Split ticketing LEI - EDB

[royalpenguin22]

Good evening all,

I believe I may be overthinking this but I just thought I should ask as I am not very experienced at this.

I have bought two separate Advance Singles to make a journey from Leicester to Edinburgh, so I imagine this constitutes a 'self imposed' split. (this coming week on a weekday)

Advance Single 1. 13:07 LEI - DBY 13:28 (EMR)
This service is more than likely cancelled owing to the hourly timetable imposed in light of recent events so will be taking the 12:36 service to DBY.

Advance Single 2. 13:45 DBY - EDB 18:10 (XC)

As far as I am aware what I have done is valid - there is a more than sufficient connection time at DBY (at least 17 minutes) - even more so if I am taking the earlier EMR service.

The point of confusion is that when I bought the XC ticket from DBY to EDB, there were two fare options available.
From what I can read there is no clear difference aside from the wording (which is in the screenshot I have attached) and also the three-digit ticket code: the cheaper fare is MES, the more expensive one is MCS. Bearing in mind that the XC service is direct and does not involve any changes, I am confused as to why there are two advance fare options available in the first place.

My question is two fold -
1. Is this a valid split, given that I booked the two advance singles separately?
2. Does the cheaper fare (which I bought - MES code) somehow exclude any possibility of using it as part of a split (in case of delay) or am I simply overthinking this?
My current understanding is that if the EMR train arrived late, I would be able to board the XC service the following hour without needing to buy a new ticket and whatnot.

This of course wouldn't be an issue if I knew I could ensure I arrive into DBY on time, but concerns me particularly with the hot weather that we have coming and the unpredictability of services that accompanies this.

 

[signed]

1. Yes, it’s just 2 tickets, no different to buying from a split ticketing website. Fares levels are irrelevant.

2. Yes, you can jump on the next train, you’d also be eligible for Delay Repay on the whole journey as you are way above Minimum Connection Time at Derby

 

[Adam Williams]

1. Is this a valid split, given that I booked the two advance singles separately?

Yes.

2. Does the cheaper fare (which I bought - MES code) somehow exclude any possibility of using it as part of a split (in case of delay) or am I simply overthinking this?

The latter.

I am confused as to why there are two advance fare options available in the first place.

As am I, this is a very strange thing to offer in a retail interface. The higher-priced Advance tier tickets, even if available, present no value to a potential customer when there is a cheaper tier available. I do not understand why you'd want to show them! The only exception I can think of is Standard Premium Advances, but not relevant here.

 

[royalpenguin22]

1. Yes, it’s just 2 tickets, no different to buying from a split ticketing website. Fares levels are irrelevant.

2. Yes, you can jump on the next train, you’d also be eligible for Delay Repay on the whole journey as you are way above Minimum Connection Time at Derby

Thanks for your response.

On your last point, for journeys cancelled today (I imagine that my 13:07 from LEI will be cancelled as the timetable tomorrow shows an hourly service departing at :36), the EMR website shows:

'If you have an Advance ticket which is usually valid on this train only then you may use your original ticket at no extra cost on two EMR trains before or after your original train time.'

In light of this, I imagine this will be okay?

 

[signed]

Advance Single 1. 13:07 LEI - DBY 13:28 (EMR)
This service is more than likely cancelled owing to the hourly timetable imposed in light of recent events so will be taking the 12:36 service to DBY.

Make sure it is officially canceled before you get on the earlier train, you don’t want to risk penalties or prosecutions from subtle things like that

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Jun 2026 ==

Thanks for your response.

On your last point, for journeys cancelled today (I imagine that my 13:07 from LEI will be cancelled as the timetable tomorrow shows an hourly service departing at :36), the EMR website shows:

'If you have an Advance ticket which is usually valid on this train only then you may use your original ticket at no extra cost on two EMR trains before or after your original train time.'

In light of this, I imagine this will be okay?

Yes with the caveat above

 

[royalpenguin22]

Make sure it is officially canceled before you get on the earlier train, you don’t want to risk penalties or prosecutions from subtle things like that

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Jun 2026 ==


Yes with the caveat above

Thank you!

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Looking at the two Derby to Edinburgh Waverley itineraries, the first one, i.e. the 13:30 departure from Derby looks to be an EMR journey up to Sheffield (arrive 14:04), change there for the 14:11 TPE to Doncaster (arrive 14:36), then onboard the 14:43 LNER to Edinburgh (arrive 17:31). Do-able, but with two changes required.

The 13:45 departure from Derby (with XC) is direct to Edinburgh (arrives 18:10). Slower, but no intermediate changes needed.

 

[royalpenguin22]

Looking at the two Derby to Edinburgh Waverley itineraries, the first one, i.e. the 13:30 departure from Derby looks to be an XC journey up to Sheffield (arrive 14:04), change there for the 14:11 TPE to Doncaster (arrive 14:36), then onboard the 14:43 LNER to Edinburgh (arrive 17:31). Do-able, but with two changes required.

The 13:45 departure from Derby (with XC) is direct to Edinburgh (arrives 18:10). Slower, but no intermediate changes needed.

Can't wait to be on an XC service for nearly 4.5 hours during a heatwave...