Purchasing a Freedom of North West rover

[ash39]

Tomorrow morning I intend to start a 4 from 8 day FONW rover. I'll be starting from Garforth on a service bound for Blackpool North.

The rover isn't valid from Garforth to Leeds. My question is will I be able to buy both a return GRF-LDS, and the rover ticket, from the guard on the train (or Garforth ticket office if it's open), or will I have to exit at Leeds and go purchase the rover from the main ticket office?

Thanks

 

[Bevan Price]

Any station should be able to issue any rover ticket. Allow more time than for just buying a local ticket - not all staff are familiar with selling rovers, and may take a few minutes finding out how to issue one. Recently at one station, a "relief" staff member had to phone a more experienced person at a nearby station before he could sell me a day ranger ticket.

I think that guards should (in theory) be able to them, but he/she may not thank you if you are on a busy commuter service - I would suggest you buy a single to Leeds, and buy your rover at Leeds.

 

[ash39]

Only problem with doing it that way is I have to get a train 40 minutes earlier and then hope there's no queue at the ticket office in Leeds.

I've checked and Garforth office is open from 6am, so I might try my luck buying it from there.

 

[Merseysider]

If staff have any difficulty issuing the ticket, code I120 will bring it up.

 

[Crossover]

IIRC on the TPE system at Dewsbury it came up as FONW 4 in 8...the random naming of the various rovers tends to confuse :P

 

[bb21]

If staff have any difficulty issuing the ticket, code I120 will bring it up.

I120 will not work as there is no fare defined from any origin to that destination that I can see. Normally if a Ranger & Rover product is available through NLC codes, the fares would be defined for all stations the ticket is valid at, but not all Rangers and Rovers have had their prices defined in this manner.

What you will need as instructions for the guard is to tell him to go to the Rovers menu, and then enter the code N37 once inside that area.

On a side note, this code suggests to me that this product used to be a 3-in-7 flexi product, rather than the 4-in-8 it is now. I could be wrong, of course.

 

[185143]

Guards can definitely sell the 7 day NW rover as I have had one onboard in the past. The 7 day rover is listed as 'North West Rover' as well btw.

 

[afyutr]

How to find less dispensed tickets seems to come up a lot - do none of the ticket systems have a simple keyword search function? What decade are they from?

 

[hairyhandedfool]

.... do none of the ticket systems have a simple keyword search function? What decade are they from?

Star has a keyword search for Rovers, but you have to know what to search for. Freedom of the North West is listed as something like "North West Rover", IIRC the Freedom of Severn and Solent is under something like "FOSS".

 

[CaptainHaddock]

Guards can definitely sell the 7 day NW rover as I have had one onboard in the past. The 7 day rover is listed as 'North West Rover' as well btw.

Maybe, but the OP wants a 4 in 8 day FNW, which is issued as two tickets, the second of which is a table of boxes for the user to fill in their travel dates. I'm not sure the ticketing machines used on train would be able to issue those.

 

[Darandio]

Maybe, but the OP wants a 4 in 8 day FNW, which is issued as two tickets, the second of which is a table of boxes for the user to fill in their travel dates. I'm not sure the ticketing machines used on train would be able to issue those.

It is still printed on standard ticket stock though, so shouldn't be an issue.

 

[Tetchytyke]

On a side note, this code suggests to me that this product used to be a 3-in-7 flexi product, rather than the 4-in-8 it is now. I could be wrong, of course.

IIRC it was, and differed from the North East and North Country versions which have always been 4-in-8.

 

[BestWestern]

IIRC it was, and differed from the North East and North Country versions which have always been 4-in-8.

Maybe, but the OP wants a 4 in 8 day FNW, which is issued as two tickets, the second of which is a table of boxes for the user to fill in their travel dates. I'm not sure the ticketing machines used on train would be able to issue those.

Avantix will issue that.

 

[SickyNicky]

Maybe, but the OP wants a 4 in 8 day FNW, which is issued as two tickets, the second of which is a table of boxes for the user to fill in their travel dates. I'm not sure the ticketing machines used on train would be able to issue those.

Have had these issued on-train in the past - although on both occassions the guard had to ring control for instructions. But, yes, the machine can do it.

 

[ash39]

Got it from Garforth ticket office in the end. The man seemed to know what I was talking about right away, but then it took a good 5 minutes to issue by which time a bit of a queue had built up behind me.

I appreciate it must not be a frequently requested ticket, especially as it's outside the rover zone, but there must be an easier way of issuing these. Even if you could buy them online and collect them from a TVM like you can with advance tickets.

 

[hairyhandedfool]

Got it from Garforth ticket office in the end. The man seemed to know what I was talking about right away, but then it took a good 5 minutes to issue by which time a bit of a queue had built up behind me.

I appreciate it must not be a frequently requested ticket, especially as it's outside the rover zone, but there must be an easier way of issuing these. Even if you could buy them online and collect them from a TVM like you can with advance tickets.

It's easy if the clerk knows what to look for, as I mentioned before, the keyword search on STAR is only of use if you know what words to search for. When I first wanted to look one up on STAR it took more than five minutes, now it'd take twenty seconds or so, but that is purely because I know not to bother looking for it under "freedom" or "fonw" or anything like that.

 

[SickyNicky]

there must be an easier way of issuing these. Even if you could buy them online and collect them from a TVM like you can with advance tickets.

We agree and are campaigning to have them added to the list of tickets that can be delivered via ToD.