Railway Freebie Stories

[Josie]

I was on the last direct train into Euston during engineering work on the south end of the WCML a few years ago - it was diverted via the Chilterns and the rest of the day was buses, I think. I walked through the train, couldn't find an empty seat anywhere, eventually settled down in a vestibule. I happened to have a track atlas in my bag and I'd never been on the Chiltern line before, so I had a bit of a look at where we were. Train manager spotted me, came over for a bit of a chat about the diversions and then pointed towards First Class and told me there were seats in there. I told him I was on a Standard ticket and he shrugged and said, "No-one's going to check it except me, go and sit down." We crawled round north London slowly enough for me to enjoy a couple of cups of tea!

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[marky7890]

I managed to a free FGW employee Calendar a few years ago. I was taking photos of the trains at Dawlish station late one afternoon when a Female staff member asked if I wanted a calender as it was clear interested in trains and they had some spare they were giving away, and no longer needed. I didn't use it though as I already had a train calendar, but was nice to have still

 

[Mike395]

When I used to work in London (up until mid April this year), I'd occasionally treat myself on the return leg to a First Class upgrade on EMT (London - Bedford).On probably around 1/5th of these journeys, I got the upgrade for free, either due to equipment failure, a guard who was feeling generous (in particular, there's one guard who makes a habit of it, though sadly tends to work the first stop Leicester trains as a Sheffield guard!) or simply the train being too busy for the guard to get through all the upgrades.

 

[ChilternTurbo]

When I was a child I used to avidly collect the paper carriage labels that were used on long distance services to display the destinations and stopping points on services. Even back then I was very much of the attitude that "they can only say no" and would write to various stations or TOCs in the hope they would send me some. It seemed to pay off as I've ended up with hundreds of Intercity, Great Western, Virgin and Regional Railways labels from the mid to late 90's.
Another great 'blag' as child was being allowed to ride in the cab of a class 37 (37 025) between Kyle and Inverness in the early 90's. A very generous and highly illegal gesture on the part of the driver and a fantastic experience.
The only freebie I've scored lately was a couple of weeks ago on a Pendolino when the card machine went down mid transaction and I got a latte and Kit Kat for free.

 

[Clip]

Unfortunately despite travelling on trains every day for more years than i can remember i have never gotten anything free yet. The only thing i can think of is a friend of mine who has been getting free travel every day between Heyford and Tackley and back again (he lives in Heyford and works in Tackley at the moment) for eight years (he actually hasn't paid for a single journey at all in these eight years) due to the fact that neither station has a ticket office or ticket machine or PERTIS machine and all trains are DOO (and RPIs are pretty much non existent on that line).

And im sure that as a good conscious forum member and one who likes to see the railway get the revenue it is due you have told them to buy their season ticket and get it posted to them?

 

[DelW]

A few years ago I travelled on a 'farewell to Silverlink' railtour covering all their lines, and we were showered with Silverlink promotional items - I think they must have been emptying out the cupboards.

A return trip on the Caledonian Sleeper in Scotrail days provided two complimentary wash-bags with toothpaste and brush, flannel, soap, etc. I still use one of them for short breaks as it's small and light, with two pouches so you can keep wet stuff separate. The other one is still unopened ready for future use.

 

[jj1314]

Many years back (probably mid-1990s) I was offered a cab ride in one of the then-new Sprinters from St Ives to Penzance.

My folks were friends with one of the conductors, a very popular local guy who sadly passed away all too young.

I remember being asked to duck on approach to the former Marazion station so the driver of the HST to Paddington wouldn't see me!

 

[Hornet]

Many years back (probably mid-1990s) I was offered a cab ride in one of the then-new Sprinters from St Ives to Penzance.

My folks were friends with one of the conductors, a very popular local guy who sadly passed away all too young.

I remember being asked to duck on approach to the former Marazion station so the driver of the HST to Paddington wouldn't see me!

The three in this picture forgot to duck!

 

[fairysdad]

Seems the free First Class upgrades isn't anything unusual! I can claim three (and a half).

The half was a promotion that my Granddad entered with FGW, and won the prize draw of a first class return ticket which he gave to me.

The first was, again on FGW, and a common occurrence; the guard's ticket machine not working so he was unable to sell the weekend upgrade ticket so just let me stay in first.

The second was on SWT, where my Woking - Exeter journey went via Southampton. Needed to do some work on the train, so decided to upgrade myself. Never saw the first guard, when the second one (they changed at Salisbury) came round as we passed Yeovil (!), she decided that although I was willing to pay the weekend upgrade, it wasn't really worth it - was still only a fiver at the time.

The third was slightly more awkward, and it wasn't really until afterwards that I realised what had happened. It was the 2015 late summer bank holiday on FGW. Again, I was all ready to pay the weekend upgrade, but, if you remember, the FGW guards were on strike at the time, so although a person doing the guard duties came round, he wasn't on commercial duty, so just never offered the opportunity for me to pay. What made it more awkward is that despite it being a bank holiday, they were still giving out the catering freebies.

 

[rdeez]

I got handed an Easter-themed brownie from London Midland at Birmingham New Street this year...unsurprisingly, this happened just before Easter

 

[extendedpaul]

Travelling from Wolverhampton to London Euston last year on a cheap first class advance, I told the catering steward how much I had enjoyed the hot sausage roll. It really was nice - substantial, tasty and light years ahead of what I was expecting. He asked if I would like another.

I accepted and was given THREE more. Managed to get them home intact and we had them for lunch the following day.

 

[D365]

The best I have (aside from the usual bottles of water after a very substantial delay) is a free pack of Haribos in Munich when the original "C Stock" trains were brand new in service.

 

[Chrisgr31]

Does the refund of a months season from Southern for last year count, especially when I had already claimed delay repay?

In fact on a similar note there was £50 of M and S vouchers from Southern for disruption caused by a landslide at Oxted.

I also got M and S vouchers from East Coast, was on a day trip to Skipton but due to overhead line issue the ECML was closed. I went with East Midlands trains and got delay repay from East Coast, then a couple of weeks later they sent M and S vouchers too. Even better was that as it was a work trip the ticket had been paid for by work.

Free water during delays from both Southern and Virgin. One valentines Southern were dishing out free chocolate I missed out and the promotion has not been repeated, probably due to the abuse they got about concentrating on free chocolate rather than providing a good service.

 

[aylesbury]

I won a competition in the Railway Magazine a few years ago it included a free rover ticket for Cornwall and a first class return to anywhere in Cornwall. I had a wonderful trip to Penzance and three days on the branches.

 

[mat64nl]

Ashford International, 2nd Jan 2017

given a couple of new, latest edition of magazines of european rail related content! interesting read

 

[cin88]

As a Manchester - Liverpool season ticket holder in late 2012 I got a weekend's free travel off Northern as an apology for travel disruption. To this day I still don't know what disruption they were on about as most of my trains were on time.

Don't know if it counts but i've had my dad's old second man's cap since I turned 13.

 

[furgus2]

I've had a few freebie upgrades from time to time plus a short cab ride, by driver invitation, in a nearly new train about 10 years ago which I better not elaborate on.

However the best free thing that happened was in 2007. When on a Eurostar journey to Paris, a French guy opposite me started chatting and he found out I was interested in trains. He told me he'd been a test driver for Eurostar and was now working for Southeastern in preparation for the incoming class 395s. He said there was shortly going to be a test run of a 373 from St Pancras along HS1 during which there would be evacuation tests in the
London tunnel and under the Thames and would I like to be on that train. Of course, I wanted to be on it! In due course, I received an invitation from Southeastern and I went along in July for the trip.

The two evacuation tests went well and the train went down to Folkestone and then returned to St Pancras non-stop at high speed. We were all given a certificate saying we were on the first passenger train along the full route of HS1 and it really was a great morning out

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

The best freebie I had was 3 years ago on the Railway Touring Company's Bristol-Par & return 'Royal Duchy' charter, with Tangmere. Myself and my father had standard class seats at a table in a TSO, but we noticed at Taunton on the outbound run that there was an unoccupied MK1 BCK on the back. Asking the steward if we might possibly move to one of the Standard compartments, he promptly directed us to the First Class seats instead. Even better, for the return run we were right behind the loco for what was probably the best ascent of Hemerdon I'll ever experience, 42mph over the summit and ears ringing!

(Incidentally this was the tour when the webcam at Dawlish picked up the glare from the firebox reflected in steam above the cab and the idiot BBC ran that 'blowback' scare story, which was a complete load of bull, which I can confirm as I had my head out at the time!)

 

[kennythelad]

My best freebie was when online bookings were just being introduced on the Caledonian sleepers. My son and I went from Euston to Fort William on the sleeper, and made our way to Aberdeen in the day, for The Aberdeen - Euston sleeper, home. I had print at home tickets, which iirc, came to about £100. I waited and waited, but the payment was never processed to this day. Can't remember the year, but it was a 37 to FW, and a 67 from AB.

 

[northernchris]

Back in early Spring 2013, Northern gave out free weekend passes (for selected weekends only) at Bradford Forster Square for up to 4 people as an apology for a terrible winter's service. I'm not sure where else this happened, but amazingly many people ignored the Northern staff giving out the leaflets detailing how to claim these passes!

Any I keenly took one and my wife and I had a lovely weekend out (well save the weather) going up to do the Cumbrian Coast on the Saturday, and another run up to York on the Sunday all on Northern. To this day that was the best piece of customer service I have ever come across. The previous winter had been a poor one weather-wise, so even though Northern had serious problems with some of the fleet, the weather was not something they needed to apologize for.

I remember them! I must have been lucky because the performance wasn't too bad on the Airedale line although from what I remember they were a few high profile incidents in quick succession.

 

[6Gman]

In the days when sandwiches were prepared onboard we (as a family) used to get free cheese sandwiches created out of "spare" provisions. My father (a driver) knew the crews.

 

[185143]

As a Manchester - Liverpool season ticket holder in late 2012 I got a weekend's free travel off Northern as an apology for travel disruption. To this day I still don't know what disruption they were on about as most of my trains were on time.

Don't know if it counts but i've had my dad's old second man's cap since I turned 13.

I'd forgot about that! Mainly related to the landslide at Glazebrook that shut the CLC over Christmas week-I assume! I went to Carlisle and left the thing on a bench...

 

[Wilts Wanderer]

Another one from me; when Virgin Trains ran real trains on the WCML, they almost inexplicably provided a full dining service on many weekend departures from Euston. My family had BR priv travel facilities and we had paid for the Weekend First upgrade for our journey home which was on 1930ish Euston-Holyhead HST. Almost before sitting down we were being plied with soft drinks, wine, followed by full beef roasts and rounding off with obscenely large slices of chocolate fudge cake. Protests that we were on staff travel (and weren't entitled to complimentary food) were waved away and the plates of chow just kept coming, until we staggered off at Stafford 1hr45m later.

Perhaps it was a quiet night.

 

[londonbridge]

Strangest thing I have found was on a Friday evening - a copy of the next day's Daily Mail Weekend TV mag. I've often wondered how it got there a day before release.

I work in retail, some of the weekend newspaper supplements are delivered a day early. We get the Daily Mail and Daily Express Saturday magazines delivered on Friday and they sit behind the till ready to be inserted into the papers when they arrive on Saturday morning. Shop worker may have taken a copy with them when leaving work.

 

[ChiefPlanner]

Back inn LHCS days - Virgin ran a meal offer of sauerkraut and German Wurst. Hardly anyone partook , I love the former and had "seconds" - on arrival at Euston I was kindly offered a massive tin of the "kraut" - which I kindly refused. .....not one of their best food offers , but the sliced gammon and pickles was sublime (with crusty bread)

Got no less than 3 Gascon Fish pies on EPS once - very heavy with garlic and black olives. Now that I would have taken home....

 

[CentralTrainer]

Was on a day trip up to Crewe from Malvern a few months ago for business.

Went to purchase a ticket onboard the LM service (which would have been about £45 for a Return). Guard (who I know) spent about 5 minutes on his Avantix machine looking through the system before notifying me I could instead get a West Midlands Day Ranger.

This would cover me up to Crewe and back plus a massive unlimited travel area of the midlands down to Northampton etc.

And all for £20 less.

So I thanked him for that - purchased it - which then let me travel on more suitable and flexible times - which gave me time to detour to visit the Great Western Pub near Wolverhampton station on the way home.


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[Griff]

On a trip to Devon with Virgin Cross Country there were some Steam Railway magazines on the seat next to where I was sitting.

While going to Coventry with Virgin when Watford Junction was closed the Train Manager gave everyone free water because it was very warm.

Going on a trip to Hertfordshire in Summer 2014 I was given a free ice lolly from East Midlands Trains because it was very hot.

Also when Virgin had Loco Hauled Coaching Stock going from Milton Keynes to Euston in First Class without anyone asking, the same thing would be very unlikely to happen in the present day!

And East Coast Rewards free tickets.

 

[DuncanS]

Not sure whats happened but Virgin have notified me that I'm getting 50% of my fare back for a trip down south on Thursday owing to a delay outside Dudley.

Which is nice.

...but we were only 23 minutes late, which is nicer - so thanks Virgin.

 

[185143]

Not sure whats happened but Virgin have notified me that I'm getting 50% of my fare back for a trip down south on Thursday owing to a delay outside Dudley.

Which is nice.

...but we were only 23 minutes late, which is nicer - so thanks Virgin.

That's interesting... I had the same for a 24 minute delay from my Spontaneous Carlisle trip a few months back...

 

[sk688]

Forgot to add one , back in April 2010 ( 18/4/2010 to be precise ) was travelling to Cadbury World with my familly , from London to Moor Stand got a freebie on CR

From Banbury - Moor St , when my dad spoke to the driver at Banbury , and so was allowed into the cab of a 165 from Banbury till Moor Street . Got a photo at Moor St too .
Lovely experience from back when CR used to do all stop London - Bham Sunday Morning Services

I was 9 at the time , so as you can imagine it was pretty fun . Sadly cannot remember the unit number