National express query.

[greyman42]

I have never travelled on National Express and was wondering if you could just turn up and go or do you need to book in advance?

 

[mikeg]

I believe you can turn up and go subject to there being spaces for your entire journey. Also I believe only the 'open' tickets are available onboard. I could be wrong, but either way booking in advance is highly advisable.

 

[F Great Eastern]

You can turn up and go if there is space but the tickets are much more expensive than online in advance.

 

[radamfi]

The driver usually knows how many passengers are booked at each stop. Some drivers will miss out stops without booked passengers. They shouldn't do that but they do.

 

[Wirewiper]

Booking in advance is recommended. However if you are travelling from an Airport consider adding an "Airport Flex" to your ticket which would allow you to transfer to a later departure if your arrival is delayed.

 

[greyman42]

You can turn up and go if there is space but the tickets are much more expensive than online in advance.

So do you simply pay the driver?

 

[Bletchleyite]

So do you simply pay the driver?

Last time I checked, which was a while ago, you could pay cash (not card) and have a manual ticket written, but some drivers are more enthusiastic for this than others. Airport services I think have a bus style ticket machine as there are more likely to be walk-ups. If it's a major stop it might well have TVMs or a ticket office.

 

[Bungle965]

Last time I checked, which was a while ago, you could pay cash (not card) and have a manual ticket written, but some drivers are more enthusiastic for this than others. Airport services I think have a bus style ticket machine as there are more likely to be walk-ups. If it's a major stop it might well have TVMs or a ticket office.

I believe that they now have machines that can handle card transactions and presumably print off tickets.
Sam

 

[Adlington]

See the NX official advice

 

[greyman42]

See the NX official advice

Thanks for that info.

 

[Temple Meads]

I believe that they now have machines that can handle card transactions and presumably print off tickets.
Sam

Those ticket machines were awful - seems they have given up on them for now.

 

[F Great Eastern]

They had no end of problems with those machines, with an e-ticket most of the time they don't even scan them anymore.

 

[Bungle965]

Those ticket machines were awful - seems they have given up on them for now.

They had no end of problems with those machines, with an e-ticket most of the time they don't even scan them anymore.

Interesting to hear that, is there any reason why they are so poor?
Sam

 

[GusB]

The last time I frequently used National/Caledonian Express services, they were still using mechanical ticket machines (Setrights, possibly?) for walk-up tickets! Even then they seemed strangely out of place as most of the local buses were using Wayfarers by then.

 

[Deerfold]

You can turn up and go if there is space but the tickets are much more expensive than online in advance.

That varies a lot by route - if there's no offers on your route it can be cheaper to pay on the day as you won't pay a booking fee.

I used to go from Cambridge to London (changing at Stansted) or Cambridge to Hitchin overnight fairly often. Paying onboard was the same price. I once got a free trip to Hitchin because the ticket machine was out of service.

In Stokenchurch (for example) the National Express service provides a substantial part of the local bus service - the first and last service and more than half the Sunday service to High Wycombe is provided by them on the 737 Oxford-Stansted run (with an 0310 service if you're a clubber).

Last year I was issued with a hand-written ticket on that service!

 

[route101]

They haD tvms at Victoria and at Gatwick i got issued with a boarding style ticket whereas at Glasgow i got an email printout ticket .

 

[Bungle965]

They haD tvms at Victoria and at Gatwick i got issued with a boarding style ticket whereas at Glasgow i got an email printout ticket .

Speaking of the TVM's, there had been a big problem for quite a while where they were not accepting either the new £5/10 note or the new £1 coin. I believe that the £1 problem is now fixed but when I was at Manchester Coach Station last it was still advertising that it could not accept the new £10 note.
Sam

 

[Temple Meads]

Interesting to hear that, is there any reason why they are so poor?
Sam

Problems with battery life/charging and difficulties getting them to read the QR codes on tickets.