Help! For Tomorrow

[AlterEgo]

Hi all

I'm due to go to Birmingham New Street from Milton Keynes tomorrow. I need to be in Birmingham for about 0830 and will be leaving around 1700. Looking on the Trainline and other sites, it wants to sell me an Off-Peak Return, which involves me catching the 0713 from Milton Keynes arriving at 0808.

Surely this is a peak-time train and my ticket wouldn't be valid?

Why is the booking engine telling me I can buy an Off-Peak ticket for this train??
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Sorry chaps, forgot to addd I have a 16-25 Railcard.

 

[scotsman]

If it tries to sell you the ticket, then by implication it is valid. Howver, I'd use Virgin Trains' own site, since the trainline adds booking fees

 

[ainsworth74]

Can't help you with the validity however if you buy tickets on line don't buy them from websites like the trainline they charge booking fees. When you want to buy tickets use a TOC website (like London Midland's website).

 

[Lad Brookes]

It's an Off Peak Return priced by Virgin, so has no peak restrictions if with a Railcard.

 

[AlterEgo]

Oh yes - I know about the "evils" of Trainline! Was just checking the booking engines for LM and Trainline showed the same tickets for the same price.

Just checked - Southern's site will also sell me the ticket.

Bizarre....

EDIT - Lad Brookes, many thanks. I wasn't aware of Off Peak fares being priced like this - I simply assumed that for arriving in a big city like Birmingham at a time like 0808, it HAD to be a peak train....

 

[LexyBoy]

Hi all

I'm due to go to Birmingham New Street from Milton Keynes tomorrow. I need to be in Birmingham for about 0830 and will be leaving around 1700. Looking on the Trainline and other sites, it wants to sell me an Off-Peak Return, which involves me catching the 0713 from Milton Keynes arriving at 0808.

Surely this is a peak-time train and my ticket wouldn't be valid?

Why is the booking engine telling me I can buy an Off-Peak ticket for this train??
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Sorry chaps, forgot to addd I have a 16-25 Railcard.

Don't Virgin allow those with railcards to use off-peak tickets on all trains? Don't know about LM, but if it's a Virgin train that would be why.

 

[Lad Brookes]

EDIT - Lad Brookes, many thanks. I wasn't aware of Off Peak fares being priced like this - I simply assumed that for arriving in a big city like Birmingham at a time like 0808, it HAD to be a peak train....

I should've made it clearer in my original post...

But the lack of a peak restriction on an Off Peak Return that Virgin set the fare for is ONLY on Virgin Trains services, not on any train.

 

[AlterEgo]

LexyBoy, I suspect you're right. It would only sell me the ticket for a Virgin service and none of the surrounding, slower, LM ones.

EDIT - Thanks Lad Brookes. Question answered 100%!

This site's great. 15 minutes and my problem's solved. Thanks to all!

 

[Mojo]

I know the question's been answered but for the record there is no such thing as a "peak time train" for ticketing purposes. Every ticket has its own restriction, for example an Off-peak return from Milton Keynes to Wick is valid on any train after 04.15.

 

[RJ]

Don't Virgin allow those with railcards to use off-peak tickets on all trains? Don't know about LM, but if it's a Virgin train that would be why.

No. Not between London Euston and Milton Keynes Central, peak restrictions still apply.

 

[bb21]

No. Not between London Euston and Milton Keynes Central, peak restrictions still apply.

Is this new this year? Under the provision of NFM07 I was allowed to travel on the return portion of a Y-P Nuneaton - London Terminals Route Direct Off-Peak Return during the afternoon restricted period on Virgin.

 

[John @ home]

I was allowed to travel on the return portion of a Y-P Nuneaton - London Terminals Route Direct Off-Peak Return during the afternoon restricted period on Virgin.

Nuneaton - London is OK; the fare is set by Virgin.

Milton Keynes - London is not; the Any Permitted fare is set by LM.

 

[bb21]

Nuneaton - London is OK; the fare is set by Virgin.

Milton Keynes - London is not; the Any Permitted fare is set by LM.

Yes of course. My apologies. I misunderstood what RJ was saying. I thought he meant that the section between EUS - MKC is now barred and the railcard easements no longer apply to it.

 

[First class]

This is written in The Manual and has been updated fairly recently:

Time restrictions
No time restriction is applied to the Railcard although minimum fares are applicable to certain ticket types for both outward and return journeys before 1000 Mondays to Fridays between September and June (except Public Holidays).

Off-Peak ticket types codes SVS and SVR purchased with a 16-25 or Young Persons Railcard are valid on any Virgin Train, where the route is not Virgin Trains Only and Virgin Trains price the flow, without time restriction