Trivia: Bonkers Day Returns

[Starmill]

I recently found that there are fares from Liverpool Lime Street to Brighton, or up to Glynde if you're feeling really up for it, routed ✠SOUTHERN&LON MID. The crazy thing is, they have chosen to price one type as an Off-Peak Day Return! This is a journey of around 6 hours we are talking about, Longer than Euston to Glasgow or Kings Cross to Edinburgh. Apart from a corresponding Off-Peak Day Single (priced at just 10p less) there are no other 'Day' fares for this flow at all.

It's at a fantastic price, £47.90 full fare, but considering an open return of the same route is only £55... is anyone really going to make a journey like this both ways in a day? Maybe, but using VT I should think - for which no 'Day' discount is available anyway. At least the restrictions aren't draconian, by any train at weekends and no restriction on Liverpool - Birmingham services.

Nonetheless... more cheaper tickets is always a good thing I suppose, and well done to them for coming up with such cheap options and innovative products!

Here it is. Any others? There is a massive abundance of shorter journeys both in terms of time and distance for which no 'Day' tickets are available, which pushes up their price for some.

 

[CyrusWuff]

How about Stansted Airport to Smethwick Galton Bridge? There's an Off-Peak Day Return priced by Chiltern and routed via High Wycombe, at a cost of £53.50.

Restriction code C4 applies, thus it's not valid on trains arriving into London before 10:00, making the first available train the 09:15 from Stansted, which gives a connection into the 11:15 from Marylebone, and hence gets to Smethwick at 13:22. Last train back would be 19:45 from Smethwick, getting back to Stansted at 00:13.

 

[Minilad]

How about Stansted Airport to Smethwick Galton Bridge? There's an Off-Peak Day Return priced by Chiltern and routed via High Wycombe, at a cost of £53.50.

Restriction code C4 applies, thus it's not valid on trains arriving into London before 10:00, making the first available train the 09:15 from Stansted, which gives a connection into the 11:15 from Marylebone, and hence gets to Smethwick at 13:22. Last train back would be 19:45 from Smethwick, getting back to Stansted at 00:13.

That is quite ridiculous. Why anyone would wish to spend 6 hours in Smethwick is beyond me

 

[alex17595]

There is a Broadstairs to Salisbury via Barnhamday return. £24 its a bargain but takes forever! Thee is also season tickets for it!



Same price to Weymouth, takes 6hr:40mins. ouch.

 

[Smethwickian]

That is quite ridiculous. Why anyone would wish to spend 6 hours in Smethwick is beyond me

I'll give you a guided tour of the highlights of my home town if you like.








... What you do for the remaining five-and-a-half hours is up to you, however.

 

[Starmill]

There is a Broadstairs to Salisbury via Barnhamday return. £24 its a bargain but takes forever! Thee is also season tickets for it!



Same price to Weymouth, takes 6hr:40mins. ouch.

In what universe do our fares make sense I wonder? I was aware of some discrepancies on this axis that can make it cheaper to buy a ticket from far enough east to ensure it's priced by Southern rather than SWT... but this really really does get me.

I wonder what someone wanting a return for a roughly 60 mile single journey from Southampton to Weymouth would make of you telling them that if they bought a ticket for a single journey of 220 miles it would save them £2.50...

So for a round trip, it is cheaper to buy a ticket for a journey ~360% of the length!?!? The only difference is the Southampton ticket allows departure all of 15 minutes earlier.

I'm familiar with our fares system throwing up anomalies, but the magnitude of this one astounds me...

 

[alex17595]

Its only £15.85 with a railcard as well.

 

[Greeby]

What is ludicrous is not that these flows have day returns, but that flows of similar mileage but much faster and frequent service don't.

 

[306024]

How about Stansted Airport to Smethwick Galton Bridge? There's an Off-Peak Day Return priced by Chiltern and routed via High Wycombe, at a cost of £53.50.

Restriction code C4 applies, thus it's not valid on trains arriving into London before 10:00, making the first available train the 09:15 from Stansted, which gives a connection into the 11:15 from Marylebone, and hence gets to Smethwick at 13:22. Last train back would be 19:45 from Smethwick, getting back to Stansted at 00:13.

Ideal for the hoards of Bishops Stortford Baggies fans (no I don't know any either). Time for a pint before the match, and the half hour town tour afterwards

 

[paul1609]

There is a Broadstairs to Salisbury via Barnhamday return. £24 its a bargain but takes forever! Thee is also season tickets for it!



Same price to Weymouth, takes 6hr:40mins. ouch.

Interestingly on Saturday Evening I was surprised to find that a fair percentage of the passengers on a Redhill to Tonbridge service were Kentish Pompey fans returning home. Normally I go along the coast but trying to avoid the Eastbourne Airshow fiasco I travelled to Headcorn, but there were at least one family group who regularly came from Margate.

 

[hairyhandedfool]

That is quite ridiculous. Why anyone would wish to spend 6 hours in Smethwick is beyond me

Fares tend to be reversible, so whilst someone may not want to spend six hours in Smethwick, they might want to spend six hours at Stansted.

 

[FQ]

There is a Broadstairs to Salisbury via Barnhamday return. £24 its a bargain but takes forever! Thee is also season tickets for it!



Same price to Weymouth, takes 6hr:40mins. ouch.

Is it valid on a 395 to Pancras and then over to Waterloo for a 444 to Weymouth?

 

[alex17595]

Is it valid on a 395 to Pancras and then over to Waterloo for a 444 to Weymouth?

No, it doesn't go via barnham.

Might be valid to St Pancras and Victoria to Southampton but I struggle to find it on a journey planner,

 

[PermitToTravel]

Afraid not (it is valid if going to Southampton not Salisbury)

Via Barnham tickets as a rule are never valid on 444s from Waterloo though