Buttsy
Established Member
Can someone confirm that I am correct in that I cannot use a one day travelcard out of Paddington back to Oxford between 16:30 and 19:30 on a fast train?
Thank you
Thank you
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One Day Travelcard
- Thread starter Buttsy
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Not unless it’s an off-peak day travelcard, there are no restrictions on the ‘anytime’ one.
The off-peak one has restrictions (https://www.brfares.com/!faredetail?orig=OXF&dest=PAD&expert=on&flow=3&multi=0&fare=7&tkt=ODT)
The restrictions block particular trains in this case (assuming the travelcard is off peak) - the first one blocked is 16:23 and the last blocked is 18:57 (meaning your ticket would be valid on the 15:52 and 19:23 but none in between).
It’s worth remembering that this restriction doesn’t block taking an Elizabeth Line train to Reading, or a CrossCountry service to Oxford from there.
There are also a number of more questionable arguments you could make based on, as usual, that restriction code being behind timetables changes, and therefore some trains being a different time in reality to in the restriction. (Although this is unlikely to get you past the barrier staff realistically). Really GWR should simplify this unnecessarily complicated restriction to just bar any GWR train that leaves Paddington between 16:20 and 19:00.
davetheguard
Established Member
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Or come back from London Marylebone instead?
The Paddington gateline is known to react very badly to this, even when you have an itinerary from the retailer, so as you say, probably a bad idea in reality
It depends on one's tolerance for risk.
If you have something written to evidence that you're correct, and you're confident of it, you can try to travel, and in the event that you're refused you can offer to pay the fare again. You'll probably be told to buy an Anytime Day Single by the ticket office staff, which you can then pay for and claim back, along with compensation for the delay to your journey if you're not permitted to board the train and it departs without you, resulting in a delayed arrival of 15 minutes or more.
If GWR customer service refuse at the first line they'll likely back down after multiple letters and referral to the Rail Ombudsman. If they don't, it's a relatively straightforward thing to begin a claim against them in County Court, relying on your rights of contract arising from the ticket you bought, and your statutory rights.
Therefore, just a little tolerance for risk could easily overcome this factor.
Joe Paxton
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Reading that, I might suggest it's less about one's tolerance for risk and more about one's tolerance for having to faff around to get a suitable resolution (should one indeed be blocked at the gateline) !
Well yes that's true - I should have explained, risk in this context is risk of lost time as well as lost money.
Buttsy
Established Member
Thank you very much for your replies. I was thinking of an Off-Peak one as I am actually coming from Hanborough, but it is cheaper to get a return from HND to OXF than buy a travelcard from HND, particularly as I have a Network Card.