Chesterfield to Wokingham route options

[Teapot42]

I'm travelling down to Wokingham next week on business. Can someone please confirm if I've got the following correct?

I can break the outward journey in London on the way down? i.e. mooch around for a few hours then continue? (Assuming buying a via London ticket of course!)

What departure restrictions apply from Paddington? (To Reading) My understanding is that as the journey starts outside London I can use any train, but it seems unclear. And I've read somewhere about 'Paddington Rules' which may muddy the waters.

Am I right in thinking routings are one or the other, not both? In other words, the more expensive via London ticket wouldn't be valid on the non-London route? Ideally I'd want to travel down via London but back by XC. Are route excesses allowed, and can they be done with digital tickets, or would I have to go to the booking office to arrange this?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Haywain]

My understanding is that as the journey starts outside London I can use any train,

That is a poor understanding and you should refer to the restrction code associated with the ticket type that you will be using.

 

[jfollows]

Chesterfield-Wokingham “any permitted” tickets are valid via London and map RY at https://rgpp.iblocks.co.uk/maps

Your ticket may restrict this further.

Your ticket may also have time restrictions if it’s not an “anytime” ticket.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Mar 2026 ==

Paddington-Wokingham via Reading is valid on an “any permitted” ticket. Subject to restrictions of the specific ticket.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Mar 2026 ==

Tickets appear to be either “via London” or “not via London”.

In the former case you can break your journey within the other restrictions of the ticket.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Mar 2026 ==

A more expensive route is also normally valid using a cheaper route.

Where the fare specifies a particular route, there will be restrictions in the fare routes data that will affect the routes listed in the Guide which pass through the station shown in the route description. The National Routeing Guide may be used to find out how to reach the station shown in the route description. Where there are other permitted routes, these may also be used for the same journey provided the same or a lower fare applies.

 

[Hadders]

I can break the outward journey in London on the way down? i.e. mooch around for a few hours then continue? (Assuming buying a via London ticket of course!)

We need to know exactly what ticket you’re using for your journey.

Is it an Anytime, Off Peak or Super Off Peak ticket?

 

[Teapot42]

We need to know exactly what ticket you’re using for your journey.

Is it an Anytime, Off Peak or Super Off Peak ticket?

Sorry, it will be Super Off Peak if via London. The other route only seems to offer Off-Peak tickets.
Intending to leave Chesterfield around lunchtime on the way down, leave Wokingham after 5pm on the way back.

As noted elsewhere there doesn't appear to be an AP ticket for this route, or at least not one I can find easily.

 

[jfollows]

If you mean “any permitted” then, no, so you restrict the tickets that do exist appropriately.

 

[Teapot42]

That is a poor understanding and you should refer to the restrction code associated with the ticket type that you will be using.

Sorry, I phrased that badly. I meant the restrictions were based on my ticket, not those published for the London terminal in question. I read elsewhere that ticket types that would normally not be valid from Paddington at a certain time usually are if the journey starts elsewhere.

The restriction code (CI) only appears to reference St Pancras.

 

[yorkie]

Do you mind being tied down to specific trains, or do you want flexibility?

 

[jfollows]

Ticket Restriction CI | National Rail

Ticket restriction details CI. Each train ticket restriction code states when and/or on what train(s) the ticket is not valid and the days and/or dates that these restrictions apply.

www.nationalrail.co.uk

Journeys to London Paddington please use 2Q, 2X, 5Q, WN, WP, XC & YV.

 

[Teapot42]

Do you mind being tied down to specific trains, or do you want flexibility?

I think it really needs flexibility.

Going to London I'm happy to choose a specific train, but onwards to Wokingham I'd prefer to have flexibility so I can mooch until I'm getting tired.

Coming back the workshop I'm attending may over-run, so I'd have to fix on something fairly late, meaning being home very late.

So, yes, I can tie down if it makes a massive difference, but flexibility would be useful if not.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Mar 2026 ==

If you mean “any permitted” then, no, so you restrict the tickets that do exist appropriately.

It's a long time since I travelled frequently by train. Is it common now to not have any Any Permitted fare for routes?

And would a route excess be allowed in this case, or are they only available where an Any Permitted ticket is available?

 

[yorkie]

I think it really needs flexibility.

Going to London I'm happy to choose a specific train, but onwards to Wokingham I'd prefer to have flexibility so I can mooch until I'm getting tired.

Coming back the workshop I'm attending may over-run, so I'd have to fix on something fairly late, meaning being home very late.

So, yes, I can tie down if it makes a massive difference, but flexibility would be useful if not.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Mar 2026 ==


It's a long time since I travelled frequently by train. Is it common now to not have any Any Permitted fare for routes?

And would a route excess be allowed in this case, or are they only available where an Any Permitted ticket is available?

The forum's site has an "open return" option, so you can select the specific seat of your choice, using the seat selector*, from Chesterfield to London, and you can take any train from London to Wokingham.

In the other direction, you'll have nothing booked, but can take any valid train as per the ticket restrictions.

Look up fares for any train journey in Britain

Full details of all British rail Single, Return & Season tickets and Travelcards. Built-in Season Ticket Calculator.

www.brfares.com

If you choose to travel back avoiding London, the excess is £0.00, and you can take any train from 09:30.

(* Note some EMR services to London do not offer reservations as a temporary measure due to the introduction of new trains)

 

[Teapot42]

Oh, and one more question, if I were to travel via London, would the ticket be valid via the Elizabeth Line and from a station other than Paddington? For example, could I wander to Tottenham Court Road and catch a direct train from there?

 

[jfollows]

It's a long time since I travelled frequently by train. Is it common now to not have any Any Permitted fare for routes?

Yes

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 8 Mar 2026 ==

Oh, and one more question, if I were to travel via London, would the ticket be valid via the Elizabeth Line and from a station other than Paddington? For example, could I wander to Tottenham Court Road and catch a direct train from there?

No.
You can exit at Tottenham Court Road if you want, but you can’t resume your journey from there later.

 

[Teapot42]

If you choose to travel back avoiding London, the excess is £0.00, and you can take any train from 09:30.

Is it worth asking at the ticket office for an excess to cover this, or should the guard(s) know this is allowed?

I don't want to risk getting a penalty fare I then have to appeal for something which should be valid...

 

[Teapot42]

If you particularly want to, you can try to get a zero fare excess at a ticket office beforehand, but you would probably have better luck getting the cheaper "not via London" fare and then paying the difference to the "via London" fare on the way out.

I was wondering about that actually. I'd quite like to make a seat reservation on a train back - XC can get busy - but if I buy the via London I presume this won't be possible? Certainly the site booking engine will only offer this route choice via two singles.

Not bothered about reserving a seat on the way out as trains are likely to be fairly quiet during the day, at least that's my experience.

 

[yorkie]

I was wondering about that actually. I'd quite like to make a seat reservation on a train back - XC can get busy - but if I buy the via London I presume this won't be possible? Certainly the site booking engine will only offer this route choice via two singles.

Not bothered about reserving a seat on the way out as trains are likely to be fairly quiet during the day, at least that's my experience.

You could book a return on the forum site, avoiding London each way, and use the seat selector to get the seat you want on the return.

You could then get a ticket office to excess the outward portion (you may have to shop around a bit).

 

[Teapot42]

You could book a return on the forum site, avoiding London each way, and use the seat selector to get the seat you want on the return.

You could then get a ticket office to excess the outward portion (you may have to shop around a bit).

I've done that, but I think I've made a strategic error. I somehow missed the option to collect the tickets at the station (I think I was too focused on booking seats) so I've now got an e-ticket. Can this be excessed via London? As Watershed mentions above, cross-London tickets can't be e-tickets. I wasn't actually planning on using the tube anyway so the fact they can't be scanned isn't an issue, I'm more worried that they won't be able to excess it.

Plan is to rock up at the station early tomorrow, if they can excess it then jump on the first train to London, if not then I just accept my detour won't work this time!

 

[MarlowDonkey]

Oh, and one more question, if I were to travel via London, would the ticket be valid via the Elizabeth Line and from a station other than Paddington? For example, could I wander to Tottenham Court Road and catch a direct train from there?

There are very frequent non stop and limited stop GWR trains from Paddongton to Reading whoch will overtake slower Elizabeth Line services.

 

[Teapot42]

There are very frequent non stop and limited stop GWR trains from Paddongton to Reading whoch will overtake slower Elizabeth Line services.

There are, but I was planning on heading to Chinatown, so I was reckoning the time from TCR to Reading direct was probably similar to getting from there to Paddington by bus / tube and getting a GWR service.

 

[yorkie]

I've done that, but I think I've made a strategic error. I somehow missed the option to collect the tickets at the station (I think I was too focused on booking seats) so I've now got an e-ticket. Can this be excessed via London? As Watershed mentions above, cross-London tickets can't be e-tickets. I wasn't actually planning on using the tube anyway so the fact they can't be scanned isn't an issue, I'm more worried that they won't be able to excess it.

Plan is to rock up at the station early tomorrow, if they can excess it then jump on the first train to London, if not then I just accept my detour won't work this time!

It makes no difference, however some ticket office staff may erroneously use it as an excuse not to issue the excess.

Once obtained, it would be the excess that you put through the barrier, so no issues there.

 

[Hadders]

There are, but I was planning on heading to Chinatown, so I was reckoning the time from TCR to Reading direct was probably similar to getting from there to Paddington by bus / tube and getting a GWR service.

It'll be quicker to take a fast GWR non-stop train from Reading to Paddington and then change to the Elizabeth Line, rather than taking the Elizabeth Line throughout from Reading.

 

[MarlowDonkey]

There are, but I was planning on heading to Chinatown, so I was reckoning the time from TCR to Reading direct was probably similar to getting from there to Paddington by bus / tube and getting a GWR service.

Nothing to stop you taking the Elizabeth Line to Paddington and then walking upstairs to get a GWR service.

The other route is to take the Central Line from TCR to Lancaster Gate. Paddington is just round the corner.

 

[Teapot42]

Ok, so the Reading service I'd booked was cancelled anyway, and the ticket office bloke actually knew what a route excess was and did it no problem.

Only thing is, and I didn't spot this at the time as I only had 5 minutes to get the next London train, but he's excessed both ways. Can you typically get a refund for this, and if so how would I go about doing it?

 

[Haywain]

Can you typically get a refund for this, and if so how would I go about doing it?

Any refund would have to come from the train company that sold it, so going back to the same office is the best way.

 

[Teapot42]

Any refund would have to come from the train company that sold it, so going back to the same office is the best way.

Shame I didn't have time at Chesterfield to do that. Is it worth asking at St Pancras, or best just doing it online?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 9 Mar 2026 ==

Oh. And as I did this to avoid a cancelled train, would I still be able to claim delay repay, or does the fact I changed route negate that?

 

[Haywain]

Shame I didn't have time at Chesterfield to do that. Is it worth asking at St Pancras, or best just doing it online?

You could ask at the EMR office at St Pancras, which is at the entrance to the First Class lounge.

And as I did this to avoid a cancelled train, would I still be able to claim delay repay, or does the fact I changed route negate that?

Potentially. If you are delayed, you should have a valid claim but I'm not convinced it would be reasonable to ask them (XC) to compensate the additional excess. There's something of a grey area in this to my mind.

 

[Teapot42]

Potentially. If you are delayed, you should have a valid claim but I'm not convinced it would be reasonable to ask them (XC) to compensate the additional excess. There's something of a grey area in this to my mind.

As it turns out, I wouldn't have qualified for compensation anyway, as if I'd caught the next train I'd have arrived 29 minutes late... Although EMR did their best there, with the train to Derby delayed and a short connection.

 

[yorkie]

Ok, so the Reading service I'd booked was cancelled anyway...

Is this on the outward or return leg? If you refer to the outward, I thought you wanted to go via London on the outward?

When seeking advice, I recommend detailing the exact intended itinerary, details of the disruption that occurred, and the exact actual timings that were undertaken in the event.

and the ticket office bloke actually knew what a route excess was and did it no problem.

Only thing is, and I didn't spot this at the time as I only had 5 minutes to get the next London train, but he's excessed both ways. Can you typically get a refund for this, and if so how would I go about doing it?

It's difficult to get a fully correct excess fare from some ticket offices. Feel free to go back and ask for a refund to the correct amount, but it may be more hassle than it's worth.

Getting a zero-fare excess from many ticket offices can be near-impossible, and getting a correct excess when it's half the difference can be quite a challenge.

It could be viewed as lucky that you got any sort of excess at all, given the experiences of ticket offices over the years that myself and various other people I know have experienced.

There are some great ticket offices around, that issue everything correctly, but they are the exception rather than the norm, in my experience.

 

[Teapot42]

Sorry for the confusion. I'd booked a via Birmingham option in case I wasn't able to get the excess, it decided I didn't fancy the detour with a heavy bag. This also allowed me to book seats in the return leg.

While I was able to get the excess, if I hadn't then the service I had been booked on was cancelled.

I thought I'd made it clear to the ticket office person I only wanted to change the route outward, maybe he misunderstood or maybe didn't know it was possible. It's just under £8, so not the end of the world. And who knows what might happen on the way back.