Impossible to buy Thameslink tickets with rail replacement today

[ianBR]

There is a rail replacement today between Three Bridges and Brighton

If you attempt to buy a ticket from London Blackfriars to Brighton the booking engines say no routes found and won’t sell you one

Are you no longer expected to have a ticket for the bus replacement if you can only buy a ticket to Three Bridges?

And why have the booking engines stopped showing the replacement bus as part of a journey itinerary.
Is this a cunning plan to stop tourists making the journey and to reduce the passenger numbers?

 

[JonathanH]

Are you no longer expected to have a ticket for the bus replacement if you can only buy a ticket to Three Bridges?

The buses to Brighton are all advertised as running from Balcombe to Brighton, with buses from Three Bridges advertised as running to Preston Park and Lewes. All are 'Southern' services.

Through passengers to Brighton are directed to the trains diverted via the Arun Valley, again run by Southern.

A passenger should have a ticket for the replacement bus.

And why have the booking engines stopped showing the replacement bus as part of a journey itinerary.

As noted above, there aren't any buses from Three Bridges to Brighton. Presumably insufficient capacity for through passengers on the buses. A passenger could change buses at Haywards Heath, but I doubt they would want to.

 

[Jan Mayen]

Thameslink aren't operating south of Three Bridges today. The direct train, and all the buses, are branded Southern.
I assume, but haven't checked, that Thameslink tickets would be valid on Southern Services.

 

[JonathanH]

I assume, but haven't checked, that Thameslink tickets would be valid on Southern Services.

Yes, but they need to be bought from a ticket machine, rather than online, because the journey planners aren't set up to handle the easement.

The Southern website says

Engineering work is taking place between Three Bridges and Brighton, closing most lines.

Gatwick Express / Southern:​

Buses will replace trains between Three Bridges and Preston Park / Lewes, and also between Balcombe and Brighton.

Direct trains will run for most of the day between London Victoria and Brighton, running via Horsham and Littlehampton with extended journey times.

Trains which usually run between London Victoria and Littlehampton via Hove will not run.

Trains between Brighton and Eastbourne / Hastings will also run to an amended timetable.

Thameslink:​

No Thameslink services will run between Three Bridges and Brighton.

If you are travelling to / from Brighton, your tickets will be accepted on direct train services between Three Bridges and Brighton via Littlehampton.

If you are travelling to / from stations between Three Bridges and Preston Park, your tickets will be accepted on Southern services.

Is this a cunning plan to stop tourists making the journey and to reduce the passenger numbers?

Effectively yes.

 

[ianBR]

It’s also impossible to buy a ticket for the bus journey from Three Bridges to Preston Park

Even more amusingly there are buses running from three bridges to Brighton they are just not telling people about them

 

[TUC]

Yes, but they need to be bought from a ticket machine, rather than online, because the journey planners aren't set up to handle the easement.

The Southern website says




Effectively yes.

It is entirely reasonable for customers to expect tickets to be available online, the same as any other time. Setting up the easement on journey planners is the system operators' job.

 

[dastocks]

There are various road closures adding to the usual chaos in central Brighton so it may be they decided it was too risky to attempt the usual replacement bus services.

 

[boiledbeans2]

There are through buses from Three Bridges to Brighton, but are just advertised separately on the timetable.

For instance, these two RRBs are the same bus:

Realtime Trains | 0B00 1540 Three Bridges to Preston Park (London Road) | 23/02/2025

Real-time train running information for 0B00 1540 departure from Three Bridges to Preston Park (London Road) on 23/02/2025. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

Realtime Trains | 0B00 1555 Balcombe to Brighton | 23/02/2025

Real-time train running information for 0B00 1555 departure from Balcombe to Brighton on 23/02/2025. From Realtime Trains, an independent source of train running info for Great Britain.

www.realtimetrains.co.uk

Note the identical times between Balcombe & Preston Park.

I've been on these RRBs before in the past. The operation is usually pretty slick. They also ran unadvertised non-stop buses from Three Bridges to Brighton when I travelled exactly 1 year ago. When you get to Three Bridges and ask the marshalls, they will direct you to the right bus.

 

[infobleep]

Interstingly in the past the journey time for non-stop buses from Three Bridges to Haywards Heath were the same as those that also stopped at Balcombe.

Whilst you need a ticket to Brighton, I've never had my ticket checked on the rail replacement buses.i wouldn't travel without a ticket, though

 

[dastocks]

There are through buses from Three Bridges to Brighton, but are just advertised separately on the timetable.

I've been on these RRBs before in the past. The operation is usually pretty slick. They also ran unadvertised non-stop buses from Three Bridges to Brighton when I travelled exactly 1 year ago. When you get to Three Bridges and ask the marshalls, they will direct you to the right bus.

They did something similar with Thameslink services when the route was blocked north of Gatwick a few weeks ago, running a service between Brighton and Gatwick, but showing it as two services (Brighton to Three Bridges, Three Bridges to Gatwick) so the journey planners wouldn't offer it as a through service.

 

[infobleep]

They did something similar with Thameslink services when the route was blocked north of Gatwick a few weeks ago, running a service between Brighton and Gatwick, but showing it as two services (Brighton to Three Bridges, Three Bridges to Gatwick) so the journey planners wouldn't offer it as a through service.

Let there train take the strain or to paraphrase from the Luton Airport Express advert, you won't get stuck in traffic, as they both promoted in their different ways, why one should take the train.

 

[RJ]

Interstingly in the past the journey time for non-stop buses from Three Bridges to Haywards Heath were the same as those that also stopped at Balcombe.

They follow the same route on the maps whether or not Balcombe is a calling point.

I think the set up was intended to stop people travelling between Three Bridges and Brighton from using the replacement buses, as there were trains laid on via a diversionary route. It seemed to work well on the ground, though not sure it was intended to stop ticket sales entirely to intermediate stations.