Recent content by JamesDrew

Thanks that’s very helpful, as is the link to the government statistics- though I can see no reference to ‘commuter only’ services. So I guess that phrase is nonsensical in this context.

Article on today’s Guardian website states: referring to an early evening train from Euston to Crewe. Does that statement referring to commuter-only mean anything or is it just sloppy journalism? I’ve never heard of train services that are reserved solely for commuters. Link to the article is...

I’m making a journey from Raynes Park to Portsmouth. The schedule when I bought the ticket was 0909 from Raynes Park, changing at Woking and arriving at Portsmouth at 1059. However, much to my (and other people waiting) surprise, the scheduled Woking train passed straight through Raynes Park...

I’m travelling from Newcastle to London and because of engineering works had to change trains at Peterborough and again at Cambridge. The second part of my split ticket is an advance single from Elsenham to Liverpool Street. I need to catch the Victoria Line thereafter and realise it will be...

I think that’s a good point about UK railway travel in general-things seem intuitive if you’re used to them! ‘Route-any permitted’ is another thing I’ve found less than intuitive.

I’m at Euston station waiting for a train and trying to work out the different colours on the diagram of the carriages on the departure display board. Some carriages are marked as partially or fully green, some red, some orange and some black (no colour). I’m sure there’s some logic to this...

I’ve purchased tickets for a couple of long journeys in December with my son, discounted with a two together railcard. Until now I’d assumed I can buy the railcard a day or two before travel, but it’s just occurred to me-should I have had the railcard at the time of ticket purchase? Or is this...

Thank you. That routing guide appears very complicated but in short I can see the journey would involve disembarking a couple of stops early on the outward journey and on the return journey starting a few stops late. This is presumably permitted on a day return ticket? (As an aside, it seems...

I’m walking a section of the South Downs way next Saturday and need to travel by train from Raynes Park to Amberley and then back from Shoreham to Raynes Park. Does this require 2 single tickets or is there any route for which I could purchase a (hopefully cheaper) day return? Many thanks for...

Thanks for this, though I won’t be making any request for any refund. My initial post was intended to mainly query how delay repay works- as the Avanti train from Euston was only 8 minutes late arriving at Birmingham International and I wasn’t sure whether the knock on effect of missing a...

I took the taxi to my final destination (which was a 15 minute walk from Marston Green station) so ended up arriving at a similar time to my original plan of train to Marston Green and then walking. On this occasion time was more important than saving a few £ so I mitigated the missed...

Thanks, that’s helpful. However ‘as you know’ is incorrect as I didn’t know, which is why I was asking! And I don’t have any intention of making a fraudulent claim. So, if I had caught the later train would that situation then have become a delay repay scenario? Thanks again.

I was making a journey today from Euston to Marston Green via Birmingham International with an off peak return ticket scheduled as follows: 11:38 London Euston Avanti West Coast 12:45 Birmingham International + Change, 6 minutes transfer time 12:51 Birmingham International West...

Thank you for this. It was exactly this aspect that I’d been wondering about! On reflection it makes sense that the burden of proof is on the passenger to prove the ticket machine was not working, and also that it is the civil standard of proof that is required.

I suppose what I meant is that there will likely be the presumption by the railway company that the machine is working rather than the presumption that the passenger is telling the truth. But then maybe there are far more passengers who lie about ticket machines not working than there are...