Great Western Coffee Shop

This is me next week

Melksham (06:38) to Farnborough Main (around 09:00) on Monday 31st October
Farnborough Main to Cambridge, early evening on Wednesday 2nd November
Cambridge to Melksham on evening of Friday 4th November - in all likelihood 17:15 from Cambridge.
Senior Railcard held.    Economic suggestions?

I have done some pre-work.
First leg - (before applying senior card) £60.50 anytime single, or £3.60 + £23.70 with Trowbridge split and via Salisbury. Is my best bet then to simply use an off-peak return Trowbridge to Cambridge for the rest of the journey at £85.30 and join late on the up journey, as (please confirm) via Farnborough Main is a valid route for Trowbridge to London at least.

All prices with a Senior Railcard:

Melksham - Trowbridge Anytime Day Single: £2.40
 
Trowbridge to Farnborough Main Anytime Day Single (Route: Warminster-Salisbury) £15.65

Trowbridge - Cambridge Off Peak Return (Route: ✠Any Permitted) £56.30

Total: £74.45

I concur that starting late at Farnborough Main on the outward portion of the Trowbridge - Cambridge ticket is fine. As is the route validity to Cambridge via London Waterloo. Just ensure with that third ticket you get the correct start date of 2nd November, not the same date as the other two.

Much appreciated, thanks ... this particular week's one that would have been very expensive on an end-to-end single for each leg!

Underway and looking good ... train service at Melksham back to pre-2014 frequency today, but I caught the 06:38.

Silly question.  On the GWR website I agreed the "Terms and Conditions of Carriage" rather than the "Terms and Conditions of Travel", so am I under the old rules (which I have agreed to) or the new ones (which I have not)

(http://www.wellho.net/pix/conditions.jpg)

Are GWR still on old rules?   Top image - National Rail. Bottom Image - GWR booking engine.

I'd say it depends where the hyperlink takes you. The wording of the link itself probably isn't contractual.

Too late now but I think a super offpeak would have been valid for the Trowbridge to Cambridge ticket,

Outward travel only has a morning restriction which is departing Trowbridge before 0930 and arriving in Waterloo before 1148 neither of which are relevant for starting short at farnborough early evening,

Return leg on super off peak is not allowing the am departures, and of relevance here not departing Paddington between 1501 and 1901, or Waterloo 1559 and 1901.

XC restriction code.

The 17:15 off Cambridge connects into the 19:00 off Paddington which is the last Melksham connection of the day; that's why (by a minute!) the suggestion and advise is off-peak and not super off-peak.    However, I am in some doubt as to whether I'll be able to make the 17:15 from Cambridge ... won't know until the day, which is too late for the ticket as I'll have the outward leg used by then.   I've purchased a super off peak ... and I'll excess it at Paddington if I'm lucky enough to get there in time for the 19:00 - either I pay GWR an extra tenner, or it goes towards my taxi fare from Chippenham to Melksham off a later train.

Knowing that grahame would want to connect into the 2006 service from Swindon to Melksham on Friday evening is why I concurred that the Off Peak Return was required. Deduced that from his Cambridge departure time of 1715. To make that connection at Swindon one needs to catch either the 1845, 1847 or 1900 departures from Paddington. None of which are valid with the Super Off Peak Return.

Top marks to the young gent on the gate line at Farnborough Main at around 17:20.  My Trowbridge to Cambridge ticket failed to operate the gate, and he took a look at the ticket, apologised, and explained that the gate didn't realise that Farnborough was between Trowbridge and Cambridge.     So much better than last time (several years back) when I was using a Trowbridge to London ticket at Farnborough Main and was erroneously informed I was trying to travel on a ticket that wasn't valid for my journey.

Silly gate, it should stay after school and do some extra geography lessons.