Catching peak hour train?

[Skiddaw]

Hi guys,

I'm travelling from Penrith (10.04 departure) to Reading (via Euston/Paddington) and then onwards to Aldermaston tomorrow to visit friend. I have a standard return (not advance) ticket (coming back on Sunday) with the usual Maltese cross for getting to Paddington (though I actually prefer to walk- but I digress....)

Friend happens to be working in London tomorrow so we've arranged to meet at Paddington around 5.30, have a swifty at the Mad Bishop and then head to Reading/Aldermaston together at around 6.00-6.15 ish. Am I going to be OK on any train with my standard Penrith-Reading ticket or am I going to fall foul of peak hour rules and have to take either Elizabeth Line or slow train? It could be awkward because we want to ensure we catch the Aldermaston (Reading-Newbury) train which departs from Reading soon after 7.00.

Thanks for any advice!

 

[Bletchleyite]

Assuming this is the £159.60 route +VIA LONDON Off Peak Return on the outward part of the ticket, your only restrictions are:

Not valid on trains timed to arrive:

• London Euston after 04:29 and before 10:05;(Restrictions do not apply on Fridays)
• Watford Junction after 04:29 and before 10:20;(Restrictions do not apply on Fridays)
• Milton Keynes Central after 04:29 and before 10:20.(Restrictions do not apply on Fridays)

Valid on all Caledonian Sleeper services (with supplement).

Don't put it past Paddington staff to be a pain though.

Look up fares for any train journey in Britain

Full details of all British rail Single, Return & Season tickets and Travelcards. Built-in Season Ticket Calculator.

www.brfares.com

If your ticket is to Aldermaston the restriction is the same.

 

[jfollows]

What exact ticket do you hold?

Assuming off-peak return,
Penrith to Aldermaston SVR has restriction 3A (https://www.brfares.com/!faredetail...n&flow=1&multi=0&fare=3&rte=200&ldn=1&tkt=SVR) which has no restrictions from Paddington.

Be aware that some Paddington staff invent “peak trains” and have been known to prevent perfectly valid tickets like yours from being used.

 

[Skiddaw]

Thank you everyone!

Yes- off peak return ticket. I'll bear in mind that I might get some grief from gateline staff but will keep fingers crossed that I don't.

 

[redreni]

According to BRTimes the 18:23 to Banbury should hopefully depart from Platform 1 at Paddington tomorrow. This would connect validly at Reading with your intended train to Aldermaston, and you wouldn't need to pass through the gateline at Paddington, which cuts out any risk of being denied boarding. If you prefer an earlier departure, you could still have this one in your back pocket in case they don't want to let you through the barrier to get an earlier one.

Once on board you're much less likely to encounter somebody who wouldn't look up a restriction code if they needed to.

 

[Skiddaw]

Thank you! That’s useful. As it happens, we’ve not even left Penrith yet. Apparently a train has broken down at Oxenholme….

 

[jfollows]

Thank you! That’s useful. As it happens, we’ve not even left Penrith yet. Apparently a train has broken down at Oxenholme….

1M08 07:36 Glasgow to Euston has become 5M08 to run empty to Euston

This service was cancelled between Oxenholme Lake District and London Euston due to the emergency alarm having been called (VH).

EDIT Now in the up goods loop so you should be on your way soon.

 

[Skiddaw]

Thank you for the update! What would I do without this forum??

 

[crablab]

Don't put it past Paddington staff to be a pain though.

Yes, ignore all the departure boards pretending off-peak tickets aren't valid on those services, and refer gateline staff to the NRE website if you have issues: https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ticket-types/validity/3a/