Southampton to London

[theblackwatch]

I've come across a 'Super Off Peak Day Single' fare from Southampton to London at £13.40, which appears to route me via Hove & Brighton. Can someone with access to the relevant info advise what the route or any other restrictions there are on this ticket please?

 

[glynn80]

I've come across a 'Super Off Peak Day Single' fare from Southampton to London at £13.40, which appears to route me via Hove & Brighton. Can someone with access to the relevant info advise what the route or any other restrictions there are on this ticket please?

The ticket you have found is a Southampton to London Super Off Peak Day Single- Route Horsham/Hassocks.

This simply means you can travel Southampton to Ford to Horsham to East Croydon to London or Southampton to Hove to Preston Park to East Croydon to London. There are lots of variations on those routes, I'm sure and the routeing guide may throw up some even wierder routeing options, but the two above are the two routes this ticket is valid on.

The time restrictions for the Super Off Peak Day tickets can be found on the Southern website http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=188

 

[theblackwatch]

Many thanks for the reply and comprehensive answer. Much better value than travelling back via SWT!

 

[Mcr Warrior]

I think for the ticket in question, you have to travel into London Victoria, rather than any other London Terminal station. Also, you can't arrive at Victoria before 1055 (Mon-Fri).

Hassocks/Horsham routing would obviously allow Southampton-Chichester-Horsham-East Croydon-Victoria, also Southampton-Chichester-Hassocks-East Croydon-Victoria, and I reckon that you could also validly travel Southampton-Chichester-Horsham-Mitcham Junction-Victoria.

N.B. A Super Off Peak Day Return ticket is just £0-10 more. Certain railcard discounts are available giving a further 34% off.

There is also a Southern Daysave ticket available. Cost is £10-00. Only valid on Southern services, and has to be booked 7 days in advance, but you could also use it to get from Southampton to London on Southern services.

 

[dan_atki]

I think for the ticket in question, you have to travel into London Victoria, rather than any other London Terminal station. Also, you can't arrive at Victoria before 1055 (Mon-Fri).

It is valid into any London Terminal as per the routeing guide, which here would include Victoria, Waterloo, London Bridge, Cannon Street, (Waterloo East), Charing Cross, Blackfriars, or City Thameslink.

The ticket also allows travel via Portsmouth and/or Brighton as per routeing guide maps CW+LB, and via Horsham, Wimbledon and Streatham per CW+SC, as well as via Mitcham Junction as mentioned.

As an aside, what would the take be on using the ticket on the 0833 to Brighton. As the restriction says 'Valid in trains arriving London Terminals at or after 1055 Monday - Friday.' how is it calculated for connections? The train arrives in Brighton at 1018, and is thus impossible (if changing there as the ticket allows) to get to Victoria before 1055!

This would mean that the £13.40 Super Off-Peak Day Single from SOU to VIC becomes valid before the £16.50 Off-Peak Day Single from SOU to BTN (Route Barnham) which is only valid from the 0933 onwards (it would make no sense to use the 0910 as no connections are available to get to BTN earlier than the 0933 would allow)...

As another aside whilst on the topic of Brighton, if you want a quicker route to London but don't wish to pay the £31.70 SWT charges for the privilege of going direct before 1100 (the 1030 ex-SOU arrives at Waterloo at 1149), then a £19.70 Southampton Ctl/Air to Brighton (Route Not London) Off-Peak day single is valid from 0900 and is valid as far as Clapham Junction, provided the train calls there.

 

[clagmonster]

There are also advance fares available for South Central division services from Southampton to Victoria. These start at £3, which I believe is superb value.

 

[theblackwatch]

Thanks for the replies. I would probably have used a Southern 'Daysave' ticket if I were not making this journey on a Sunday, when Southern do not operate any services out of Southampton. (I am planning on using a Daysave to get there two days earlier, tied in with doing various units and lines during they day.) I would presume this £13.40 single will be valid on Gatwick Express between Gatwick and Victoria? (It will allow me to scratch in my first 460!)

 

[glynn80]

Thanks for the replies. I would probably have used a Southern 'Daysave' ticket if I were not making this journey on a Sunday, when Southern do not operate any services out of Southampton. (I am planning on using a Daysave to get there two days earlier, tied in with doing various units and lines during they day.) I would presume this £13.40 single will be valid on Gatwick Express between Gatwick and Victoria? (It will allow me to scratch in my first 460!)

Yes the £13.40 single is valid on Gatwick Express but crucially only if you travel via Brighton and then the Gatwick Express you catch, must go via Redhill.

The only route valid on GE is as such- from Southampton then Havant (also via Portsmouth), Brighton (even Lewes), Gatwick, Redhill and then either via Selhurst or Crystal Palace to Victoria- on maps CW & LB.

Rather weirdly, the journeys via Horsham only allow you to travel to London via Dorking and not via Gatwick Airport.

The other sets of maps for Southampton Gp to London Gp are:

CW+PD- Allows travel Southampton to Havant (also Portsmouth), Guildford then Waterloo (via Woking and Oxshott)

CW+PD+SC- Allows travel Southampton to Havant (also via Portsmouth), Guildford, Epsom then Victoria, Charing Cross, Waterloo, Blackfriars or London Bridge (via a variety of South Central Metro routes)

CW+SC- Allows travel Southampton to Havant (also via Portsmouth), Ford, Horsham, Dorking, Epsom then to Victoria, Charing Cross, Waterloo, Blackfriars or London Bridge (via a variety of South Central Metro routes)

MW+WR- Allows travel Southampton to Eastleigh (also via Fareham), Basingstoke, Reading then to Paddington

MW+WX- Allows travel Southampton to Eastleigh (also via Fareham), Basingstoke, Farnborough, Woking, Surbiton, Clapham Junction then to Waterloo or Victoria

WX- Allows travel Southampton to Eastleigh, Basingstoke, Farnborough, Woking, Surbiton, Clapham Junction then to Waterloo or Victoria

The Daysave by the way would have been only dubiously valid (if you had wished to use it on your journey south) with a previous discussion not coming to a conclusion either way (http://railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=22656&highlight=daysave)

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Rather weirdly, the journeys via Horsham only allow you to travel to London via Dorking and not via Gatwick Airport.

:???: Is that correct for through trains? The hourly Southern operated Southampton to London Victoria service which operates all the way from Southampton to London Victoria are routed via and call at Crawley, Gatwick Airport, East Croydon and Clapham Junction after Horsham.

Interestingly, up Southampton-Victoria trains calling at Horsham seem to be set-down only!

 

[glynn80]

:???: Is that correct for through trains? The hourly Southern operated Southampton to London Victoria service which operates all the way from Southampton to London Victoria are routed via and call at Crawley, Gatwick Airport, East Croydon and Clapham Junction after Horsham.

Interestingly, up Southampton-Victoria trains calling at Horsham seem to be set-down only!

No through/direct trains are always valid and the routeing guide need not be consulted on such journeys. The routeing guide puts it as follows:

Most customers wish to make journeys by through trains or by the shortest route. In both cases they will be travelling on a permitted route, provided the correct fare has been paid to reflect any routeing indicated by the fares manual. You only need refer to the Routeing Guide when a customer is not using an advertised through train or the shortest route. A through train is advertised in the passenger railway timetable as a direct service which offers travel between a customer’s origin station and final destination, as printed on the ticket for the journey being made. This route may not be a permitted route if a change of train is necessary to complete the journey. The shortest route is calculated by reference to the National Rail Timetable.

I was merely listing the routeing guide options, for the OPs requested journey, wishing to travel on a Gatwick Express service.

Also just as a side note, the Southampton to Victoria services, are not set down only at Horsham, they join with Bognor Regis services. It is these Bognor Regis services which keep the same headcode all the way through and therefore it is those services passengers will "depart" on. The Southampton portion is deemed as "terminating" at Horsham and thus is set down only for that purpose.

 

[theblackwatch]

Quite how a 'normal' would be expected to understand all that validity I have no idea!

The Daysave by the way would have been only dubiously valid (if you had wished to use it on your journey south) with a previous discussion not coming to a conclusion either way (http://railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=22656&highlight=daysave)

Perhaps an e-mail to Southern is required to answer that one! One thing which I think is safe regarding validity is the Gatwick Expresses which run beyond Gatwick during the evening peak, although not till after Gatwick due to the Daysave time restriction during the evening peak leaving London.