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Where exactly are the "Southern Saver" and "Thameslink Saver" tickets valid to and from?

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Does anyone have the full terms and conditions and the validity information for the "Southern Saver" and "Thameslink Saver" tickets? Does anyone know more about exactly where they are valid?

These two "Southern Saver" (£20.00) and "Thameslink Saver" (£21.00) tickets are sold onboard buses in the Brighton area (you can buy onboard, Go Ahead Brighton & Hove, Go Ahead Metrobus, Compass Bus, Big Lemon, services) and give unlimited travel on buses within the Brighton area as well as travel on certain Southern and Thameslink services.

The only information online is this:

Southern & Thameslink SAVER​

Southern & Thameslink​

You can purchase Southern & Thameslink SAVERs direct from our bus drivers. Both tickets offer unlimited travel within the citySAVER zones and are also valid for a return train journey.​

Prices from August 2019

Southern SAVER​

What it includes:​

  • Unlimited travel for a day on every Brighton & Hove bus in the citySAVER area (not valid on City Sightseeing).
  • One day return journey on a Southern Railway train (but not before 10am on Mondays to Fridays nor returning from Victoria, London Bridge or Clapham Junction between 16.15 and 19.15 on Mondays to Fridays).
Adult£20
Child (under 16)£10
You can purchase a Southern SAVER from the bus driver of your first journey on a Brighton & Hove bus that day (only in the citySAVER area).

Stations you can travel to:​

  • West Coastway:Brighton, Hove, Aldrington, Portslade, Fishersgate, Southwick, Shoreham-by-Sea, Lancing, East Worthing, Worthing, West Worthing, Durrington-on-Sea, Goring-by-Sea, Angmering, Littlehampton, Ford, Barnham, Bognor Regis, Chichester, Southbourne, Emsworth, Havant, Fratton, Portsmouth & Southsea, Portsmouth Harbour, Cosham, Fareham, Swanwick, Southampton.
  • London Line: Brighton, Preston Park, Hassocks, Burgess Hill, Wivelsfield, Haywards Heath, Balcombe, Three Bridges, Gatwick Airport, Horley, Redhill, East Croydon, Clapham Junction, London Victoria.
  • East Coastway:Brighton, London Road, Moulsecoomb, Falmer, Lewes, Southease, Newhaven Town, Newhaven Harbour, Bishopstone, Seaford, Glynde, Berwick, Polegate, Hampden Park, Eastbourne, Pevensey & Westham, Pevensey Bay, Normans Bay, Cooden Beach, Collington, Bexhill, St Leonards, Hastings, Ore, Rye, Appledore, Ham Street, Ashford.

Thameslink SAVER​

What it includes :​

  • Unlimited travel for a day on every Brighton & Hove bus in the citySAVER area (not valid on City Sightseeing).
  • One day return journey on a Thameslink train between Brighton and Bedford (but not before 10.00 on Mondays to Fridays).
Adult£21
Child (under 16)£10.50
You can purchase a Thameslink SAVER from the bus driver of your first journey on a Brighton & Hove bus that day (only in the citySAVER area).

Stations you can travel to:​

Brighton, Preston Park, Hassocks, Burgess Hill, Wivelsfield, Haywards Heath, Balcombe, Three Bridges, Gatwick Airport, Redhill, East Croydon, London Bridge, Blackfriars, City Thameslink, Farringdon, St Pancras International, St Albans, Harpenden, Luton Airport Parkway*, Luton, Leagrave, Harlington, Flitwick, Bedford.
* Note : These tickets are not valid on the Luton Airport Parkway station to Luton Airport Passenger Terminal shuttle bus.
The information does not make much sense as there are so many stations randomly skipped out.

For some examples that make no sense:

• It says you can travel to Chichester or Southbourne or Emsworth or Havant but makes no mention of being able to travel to Fishbourne or Bosham or Nutbourne or Warblington stations.

• It says you can travel to Cosham or Fareham but makes no mention of being able to travel to Portchester station.

• It says you can travel to Ore or Rye but makes no mention of being able to travel to Three Oaks or Doleham or Winchelsea stations.

• It says you can travel to Horley or Redhill but makes no mention of being able to travel to Salfords or Earlswood stations.

• It says you can travel to St Pancras or St Albans City but makes no mention of being able to travel to Kentish Town or West Hampstead or Cricklewood or Hendon or Mill Hill Broadway or Elstree & Borehamwood or Radlett stations.

Are these correct? Or have they just forgotten to list all stations?

Also this information has remained exactly the same for over fifteen years. If you look on the web archive this page said the same exact thing fifteen years ago. The only thing that has changed is the price. So this makes me wonder can you now use the "Southern Saver" to Watford Junction and Milton Keynes Central? Can you now use the "Thameslink Saver" to Cambridge and Peterborough? Have they just forgotten to add these or are they not valid here?

There is hardly any information on these tickets! Plus when i have used them in the past they always cause so much trouble as staff at the gatelines are not used to seeing bus tickets and have zero clue what they are!

To make thing even worse i remember until only the end of 2019 (when they finally fixed it) Compass Bus and Big Lemon were both still incorrectly printing them from their machines as "Connex South Central Saver" and "First Capital Connect Saver" to make things even more confusing. But luckily Go Ahead Brighton & Hove and Go Ahead Metrobus have always printed them correctly.

Does anyone have any more details on these tickets and exactly where they can be used? Any details to clarify this would be appreciated?
 
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30907

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Yes indeed they do. In fact in most of my examples they are the only operator to call at these missing stations. This is what really makes this so strange and confusing.
Are all the missing stations served by direct trains from Brighton/Hove?
Are the missing ones perhaps the least used?
 
Joined
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Aylesbury
Are all the missing stations served by direct trains from Brighton/Hove?
Are the missing ones perhaps the least used?
Most of the missing stations are served by direct trains from Brighton. However there are also some stations that are listed as being valid to which have no direct trains from Brighton. So it really does not makes sense. They have just chose some random stations to skip out. The first example is particularly strange. Why would they be valid to Chichester or Southbourne or Emsworth or Havant stations but not to Fishbourne or Bosham or Nutbourne or Warblington stations. There is no logic to this at all.
 

Alex365Dash

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Are all the missing stations served by direct trains from Brighton/Hove?
Can’t speak for every missing station, but all of the examples OP gives (excluding one station we’ll come back to) are not regularly served by direct trains from Brighton.
It says you can travel to Chichester or Southbourne or Emsworth or Havant but makes no mention of being able to travel to Fishbourne or Bosham or Nutbourne or Warblington stations.
Fishbourne, Bosham, Nutbourne and Warblington are covered solely by the Littlehampton - Portsmouth stopper (and a few peak extra calls to/from Victoria), except Sundays (and the 0717 Portsmouth Harbour - Brighton on weekdays) where extra calls are made on the Brighton - Portsmouth service.
It says you can travel to Cosham or Fareham but makes no mention of being able to travel to Portchester station.
Portchester is served (by Southern) only on the London Victoria - Southampton Central service, not the Brighton service, except Sundays where Southern don’t run the Southampton - London Victoria service, resulting in no Southern service at the station on Sundays.
It says you can travel to Ore or Rye but makes no mention of being able to travel to Three Oaks or Doleham or Winchelsea stations.
All of the stations you list (plus Rye) aren’t served by direct trains from Brighton, instead served by the Eastbourne - Ashford Intl service. Which is odd, because Rye and Ashford International are listed as stations you can travel to, but don’t have a direct service. Possibly they added stations which serve bigger settlements that can also be reached indirectly?
It says you can travel to Horley or Redhill but makes no mention of being able to travel to Salfords or Earlswood stations.
Whilst possible, you’re going to struggle reaching either Salfords or Earlswood with a Southern SAVER, given said stations are only served by Southern in the weekday peak, mostly in the peak direction (towards London in the morning, towards Three Bridges in the evening, although there is also the 0827 Redhill - Gatwick Airport which stops at the stations against the peak).

But hey, at least it’s not Eastleigh… :lol:
It says you can travel to St Pancras or St Albans City but makes no mention of being able to travel to Kentish Town or West Hampstead or Cricklewood or Hendon or Mill Hill Broadway or Elstree & Borehamwood or Radlett stations.
Less familiar with Thameslink, but a quick peek at RTT shows that Brighton to Bedford services aren’t regularly scheduled to call at the stations you list (except one).

However, they do call at West Hampstead Thameslink. Not sure why they would omit that one.
 

30907

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Which is odd, because Rye and Ashford International are listed as stations you can travel to, but don’t have a direct service. Possibly they added stations which serve bigger settlements that can also be reached indirectly?
Or the list was compiled when there was a through service and hasn't been updated?
 
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