Questions tagged [national-rail]
National Rail, the name of the association of the passenger train operating companies of Great Britain.
42 questions
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How much flexibility do I have when a delay has caused me to miss my connection (UK national rail)?
Suppose I have bought an advance single ticket for a UK rail journey that requires a change of trains at some intermediate point. By default, my ticket is valid only on a specific pair of trains. ...
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3
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1
answer
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"Mandatory reservation" on Off-Peak ticket?
I have booked Super Off-Peak tickets from London to Bath and back. My understanding is that this ticket allows me to travel on any train (peak restrictions not being applicable on weekends). However, ...
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5
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1
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Tickets from Bond Street to Windsor
I will be visiting London for the first time and staying near Bond Street station. I want to visit Windsor by train. Apparently the best option is to take an Elizabeth line train from Bond Street to ...
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5
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3
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Can I board a train without a valid ticket if I have a Rail Travel Voucher
If I have a Rail Travel Voucher, received due to delay repay, and the ticket office at my departing station is closed, and I obviously cannot use it the ticket machine, can I board the train and pay ...
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3
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Can I combine two "consecutive" tickets on the same journey without leaving the train?
I booked off-peak return tickets from London to Oxford. Unfortunately I mis-tapped in the Trainline app and accidentally bought tickets to Oxford Parkway rather than Oxford (the main station). Parkway ...
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14
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2
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Will my Oyster card work on Farringdon to Brighton Thameslink rail?
I am planning to travel from Farringdon to Brighton using National Rail operated by ThamesLink. Can I use my Oyster card for this journey or do I have to buy a separate ticket?
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4
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1
answer
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How to find the best-priced UK train ticket combos for not-quite-round trip journeys?
I do a lot of walking and hiking in the UK. Frequently, I need to find the best combination of tickets that will get me to the start of the walk and then bring me home. This is simple if the walk ...
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1
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Which train stations near the Oyster boundary have contactless validators on (train) platforms?
On lines that have a London terminus, which stations have contactless validators easily accessible?
Because of how comparatively cheap contactless fares are, it can be advantageous when travelling ...
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12
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1
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UK Station served by greatest number of TOCs?
Liverpool Lime Street is served by seven Train Operating Companies:
Avanti West Coast
Merseyrail
East Midlands Trains
Transpennine Express
Trains for Wales (via the recently reopened Halton Curve)
...
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9
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3
answers
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Can I use any route to get to my destination on national rail?
To give some context, I'm currently stuck at a station where the line splits to go to several different locations, so my question is: can I go on a different train that goes past my destination ...
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10
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3
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If I buy a super off-peak ticket, can I travel on a off-peak train and pay the difference?
So I always try and buy the cheapest, off peak ticket - i.e super-off-peak.
Sitting here at my desk on a long Thursday, I really want to get that earlier train which is "normal" off peak - but alas, ...
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13
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1
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Which railway stations in the UK only offer travel in one direction?
Despite living relatively nearby, I have just recently learnt about Pilning station. That I have been unaware of it until now is not particularly surprising, as there are only two services a week. (it ...
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2
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2
answers
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Are National Rail tickets the same price as TFL Oyster for the same route?
Today I travelled from Orpington to London Charing Cross. Both are National Railway stations and I bought an Anytime Day Return from a ticket machine at Orpington for £14.60.
It was only after I ...
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5
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1
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Fareham to london
I need to visit someone in Reading I have an open return from Fareham to London. Can I disembark at Reading for a few hours then get back on a train using the same ticket?
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21
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4
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Can I board a UK train I am booked on half way with a mobile, advanced ticket? [duplicate]
I have a ticket from Southampton to Manchester in the next month or so. Its a non-refundable Single Advance ticket but due to circumstances out of my control, I won't be in Southhampton on the date - ...
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5
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3
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Season ticket from Ashchurch for Tewkesbury to Five Ways (Birmingham) - What are the permitted routes?
I will be commuting between these two stations beginning 11th September, and was wondering what exactly the term "all permitted routes" means.
My typical route will be that I take the 08.05 from ...
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2
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Can I use an Oyster card to travel to Welwyn Garden City?
I’ll be taking the Great Northern train from London’s King’s Cross station to Welwyn Garden City. Can I use an Oyster card for this? Is there a weekly pass that I can use? I’ll be traveling this route ...
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5
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1
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Am I missing a seat reservation or any other part of my ticket?
I bought advanced singles (from the East Midlands Railways website) to Hope (Derbyshire) from London and back, which has an East Midlands leg till Sheffield and a Northern leg further to Hope (see ...
- 1,282
7
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1
answer
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Very cheap but inaccessible UK train fares
While searching the fare spectrum for London - Birmingham, I found these but the main BRFares listing(at the bottom of the page) says "Not normally available for purchase." When are these tickets ...
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6
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1
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Is a Super Off Peak ThamesLink fare accepted on the London Overground?
I have a ticket (see below for the actual ticket) on a weekend, and intend to use it to travel from St Pancras to Brighton and back. It says that it is not valid on the London Underground.
Can I use ...
- 1,282
13
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1
answer
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How do I calculate the required time between London Terminals?
According to BR Times, the Minimum Connection Time between London Paddington and London St. Pancras is 20 minutes from 0700 until 2359 or 25 minutes otherwise. It also notes the minimum connection ...
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10
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1
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What is the meaning of the icons in and the letters below the train drawing on a UK train announcement board?
At this train announcement board, there are two lines near the bottom. One with a drawing of a train, below that letters. The letters refer to coach numbers, so this does not tell me where on the ...
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46
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8
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Any railway stations more than 1 change from London?
This question is just for curiosity, rather than for anything practical.
Is there any railway station in the UK from which it is not possible to get to London with only 1 change? The obvious ...
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7
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2
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252
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Anytime offpeak tickets: purchase in advance without specifying a day?
I often travel Oxford to London offpeak, so it'd be convenient if I could pre-purchase a stack of anytime offpeak tickets, rather than having to queue when I get to the train station (they only have a ...
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4
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1
answer
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UK Off-Peak Day return ticket with restriction forcing use of specific trains?
I have an Off-Peak Day Return ticket from Hull [HUL] to Leeds [LDS]. When I purchased this ticket through the Northern app, I also reserved seats for both legs.
When I collected the tickets, I was ...
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6
votes
1
answer
364
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Is my domestic train component of a Rail&Sail ticket valid if I ignore the ferry?
An Anytime Return London to Glasgow costs £365. The same route in Off-Peak costs £137.60.
An Anytime Rail&Sail Return London to Belfast via Cairnyran costs £108.
Rail travel from London to ...
- 60.1k
10
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1
answer
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Is there a way to determine which UK rail trips have variable prices, based on advance purchase, vs. those that do not?
That is, is there a way to determine this without doing an actual search for each route on multiple days to see if the price changes?
I am traveling to London and considering several day/overnight ...
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11
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3
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Why does cost of the travel from zone 1 to zone 3 in London depend on means of transportation?
Wimbledon Station: zone 3
Waterloo Station: zone 1
The fastest way is to take a direct train that takes 16 minutes - Google Maps
The cheapest way is to take the Tube but it would take much longer.
...
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20
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3
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Being late to a train (UK) because of overground/underground cancellation?
I had this happen to me a month ago but I didn't want to risk it, so didn't find out myself what would happen in such a case.
I had two single advance tickets with Virgin Trains. One in the morning to ...
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2
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124
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Can I use a return ticket to leave from Birmingham International and return to New Street?
I will be flying to Birmingham in a few days. I will go somewhere else near Banbury for a few days and then return to the city.
If I buy an off-peak return ticket BHI-BAN-BHI or BHM-BAN-BHM for that ...
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21
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2
answers
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What does the letter "A" signify at the end of the expiry date on a British rail ticket?
I just bought a 7 day season ticket this morning when I noticed the letter "A" at the end of the expiry date. The last time I bought the same ticket on the same route, there was no letter.
Does this ...
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9
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1
answer
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Until when can you (for a fee) change a UK advanced purchase train ticket?
As detailed on the National Rail Enquiries page for Advanced Purchase tickets:
Advance fares are valid only on the date and train shown on the ticket and are non-refundable. You can change the time ...
- 63k
6
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1
answer
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Can delays permit me to taken an earlier train?
Suppose that I have a booked train only ticket (such as an Advance fare) consisting of more than one segment.
If the first train is late and I miss my connection to the second train, I can take a ...
- 60.1k
7
votes
1
answer
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How to get from North Wales to Cambridge?
I'm looking for a fast way of getting from North Wales (30-40km radius from Dolgellau) to Cambridge on a Sunday evening by public transport. I found a train that takes 6h, with a change in Birmingham ...
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4
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1
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UK Rail Season Ticket and Intermediate Stations
Suppose I have a UK rail season ticket for journeys between stations A and D on the following line:
---A---B---C---D---
Can I use the same season ticket to make the following journeys:
A to B
C to ...
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22
votes
2
answers
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Identifying reserved seats on British trains
Is there a clear way to tell on British trains (generally) which seats/tables are reserved seats? In Germany we definitely made some mistakes accidentally taking seats that were eventually reserved, ...
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3
votes
1
answer
548
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Using Britrail Pass - reservations
We decided to go with the Britrail pass for our journey (thanks for the recommendation there). I understand it's like a German train ticket (my only European experience) in that you can get on ...
- 2,678
11
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2
answers
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Buying/using Railcard (UK) from USA
I'll be in the UK in a few weeks, and will do some train travelling with my wife and two (under 5) children. The kids are free on trains, yay, so we're planning to get a Two Together railcard (As we'...
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5
votes
2
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What's the point of reserving a seat when purchasing an Off-Peak/Anytime train ticket with National Rail?
My understanding is that Off-Peak UK National Rail train tickets can be used on any train serving the selected route, as long as the travelling time window fits in the off-peak definition. Or Buy ...
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15
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6
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Heathrow to Oxford without going through London
I will be traveling to Oxford, UK this summer. My flight lands at Heathrow around 12:30pm on a Sunday; it is on British Airways so I believe it will arrive at Terminal 5. Based on this map and other ...
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5
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1
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How early before departure can I reserve train tickets in the UK?
I'm trying to book a train journey in the UK for September. We are currently in April and the National Rail website does not allow me to reserve tickets such a long time (5 months) in advance.
So ...
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8
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What is the best way to travel cheap through Scotland?
I wanted to travel to Scotland this summer with my girlfriend, but I must admit I feel a little overwhelmed with options. Is there any carpooling service?
When traveling with buses, do I have to book ...
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