Off Peak return validity?

[wijit]

Good evening/morning chaps.
I'm trying to book a couple of return tickets from Guide Bridge to Keighley and whilst the trainline will get me there via Piccadilly it will not let me book from GB. However, TPE will let me book from GB but all the trains offered are via Victoria.
Firstly; can I just go to GB and book these tickets tomorrow (for travel on Saturday, return Sunday), and secondly; is there some issue with the route which means we have to travel via Victoria? If not, can we use Victoria on the way back and then go on to Piccadilly? (just thinking of breaking in Manchester for lunch!)
Many thanks in advance for any advice.
BTW, the cost is £49.20 for two adults, sounds reasonable to me but is there a split available on that?

 

[soil]

I suspect there is an issue with the route. If you go from Huddersfield to Manchester Piccadilly, you will pass through Guide Bridge, but trains don't stop there.

Hence a routeing engine may interpret this as doubling back.

There is an easement to permit this though:

"Customers travelling from Guide Bridge to Stalybridge and beyond may doubleback via Manchester Piccadilly. This easement applies in both directions."

I had a look in the database, and it says

[Double back easement]
[Applies to journeys containing Guide Bridge]
[Applies to journeys via Manchester]
[Applies to journeys FROM Stalybridge]

[Double back easement]
[Applies to journeys containing Guide Bridge]
[Applies to journeys via Manchester]
[Applies to journeys TO Stalybridge]

If you compare this to how the easement

'Journeys from Gobowen to Wrexham general and beyond may doubleback via Shrewsbury. This easement applies in both directions'

is implemented:

[Double back easement]
[Applies to journeys containing Shrewsbury]
[Applies to journeys via Wrexham General]
[Applies to journeys TO Gobowen]

[Double back easement]
[Applies to journeys containing Shrewsbury]
[Applies to journeys via Wrexham General]
[Applies to journeys FROM Gobowen]

You can see that they programmed it wrong.

It should of course be:

[Double back easement]
[Applies to journeys containing Stalybridge]
[Applies to journeys via Manchester]
[Applies to journeys TO Guide Bridge]

[Double back easement]
[Applies to journeys containing Stalybridge]
[Applies to journeys via Manchester]
[Applies to journeys FROM Guide Bridge]

Anyway, it's perfectly valid, they just didn't implement or test the easement properly, despite it presumably having been in there for several years.

Moving on, the main permitted routes are:
Keighley - Bradford Forster Square, Bradford Interchange - Manchester Victoria, Manchester Piccadilly - Guide Bridge
Keighley - Leeds - Manchester Piccadilly - Guide Bridge
Keighley - Leeds - Manchester Victoria, Manchester Piccadilly - Guide Bridge

You can also legally do some sillier routes, such as Keighley - Leeds - Wakefield - Huddersfield - Manchester - Guide Bridge.

In terms of going via Piccadilly, that's absolutely fine - the double back is allowed between Piccadilly and Guide Bridge.

For a cheaper split, it's not that easy because you are staying overnight.

Keighley - Guide Bridge SVR is £24.60

You can split:

Keighley - Halifax £4.40 SDS * 2 = £8.80
Halifax - Guide Bridge via Hebden Bridge Anytime Return £12.10
= £20.90

This ticket is valid
Keighley - Leeds - Manchester Oxford Road, Manchester Piccadilly - Guide Bridge
or
Keighley - Bradford Forster Square walk to Interchange - Manchester Oxford Road, Manchester Piccadilly - Guide Bridge

In other words you couldn't take the Leeds - Piccadilly train on these tickets.