Brighton to London Bridge vs Victoria

[helana77]

Hi I’m on a train going from Brighton to London Bridge but my ticket is to London Victoria. Can I get off at London Bridge and come down to Victoria from there according to regulations or do I have to change at East Croydon? My ticket is valid via any permitted route. Can’t find a train conductor to ask.

 

[Watershed]

Hi I’m on a train going from Brighton to London Bridge but my ticket is to London Victoria. Can I get off at London Bridge and come down to Victoria from there according to regulations or do I have to change at East Croydon? My ticket is valid via any permitted route. Can’t find a train conductor to ask.

The reason you won't find a conductor is that you're on a Thameslink service - and these don't have conductors, only a driver (and occasionally revenue protection staff).

Your ticket is valid via London Bridge, but not on the Underground. To get from London Bridge to Victoria on your ticket, you would need to travel via Waterloo East, Waterloo and Clapham Junction. So it would be much quicker just to change at East Croydon.

 

[helana77]

OK I was going to go to St Pancras from Victoria so don’t need to go there, could I just get off at London Bridge and discard my ticket then get the underground?

I panicked and got off at Gatwick as a train to Victoria was arriving from the same platform 5 minutes later

 

[Watershed]

OK I was going to go to St Pancras from Victoria so don’t need to go there, could I just get off at London Bridge and discard my ticket then get the underground?

Are you travelling onwards from St Pancras?

Whilst going via London Bridge is valid, and break of journey is permitted on walk-up tickets from Brighton to London Victoria, the barriers might not accept your ticket and you may encounter some hassle from the barrier staff seeing as it's an 'unconventional' route.

 

[helana77]

Yes onwards from St Pancras. I’m on the Victoria train now having changed at Gatwick.

 

[Watershed]

Yes onwards from St Pancras. I’m on the Victoria train now having changed at Gatwick.

Ok, and what ticket are you using for that?

Just for future reference - it would be best to tell us about your entire journey from the outset, so we can give you the best advice

 

[30907]

Ok, and what ticket are you using for that?

Just for future reference - it would be best to tell us about your entire journey from the outset, so we can give you the best advice

The OP has safely made it to Victoria, we can assume.
Southern prices tickets to Victoria that undercut the "Any Permitted" (also set by them), and I think we may assume they had one.
(There are no longer distance tickets routed that way, though an Advance might be for a specific train to VIC.)

 

[WizCastro197]

Does Brighton specifically sell only London Bridge or London Victoria tickets etc?


Not London Terminals?


As above maybe Advance.


Also if OP was heading to St Pancras, why did they buy a ticket to Victoria?

 

[Haywain]

As above maybe Advance.

No, the OP said it is routed Any Permitted.

Also if OP was heading to St Pancras, why did they buy a ticket to Victoria?

It does seem a little odd when a ticket to St Pancras is cheaper than one to Victoria.

 

[30907]

Does Brighton specifically sell only London Bridge

No - "Thameslink" covers that

or London Victoria tickets?

Yes - see post #7

Not London Terminals?

As well as.

if OP was heading to St Pancras, why did they buy a ticket to Victoria?

It does seem a little odd when a ticket to St Pancras is cheaper than one to Victoria.

TL core is closed today - would a TL Only to STP have been offered?

 

[Haywain]

TL core is closed today - would a TL Only to STP have been offered?

Good point! Normally, ticket acceptance would be in place but I don't know if that's the case today.

 

[dastocks]

Does Brighton specifically sell only London Bridge or London Victoria tickets etc?

Not London Terminals?

I believe a London Terminals Any Permitted fare is still available but you tend to be sold a Travelcard because that's cheaper. This is certainly the case for the type of railcard discounted off-peak day returns I always purchase; there may be full price singles and/or Anytime fares where it's still a cheaper fare.

 

[WizCastro197]

So

I believe a London Terminals Any Permitted fare is still available but you tend to be sold a Travelcard because that's cheaper. This is certainly the case for the type of railcard discounted off-peak day returns I always purchase; there may be full price singles and/or Anytime fares where it's still a cheaper fare.

So if OP was onward travelling from St Pancras within London, why didn’t they buy a travel card?


They may have not though and went to East Midlands eg

 

[helana77]

I did see the option to buy a travel card but wasn’t sure if it would be cheaper to just use my bank card to tap so did that as only going a few stops. Trains to St Pancras were not available yesterday due to strikes I guess. I just bought a ticket from St Pancras to Market Harborough advance and then I bought a return Brighton to London Victoria at the station on the day.

 

[Watershed]

I did see the option to buy a travel card but wasn’t sure if it would be cheaper to just use my bank card to tap so did that as only going a few stops. Trains to St Pancras were not available yesterday due to strikes I guess. I just bought a ticket from St Pancras to Market Harborough advance and then I bought a return Brighton to London Victoria at the station on the day.

Yes, the Thameslink core was shut yesterday. For future journeys, it might be worthwhile using a split ticket retailer (such as TrainSplit) to see what the cheapest combination of tickets is for your journey; it's impossible to work out in retrospect (as it depends on the availability of Advance tickets) but I'm fairly sure it would have been possible to do the journey for less.

Incidentally, for Brighton to London it's often cheaper to buy a ticket to West Hampstead Stations than to London Terminals or Victoria. This has the additional benefit of being valid for a cross-London transfer on the Underground.

 

[helana77]

Thanks really helpful thank you!

 

[30907]

Thanks really helpful thank you!

Thanks for coming back to us - we're not simply nosy, just wondering what the best ticket would have been for your trip.

 

[planetf1]

Incidentally, for Brighton to London it's often cheaper to buy a ticket to West Hampstead Stations than to London Terminals or Victoria. This has the additional benefit of being valid for a cross-London transfer on the Underground.

I live in Brighton and do visit London, so a question on this.

The usual route would be via St Pancras, but a direct route is slightly cheaper ( super off peak, and off peak) at least assuming the thameslink route.

Are there other London destinations around Victoria/further west where this ticket would be cheaper?

 

[Watershed]

I live in Brighton and do visit London, so a question on this.

The usual route would be via St Pancras, but a direct route is slightly cheaper ( super off peak, and off peak) at least assuming the thameslink route.

Are there other London destinations around Victoria/further west where this ticket would be cheaper?

Sorry, I'm not quite sure what you mean.

The ticket to West Hampstead Stations is routed +Any Permitted. It's therefore valid on all brands and operators along all permitted routes, as well as on the Underground for a cross-London transfer. That means you could, for instance, use it to Victoria on a Gatwick Express branded service.

 

[yorkie]

I just bought a ticket from St Pancras to Market Harborough advance and then I bought a return Brighton to London Victoria at the station on the day.

If you are booking in advance, I strongly advise booking an itinerary to cover your entire journey. This will ensure the minimum connection times are met (if you get delayed following the itinerary, you are covered for travel to the final destination and can claim delay compensation, as appropriate).

You are right that it can be cheaper to split at St Pancras, so I suggest using a ticket splitting website (e.g. the forum provides such a service through Trainsplit) which will issue whichever is cheaper out of a through fare, or a combination of fares.

I live in Brighton and do visit London, so a question on this.

The usual route would be via St Pancras, but a direct route is slightly cheaper ( super off peak, and off peak) at least assuming the thameslink route.

Are there other London destinations around Victoria/further west where this ticket would be cheaper?

As with @Watershed I don't understand what you mean exactly.