Perfect example of why UK trains don't work for cycle touring.

[Polar Bear]

Car clubs are a great idea but clearly the demand is fairly low outside of larger connurbations.  Our nearest is Leamington Spa which is over an hour on the bus and even longer by train.  We'd probably use one if there was one local to us.

[Kim]

Car clubs are a great idea but clearly the demand is fairly low outside of larger connurbations.  Our nearest is Leamington Spa which is over an hour on the bus and even longer by train.  We'd probably use one if there was one local to us.

Yes, you really want a car within sensible walking or bike-that-will-fit-in-the-car distance, which is mostly down to luck.  I expect normal non-cyclists who don't have a convenient Brompton find the locations even more limiting.  (Which is probably why Co-Wheels have installed more cars in central Birmigham, where the public transport goes.)

[Cudzoziemiec]

I came across a bizarre example of odd fares last weekend. Trained up from Temple Meads to Ashchurch (ie Tewkesbury). £10.60. Spent a weekend cycling and camping, then train back on Monday. Thought I'd get off at Filton, about five miles before Temple Meads. £11.40 said the guard.  said I. He checked then agreed it was odd and I got a ticket to TM. Later I checked the price to Bristol Parkway, a shorter journey again. £12.15. Apparently these last two fares are set by XC not GWR, despite there being no XC services between those parts.

Another example I came across: an Anytime return from Chippenham to Norwich is £210.70. From Bath it's £301, equating to a return fare between Bath and Chippenham of £90.40. It's about ten miles and a Bath to Chippenham actually costs £8 anytime return.

[st599]

I came across a bizarre example of odd fares last weekend. Trained up from Temple Meads to Ashchurch (ie Tewkesbury). £10.60. Spent a weekend cycling and camping, then train back on Monday. Thought I'd get off at Filton, about five miles before Temple Meads. £11.40 said the guard.  said I. He checked then agreed it was odd and I got a ticket to TM.

Ridiculously, buying a ticket for the longer journey, because it's cheaper, is also against the railway rules: https://www.standard.co.uk/hp/front/couple-fined-ps114-for-getting-off-train-before-their-final-stop-6510426.html

[Cudzoziemiec]

Sounds like an Advance ticket. It's certainly allowed on Anytime and Off-peak (etc) returns and singles.

[Polar Bear]

Advance tickets are a bargain but they do have a condition of carriage that states that you cannot break your journey.  You are given a ticket for a specific journey in it's entirety at specific times.  It only becomes "open" when services are delayed or cancelled.

I get a tad peeved when I cannot book an advance because they have all gone but then some arse tries to use a cheap advance on a different train or hops off before their stop.  They are just greedily cheating the rest of us imo.

Just my two pennies worth. 

< grumble grumble grumble >  🤔 😉

[Jethro]

I hate to think how much a ticket on HS2 will cost

If HS2 ever gets finished!!!

[rower40]

Also, why are some train operators charging so much more than others per mile?  For instance, London to Birmingham prices aren't to bad but Birmingham to York is ridiculous

Split-tickets are your friend.  Tot up the costs of Birmingham to Derby, Derby to Sheffield, and Sheffield to York tickets, and it'll come out cheaper (often by as much as 50%) than the Birmingham to York ticket.  As long as the train calls at the station where you've split the ticket, you can use such tickets.   All Cross-country (Birmingham to York) trains call at Derby and Sheffield.

BUT if you need to get these refunded because you're not travelling after all, you lose £10 compulsory refund fee on EACH ticket.

[Jethro]

And now we have strikes planned for the near future.

What with cancellations and ever increasing ticket prices, could this be the beginning of the end for rail travel in the UK?

[Wowbagger]

No, because that would have been Beeching.

[Polar Bear]

During the time of every tory government public services and infrastructure decline massively and yet folk always blame, oh I don't know, the Unions or the last Labour government or people for using the services ...

Apportion the blame where it is due:  decades of tory ideology and underinvestment resulting in degradation of services duly primed for sell off.

[TrevA]

Agree that ticket prices are ridiculous. I used to regularly travel between Nottingham and Bristol for work. It cost about £115 for a return ticket. If I bought a ticket to Bridgewater (which is further than Bristol) it was cheaper. If I split my ticket at Cheltenham, it was cheaper still, around £70.

I’ve been planning a trip to London. If I go from my local station, it’s £58, changing at Grantham from local to LNER or Hull Trains. If I drive to Grantham and catch the train from there, it’s £64!

[organoman]

And now we have strikes planned for the near future.

What with cancellations and ever increasing ticket prices, could this be the beginning of the end for rail travel in the UK?

I’ve been caught by next weeks strike. I was booked on the Leeds to Carlisle train on the Saturday so I could do Ride to the Sun, but I’m going to have to give it a miss this year due to the strike. Gutted. There’s always next year though.

[Jaded]

Our buses are fucked.

The most important daily post on our crappy community FaceAche page is what Stagecoach aren't doing today.

They haven't got enough drivers, because the drivers have fucked off to drive HGVs. HGVs need drivers because lack of foreign. Lack of foreign is nothing to do with Brexit. Oh No.

This, and the train strikes next week is royally fucking public transport up.

Never mind. We can buy £5k electric bikes. And Audi Q13 Electric Battle Tanks.

[Pingu]

During the time of every tory government public services and infrastructure decline massively and yet folk always blame, oh I don't know, the Unions or the last Labour government or people for using the services ...

Apportion the blame where it is due:  decades of tory ideology and underinvestment resulting in degradation of services duly primed for sell off.

^^^^This

[ElyDave]

And now we have strikes planned for the near future.

What with cancellations and ever increasing ticket prices, could this be the beginning of the end for rail travel in the UK?

I’ve been caught by next weeks strike. I was booked on the Leeds to Carlisle train on the Saturday so I could do Ride to the Sun, but I’m going to have to give it a miss this year due to the strike. Gutted. There’s always next year though.

I've been asked to be in that London for two days next week (driven by client coming over from USAnia) because of the strikes I've been authorised to take taxi into Central London. What a waste!

Plus my daughter is right royally passed off, as she is in the middle of her a levels and takes the train from Ely to Cambridge. Next week we'll be taking her by car, its not as if she can just change her travel plans either.

[Rupert]

I did think about selling my car and using the bus or trains a bit more but perhaps I should keep the car for a little bit longer.

But then I saw this https://www.thesun.co.uk/motors/18853804/uks-most-expensive-petrol-station/

[ElyDave]

Looks like I'm now going to need to drive next week, not looking forward to that at all

[Cudzoziemiec]

Agree that ticket prices are ridiculous. I used to regularly travel between Nottingham and Bristol for work. It cost about £115 for a return ticket. If I bought a ticket to Bridgewater (which is further than Bristol) it was cheaper. If I split my ticket at Cheltenham, it was cheaper still, around £70.

I’ve been planning a trip to London. If I go from my local station, it’s £58, changing at Grantham from local to LNER or Hull Trains. If I drive to Grantham and catch the train from there, it’s £64!

I think this is due to fares from different stations, even though on the same route, being set by different companies. For instance a ticket from Bristol Temple Meads to, say, Worcester, is cheaper than going from Bristol Parkway, despite the distance from TM being slightly further. But the fares from TM are set by GWR whereas those from Parkway are set by Cross Country.

[davelodwig]

A mate is currently on the train to Paddington. Some cockwomble has stuck all their luggage in his booked bike space although the luggage rack nearby has lots of space.

I spent a couple years travelling up to Birmingham from Stroud on a Monday with my bike and home on a Friday.  Luggage or bin bags in the bike space were an oft feature, more usually on a Friday night than the Monday morning though.  My usual trick with bin bags was to chuck them on the platform at New street and put the bike in the slot, no one ever questioned me about it, I'm assuming someone came and tidied them up.

I did once have a chap who took offence to my existence, so shoved me into my handlebars in the lift and then took great joy in depositing his suitcase in the bike space, smirked while he did it.  Chucked his bag on the platform, he didn't notice either as the train departed.  Shame as I think he was going to Bristol and got off after me.

[Rod Marton]

Agree that ticket prices are ridiculous. I used to regularly travel between Nottingham and Bristol for work. It cost about £115 for a return ticket. If I bought a ticket to Bridgewater (which is further than Bristol) it was cheaper. If I split my ticket at Cheltenham, it was cheaper still, around £70.

I’ve been planning a trip to London. If I go from my local station, it’s £58, changing at Grantham from local to LNER or Hull Trains. If I drive to Grantham and catch the train from there, it’s £64!

I think this is due to fares from different stations, even though on the same route, being set by different companies. For instance a ticket from Bristol Temple Meads to, say, Worcester, is cheaper than going from Bristol Parkway, despite the distance from TM being slightly further. But the fares from TM are set by GWR whereas those from Parkway are set by Cross Country.

It gets worse. GWR passengers have long known that it is cheaper to split a ticket at Didcot for any journey that goes through Didcot, but...

Tickets from Swindon to Didcot vary in price depending on where the train has come from. So travelling on a train from Cheltenham is cheaper than travelling on a train from Bristol or Cardiff. Travelling between Didcot and Reading, the local trains are cheaper than the non-stop trains, except for some of the trains from Cheltenham, which are the same price as the local trains. This is all from the same company, with trains travelling on the same tracks.

I don't understand it either. You can guess which tickets I buy, though as there is nothing on the tickets to indicate which train you are using, they aren't necessarily the ones I travel on.

[mrcharly-YHT]

A mate is currently on the train to Paddington. Some cockwomble has stuck all their luggage in his booked bike space although the luggage rack nearby has lots of space.

I spent a couple years travelling up to Birmingham from Stroud on a Monday with my bike and home on a Friday.  Luggage or bin bags in the bike space were an oft feature, more usually on a Friday night than the Monday morning though.  My usual trick with bin bags was to chuck them on the platform at New street and put the bike in the slot, no one ever questioned me about it, I'm assuming someone came and tidied them up.

I did once have a chap who took offence to my existence, so shoved me into my handlebars in the lift and then took great joy in depositing his suitcase in the bike space, smirked while he did it.  Chucked his bag on the platform, he didn't notice either as the train departed.  Shame as I think he was going to Bristol and got off after me.

I shouldn't but I couldn't help laugh at this.

[davelodwig]

A mate is currently on the train to Paddington. Some cockwomble has stuck all their luggage in his booked bike space although the luggage rack nearby has lots of space.

I spent a couple years travelling up to Birmingham from Stroud on a Monday with my bike and home on a Friday.  Luggage or bin bags in the bike space were an oft feature, more usually on a Friday night than the Monday morning though.  My usual trick with bin bags was to chuck them on the platform at New street and put the bike in the slot, no one ever questioned me about it, I'm assuming someone came and tidied them up.

I did once have a chap who took offence to my existence, so shoved me into my handlebars in the lift and then took great joy in depositing his suitcase in the bike space, smirked while he did it.  Chucked his bag on the platform, he didn't notice either as the train departed.  Shame as I think he was going to Bristol and got off after me.

I shouldn't but I couldn't help laugh at this.

I'm usually very meek, but someday's it's like the evil bastard switch gets toggled.

I did feel bad about it, after all who wants to get to their destination to discover your luggage has probably been blown up at new street.  But then my friends took me to the pub and I felt a lot better.

[Jaded]

 

[GdS]

In the video the guy appears to be buying tickets on Trainline then adding a bike reservation to that ticket on GWR.  Is that possible?  Why not do it all on GWR?

booking bikes via the GWR website usually doesn't work for me. They have a WhatsApp which they answer immediately and do it all for you

078906 08043

if you are lucky enough to need to travel on the WCML London NorthWestern Railway (the slow trains via Northampton) have extremely low Advance fares with no need to book bikes, they take twice as long as Avanti though. They used to serve Manchester but not any more. I booked a single Euston to Coventry next Thursday for £4.95