Reading to Chester

[BongoStar]

I have a three month contract in Chester and looking for best way to commute via train.

I am looking for trains from Reading. There is a Reading to Manchester Picadilly with a change in Stafford and if I time it right, I will have only 1 change.

I plan to travel off peak.

When I go to buy tickets, it doesn't give me any discount for having a network card, even if I am travelling after 7pm.

Can members advise what I am doing wrong and best possible fare.

Thanks in advance

 

[Tazi Hupefi]

You can't use your Network Card for this journey, it's waaaaay out of the area of validity. It only covers you between Reading and Banbury

I'd also avoid connecting into the Avanti services from Stafford to Chester, they're notoriously unreliable and the first services to be cancelled. Better to get to Crewe.

It will cost £115.90 return if you depart Reading after 09:30. You cannot travel via London, not that you would anyway.


You may be able to buy a combination of tickets, but it's still going to be an expensive commute.

You may find some interesting fares if you travel to Birmingham and change on to the direct Transport for Wales service to Chester via Shrewsbury, with a longer journey.

 

[CyrusWuff]

I have a three month contract in Chester and looking for best way to commute via train.

I am looking for trains from Reading. There is a Reading to Manchester Picadilly with a change in Stafford and if I time it right, I will have only 1 change.

I plan to travel off peak.

When I go to buy tickets, it doesn't give me any discount for having a network card, even if I am travelling after 7pm.

Can members advise what I am doing wrong and best possible fare.

Unfortunately Network Railcards only work in the South East of England. Heading North from Reading, that only extends as far as Banbury.

The Annual Gold Card (a benefit given when you purchase a qualifying Annual Season) area extends as far as Stafford and Shrewsbury, but only on London Northwestern/West Midlands and Transport for Wales services. Like the Network Railcard, CrossCountry don't accept them North of Banbury.

 

[peterblue]

I have a three month contract in Chester and looking for best way to commute via train.

I am looking for trains from Reading. There is a Reading to Manchester Picadilly with a change in Stafford and if I time it right, I will have only 1 change.

I plan to travel off peak.

When I go to buy tickets, it doesn't give me any discount for having a network card, even if I am travelling after 7pm.

Can members advise what I am doing wrong and best possible fare.

Thanks in advance

Depending on how often you plan on commuting, it may be cheaper to just rent a house in Chester for 3 months.

 

[Alfonso]

Assuming this is not a daily commute (so day returns are no use to you), flexible returns are about £100 buying split tickets for the direct route and about £85 on a slower more complex route via Worcester, both taking advantage of a network railcard discount for at least some of the journey.

 

[30907]

A ticket splitting website (one is linked at the top of this page!) should show you suitable splits; there isn't a great deal to be gained by using fixed-train tickets.

 

[JBuchananGB]

The optimum trip taking 3h28 seems to be changing at Birmingham and Crewe. For example
Reading 10:15 to Birmingham 11.51
Birmingham 12:07 to Crewe 13:07
Crewe 13:21 to Chester 13.44
The other way there are some with the change at Stafford, such as
Chester 16:32 to Stafford 17:13
Stafford 17:21 to Reading 19:41
Using these trains out on 1 July back on 4 July with Network Railcard the Forum's ticketing site splits at Banbury at gets the round trip fare down to £97.20.

 

[Merseysider]

Are you eligible for any other railcards, eg are you under 30, over 60 or hold eligibility for a disabled railcard?

How many times per week will you be travelling, and on which days? It will be cheaper to get a hotel in Chester than commute on two consecutive days.

Do you have to travel at a specific time?

Splitting via slower routes is worth looking at. For off peak day returns, valid most of the day on weekdays and all day on weekends:

Reading to Banbury is £16.40.
Banbury to Leamington is £11.20
Leamington to Shrewsbury is £20.20
Shrewsbury to Chester is £13.20

Total £61.00

If you need to travel out and back on different days, I would suggest looking at trainsplit.com and entering a variety of via points on non-Intercity routes to find the cheapest fares, including Advances, eg via High Wycombe, (there are some very cheap fares from London using Chiltern) or via Shrewsbury, perhaps even via both. Even via Northampton may be viable.

 

[nwales58]

Is getting to Chester at 1344, plus inevitable delays, viable for the OP's work???

If not, worth looking at seasons. Where they exist on long distance flows they can be relatively cheap. Reading-Crewe exists, not via London, and a 7 day season is only slightly more than one SOR giving total flexibility.

 

[30907]

If not, worth looking at seasons. Where they exist on long distance flows they can be relatively cheap. Reading-Crewe exists, not via London, and a 7 day season is only slightly more than one SOR giving total flexibility.

Slightly cheaper than 3x Offpeak to Chester splitting at Banbury.
Split seasons might be worth checking, but the standard Banbury split doesn't work.

Splitting via slower routes is worth looking at. For off peak day returns, valid most of the day on weekdays and all day on weekends: (...)
Total £61.00.

I very much doubt the OP intends doing the off-peak journey as a day return trip

 

[JBuchananGB]

Is getting to Chester at 1344, plus inevitable delays, viable for the OP's work???

OP said they intended to travel off-peak, and the 1015 is the earliest departure from Reading via Birmingham which qualifies on a weekday. There is an option for 0920 via London for which fares could be investigated. Reach Chester at 1244. But a higher priced off peak return applies and there don't seem to be any options to reduce it.

 

[PO48RA]

What about one of the Heart of England rover or day ranger or rover tickets, not valid before 0900 but that would be from Oxford anyway.

 

[Merseysider]

I very much doubt the OP intends doing the off-peak journey as a day return trip

Agreed, but worth suggesting! Such a long commute would drive me mad

If the OP has a car, may be worth looking at driving - £25 to £35 per one way trip depending on the vehicle and not too much slower than the train.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

It will cost £115.90 return if you depart Reading after 09:30. You cannot travel via London, not that you would anyway.
You may be able to buy a combination of tickets, but it's still going to be an expensive commute.
You may find some interesting fares if you travel to Birmingham and change on to the direct Transport for Wales service to Chester via Shrewsbury, with a longer journey.

A Reading-Shrewsbury (super) off peak return via Newport is £64.60, Shrewsbury-Chester off peak return is £24.70 (any train, via Wrexham/Crewe).

For travel more than once a week, consider Heart of England 3 in 7 rover at £109, valid to Chester from Oxford/Gloucester/Hereford/Northampton (any route).
Valid after 0900 M-F.
Reading-Oxford off peak return is £24.70 (after 0900).

GB RAIL ROVER GUIDE - Heart of England Rover

How to find rail rover and ranger tickets on the national rail network. Rover and ranger tickets are cheap tickets for rail travel

railrover.org

 

[Crighton]

Hi

I do a very similar journey about once a month and have the following observations:

There are 2 main routes I use:

XC at xx15 to Birmingham, then the xx07 to Crewe then the xx21 to Chester. Normally the change at Crewe is platforms 6 to 9 so it’s cross-platform. It used to be cross-platform at New Street but now seems you need to go between the 2 different sections of the station so are better off transferring at the B end.

If you go this route, I often split tickets at Banbury and Birmingham New Street. It can be cheaper to split at International but that limits your flexibility as XC are gradually reintroducing the Reading to Newcastle services that go via Solihull. If you go with advances this is not such a consideration.

XC gets very busy between Oxford and Wolverhampton in Standard. In first it gets to about 90% full and at breakfast time you can have a bacon roll on the XC service followed by a full breakfast on the Avanti.

I would not travel standard without a reservation in Std and even then would prefer to drive or take an alternate route given the crush loadings.

Coming back the change at Stafford works well if the Avanti is on time. Anecdotally, the 1732 is better than the 1532 or 1632. These routes are busy from Wolverhampton to Banbury and very full to Coventry in Std.

If the Avanti is delayed you can often get the xx55 off Chester then change onto a West Midlands service at Crewe to New Street. This is about a 4 min connection but if from platform 9 to 11 is cross platform. It dovetails nicely into the Newcastle to Reading service if that is running in that hour.

Do not expect XC to have food or a trolley service and be pleasantly surprised if there is one.


The other main route is via London. Get on at the B end of Reading and that puts you at the back in Paddington to get to the Circle line to Euston Square. It is harder to get split tickets for this journey as the Chester trains are often non stop to Stafford. I quite like getting a Pendolino to Crewe and changing there but have not managed to get an 805 yet

The via London service feels quicker but is slightly slower than via Birmingham. Heading south I have stayed on at Stafford (xx14) to go via London rather than change to the xx21 XC service and the XC service has beaten me to Reading by about 10 mins. If you take the 1732 from Chester and get a taxi to Paddington you will probably just beat the XC service, all being well.


The other 2 routes I have taken are

Early drive to Watford Junction then train to Crewe. A couple of years ago this was the best route for getting to Chester early but currently the arrival at Crewe just misses the hourly service to Chester.


Train to Newport around 1615 then the Holyhead train(1714 off Cardiff). If it works it is the best journey with Mk4 stock, a same platform interchange at Newport and the restaurant offering in 1st class.

However out of 5 journeys,

1 I could have the full 3 course meal but the card machine broke so they could not do more drinks
1 they ran out of dessert so I could only have 2 courses
1 they could only do the lite bites menu
1 there was no chef
1 there was a class 197 substitution.

This is by far my favourite route but I wish it were more reliable.

You need to do split tickets on this route. If you are looking for a return out this way and back via Birmingham, Craven Arms is your friend. If you do go 1st class there is a 22 pound upgrade on standard and about 25 pounds for the meal. Given the danger of a 197 substitution this might be worth doing.


There are also the longer routes (in time) like via Shrewsbury which are quite nice as one offs but the 3h30-4h00 trip time each way means the extra length can get to you if doing it regularly.

Finally if buying end to end tickets the via London route does allow routing via Birmingham and Reading. You may wish to buy a ticket such as Earley to Chester or Wokingham to Chester then the return would allow a break of journey at Reading and a journey Reading to Earley or Reading to Wokingham via Paddington and back from Waterloo

Hope this helps

 

[BongoStar]

Thanks all for suggestions, really helpful.

My contract requires me to show my face 5 days in office over a week week rolling period. Most just schedule an afternoon meeting and that suffices the bosses metric that enough people are using the offices.

Longer journeys are fine with me as long as I can use my laptop on way there. So far I am going up Tuesday first off peak and returning Wed/Thu evening off peak after 7pm.

Last Wednesday I left with the 5.20pm from Chester and after the change at Crewe, didn't get a seat till Oxford, so will be taking much later ones now.

Contract is for Mid June to Mid September, so hopefully the longer days and okayish weather won't make the trip too tiring.