Great Western Coffee Shop

Hi All,

Have to go to Liverpool from Cardiff next week, If I buy an 83.50 Off peak return travel up on Monday afternoon and come back Friday after 10.00.

Could I go up via Birmingham and return via Chester and Birmingham wanted to go routes I dont usually see.

Have travelled up to Crewe from Cardiff many times

Basset

Permitted routes for Cardiff Central to Liverpool Lime Street can be analysed at the following link:

http://trainscanbecheaper.info/permitted.aspx?from=CDF&to=LIV&v1=&v2=&v3=&v4=&v5=&ShowRoute=Y&AnalyseMaps=Y

The shortest route is always permitted and that is the one via Chester and The Wirral. You wish to travel via Birmingham so we need to look at the alternative mapped routes to see if that is allowed.

From the list of mapped routes you can see that via Birmingham is permitted on a few of the options. One being maps CE+CC.

You just need to trace a route on the maps in the order given (reverse for the return journey) without doubling back through any station/routeing point. You could go Liverpool - Crewe - Birmingham - Bristol - Cardiff for example. There are many other options via Birmingham however.

if you're not sure, then let me know exactly which stations you'd like to travel via and I can double check whether it's permitted.


Note: The direct .pdf links to the Routeing Guide maps via trainscanbecheaper.info are slightly out due to additional maps being added recently to the Routeing Guide. You may need to scroll up or down to see the correct map as referred to in the list of permitted routes.

I am not an expert on these maps ... but clicking through some of them I notice some interesting potential options that would tempt me to take a look at if I was travelling on your journey, wasn't in a rush, and wanted to see new ground:
a) Wrexham via Shotton to Birkenhead area
b) Cheltenham via Worcester to Smethwick
c) Via Warrington and Wigan groups!

Hi All,

Thanks taken a look and I thought I could do the following

Out on the Monday leave Cardiff on the 16.25 to Bristol parkway then 17.09 to Birmingham ( Could I stay on this to Stafford?) then either Birmingham ( Stafford) to Liverpool.

Like the suggestion of comingback via Chester am i allowed to catch the 10.12 on the Friday to Wrexham  arrive 11.27 then 11.45 to Birmingham arrive 13.27 and then come back either via Bristol Parkway or Glos.

The Monday i could leave a little sooner and Friday is no rush so dont mind what route if anybody has a good suggestion if the ticket is valid i dont mind how many changes

Thanks

Basset

Both those options, out and return are fine.

On the out you'll be using maps CE+CC. On the return it's maps ME+CE.

And yes, you can change at Stafford for a service to Liverpool. Virgin Pendolino if you wish.

Hi All,

Thanks last time I caught the train up to Birmingham it was a Cross country HST if its the same on the Monday I thought i would stay on till Staford, instead of Birmingham and a london mainline.

I know its not allowed break of journey up or out but am i allowed to decide what train to catch in other words could i allow longer at each change? Might need a cig

By the way was thinking of getting a return to Shrewbury and single to Liverpool on the Monday and a Ffestiniog Round Robin from Liverpool on the Friday leaving Liverpool at 8.30 and going via Betws y coed is that feasible?

basset

You are correct that Break of Journey (BoJ) is not permitted on the outward portion of a Cardiff Central to Liverpool Stations Off Peak Return (SVR).

However, changing trains is not a BoJ and neither is accessing station facilities. There's also nothing to say how long you can spend at an interchange. Extending your interchange time and popping out for a smoke should be absolutely fine. If doing so at Stafford then there are no barriers to negotiate anyway.

Just don't go wandering off into Stafford town centre. Although there's little to stop you doing so except of course adhering to the conditions of your ticket.  ;) 

Interesting point - not one that bothers me much as it's been ten years since I touched a fag - I presume that you have to leave the station to smoke a cigarette to comply with the 'no smoking' rules...

Incidentally does no-one find the wording "This Station is a no smoking station" tautological? Were they worried that we might lose concentration halfway through the sentence and think "This station is a no smoking bowl of petunias"?

Accessing station facilities is not leaving the station. So if there are cigarette bins outside the station entrance provided by the station operator/owner, as I believe there are on the walls outside Stafford station, then using them to stub out your tab would fit the description of 'accessing station facilities'.

As would using the cashpoint on the wall outside Stafford station entrance.

Buying a Cardiff to Shrewsbury Off-peak Return will restrict you to travelling via the Marches route through Hereford. There is no permitted route via Birmingham with this ticket.

If you do go via Birmingham, the 1740 from Bristol Parkway is booked to be an HST. The 1709 will be a Voyager (HSTs only work on the North East-South West route).

HTH  :)