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Is is possible to do a full circle on one ticket?

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tom73

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For example
2G89 1740 Manchester Piccadilly to Manchester Piccadilly
It would be a nice little ride in the summer months
 
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Haywain

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For example
2G89 1740 Manchester Piccadilly to Manchester Piccadilly
It would be a nice little ride in the summer months
That isn't really a circular journey and certainly isn't advertised as such, so you'd need a return ticket to Glossop or Hadfield.
 

E759

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Glasgow Subway is very easy to do; buy a Day ticket.

Edited to give an example which shows one train and one ticket; which isn’t what the thread title says but seems what was inferred in the example given.
 
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alistairlees

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There are circular services from at Pancras, Cannon Street and Waterloo. You could also do Chester to Liverpool return (the Merseyrail loop) or some circular services out of Glasgow central. I’m not sure if the fife circle from Edinburgh is truly circular but someone else can advise.
 

Kite159

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There are circular services from at Pancras, Cannon Street and Waterloo. You could also do Chester to Liverpool return (the Merseyrail loop) or some circular services out of Glasgow central. I’m not sure if the fife circle from Edinburgh is truly circular but someone else can advise.

The Fife circle isn't truly circular as the trains change headcodes at Glenrothes, similar to Wimbledon loop services on Thameslink [change headcodes at Sutton]
 

yorkie

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The Fife Circle was probably changed due to people buying valid tickets to go the long way round ;) I do remember an argument on a forum trip once, which the Guard lost.

Any of the circular rounders in the London Travelcard area would be valid on a Travelcard.

The Hadfield service isn't a "circle" in my book but it would be possible to do that on one inexpensive ticket, such as a GM Wayfarer.

Technically any service that loops back to its origin is valid on "one ticket" as you could use an All Line Rover, even if any regional products were not available.

I'm not really sure what exactly is meant by "circle" or "one ticket"; I suspect the question may be asking about a train which returns to its point of origin, without changing headcode, on a ticket type with "Single" in the name (ie. not a Return or Rover/Ranger product), in which case the answer is no.

Of course the answer will be "yes" if the question is slightly different to that, but it's not really clear what question is being asked.
 

yorkie

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There used to be the Circle Line, but that doesn't go all the way around nowadays......
I assume this thread is referring exclusively to National Rail operated services, but I can assure you that a Circle Line train from Edgware Road to Hammersmith does return to the origin, Edgware Road, before continuing to Hammersmith, if that is the definition of "circle".
 

Mag_seven

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I noticed that "The Cathcart Circle" is no longer shown as such on the departure boards at Glasgow Central - it just shows "Cathcart" as the destination with the stops ending there and not continuing on. Whether this means that for example you can go from say Glasgow Central to Maxwell Park via Mount Florida the long way round on a Glasgow Central to Maxwell Park ticket I can't say.
 
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yorkie

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I noticed that "The Cathcart Circle" is no longer shown as such on the departure boards at Glasgow Central - it just shows "Cathcart" as the destination with the stops ending there and not continuing on.
Yes that's a 'false destination'.

However it's advertised to Glasgow Central at the next stop, so you could legitimately use a ticket from either Pollokshields West or Pollokshields East to Glasgow Central via Cathcart.
 

daveshah

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If you are quick touching in and out; looks like Waterloo to Queenstown Road going the full way round the Hounslow Loop should be doable within the 1h40 Oyster max journey time - would be expensive if you were delayed though!
 

sheff1

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I noticed that "The Cathcart Circle" is no longer shown as such on the departure boards at Glasgow Central
The timetable booklet is titled Cathcart Circle. Am I correct in saying this is now the only National Rail service which is actually advertised as "circle" ?
 

yorkie

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The timetable booklet is titled Cathcart Circle. Am I correct in saying this is now the only National Rail service which is actually advertised as "circle" ?
Good point; I can't think of any other services where it's actively advertised as such.

Some lines are branded as a "Circle" e.g. Fife Circle, but the services are not advertised as such, and - as mentioned above - were deliberately split, to thwart passengers who bought cheaper tickets than the company intended people to use.

Unlike with the Fife Circle, where arguments occurred and passengers holding valid fares were falsely accused of not being valid, I can't imagine the friendly TTIs in the Glasgow area doing anything other than graciously accepting a ticket used the wrong way round!
 

Mag_seven

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The timetable booklet is titled Cathcart Circle. Am I correct in saying this is now the only National Rail service which is actually advertised as "circle" ?

The destination blinds on the old 303 units working the Cathcart Circle used to actually say either "Cathcart Inner" or "Cathcart Outer".

EDIT: An example of the term "Cathcart Circle" can be seen here on the 314 on the right of this photo (not mine):

https://www.flickr.com/photos/andy_hoare/48757316943
 

stut

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When the T&W Metro opened, the ticket machines had 9 fare options: ABCD12345 depending on journey length and fare zones. But they specifically advertised "the loop" as a fare option, for people who either wanted the experience, or wanted to get the first train for the journey to/from the coast, regardless of direction.
 

RLBH

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I believe there is, or was, a single journey possible Inverness to Inverness, with no intermediate stops, on the once-weekly Aberdeen to Kyle of Lochalsh. At one point it called in the east-facing bays at Inverness, ran back out to Welsh's Bridge, reversed, ran through Rose Street junction, then reversed back into Inverness to become the Kyle train. All whilst remaining in service.
 

pdeaves

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Any one of the circular services listed above could be done on one ticket (an applicable rover) or, if a return counts as 'one ticket' then simply a return to the far point (so where a train does A-B-C-D-A, get a return A-C).
 

yorkie

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Any one of the circular services listed above could be done on one ticket (an applicable rover) or, if a return counts as 'one ticket' then simply a return to the far point (so where a train does A-B-C-D-A, get a return A-C).
Or just A-B or A-D, assuming that B or D are not called at twice.
 

ajs

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What about The Romsey Rocket?Ticket from Romsey to Salisbury and travel via Southampton, Eastleigh and Chandlers Ford back to Romsey and then to Salisbury.

Same train throughout, fare direct is £7.50 and going the long way round is same price but just takes longer, that's according to National Rail site.
 

alistairlees

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What about The Romsey Rocket?Ticket from Romsey to Salisbury and travel via Southampton, Eastleigh and Chandlers Ford back to Romsey and then to Salisbury.

Same train throughout, fare direct is £7.50 and going the long way round is same price but just takes longer, that's according to National Rail site.
Shouldn’t really be valid as you pass through Romsey again.
 

Haywain

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What about The Romsey Rocket?Ticket from Romsey to Salisbury and travel via Southampton, Eastleigh and Chandlers Ford back to Romsey and then to Salisbury.

Same train throughout, fare direct is £7.50 and going the long way round is same price but just takes longer, that's according to National Rail site.
I suspect that the train is not advertised as going to Salisbury whilst at Romsey, so you will be seen to have an invalid ticket.
 

Kite159

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I suspect that the train is not advertised as going to Salisbury whilst at Romsey, so you will be seen to have an invalid ticket.

They get advertised as "Redbridge via Southampton Central" (clockwise) or "Chandlers Ford via Southampton Central" (anticlockwise) at Romsey
 

paul1609

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The Fife Circle was probably changed due to people buying valid tickets to go the long way round ;) I do remember an argument on a forum trip once, which the Guard lost.

Any of the circular rounders in the London Travelcard area would be valid on a Travelcard.

The Hadfield service isn't a "circle" in my book but it would be possible to do that on one inexpensive ticket, such as a GM Wayfarer.

Technically any service that loops back to its origin is valid on "one ticket" as you could use an All Line Rover, even if any regional products were not available.

I'm not really sure what exactly is meant by "circle" or "one ticket"; I suspect the question may be asking about a train which returns to its point of origin, without changing headcode, on a ticket type with "Single" in the name (ie. not a Return or Rover/Ranger product), in which case the answer is no.

Of course the answer will be "yes" if the question is slightly different to that, but it's not really clear what question is being asked.

I haven't really got my head round it as it doesn't affect me but a whole load of tickets have suddenly sprung up in Kent that are route "Not Via Ashford" or Route "Herne Bay". I suspect this is response to people doing the long way round journey out of St Pancras.
 

AngusH

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I'm guessing you're not including rovers and similar such as the Cumbria Round Robin, which is explicitly sold as a circular journey.

:)
 

yorkie

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I haven't really got my head round it as it doesn't affect me but a whole load of tickets have suddenly sprung up in Kent that are route "Not Via Ashford" or Route "Herne Bay". I suspect this is response to people doing the long way round journey out of St Pancras.
Or more likely because of the DfT initiative to reduce the number of fares routed "Any Permitted"
 

paul1609

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Or more likely because of the DfT initiative to reduce the number of fares routed "Any Permitted"
I don't think so these are additional routes to "plus high speed" and "not HS1" most "Any Permitted" went with the opening of HS1. I suspect it is an attempt to attract East Kent traffic to the North Kent Line/ HS1 (which is not full) and away from Ashford/ HS1 (which is often full and standing).
 

MikeWh

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I don't think so these are additional routes to "plus high speed" and "not HS1" most "Any Permitted" went with the opening of HS1. I suspect it is an attempt to attract East Kent traffic to the North Kent Line/ HS1 (which is not full) and away from Ashford/ HS1 (which is often full and standing).
Agreed. All Ebbsfleet to Gravesend tickets are routed "PLUS HIGH SPEED".
 

ajs

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IMG_0440.PNG
They get advertised as "Redbridge via Southampton Central" (clockwise) or "Chandlers Ford via Southampton Central" (anticlockwise) at Romsey

Whilst that may be how they are advertised, National Rail gives a valid itinerary, look at the journey times and no changes. The direct route takes between 17 and 24 minutes.

The original question was, "Is it possible to do a full circle on one ticket".

Romsey to Romsey is the full circle, do you then have to stay on the train to Salisbury to make the ticket valid or do you stop short? No need to answer that.
 
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