Trivia: Short distance Advance fares

[M28361M]

While looking up train times between Liverpool Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway the other day, I noticed that Northern offer an Advance fare for this journey for £1.50 single.

I thought this was unusual, to offer an Advance ticket on such a short journey (I think it's about five miles) but I'm now curious: does anyone know of any other examples of similar short distances where an Advance fare is available?

 

[yorkie]

At approx 5 1/2 miles I doubt there will be many similarly short examples.

 

[route101]

Can these Northern ones be bought right up to departure ?

 

[Saperstein]

While looking up train times between Liverpool Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway the other day, I noticed that Northern offer an Advance fare for this journey for £1.50 single.

I thought this was unusual, to offer an Advance ticket on such a short journey (I think it's about five miles) but I'm now curious: does anyone know of any other examples of similar short distances where an Advance fare is available?

How about High Street Glasgow (HST) to Argyle Street (AGA)?

http://www.brfares.com/#!fares?orig=HST&dest=AGS

Saperstein

 

[yorkie]

How about High Street Glasgow (HST) to Argyle Street (AGA)?

http://www.brfares.com/#!fares?orig=HST&dest=AGS

Saperstein

I see no normal Advance fares there; only group tickets which have to be bought in advance.

 

[joke2711]

Can these Northern ones be bought right up to departure ?

Not overly a short distance but today I turned up at Newton-Le-Willows to travel to Chester (one-way) at 14:05.
Went to the ticket machine and was offered an Anytime Single at £8.50 for the Transport for Wales 14:17 service or a £4:50 Advance on the 14:26 Northern.

 

[Merseysider]

East Didsbury to Manchester Piccadilly is 5.3 miles and has Advance fares available thanks to Northern.

Your booked train might even turn up.

 

[route101]

Not overly a short distance but today I turned up at Newton-Le-Willows to travel to Chester (one-way) at 14:05.
Went to the ticket machine and was offered an Anytime Single at £8.50 for the Transport for Wales 14:17 service or a £4:50 Advance on the 14:26 Northern.

Advance on the ticket machine?

 

[Joe Paxton]

Not overly a short distance but today I turned up at Newton-Le-Willows to travel to Chester (one-way) at 14:05.
Went to the ticket machine and was offered an Anytime Single at £8.50 for the Transport for Wales 14:17 service or a £4:50 Advance on the 14:26 Northern.

Did you take Northern up on their offer to get you there 9 minutes later in return for a 47% saving on your fare?

 

[joke2711]

Yes it was offered on the ticket machine and I certainly did ...

 

[Haywain]

Advance on the ticket machine?

Its not really anything new - for some of us, anyway.

 

[M28361M]

Thinking about it, these short-distance Advance fares do make some sense if they are available on the day. If I turned up at the station and a £1.50 fare was available for the train I was going to get anyway, I would probably go for it rather than paying the walk-up fare. A couple of quid saved for me, and presumably a better slice of revenue for Northern.

 

[Saperstein]

I see no normal Advance fares there; only group tickets which have to be bought in advance.

Sorry... I misread the page!

Saperstein

 

[route101]

Thinking about it, these short-distance Advance fares do make some sense if they are available on the day. If I turned up at the station and a £1.50 fare was available for the train I was going to get anyway, I would probably go for it rather than paying the walk-up fare. A couple of quid saved for me, and presumably a better slice of revenue for Northern.

Yes , if you knew you were getting on that service

 

[route101]

I think XC have advance between Edinburgh and Glasgow

 

[bigfoote]

I have no personal additions to this thread, but an observation that maybe we could see this more commonly going forward as a way to spread the load at peak times. If the information becomes available that some trains will be less busy, can short-notice advances be made available for those specific trains? I'm thinking more services out of terminals, that perhaps may be less busy en route (for example a service Kings Cross to Edinburgh may be less loaded between say York and Durham)

 

[yorkie]

I think XC have advance between Edinburgh and Glasgow

An excellent suggestion Sir with just two minor flaws:
1. there are no XC Advance fares between Edinburgh and Glasgow and
2. at 57.24 miles (over ten times the example in the OP) it's not really a short distance

 

[Kite159]

Thinking about it, these short-distance Advance fares do make some sense if they are available on the day. If I turned up at the station and a £1.50 fare was available for the train I was going to get anyway, I would probably go for it rather than paying the walk-up fare. A couple of quid saved for me, and presumably a better slice of revenue for Northern.

Most likely the advances are set at a level which makes it worthwhile for Northern to offer due to getting more money from that £1.50 advance than from what they would get from an any-permitted ticket.

I.e. last month or so I got a Northern advance for Preston to Wigan for £2.20 on a Sunday morning, saved me some money over the open fare.

 

[route101]

An excellent suggestion Sir with just two minor flaws:
1. there are no XC Advance fares between Edinburgh and Glasgow and
2. at 57.24 miles (over ten times the example in the OP) it's not really a short distance

I thought it may of not .