Motherwell to Newcastle

[mfc3024]

I am needing to go to Newcastle next week and I am working out train fares and looking for some clarity please?

To buy a direct CrossCountry return would be approx £55 however splitting it and buying six singles (Motherwell to Edinburgh; Edinburgh to Berwick; Berwick to Newcastle; plus same split for return journey), it appears that I can do it for approx £35.

Would this splitting of tickets be allowed even though I wouldn't be leaving the train after baording? I can see a potential problem with seat reservations but hopefully will get a unreserved seat from Motherwell all the way through.

Any confirmation that this is allowed would be appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[ainsworth74]

As long as the train calls at all the points you wish to split at then you're perfectly fine to buy that combination of tickets. As for a seat reservation it could be tricky but I believe that the XC website should allow you to specify which seats you want so you could just manual select the same seat for each different ticket. Failing that if you go to a booking office they can either do the same or they might well be able to issue you with one through reservation.

In case you're curious, your rights whilst splitting tickets are defined by Condition 19 of the National Rail Condition of Carriage (I've put the bits relevant to you in bold):

19. Using a combination of tickets

You may use two or more tickets for one journey as long as together they cover the entire journey and one of the following applies:

(a) they are both Zonal Tickets (unless special conditions prohibit their use);
(b) the train you are in calls at a station where you change from one ticket to another; or
(c) one of the tickets is a Season Ticket (which for this purpose does not include Season Tickets or travel passes issued on behalf of a passenger transport executive or local authority) or a leisure travel pass, and the other ticket(s) is/are not.

You must comply with any restriction shown on the tickets relating to travel in the trains of a particular Train Company or Train Companies (see Condition 10).

If you do not comply with this Condition, you will be treated as having joined the train without a ticket and the relevant parts of Condition 2 or 4 will apply, either to the entire journey, or from the last station where the train stopped at which at least one of the tickets was valid.

For the purposes of this Condition, a “leisure travel pass” means any multi-journey ticket (excluding Season Tickets) valid for:

(i) at least 7 consecutive days; or
(ii) at least 3 days in a period of at least 7 consecutive days

and includes rover tickets, travel passes, flexipass tickets and Britrail passes.

 

[reb0118]

You can split as long as you follow these rules. As the OP is not using a season or rover for simplicity I'll not mention those. You can use two or more tickets for your journey as long as they cover the through journey and the train is booked to call at the station(s) where you change from one ticket to the other(s).

Simples.


(ainsworth beat me to it)

 

[calc7]

Are you going there and back in a day? If so, you might find Day Returns for each leg to be cheaper than two of the equivalent Day Singles.

 

[CompactDstrxion]

For the fare to be this low you must mean combining Advance Purchase tickets on a single train. I have done this many times on CrossCountry without a problem and it is permitted by the NRCoC.