How can both conditions apply when they are mutually exclusive?
They are not though, you're thinking black and white, chalk and cheese, little and large. Try thinking grey....
If the ticket is valid for SWT and connecting services it surely means that the c2c service is a connecting service. I'm pretty sure we can agree there.
If it is not valid on connecting services it is a useless ticket as SWT do not serve Barking. I'm sure we can also agree there.
If it is 'booked' for a specific c2c service, it
MUST be valid on a connecting service because a c2c service is a connecting service! (See above)
Therefore it can be both 'booked' and valid on a connecting service.
Sorry if I have misunderstood you, but if the itinerary given at the time of buying the ticket does not constitute a booking, then where does a booking come from?...
If the ticket is only valid on booked trains, a non-reservable service must be considered booked, or the ticket is useless! (option 1 or option 2)
....Yes, it could be spotted that OP isn't adhering to his original travel plans. Could it be proven though that they weren't originally 'booked' on that train, but for whatever reason not given a reservation (I don't know - I guess a reservation would be given automatically). I believe that neither 1 nor 2 are true, and that what is allowed is effectively not defined....
Well, I think the chances of the coupon not printing and a ticket saying that it should not have printed are pretty slim. The ticket does show how many couppons are issued and all must be present for the ticket to be valid, but even if it did happen, in this particular case, the op would have no reservation coupon at all as the reservation would be from Plymouth to London, not from Plymouth to Exeter and Exeter to London.
....Realistically I would expect a guard to accept it (especially if approached before, preferably whilst in time to get a local train to Exeter!). Personally, I would just go with the original plan to avoid trouble!....
But that is upto the guard and cannot be guarranteed before leaving the non-reservable service, it is not a right the passenger has and should never be advised as such. What do you suppose happens if the guard says no?.....
....If there is no record of the passenger being booked on these trains, and no system to determine which train is to be used for connecting with a certain other train, then the passenger can simply say to themselves "Hmm, I think I'll book myself on the 1423" and it would mean about as much as any other 'booking'....
And if they chose another non-reservable service it would never get noticed, but when you buy the ticket, you are agreeing to use a particular set of services, if you chose a reservable service, you get a reservation coupon. So if you 'book' a non-reservable service and travel on a reservable one, it's an obvious change of travel plans.
....My reasoning for my option 3 is essentially:
-- Option 1 is clearly wrong....
I agree.
....
-- Option 2 requires the term 'booking' to mean something different to what it usually is, and requires additional documentation to be carried, without any mention of it on the ticket....
You agree to use particular services, this is explained to you when you buy the ticket, I'm not sure where that fits into your 'not making any bookings' reasoning.
....
-- Therefore something is wrong! If the ticket restrictions don't make sense within the rules, there must be a mistake in one or the other. I'm of the opinion that these routeings should be changed to "FGW & Connections" to make sense - or alternatively, the connecting train should be shown on the reservation coupon....
They don't make sense because you don't want them to. There is a perfect line of reasoning being presented and because it doesn't fit into your own particular definition of the word 'booked', you think it is wrong.
I do however agree that with the current rules, one of those options seems to be a good idea.
....Actually, according to the quote from FRPP posted by HHF, the bolded part isn't exactly what it says:....
I thought we were getting somewhere, clearly not. Back to option 1 or option 2 we go.....
....So if it doesn't have the connecting train on the ticket, or say "& Connections", then it isn't valid on any train other than those on the ticket. Simples!
Which brings us neatly back round to option 1 or option 2.