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Is anyone else having problems trying to book tickets during the blockage at Reading over Easter?

I tried FRO - SOV Friday 29/03/2013 and also FRO - PAD for the same day. Just one way on a First Advance.

Came up no fares available...! Wouldn't even show me the usual SOS & FOS Options >:(

Does that mean it's a free ride?? ;D :P :D ;)

Probably left it a bit late for Advance tickets on a bank holiday Friday.

Just had a quick look and it was giving me normal flexible fares. What time you checking?

I'm seeing First Advance fares Frome-London Waterloo and Westbury-London Waterloo, but not through to Southend.

I managed to book an advance from Swindon to Paddington (via Banbury) a few weeks back. It was so good I managed to book two by mistake!

The cheaper Westbury-London Terminals route Warminster-Salisbury tickets will also be valid on FGW services from Westbury, so that's another option rather than Advances. FGW are also offering Weekend First on Good Friday as well, so it may work out cheaper to buy Standard Class tickets and then upgrade on board.

I shall be using the Warminster/Salisbury routed ticket from Shirehampton on a diverted HST to Waterloo. Probably excess the return portion to Any Permitted so's I can do the via Banbury bash as well.

Slightly on a tangent....

The earliest arrival into PNZ on Friday & Monday is via BRI, on the 0600 ex-PAD, connecting into a BRI-PNZ and arriving 1320ish. The first out of WAT is a couple of hours later.

Would a PAD-PNZ ticket be available on those services in this circumstance?

Well it looks like FGW have amended the problem which I mentioned to Ollie on FGW Twitter last night.

I was right in that trains were not coming up. However I was putting in Paddington instead of Waterloo. Normally when you put in either/or it will show you trains from the other Terminals with a tube transfer. However not the case here.

However FGW have in the amendment included this rather helpful message here:

(https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/541151_4808151517620_797905464_n.jpg)

Interesting.

If you put London (All Stations) as the starting point into the UK Train Times app, you get both the PAD & WAT departures - which is how I found the early trip to PNZ I ask about above....

Anyone got an answer?

Walk-up tickets will be from London Terminals to points west. Via Bristol is a permitted route. Travelling via Banbury and Oxford is an easement to the normal routeing during the Reading blockade so the route remains valid.

Waterloo (as an alternate London Terminal) to points west via Salisbury, Westbury and Taunton is also a permitted route, and that's true even when FGW services aren't diverted.

So yes, with walk-up tickets you can go either way.

If the ticket held is an Advance Purchase, then you have to travel from and to the stations printed on it. And at the booked time. APs were made available (and some still are) from both Paddington and Waterloo to Taunton and beyond during the blockade.

However, be aware that APs via Bristol that involve a change onto a CrossCountry service are currently at bonkers prices. I've just looked at the 1327 from Paddington to Exeter St Davids on Easter Monday changing onto CrossCountry at Bristol Parkway. Price ^98. Yep. ^98. That's bad, very bad. The Super off Peak Single is ^44.50.

Crazy prices for AP are quite normal once you have an XC connection onto a mainly FGW route. Looking in the middle of May for example; 1703 Paddington-Redruth direct ^44.50. 1703 Paddington-Camborne, changing onto XC for the 5 minutes Redruth-Camborne; ^75.50.

If I try and find tickets/fares from Maidenhead to either Paddington or Reading over the four day Easter weekend.. I get a screen totally blank of trains/options..

Fortunately the FGW website works better.. And gives me the available options.. Must be confusing for people though?

What's really bad about this and my example is that there must be some collusion going on between the fare setter and the ...& Connections TOC. All these examples are priced by FGW and there really is no excuse for having any Advance Purchase fare set higher than the walk-up fare available for the same journey. Except to catch out the unwary and have them pay nearly twice what they should. I suspect it's down to the complexity inherent in the system (a part of which is the disparity between single APs and the availability of return walk-ups). However, to a casual viewer it may look more like sharp practice than system complexity.

Here is an interesting point also in relation to what BNM has said.

When I book a First Advance on SWT & Connections. If I specify Upminster as the destination from Westbury, Trowbridge, Frome or Bath Spa via Salisbury. No First Advance fares appear.

However if I enter Z1256 as the destination. I get offered a First Advance around ^15.00 (Bath is always more expensive even on the cheapest Advance Band as I assume it's in a different fare zone)

But brilliant thinking there when Upminster is in Zone 6! >:( ::) ;)

I believe Mr Rail-Fare and Mr Logic were briefly acquainted, many many years ago. They didn't get on and had nothing in common. They haven't spoken to each other since.

Excellent summary Bnm! The first sensible thing I've read about fares in years.

If only Passenger Focus and DaFT would get them talking. Can't include ATOC because it's not in their interests to sort out all the stupidities and allow us suckers to buy the cheapest fare.