GWR Reply regarding Off Peak Tickets and Booked Services

[SephenWorceste]

A few week back I was grateful for the advice of this forum about Worcester to Cheltenham tickets. The GWR only off peak tickets were showing on ticket booking sites as “Booked Services Only” . I just thought I would update you.

I raised the issue with GWR who have replied saying that Booked Services Only refers to any Off Peak service. They are “confident” that Booked Services Only is an “accurate” representation of any valid Off Peak Service”. Really?

At least GWR took the time to reply and to the specific question.

Thank you on this forum for your advice. Happy New Year.

Best wishes, Stephen.

PS. The answer from GWR is shown below with the name redacted (I have always wanted to say that).

“Thank you for contacting Great Western Railway in regards to your feedback regarding tickets.

Booked services only in the case of Off-Peak tickets refers to the services that fall within the validity of Off-Peak times and the operators and route restriction that ticket specifies, so we're confident that the information we're providing on the website is accurate. Passengers are also free to check the terms and conditions of any ticket retailed through us or any other ticket retailer to confirm when and where they're able to use it. The terms & conditions for Off Peak tickets can be found on the National Rail website at: https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/tick...-super-off-peak-tickets-terms-and-conditions/

However we appreciate your comments and value feedback in all forms so I'll be sure to pass these on to our team for consideration. We're always looking at ways to improve the service we provide.

If I can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to let me know.

Thank you for getting in touch.

Yours sincerely

XXXXXX

Customer Service Advisor”

PPS. Following feedback I have used the word refers and corrected train to service. I hope this makes it clearer, uses terms appropriately, and as GWR meant in their reply.

 

[Adam Williams]

Nonsensical reply.

I have complained to RDG about it. There are 80 ticket-flow combinations affected. They will hopefully reach out to a pricing manager who has a bit more of a clue than whoever responded to that support query.

 

[jfollows]

There’s no such thing as an Off Peak Train, for starters. However, you appear to have misquoted them because they didn’t use this term, did they?

 

[SephenWorceste]

There’s no such thing as an Off Peak Train, for starters. However, you appear to have misquoted them because they didn’t use this term, did they?

You are right they referred to services. I without thinking I substituted the word train. I will correct. Thank you.

Just curious. Are there any services that are not trains?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 2 Jan 2026 ==

Nonsensical reply.

I have complained to RDG about it. There are 80 ticket-flow combinations affected. They will hopefully reach out to a pricing manager who has a bit more of a clue than whoever responded to that support query.

Thank you. Hopefully they will make it clearer and less restrictive to passengers.

 

[fandroid]

You are right they referred to services. I without thinking I substituted the word train. I will correct. Thank you.

Just curious. Are there any services that are not trains?


Thank you. Hopefully they will make it clearer and less restrictive to passengers.

I think that the issue is that there are neither Off-Peak trains nor Off-Peak services, just Off-Peak tickets. This is a seriously old chestnut which regularly gets discussed here due to the notorious ticket rejection behaviour of, especially, GWR gateline staff at Paddington

 

[Adam Williams]

Thank you. Hopefully they will make it clearer and less restrictive to passengers.

The route description has been fixed, the change will take effect in tonight's feed update and should be effective from tomorrow across all retailers.

 

[yorkie]

A few week back I was grateful for the advice of this forum about Worcester to Cheltenham tickets. The GWR only off peak tickets were showing on ticket booking sites as “Booked Services Only” . I just thought I would update you.

I raised the issue with GWR who have replied saying that Booked Services Only refers to any Off Peak service. They are “confident” that Booked Services Only is an “accurate” representation of any valid Off Peak Service”. Really?

At least GWR took the time to reply and to the specific question.

Thank you on this forum for your advice. Happy New Year.

Best wishes, Stephen.

PS. The answer from GWR is shown below with the name redacted (I have always wanted to say that).



PPS. Following feedback I have used the word refers and corrected train to service. I hope this makes it clearer, uses terms appropriately, and as GWR meant in their reply.

In other words, they don't actually value any feedback we provide and are so incredibly ignorant that they aren't prepared to accept they are wrong.

This response is unfortunately not at all unexpected, from a company of GWR's reputation and is in line with a what you can expect from train companies in Great Britain generally.

 

[SephenWorceste]

The route description has been fixed, the change will take effect in tonight's feed update and should be effective from tomorrow across all retailers.

They must have listened to you. That is really good to know. Thank you for this.

Best wishes, Stephen.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 2 Jan 2026 ==

In other words, they don't actually value any feedback we provide and are so incredibly ignorant that they aren't prepared to accept they are wrong.

This response is unfortunately not at all unexpected, from a company of GWR's reputation and is in line with a what you can expect from train companies in Great Britain generally.

I thought there reply was nonsense and wrong. If anything an insult to my intelligence.

From another other post it seems the issue is resolved so it should be correct in future. That is good news.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 2 Jan 2026 ==

I think that the issue is that there are neither Off-Peak trains nor Off-Peak services, just Off-Peak tickets. This is a seriously old chestnut which regularly gets discussed here due to the notorious ticket rejection behaviour of, especially, GWR gateline staff at Paddington

Thank you. I will look that topic up.

 

[jfollows]

Thank you. I will look that topic up.

Essentially, “off peak” tickets define what “off peak” means.

Because many “off peak” tickets from Paddington, for example, have the same evening restrictions, many staff there refer to “off peak trains” and refuse people with “off peak” tickets who correctly want to use them.

For example, an off-peak return Didcot-Ashford (Kent) had and probably still has no afternoon restrictions. Yet someone who had one was repeatedly refused access to trains at Paddington because the staff wrongly made up the rule that it was an “off peak train” on which no off peak tickets were valid.

This continues today and we see regular reports here of this nonsense still.

This has been going on for many years.

See https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...idity-spectacularly-wrong.110909/post-2044780 from 2015, for one example.

 

[SephenWorceste]

Essentially, “off peak” tickets define what “off peak” means.

Because many “off peak” tickets from Paddington, for example, have the same evening restrictions, many staff there refer to “off peak trains” and refuse people with “off peak” tickets who correctly want to use them.

For example, an off-peak return Didcot-Ashford (Kent) had and probably still has no afternoon restrictions. Yet someone who had one was repeatedly refused access to trains at Paddington because the staff wrongly made up the rule that it was an “off peak train” on which no off peak tickets were valid.

This continues today and we see regular reports here of this nonsense still.

This has been going on for many years.

See https://www.railforums.co.uk/thread...idity-spectacularly-wrong.110909/post-2044780 from 2015, for one example.

Oh Gosh. At some point you really have to stop digging the hole. Managers generally know when but obviously not in this case.

 

[jfollows]

It’s dreadful, but it’s the way things work. In particular, staff make up the rules when they don’t know, and they’re in a position of power, eg denying people with valid tickets access to trains. Their management does not appear to care, after rolling out trite words.

 

[redreni]

The whole point of renaming all the ticket types was so people wouldn't confuse the three types: Anytime, Off-peak and Advance (booked train only). If an off-peak ticket purports to have a "booked services only" restriction, that's obviously wrong and it shouldn't require somebody with specific contacts at the TOCs to get it fixed.

Thanks to @Adam Williams for bringing this to the attention of the relevant person and getting a result, though! Top stuff!!

 

[jayah]

It’s dreadful, but it’s the way things work. In particular, staff make up the rules when they don’t know, and they’re in a position of power, eg denying people with valid tickets access to trains. Their management does not appear to care, after rolling out trite words.

See the never ending saga of Boundary Zone 6 to places like Haywards Heath.

That is not valid on this red train. It is only allowed on trains that stop at either East Croydon or Coulsdon South.

 

[MikeWh]

See the never ending saga of Boundary Zone 6 to places like Haywards Heath.

That is not valid on this red train. It is only allowed on trains that stop at either East Croydon or Coulsdon South.

That's nonsense. Both an inboundary travelcard and a boundary zone 6 ticket are any permitted, thus they can be used on any train under the more than one ticket being valid for a journey system.