail ticket. Spoke to the gateline staff and showed her the Return portion and she happily opened up the barrier to fish out the ticket for me.

What I was most impressed by, was how she almost went straight to it in the pile of a zillion tickets which had been fed into the machine while we were waiting - they must do it regularly to know how many tickets equals how far down the pile to look!  :)

Blimey, so it does happen then and quite a bit by the sound of it. It's never happened to me but now I'm a little more concerned. This is a particular nightmare scenario if you are time pressured or encounter unsympathetic or inexperienced staff.