London - Peterborough - Leeds is £20 cheaper than London - Leeds

[Any Permitted]

So I've been fiddling with Avantix and this is what I got with a Y-P railcard:

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London Terminals - Leeds
Super Off-Peak Return
£55.25

Total = £55.25

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London Terminals - Peterborough
EC Off-Peak Return
£17.15

Peterborough - Leeds
Off-Peak Return (Weekend-only)
£20.15

Total = £37.40

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So, if I bought the two separate tickets would I have to break my journey in Peterborough, I don't mind so much, I can handle 30 minutes on a station in return for almost £20 in my pocket.

Also is this a common theme? A guy I was talking to on the train said that it was cheaper for him to buy 3 separate tickets to get from Saltaire to Norwich than to buy a single ticket.

 

[tony_mac]

So, if I bought the two separate tickets would I have to break my journey in Peterborough

No, as long as the train actually stops there then it is fine. There are sometimes it doesn't even need to stop, if you have a season ticket or travel pass.

Also is this a common theme?

Yes, we talk about it a lot on here. It is very useful for many journeys.
We usually refer to it as 'splitting' tickets.

 

[philjo]

Be aware that some of the Leeds services do not stop at Peterborough so make sure you are on a service that stops (or has a connection at Doncaster/Grantham that then stops at Peterborough) - e.g. 12:05, 14:40 & 18:40 southbound on weekdays stop at Grantham & omit Peterborugh. 17:05 is non-stop Retford to Stevenage.

Note that both fares you quote are off-peak Day Returns so you have to return on the same day. Not a problem at weekends, but if using super-off peak returns on weekdays you don't get that much time in Leeds once you have arrived !

On weekdays the peak restrictions from Peterborough are more generous than those from London or Stevenage but even these has been tightened recently as they used to be non-restricted for northbound services from Peterborough.

 

[yorkie]

Yes it's normal, and perhaps half the threads on this forum are regarding 'split ticketing' or 'combination ticketing' this is where splitting the journey into a combination of tickets reduces the cost.

One of the biggest reductions is York to Derby where someone wants to get a train at about 0825-0925 in the morning, this is classed as peak time for that journey, so a return costs 76.50. However splitting at Sheffield reduces the price to 24.80 this is only 1/3 of the through fare.

It is rare that I buy 1 ticket for my journey as this is usually overpriced.

It is usual that it is cheaper to EITHER buy a combination of tickets OR buy for a longer journey (and start/end short).

A ticket from A to B is rarely the best ticket to buy for anything other than a short-hop journey.