No tickets available for a through journey

[TUC]

Whilst buying a Halifax-Leeds ticket online, I noticed that the 1151 was marked as ‘not available’. This does not appear to be the usual problem of setting fictitious limits on the number of tickets available, but rather that this service forms part of a number of journeys which, during the Transpennine Upgrade work, are operating Bradford-Halifax-Brighouse (and intermediate stations)-Leeds. However, Halifax-Leeds tickets have a ‘via Bradford’ restriction.

This did therefore make me wonder what the position would be for anyone using the service? Whilst I understand there is a principle that a ticket should be valid for a point to point journey, the Via Bradford restriction and the lack of availability online leaves the position unclear.

Moreover, when the above service arrived in Halifax today, it was simply announced as a Leeds service, with no suggestion of any lack of ticket validity.

Therefore, what would the position be for anyone who used the service?

 

[jfollows]

I suggest

1. the ticket is not valid
2. nobody will care

There may be some kind of “easement”, either temporary or permanent, which makes this ticket valid. https://iblocks-rg-publication.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/easement_text.pdf but I haven’t looked myself.

 

[mm333]

That’s weird. Looking at tomorrow, on the LNER app, you can book tickets from Bradford Interchange and from Brighouse to Leeds on that train (arr Leeds 1237). But not from Halifax or Low Moor.

But you can book tickets for Halifax-Leeds on that route via Dewsbury an hour earlier.

Update: looking at the 1237 arrival, the next train via Bradford gets you in earlier. But in the previous hour, the via Dewsbury service arrives at the same time as the next service via Bradford.

So possibly a combination of the routing plus the journey being longer. If it was just the journey being longer, you wouldn’t be able to buy a ticket from Bradford via Dewsbury.

 

[jfollows]

“Any permitted” tickets are only valid via Bradford, plus through services, but there is no “any permitted” ticket.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

“Any permitted” tickets are only valid via Bradford, plus through services, but there is no “any permitted” ticket.

So, what's the valid alternative for anyone really wanting to travel on the 1151 Northern service from Halifax to Leeds via Brighouse? Some split ticket combination? A route "AP Northern Only" advance single (as available)? Maybe some zonal ticket?

 

[jfollows]

One of the negative implications of rail companies being allowed to remove “any permitted” tickets and replace them with VIA XXX ones. See discussions about S&C diversions also, when tickets say things like VIA LANCASTER.

”Any permitted” might restrict to certain routes but the fundamental starting point is that through services are valid. So Crewe-Birmingham via Shrewsbury isn’t a valid route, but through trains that happen to go that way are.