Boarding Letchworth to london train at Stevenage

[dggar]

My wife will be visiting her father.
He lives in Letchworth but is currently in hospital in Stevenage but may discharged home in the next day or so.
Normally she would return from Letchworth to Manchester via London.
She intends traveling from Letchorth to Manchester on Sat 31st Dec using
either 14:55, 15:55, 16:29 or 16:55 trains from Letchworth..

If she has an Advance Single for one of these trains would she be allowed to join the train at Stevenage rather than board at Letchworth?

 

[gordonthemoron]

no she probably wouldn't

 

[gazthomas]

No unfortunately. Only "ethical" option would be to buy a ticket at Stevenage to get access, say a single to Knebworth

 

[yorkie]

If she has an Advance Single for one of these trains would she be allowed to join the train at Stevenage rather than board at Letchworth?

See http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/times_fares/advance_conditions.html

Stevenage station has ticket barriers, and this forum is read by both staff who work at Stevenage station and also FCC management.

To be indisputably valid, a ticket from Stevenage to Letchworth (£3.40) would need to be purchased. It is then a matter of some debate and not universally agreed whether or not you need to double-back to Letchworth or whether holding this ticket suffices in the obligation to pay the "correct" fare (see one of the numerous previous threads on this issue, which can run to 10 pages! Most recent one was Salisbury-Feltham).
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No unfortunately. Only "ethical" option would be to buy a ticket at Stevenage to get access, say a single to Knebworth

I am not going to debate the rights and wrongs of this (as otherwise this thread will reach a 3-figure number of posts) but what I will say is that this is a debatable matter whether it is be either valid or 'ethical'. I am not presenting a view either way, just adding a word of caution to the OP that not everyone agrees. The possible solutions to wanting to start short have been discussed in great length in several topics previously, such as the 200-page topic for Edinburgh - Sandwell & Dudley (see this), although as with my earlier example, there was a Megatrain ticket involved, with similar terms to an Advance ticket.

 

[dggar]

So it would seem that the most sensisble course of action is to purchase an advance single from Steveage to Manchester(£1.50 cheaper)
and if she does start her journey from Letchworth (if her father has been discharged home) to buy a single from Letchworth to Stevenage (£3.40)

 

[causton]

That would be recommended, yes costs a little more but will save on any pains just in case things go wrong