Cambridge to St Albans tickets on thetrainline

[gingerheid]

Hello

If I tell thetrainline I want to go from Cambridge to St Albans, leaving at 6am and returning at 2pm on a weekday, it tells me to travel via London and offers me a £19 return (which isn't valid via London). The train it tells me to travel on doesn't even stop at the station it should be telling me to change at; Hatfield.

What would happen if I bought this ticket from them, printed off the schedule, used the services the trainline told me to, and pleaded innocence?

(Getting through the barriers at St P to get into the Thameslink platforms...err... wouldn't be an issue )

 

[Aictos]

You don't need to go via London, FCC are running a virtual railway route between Hatfield and St Albans which removes the need to go into London as it's only 5.5 miles apart, a 22 minute journey and there's regular buses as well on this route.

What you probably would need to do is go Cambridge to Hatfield then across to St Albans - would save yourself quite a bit of time.

Will try and find out more for you if you want?

 

[OwlMan]

Have you read the details supplied by the Trainline
Look at he highlighted part.
Although it gives you times via London it does clearly state that it is on valid on the Hatfield/St Albans bus.

Please read the terms and conditions of your selected journey.
The route and tickets of your journey are listed below.
Your journey details
Outward journey: Wednesday 19 August 2009 Depart Arrive Travel by Carrier Seating
06:15 CAMBRIDGE STATION 07:15 LONDON KINGS CROSS Train FIRST CAPITAL CONNECT Not Reservable
07:15 LONDON KINGS CROSS 07:48 LONDON ST PANCRAS INTL Foot
07:48 LONDON ST PANCRAS INTL 08:11 ST ALBANS Train FIRST CAPITAL CONNECT Not Reservable

Return journey: Wednesday 19 August 2009 Depart Arrive Travel by Carrier Seating
14:18 ST ALBANS 14:38 LONDON ST PANCRAS INTL Train FIRST CAPITAL CONNECT Not Reservable
14:38 LONDON ST PANCRAS INTL 15:15 LONDON KINGS CROSS Foot
15:15 LONDON KINGS CROSS 16:03 CAMBRIDGE STATION Train FIRST CAPITAL CONNECT Not Reservable

Ticket: ANYTIME DAY RETURN ticket This is a Return ticket
Route: This ticket is only valid for travel on HATFLD/ALBNS BUS services
No. of adult passengers: 1
General
Conditions: When refunds apply (see Ticket Restrictions) they are subject to a cancellation fee of GBP10.00. Some ticket types carry further penalties for changes or refunds. When a change of journey is allowed (see Ticket Restrictions) they are subject to a charge of up to GBP10.00.


Where you stand legally if you travel via London is unclear as your printout clearly shows trains via London but also states that it is only valid via the Hatfield bus.


Peter

 

[mathmo]

Get on the 0555 from Cambridge (direct to Hatfield) or the 0628 and change at Hitchin. Then get the bus. It will be quicker, though not by all that much.

Your ticket will say "Hatfld/Albns Bus" on it so I don't think you'd have much chance with the barriers/ticket inspectors. There is a ticket that's valid via London but it's £41.50 for the equivalent ticket!

 

[dan_atki]

Where you stand legally if you travel via London is unclear as your printout clearly shows trains via London but also states that it is only valid via the Hatfield bus.

Firstly, what is worth noting is that route doesn't even appear on WebTIS systems for some odd reason :?.

Now, if thetrainline is showing both a £19.00 and a £41.50 fare valid for the same service, then it wouldn't be unreasonable to assume that anybody with a braincell is going to choose the £19 option.

You're not going to be overly concerned with the route shown on the system and then the ticket once you have it as you believe (because the system told you) your ticket is valid via KGX and STP.

If you buy it in good faith believing it is valid (and showing the printouts) then they should warn you the ticket is not valid there and don't go there on that ticket again*. It isn't a problem caused by a customer trying to fare evade, as they are believing the ticket is valid that way as thetrainline told them so (provided they have the printouts).

It is a problem that needs to be raised with thetrainline by First Capital Connect (or some individual ) to get the issue rectified.

*The worst that can happen is you are excessed (£41.50-£19.00)/2 = £11.25 for each the outward and return journey to the +Any Permitted - they can't give a penalty fare for you being off route as has been discussed before.
(If they see you using the ticket there more then the random occasion then they might have a case and get the prosecutions department to investigate the possibility you are cheating the system and fare evading, but that is another matter).

 

[philjo]

There was a discussion about the Hatfield-St albans bus link here:
http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=24329

 

[dan_atki]

You don't need to go via London, FCC are running a virtual railway route between Hatfield and St Albans which removes the need to go into London as it's only 5.5 miles apart, a 22 minute journey and there's regular buses as well on this route.

Get on the 0555 from Cambridge (direct to Hatfield) or the 0628 and change at Hitchin. Then get the bus. It will be quicker, though not by all that much.

There was a discussion about the Hatfield-St albans bus link here:
http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=24329

I don't think the idea of the bus and its use is the point of the thread seeing as the OP looks willing to travel via London anyway - gingerheid, please correct me if I'm wrong! More the fact thetrainline is incorrectly saying a ticket marked 'Route HATFLD/ALBNS BUS' is valid via London and the repercussions of using the ticket in such a way and pleading ignorance, as most customers without any ticketing knowedge would .

 

[gingerheid]

Well obviously I genuinely intend to go to St Albans... But I might get lost... .

I was genuinely going to St Albans on this occasion (and took the bus option as it was both cheaper and faster, as well as because it avoids that London place I avoid wherever possible), but I thought it could be useful for a future trip to London on the cheap.

That you could get off with it until you got caught (and thereafter only if you wanted to chance not getting caught by the same person) matched my impression, I think I may give it a go sometime... as long as they don't fix it, which I hope they don't!!!

I'm willing to argue, and I think I also have a good idea which trains go into the main station at KX and are therefore unlikely to lead to you meeting a barrier that didn't like the ticket.

And I'm stupid. I'm not from round these 'ere parts, and I wanted a train, and I booked a train, and that's what I got. I have no idea that there's some bus nobody told me about. How am I supposed to know about this Hatflid place when it was nothing to do with the journey and the train doesn't even stop there? And in fact, if you're telling me there was a better way of going I'm then I'm really annoyed with you for not telling me before and that you've sent me on a train that doesn't even stop at the station I'm supposed to change at, and I'm going to write in and complain...

 

[mathmo]

Cambridge to Ipswich is cheaper :P

 

[csilke]

Cambridge to Ipswich is cheaper :P

But no longer valid via London. The latest version of the Routeing Guide (updated yesterday) no longer has London as a permitted route.

 

[jon0844]

Going to St Albans via Hatfield is certainly going to beat going into London and back out, even though Hatfield>KGX and STP>St Albans are in themselves pretty quick journeys. But, you need to get off the train, walk to the other station and assume the fast train you want is leaving there and then.

So, besides you seeing it as a chance to get a free trip to London as a break of journey, the fact is, you'd never want to go via the city anyway.

But, the buses may be quite frequent but I don't think they are in any way tied to the railway timetable so you could be waiting a fair while depending on the time of day. Buses also run early far too frequently, meaning you could be waiting for a bus that has already gone. If you ever need to do things in a hurry, there is a taxi rank - but expect to pay £15-20 to St Albans and £10-15 back (St Albans taxis seem to have lower rates than Welwyn Hatfield).

 

[asylumxl]

Could also try Cambridge -> Hitchin -> Luton -> St Albans

This would be my prefered route.

 

[gingerheid]

Ironically enough - guess where I'm going tomorrow? That's right; I'm genuinely going to St Albans! And I want to take the bus and everything...

How come I can't find the cheap ticket any more?

 

[glynn80]

Ironically enough - guess where I'm going tomorrow? That's right; I'm genuinely going to St Albans! And I want to take the bus and everything...

How come I can't find the cheap ticket any more?

The ticket is still listed in the FRPP, so you should still be able to purchase the ticket at Cambridge even if you cannot purchase it online.

 

[gingerheid]

Ah - thanks!

*phew* I only said I was going because I had it in my head that the ticket was £18 or £19!

 

[glynn80]

Ah - thanks!

*phew* I only said I was going because I had it in my head that the ticket was £18 or £19!

CDR is £18.00 and the SDR is £19.00.