Brighton to Blackwater rtn; permitted routes and break of journey

[Bungaroosh]

Hello,

I'd be grateful for any advice as to whether the routes etc. below are possible.

Outward: dep Thu after 10am; return dep Fri after 10am, with Network Railcard.

Outward route: Brighton > Gatwick > Blackwater (passing through Dorking Deepdene)

Return: Blackwater > Dorking Deepdene > Dorking Main > Horsham > Pulborough (with break of journey here) > then eventually back to Brighton, via Worthing or Three Bridges, whichever is valid.

I was looking at a £22.90 Off Peak Return [not via London] with Network Railcard. Would the above return route be valid?

Many thanks in advance.

 

[higthomas]

It doesn't seem to be valid. It is valid on the way out. On the way back it is valid Guildford-Dorking-Horsham-Three Bridges-Brighton. So you could buy a Horsham-Pulbrough ticket to make it valid and return via three bridges.

Otherwise, I'd have thought it would ba accepted, it seems like a reasonable route (not that that actually means anything_

 

[Bungaroosh]

Many thanks for that -- providing a way of doing it while making sure the route is valid.

I'll try and get a lift from Billingshurst rather than Pulborough. A return from Horsham to there is £4.60 yet £6.70 to Pulborough, the next station five miles away.

(Seemed a large difference in price but then looking at a map it makes sense re. the distance from Horsham).

 

[JamesRowden]

Many thanks for that -- providing a way of doing it while making sure the route is valid.

I'll try and get a lift from Billingshurst rather than Pulborough. A return from Horsham to there is £4.60 yet £6.70 to Pulborough, the next station five miles away.

(Seemed a large difference in price but then looking at a map it makes sense re. the distance from Horsham).

A return between Portslade and Blackwater will cost you £23.65 (with network railcard) and is valid along the following routes:

• Portslade-(Hove/Brighton)-Gatwick-Redhill-Blackwater
• Portslade-Barnham-Horsham-Dorking-Blackwater
• Portslade-Barnham-Gatwick-Redhill-Blackwater

A Portslade to Brighton single is £2.60.

That's a total of £26.25 and it allows you to do your prefered route.

 

[Bungaroosh]

Brilliant -- great tip about Portslade; thanks James! I didn't realise it was on the cusp of both the Ford and Brighton group. Will come in handy in future, no doubt.

I'm not sure what this means though (attached image); whether it means that I cannot start an outward journey from Brighton. Would I have to buy a separate ticket from Brighton to Hove / Brighton to Preston Park to pick up a train up to Gatwick that would be valid with the Portslade to Blackwater return ticket?

(Portslade to Blackwater output from http://data.atoc.org/rp_calc )

 

[yorkie]

I'm not sure what this means though (attached image); whether it means that I cannot start an outward journey from Brighton.

The text within the screenshot of the Routeing Point Calculator states that Hove (Brighton Group) is an appropriate Routeing Point (RP) for your origin.

It does not state that you cannot travel via Brighton; it states that you cannot reach Brighton without passing through - in this case - Hove.

So it is Hove that you use, rather than Brighton, to determine if Brighton Group is an appropriate RP.

But you don't need to understand* the Routeing Guide; ticket booking sites do this for you. If you wish to see if a fare is valid via Brighton, simply put 'via Brighton' as a via point and if you get an itinerary, and book the ticket in accordance with the itinerary, it is definitely valid.

If you need multiple via points, use Trainsplit. If the route you want isn't valid on one ticket, and/or if it's cheaper to use more than one ticket, Trainsplit will offer a combination of fares.

(* If you do want to understand the Routeing Guide, sign up for one of our free fares workshops)

 

[Bungaroosh]

Thanks yorkie.
Barriers let me in at Brighton with no problem. Barriers at Guildford where I broke the journey on the way out weren't so obliging!
Most of my queries on here are about Brighton journeys to/from the Arun Valley line (between Gatwick and Littlehampton). James's tip about Portslade will save me a lot of faffing in future!