Rail replacement and Advance ticket

[BongoStar]

So I booked an off peak return Manchester to Reading. The first leg was fine. The return was yesterday 27/7. Both were on Cross Country Advance tickets.

For the return, I didn't notice there was a replacement bus, so my itinerary ended up being Manchester to Lemington Spa, then bus from Lemington Spa to Didcot Parkway, then train from Didcot to Reading.

All fine till Didcot. Once there, I had a half an hour wait for next XC train to Reading. There were atleast 3 trains of GWR within that time that I could have boarded, including one leaving 5 mins after we arrived.

I did ask the staff there if I could board the earlier ones and showed them my ticket and they said yes, but didn't give me anything. I asked again one staff before boarding the train and he said its fine.

But for the future, what are my rights in such cases. Can I board any train due to the long trip by the bus, or do I have to stick to XC regardless of the wait time.

 

[JonathanH]

But for the future, what are my rights in such cases. Can I board any train due to the long trip by the bus, or do I have to stick to XC regardless of the wait time.

If you have an itinerary for a train with a reservation your advance ticket is only valid on that train, particularly if restricted to that operator. Clearly there is some slack built into the replacement coach schedule to allow for potential traffic delays and passenger transfer between train and coach.

 

[Deafdoggie]

If you have an itinerary for a train with a reservation your ticket is only valid on that train, particularly if restricted to that operator. Clearly there is some slack built into the replacement coach schedule to allow for potential traffic delays and passenger transfer between train and coach.

It doesn't matter what your itinerary says, it matters what your ticket is.

If your ticket is "advance" then you do have to follow the itinerary.

If your ticket is "Anytime" or "off-Peak" then you don't need to follow the itinerary at all.

 

[alxndr]

So I booked an off peak return Manchester to Reading. The first leg was fine. The return was yesterday 27/7. Both were on Cross Country Advance tickets.

Which was it? An Advance or Off Peak?

 

[BongoStar]

Advance tickets with specified itinerary

 

[infobleep]

Advance tickets with specified itinerary

Then you did need to follow the itinerary but staff showed some discretion.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

Then you did need to follow the itinerary but staff showed some discretion.

Indeed.

I did ask the staff there if I could board the earlier ones and showed them my ticket and they said yes, but didn't give me anything. I asked again one staff before boarding the train and he said its fine.

What you did was exactly right. Be prepared to obey the letter of the rules - but ask if the railway will be more flexible.

From what we see here, more often than not, a polite request normally gets a positive response.

 

[Belperpete]

The problem will come if the guard or an RPI on the train says that your ticket is not valid, and you have nothing to back up your claim that some random member of staff told you that it was. Particularly if the member of staff concerned has no authority over ticket validity or acceptance.

 

[Lewisham2221]

So I booked an off peak return Manchester to Reading. The first leg was fine. The return was yesterday 27/7. Both were on Cross Country Advance tickets.

For the return, I didn't notice there was a replacement bus, so my itinerary ended up being Manchester to Lemington Spa, then bus from Lemington Spa to Didcot Parkway, then train from Didcot to Reading.

All fine till Didcot. Once there, I had a half an hour wait for next XC train to Reading. There were atleast 3 trains of GWR within that time that I could have boarded, including one leaving 5 mins after we arrived.

I did ask the staff there if I could board the earlier ones and showed them my ticket and they said yes, but didn't give me anything. I asked again one staff before boarding the train and he said its fine.

But for the future, what are my rights in such cases. Can I board any train due to the long trip by the bus, or do I have to stick to XC regardless of the wait time.

Was the replacement bus part of the fixed itinerary when you purchased your ticket? Or was the itinerary (and reservation?) for a direct train, that the became train-bus-train after the ticket was booked?

If the former, then yes, you have to wait for the booked train, regardless of the length of bus journey and waiting time for the connection.

 

[BongoStar]

The problem will come if the guard or an RPI on the train says that your ticket is not valid, and you have nothing to back up your claim that some random member of staff told you that it was. Particularly if the member of staff concerned has no authority over ticket validity or acceptance.

Yes, that's the worry. In this particular case, due to RRB, the barriers at Didcot Parkway were open and anyone could walk through. There were no RPI on the last leg.

Was the replacement bus part of the fixed itinerary when you purchased your ticket? Or was the itinerary (and reservation?) for a direct train, that the became train-bus-train after the ticket was booked?

If the former, then yes, you have to wait for the booked train, regardless of the length of bus journey and waiting time for the connection.

It was part of the itinerary when I purchased, not something that happened after, so I was fully aware when I booked.

 

[Watershed]

The problem will come if the guard or an RPI on the train says that your ticket is not valid, and you have nothing to back up your claim that some random member of staff told you that it was. Particularly if the member of staff concerned has no authority over ticket validity or acceptance.

Passengers are not required to establish the job role that a particular staff member holds, or the authority which this entails, before taking their advice at face value.

For example, the definition of an "authorised person" in the Byelaws is not that they must be authorised to deal with ticketing, but simply that they are:

a person acting in the course of his duties who is an employee or agent of an Operator

That being said, whilst that is the legal position, the practical position is as you suggest - if you do not have concrete evidence of what you were told (e.g. by means of a written endorsement, or audio recording as mentioned on other threads) then it may well be a case of "he said, she said", which is never optimal.

 

[Llandudno]

Passengers are not required to establish the job role that a particular staff member holds, or the authority which this entails, before taking their advice at face value.

For example, the definition of an "authorised person" in the Byelaws is not that they must be authorised to deal with ticketing, but simply that they are:


That being said, whilst that is the legal position, the practical position is as you suggest - if you do not have concrete evidence of what you were told (e.g. by means of a written endorsement, or audio recording as mentioned on other threads) then it may well be a case of "he said, she said", which is never optimal.

Indeed, I have always sought out the train manager/guard under these or similar circumstances, I always greet them with a smile, ask politely and thus far never been refused boarding.