TFW - Advanced Semi Flex - ending the journey at Oxford Road instead of Piccadilly

I have booked a cheap TFW (see title) ticket to Chester tomorrow for a day out, I am getting on at Piccadilly in order to have a better chance of getting a seat. Coming back Oxford Road is a much more convenient station for me, I can get off one stop early? I never really understand the rules in relation to the Manchester Central Stations group. There is no difference in the cost of the ticket.

TheSmiths82 said:

I have booked a cheap TFW (see title) ticket to Chester tomorrow for a day out, I am getting on at Piccadilly in order to have a better chance of getting a seat. Coming back Oxford Road is a much more convenient station for me, I can get off one stop early? I never really understand the rules in relation to the Manchester Central Stations group. There is no difference in the cost of the ticket.

Click to expand...

I think technically no but in practice yes. Piccadilly is only a brisk ten minute walk from Oxford Road though!

It's not about the cost of the ticket but rather whether the ticket permits break of journey. National Rail Enquiries' page for TfW SemiFlex tickets says that it's not permitted in either direction.

That information is drawn from the same data feed that most retailers use to display information when buying a ticket, so it's likely you would have seen (or have been able to see) that information when buying your ticket, which makes the restriction binding/effective.

SemiFlex tickets are issued to specific Manchester stations (e.g. Piccadilly or Oxford Road) so you can't benefit from any flexibility that might exist by virtue of a station group.

Watershed said:

It's not about the cost of the ticket but rather whether the ticket permits break of journey. National Rail Enquiries' page for TfW SemiFlex tickets says that it's not permitted in either direction.

That information is drawn from the same data feed that most retailers use to display information when buying a ticket, so it's likely you would have seen (or have been able to see) that information when buying your ticket, which makes the restriction binding/effective.

SemiFlex tickets are issued to specific Manchester stations (e.g. Piccadilly or Oxford Road) so you can't benefit from any flexibility that might exist by virtue of a station group.

Click to expand...

I've often wondered about the data used. Sometimes when I scan Advance tickets it will say on the customer's phone "Manchester Piccadilly", but on my ticket device "Manchester Stations". Would it open the gates at Oxford Road or not I wonder?

I used to buy Advance tickets to commute between Preston and Manchester. It was convenient for me to alight at Oxford Road in the morning but board at Piccadilly in the evening for a better chance of a seat. I would always by the tickets to Piccadilly anyway so that I could buy both directions in one transaction, and there was no problem operating the barriers to exit at Oxford Road.

Edit: TPE Advance tickets were issued to Manchester Stations but I would sometimes use Northern Advance tickets that specifically stated Piccadilly.

Thanks in the end I didn't risk it because my flex caused an issue with Chester when the inspector seemed to think my flex was valid for an earlier train. Luckily another inspector was nearby and clarified that I was perfectly OK to get an earlier train. I didn't want the same hassle at Oxford Road if the gates didn't open for any reason. I am hoping to go to Liverpool so I will just book it from Oxford Road in the first place.

TheSmiths82 said:

Thanks in the end I didn't risk it because my flex caused an issue with Chester when the inspector seemed to think my flex was valid for an earlier train. Luckily another inspector was nearby and clarified that I was perfectly OK to get an earlier train. I didn't want the same hassle at Oxford Road if the gates didn't open for any reason. I am hoping to go to Liverpool so I will just book it from Oxford Road in the first place.

Click to expand...

Was this at the gate line at Chester?

Yep it was my fault as I asked for clarification as the TFW website was very vague. I wanted clarification that I could get an early train would would have meant arriving to the GM area at a peak time. An inspector then said my ticket was my valid for the 17:52 but then when I tried to explain it was a flex another inspector clarified that the return is indeed flexible as long as I got a specific outward train. She then explained that it wasn't actually an off peak ticket so the ticket was perfectly valid to travel within GM at peak times. I was a bit concerned the Northern staff at Oxford Road might not have understood the TFW Flex ticket although it must be a very commonly used ticket at that station.