SWR updating booking engine and app on 26 March 2026

[Joe Paxton]

Received an email yesterday from SWR giving rather short notice that they will be updating their booking engine used in their app and website on 26 March.

The email linked to this FAQ page:
www.southwesternrailway.com/contact-and-help/website-and-app-faqs

On 26 March we’ve made changes to our booking engine on both our website and app. Some functionality is temporarily out of action whilst our teams work on some important upgrades, but it will be back with you shortly.

I don't know what system they're changing over to. I'm assuming it'll be the end of the last TOC-based 'Mixing Deck' site, i.e. this one:
tickets.southwesternrailway.com/sw/en/journeyplanning/mixingdeck

(The Mixing Deck will live on for now at least at RedSpottedHanky...)

 

[CyrusWuff]

Received an email yesterday from SWR giving rather short notice that they will be updating their booking engine used in their app and website on 26 March.

I don't know what system they're changing over to.

I suspect it will be SilverRail, the same as GWR recently switched to, given they were previously a First TOC. It's likely to have been done as a joint procurement despite SWR's move to DFTO.

 

[Adam Williams]

Will it do seat reservations?

 

[Joe Paxton]

As expected, it's the end of the Mixing Deck on SWR - as the last TOC to use the Worldline booking engine.

I suspect it will be SilverRail, the same as GWR recently switched to, given they were previously a First TOC. It's likely to have been done as a joint procurement despite SWR's move to DFTO.

Yep, looks to be the same booking engine as GWR. Makes sense that it was likely a joint procurement, given that I believe Worldline are exiting the market hence there was a need to procure a new booking engine to tide things over until GBR gets going. (As an aside, a First Group entity still handles Delay Repay for SWR.)

 

[slicedbread]

I've had few emails from SWR about the app and website update.

One was saying to logon and reset the password and another today to say I now need to add payment card to my Tap2Go account.

So looks like the passwords and payment cards where not moved when they migrated to the system. I'd guess something to do with the encryption on them making it tricky to migrate.

I was being to wonder why I had not been charged for my journeys on Wednesday.

 

[Daniel_P]

As a long-time user of SWR's website purely because of the Mixing Deck, I am quite disappointed it has been removed as part of this booking engine update. However, I have found an alternative, in the form of Realtime Tickets' detailed mode: https://www.realtimetickets.co.uk/

Hope this is useful for other members in a similar boat to myself. I found the website really easy to use, plus the daytripper function is a nice way to look for spontaneous days out.

 

[fandroid]

I tried to buy return ticket Basingstoke to Waterloo with Railcard from the SWR app today - "no tickets available for this journey"

Hilarious.

The ticket machines at the station were happy to comply though

 

[HantsExile]

Funnily enough I tried to buy a single from Winchester to Basingstoke yesterday on my phone via the new SWR app - again, "no tickets available for this journey". Managed it perfectly well on my laptop / SWR website.

I think I got an email from SWR saying there were teething problems on Android ???

 

[CV110]

I got the email from SWR saying I needed to add my "preferred payment card" to keep my Tap2Go service active. When I tried to add the American Express card I had been using on the old platform, I found that the new platform does not accept American Express cards.

 

[Bungle965]

I got the email from SWR saying I needed to add my "preferred payment card" to keep my Tap2Go service active. When I tried to add the American Express card I had been using on the old platform, I found that the new platform does not accept American Express cards.

I noticed that also, isn't Amex an accepted method of travel under NCOT?

 

[Haywain]

I noticed that also, isn't Amex an accepted method of travel under NCOT?

You mean method of payment. That doesn't mean it has to be accepted at every sales point. After all, not every TVM accepts cash, and try using cash online!

 

[35B]

You mean method of payment. That doesn't mean it has to be accepted at every sales point. After all, not every TVM accepts cash, and try using cash online!

That may be legally true, but is pretty darn stupid when you're trying to sell to business travellers whose firms make Amex use compulsory.

 

[fandroid]

While updating my payment method for Tap2Go I noticed detailed journey history is now available, detailing every tap when using a loaded ticket on the Smartcard. It took me through Basingstoke to Walthamstow and back with every tap, whether on SWR, GTR or LU. I'm wondering how it'll record my journey today where I know that I won't need to tap to pass gates at my destination.

 

[boiledbeans2]

I have the app. Now it now longer remembers the history for "Live Times", which is a section allowing you to enter a station to see live times. It no longer remembers the recent stations entered.

Also, the station codes beginning with Z don't exist on "Live Times", e.g. ZCW for Canada Water.

These used to work in the old app.

 

[fandroid]

After thinking the app was working I was later regularly being told that my login was over 45 mins old and I had to go through the sign in process again. The classic ever repeating circular voyage that's guaranteed to put users off a site for a very long time.

Later note: I managed to get in after a mere two signings-in, but couldn't find anywhere the record of taps associated with Travelcard journey that I reported before. I've a record of losing Smartcards, so it would help if, for the ones displayed in my account, I could at least show a "deactivated" label as appropriate.There is some sense in still being able to access them on the app as they still display tickets/journeys that were loaded on them.