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Explorer 55 ticket from Northern

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SirAlf

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Joined
24 Jul 2015
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76
Location
Derbyshire
Does anybody know how I can buy one of these, ideally via the Northern website?

I've tried emailing and phoning Northern and they just answer different questions to the one I am asking. For example, they wanted to know where I was travelling to – but its an Explorer ticket so I don't have to have a destination do I, or am I missing the point?

I want to use one for Sunday travel and my start point (Hazel Grove) won't be open early enough for me to buy a ticket. Hazel Grove is about 40 miles away from where I live so I can't really go the day before to buy the ticket. As far as I can see my nearest Northern ticket office is Meadowhall which is about 25 miles away, so calling in there when I’m passing isn’t really an option either

Northern say it can be bought via their website or TVM, if it can then its pretty well hidden on both

Please can somebody help me, asking Northern was like stabbing my eyes with red hot needles
 
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RailUK Forums

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23 Dec 2008
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301
Does anybody know how I can buy one of these, ideally via the Northern website?

I've tried emailing and phoning Northern and they just answer different questions to the one I am asking. For example, they wanted to know where I was travelling to – but its an Explorer ticket so I don't have to have a destination do I, or am I missing the point?

I want to use one for Sunday travel and my start point (Hazel Grove) won't be open early enough for me to buy a ticket. Hazel Grove is about 40 miles away from where I live so I can't really go the day before to buy the ticket. As far as I can see my nearest Northern ticket office is Meadowhall which is about 25 miles away, so calling in there when I’m passing isn’t really an option either

Northern say it can be bought via their website or TVM, if it can then its pretty well hidden on both

Please can somebody help me, asking Northern was like stabbing my eyes with red hot needles



According to Northern Rail web-site,

Tickets are available to buy now and you can purchase these from ticket offices and on board our trains.

Tickets will soon be available to buy on our website and via Ticket Vending Machines.

See this link for more info,
https://www.northernrailway.co.uk/explorer-55
 

SirAlf

Member
Joined
24 Jul 2015
Messages
76
Location
Derbyshire
Paul - that link says "Fares and conditions are correct at 15/05/18 and are subject to change" So its 15 months ago that they said "Tickets will soon be available... "
 

Muenchener

Member
Joined
31 May 2018
Messages
142
Does anybody know how I can buy one of these, ideally via the Northern website?

I've tried emailing and phoning Northern and they just answer different questions to the one I am asking. For example, they wanted to know where I was travelling to – but its an Explorer ticket so I don't have to have a destination do I, or am I missing the point?

I want to use one for Sunday travel and my start point (Hazel Grove) won't be open early enough for me to buy a ticket. Hazel Grove is about 40 miles away from where I live so I can't really go the day before to buy the ticket. As far as I can see my nearest Northern ticket office is Meadowhall which is about 25 miles away, so calling in there when I’m passing isn’t really an option either

Northern say it can be bought via their website or TVM, if it can then its pretty well hidden on both

Please can somebody help me, asking Northern was like stabbing my eyes with red hot needles
I have bought one Explorer 55 to date plus numerous Ranger tickets. My local Northern station is manned (well for parts of the day!) so I buy them there. I usually buy them one of two days before travelling. If you can't get it the day before travel the conductor on the train will sell you one.
 

neilmc

Member
Joined
23 Oct 2011
Messages
1,028
How often do Northern conductors not come round, or he/she is in the other part of the unit with no connection between, or the train is just too busy for him/her to sell all the fares?

You could find yourself being prosecuted for not having a ticket should this happen, if you have boarded at a station with no ticket office and they are not yet available at the TVMs, because technically you have committed the offence of ticketless travel. Would "the machine didn't sell the ticket I wanted and the conductor didn't come round" be accepted as an excuse?

I know this sounds like paranoia but I would be extremely uncomfortable getting on a train without a ticket given all that Northern have tried to do to enforce pre-purchase and discourage people from attempting to buy tickets on the train, and suddenly they are saying the opposite in the case of this specific ticket.
 

Muenchener

Member
Joined
31 May 2018
Messages
142
How often do Northern conductors not come round, or he/she is in the other part of the unit with no connection between, or the train is just too busy for him/her to sell all the fares?

You could find yourself being prosecuted for not having a ticket should this happen, if you have boarded at a station with no ticket office and they are not yet available at the TVMs, because technically you have committed the offence of ticketless travel. Would "the machine didn't sell the ticket I wanted and the conductor didn't come round" be accepted as an excuse?

I know this sounds like paranoia but I would be extremely uncomfortable getting on a train without a ticket given all that Northern have tried to do to enforce pre-purchase and discourage people from attempting to buy tickets on the train, and suddenly they are saying the opposite in the case of this specific ticket.
refer them to the Northern web page:
https://www.northernrailway.co.uk/explorer-55

Under the picture titled Explore the North West open the "Buying your tickets" box

If you are worried about being able to find the conductor on the train wait until your train arrives and aim for the coach from which he/she controls the door from...
 

SirAlf

Member
Joined
24 Jul 2015
Messages
76
Location
Derbyshire
Thank you all for your help. I’ll take the page from www.brfares.com to my local (East Midlands Railway) ticket office and ask whether they can sell the ticket. If not then I’ll use Plan B, not 100% sure what that is yet though
 

Llandudno

Established Member
Joined
25 Dec 2014
Messages
2,178
Thank you all for your help. I’ll take the page from www.brfares.com to my local (East Midlands Railway) ticket office and ask whether they can sell the ticket. If not then I’ll use Plan B, not 100% sure what that is yet though
Sounds like a plan, let us know how you get on.

I presume you are not going to try and buy the ticket at Sheffield Booking Office.....!
 

SirAlf

Member
Joined
24 Jul 2015
Messages
76
Location
Derbyshire
To my surprise a very helpful lady at Chesterfield ticket office found the ticket on her system. I didn't buy it because my plan to use it the weekend after next might change, but at least I know I can buy one in advance from an EMR ticket office (albeit one with one Northern train in each direction every hour)
 

Llandudno

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25 Dec 2014
Messages
2,178
To my surprise a very helpful lady at Chesterfield ticket office found the ticket on her system. I didn't buy it because my plan to use it the weekend after next might change, but at least I know I can buy one in advance from an EMR ticket office (albeit one with one Northern train in each direction every hour)
Yep, generally pretty helpful at Chesterfield, they have even sold me a TfGM Wayfarer in the past, just don’t bother asking for one at Sheffield though, told to buy on the train!
 

tony_mac

Established Member
Joined
25 Feb 2009
Messages
3,626
Location
Liverpool
Northern on Twitter...
"I don't believe we're still doing the Explorer 55 now, you may have to purchase a Ranger or Rover type ticket, please see here: http://bit.ly/2TYtIXN - You would need to obtain a Promise to Pay ticket from the machine and buy the Ranger at a staffed station"
 

Llandudno

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25 Dec 2014
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2,178
Could really do with sorting out the existing range of tickets (including availability on TVMs) and the conditions of use without adding gimmicky 10p tickets.
 

tony_mac

Established Member
Joined
25 Feb 2009
Messages
3,626
Location
Liverpool
an update ...
"apparently it is still possible to obtain the Explorer 55. You can buy this from a ticket office or if buying on board a train, please obtain a Promise to Pay slip from a ticket machine before boarding the train. Apologies for the confusion!"
 

SirAlf

Member
Joined
24 Jul 2015
Messages
76
Location
Derbyshire
Thank you everybody for investigating this ticket. Interesting that their own people aren't sure what they sell...

And when I looked at the link http://bit.ly/2TYtIXN that tony_mac posted it took me from their to their Day Ranger page (I only want to travel for the one day) which among other things said “there is no Sunday service between Barrow-in-Furness and Whitehaven”. This contradicts their timetable

Beginning to wish I’d never asked the question :) But thank you all anyway :)
 
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