Return Fares into Mersey Area.

[yorksrob]

I'm looking to buy a ticket from Mirfield to the Mersey area, not via Liverpool.

I can seem to get an off-peak return as far as Wigan, but if I try to go towards St Helen's, it says no return fares available (just advance purchase, which I don't want).

Is this correct or a glitch in the website ?

 

[Statto]

Which part of the Mersey area are you looking to get to, as try & go through Newton Le Willows rather than going through Wigan, thats if you want to buy & use a saveaway.

 

[yorkie]

I'm looking to buy a ticket from Mirfield to the Mersey area, not via Liverpool.

I can seem to get an off-peak return as far as Wigan, but if I try to go towards St Helen's, it says no return fares available (just advance purchase, which I don't want).

Is this correct or a glitch in the website ?

That's not correct.

We are selling Mirfield to St Helens open return fares without any problems at all

Results | RailUK Tickets

TrainSplit is a free service that makes it easy to find the cheapest train tickets for your journey.

tickets.railforums.co.uk

(Screenshot shows a search on the forums ticketing site for an open return from Mirfield to St Helens; the results include Anytime short distance returns, routed not via Preston/Liverpool and Any Permitted).

You can also look the fares up at BRFares.com.

You mention St Helens, but if your actual search is to somewhere else, please let us know the details.

A web link and screenshot are useful too.

 

[yorksrob]

Brill, is there an off-peak version ?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 30 Sep 2025 ==

Which part of the Mersey area are you looking to get to, as try & go through Newton Le Willows rather than going through Wigan, thats if you want to buy & use a saveaway.

I'm looking to get to Prescot.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

I'm looking to buy a ticket from Mirfield to the Mersey area, not via Liverpool.

I can seem to get an off-peak return as far as Wigan, but if I try to go towards St Helen's, it says no return fares available (just advance purchase, which I don't want).

Is this correct or a glitch in the website ?

Brfares (https://www.brfares.com/!fares?orig=MIR&dest=SNH&period=20250907) seems to suggest that other than 'any permitted' tickets, the restriction is 'not Preston/Lpool'. Is your planned route via Preston?

 

[yorkie]

Brill, is there an off-peak version ?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 30 Sep 2025 ==



I'm looking to get to Prescot.

You didn't say where, or when, you were going, making it difficult to advise.

But yes, there are Off Peak fares available...

Results | RailUK Tickets

TrainSplit is a free service that makes it easy to find the cheapest train tickets for your journey.

tickets.railforums.co.uk

Purchase flexible walk-up fares for any British train journey

Purchase flexible single/return tickets & Travelcards – in 3 clicks. Full details of all British rail fares shown, with built-in Season Ticket Calculator.

www.brfares.com

(The DfT have not yet pushed out "simple" airline style ticketing anywhere other than LNER priced flows, and this journey is completely beyond LNER's jurisdiction, so don't worry, LNER won't be penalising you on this occasion!)

 

[yorksrob]

Brfares (https://www.brfares.com/!fares?orig=MIR&dest=SNH&period=20250907) seems to suggest that other than 'any permitted' tickets, the restriction is 'not Preston/Lpool'. Is your planned route via Preston?

Yes, I'll be avoiding those.

You didn't say where, or when, you were going.

But yes there is

Results | RailUK Tickets

TrainSplit is a free service that makes it easy to find the cheapest train tickets for your journey.

tickets.railforums.co.uk

Cheers.

I might use that, or I may split at Wigan, which appears to be a similar price.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 30 Sep 2025 ==

For some reason, none of the websites seem to be showing the short distance for Saturday. Is there a reason for this ?

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Looks to me as the fares from Mirfield are the same to Prescot as St Helens Central, and there's an off-peak day return £30.20.
Also looks like an opportunity for the xx42 Mirfield-Wigan Wallgate stopper with a hop to North Western on to Prescot, 2h40m.
Otherwise some complicated changes to avoid Liverpool.

 

[yorksrob]

Looks to me as the fares from Mirfield are the same to Prescot as St Helens Central, and there's an off-peak day return £30.20.
Also looks like an opportunity for the xx42 Mirfield-Wigan Wallgate stopper with a hop to North Western on to Prescot, 2h40m.
Otherwise some complicated changes to avoid Liverpool.

Yes, that's precisely what I'm looking for. They don't make it easy to find - where did you see it ?

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Yes, that's precisely what I'm looking for. They don't make it easy to find - where did you see it ?

It's on BRFares. Multiple off-peak return fares shown.

Purchase flexible walk-up fares for any British train journey

Purchase flexible single/return tickets & Travelcards – in 3 clicks. Full details of all British rail fares shown, with built-in Season Ticket Calculator.

www.brfares.com

Times on fastjp.
https://www.fastjp.com/Results/rid/b17b3f96-5f67-4bb1-ac7e-1bd605d5565e
Put in "avoid Huddersfield" to get the direct L&Y stopper to Wigan.

 

[yorksrob]

It's on BRFares. Multiple off-peak return fares shown.

Purchase flexible walk-up fares for any British train journey

Purchase flexible single/return tickets & Travelcards – in 3 clicks. Full details of all British rail fares shown, with built-in Season Ticket Calculator.

www.brfares.com

Times on fastjp.
https://www.fastjp.com/Results/rid/b17b3f96-5f67-4bb1-ac7e-1bd605d5565e
Put in "avoid Huddersfield" to get the direct L&Y stopper to Wigan.

Cheers. I've not used brfares previously.

 

[Fawkes Cat]

It's on BRFares. Multiple off-peak return fares shown.

Purchase flexible walk-up fares for any British train journey

Purchase flexible single/return tickets & Travelcards – in 3 clicks. Full details of all British rail fares shown, with built-in Season Ticket Calculator.

www.brfares.com

Times on fastjp.
https://www.fastjp.com/Results/rid/b17b3f96-5f67-4bb1-ac7e-1bd605d5565e
Put in "avoid Huddersfield" to get the direct L&Y stopper to Wigan.

Fwiw, the National Rail app will find it - but on clicking through to TPE to buy it, it comes up with an error message. If I choose the Anytime Short Return on National Rail however, TPE then lets me select the off-peak day return - but the journeys are flagged as being overtaken by a later service.

So (a) via NR and TPE at least there seems to be a workaround, and (b) does the overtaking issue hint at a reason why the railway might think we should all buy a more expensive but faster ticket?

 

[yorksrob]

Fwiw, the National Rail app will find it - but on clicking through to TPE to buy it, it comes up with an error message. If I choose the Anytime Short Return on National Rail however, TPE then lets me select the off-peak day return - but the journeys are flagged as being overtaken by a later service.

So (a) via NR and TPE at least there seems to be a workaround, and (b) does the overtaking issue hint at a reason why the railway might think we should all buy a more expensive but faster ticket?

If so, that's a bit poor. The CDR ought to show up first surely !

 

[yorksrob]

Another follow-up question here.

If you go from West Yorks to somewhere like Burscough, you get a fare routed "not Liverpool or Preston".

Didn't there use to be one to Southport ?

When I check Mirfield to Southport, on BR fares, it only seems to show any route permitted when I try it.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 9 Oct 2025 ==

I've had a look on the forum website. It suggests there's an off peak day return via Wigan, so maybe that's the one.