Hi everyone, I'm looking for some advice after an uncomfortable experience at the barriers at Forster Square station yesterday evening in which I was accused of abusing my ticket.
I was travelling from Shipley to Bradford at around 12:30 and bought an off-peak day return £2.80 e ticket from the Northern app to get past the revenue protection officers at the station.
The ticket was activated and I waited on platform five for the train to Forster Square.
There was a problem with the overhead lines and the train was cancelled and after waiting the best part of forty minutes with no joy I decided to walk home.
I live between Shipley and Bradford on the 614/613 bus route if anyone knows the area.
In the evening I decided that having wasted £2.80 on the off peak tickets that I would get the train from Bradford to Shipley and have walk to and back from Bingley on the canal before catching the train back into Bradford from Shipley.
On arriving into Bradford at just after 10pm, my Shipley to Bradford ticket which was admittedly activated earlier in the day to access the platform at Shipley but not used as there was a problem with the trains wouldn't let me through the barrier as it said seek assistance.
When the gate line staff came over I explained everything above and they scanned the ticket on their phone app and said this ticket was activated at 12:32 why are you using it now.
Despite me calmly but increasing frustratingly telling them the same story over and over again, they didn't believe or couldn't comprehend what I was telling them.
After making my point for the fourth time of why I didn't get on the train at 12:30 from Shipley to Bradford, the senior person in charge of the gate line staff gave me a warning not to activate my e-tickets unless actually on the train and opened the barriers for me.
Could anyone with more knowledge than me about e-tickets explain to me why you shouldn't activate your ticket unless you're on the train? How does that even work? I had to activate it because the Northern revenue staff wanted to see it in Shipley.
I think I'll stick to paper tickets from now on.
I was travelling from Shipley to Bradford at around 12:30 and bought an off-peak day return £2.80 e ticket from the Northern app to get past the revenue protection officers at the station.
The ticket was activated and I waited on platform five for the train to Forster Square.
There was a problem with the overhead lines and the train was cancelled and after waiting the best part of forty minutes with no joy I decided to walk home.
I live between Shipley and Bradford on the 614/613 bus route if anyone knows the area.
In the evening I decided that having wasted £2.80 on the off peak tickets that I would get the train from Bradford to Shipley and have walk to and back from Bingley on the canal before catching the train back into Bradford from Shipley.
On arriving into Bradford at just after 10pm, my Shipley to Bradford ticket which was admittedly activated earlier in the day to access the platform at Shipley but not used as there was a problem with the trains wouldn't let me through the barrier as it said seek assistance.
When the gate line staff came over I explained everything above and they scanned the ticket on their phone app and said this ticket was activated at 12:32 why are you using it now.
Despite me calmly but increasing frustratingly telling them the same story over and over again, they didn't believe or couldn't comprehend what I was telling them.
After making my point for the fourth time of why I didn't get on the train at 12:30 from Shipley to Bradford, the senior person in charge of the gate line staff gave me a warning not to activate my e-tickets unless actually on the train and opened the barriers for me.
Could anyone with more knowledge than me about e-tickets explain to me why you shouldn't activate your ticket unless you're on the train? How does that even work? I had to activate it because the Northern revenue staff wanted to see it in Shipley.
I think I'll stick to paper tickets from now on.
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