Great Western Coffee Shop

Chippenham station ... just one ticket desk open and offering a limited service last saturday:

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

"Tickets for today only.
No underground tickets.
No enquiries.
No monthly or longer season tickets."

Sign at eye level on the ticket office glass making it hard to see the booking clerk.
No explanation or apology for the restricted service.

I'll be going up to Chippenham to buy advanced tickets in the next few days (for the Santa Special). Does anyone know if the restrictions have been lifted?  Does the ticket machine at Chippenham let me buy Melksham to Swindon tickets yet?

P.S. I have cropped off the image of the chap who was behind the counter to avoid identification. He was not someone I have seen before, and I would like to go on the record to say that the regular staff at Chippenham Ticket office are very helpful / very good.

But I bet they still had 3 people on the footbridge checking tickets !

Judging by the Advantix machine in the picture (guards/RPI use them) either the booking office machine was faulty or no booking office trained staff available and this person was sent to sell tickets from another location.

It is definately Avantix selling as the booking office chip & pin is not there, and the loveable Error 6 "Dione" model is there with the Avantix.  As Avantix machines cannot do anything bigger than a 7-day season, and would be unable to check advance availability or sell LU Tickets, then I think the 'restricted' service is this instance would have been preferable to no service at all.

Though the sign could have conveyed the message in a slightly less blunt way.

Avantix CAN issue underground tickets though????

... but would this apparently last-minute relief operator at Chippenham have been trained on selling underground tickets?

I rather got the impression this is a 'stop-gap solution' - that notice seems to have been prepared rather hastily, just setting out what the temporary operator is able to offer.  As Donkey Guard posted, even such a limited service is better than no service at all?

However even such a limited service can be notified with an apology. 4 extra words to type ('Sorry for the inconvenience'). Not that difficult.

My personal favourite: http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=4618.0  ;D

However, as you say, bignosemac: a bit more care in the preparation of that notice at Chippenham would have presented a rather more professional approach: even just printing it on FGW headed paper, for example?  ::)

They certainly used to be able to but last time I went to sell a one day travel card from Exeter it had disappeared! Couldn't even sell one from Reading/Paddington - nobody I asked can do it either!

Should be able to, although they do not show as Zones R1256* anymore, it's just London Zones 1-6. Try doing it with the NLC which is 0035

will give it a go! Would be nice if they told us when these things are changed! We might only sell one travelcard every few months down our way!

Sucessfully purchased a BRI to '0035' on board a train from Shirehampton yesterday. Couldn't do a SHH to 0035 though. Nice conductor let me off the SHH-BRI fare, reasoning that the SHH-PAD Off-Peak fares are the same price as BRI-PAD

And yes, me, Joe Public had to tell the conductor what to input into his Avantix....

Perhaps he appreciated the novelty of not being told where to put his Avantix by rather less reasonable travellers on the line ... ?  ::)

Tis rather large to stick it where the sun don't shine. Although probably easier to do so than requesting of FGW that they stick their Sh*t*, sorry, Scheidt TVM's in a suitable orifice.   ;) ;D

yes it does work! Thanks, i shall come here for all my staff training in future!

Update back on original topic ... I understand that Chippenham's booking office is shortstaffed at the moment. It's probable that the limited service was being provided as "better than nothing" by a standin who was not trained to operate the ticket office equipment.

Just looked on Avantix Traveller (the National Fares Manual) and there isn't a fare from any Severn Beach Line station to 0035, which seems a little weird.

If the conductor wasn't happy to let you off the Shirehampton - Bristol fare, would it be possible to buy BRI - 0035 then ask the conductor to issue an excess ticket to Shirehampton (which in theory shouldn't cost anything?)

Yeah feel free to give us a shout anytime :P

it is a little weird when the Off-Peak return fares are the same price from SVB line stations to London as from BRI. The '0035' fares usually have the same restrictions as Off-Peak returns and are around ^5 more

Asking the conductor to do an excess on his Avantix? He didn't even know about '0035' so what hope excess? Are excesses easy to do on Avantix? I know from experience that even ticket window staff struggle to do them on their systems.

I think that's very harsh... some people might know all the NLC's out there, but many don't - and I had no idea about '0035', and yes I can do Excesses on Avantix quite easily.

Can you sell rovers?   ;D

I know how to get an "All-Line" out of Avantix.....

Yes... next question...  ;D

Are you human...  :D

Never yet met a TM/Conductor who knows how to do it!

I sometimes have to help the odd conductor out when I want one of my bizzare tickets... Like the Frome > Taunton First Class Off Peak Day Return with Railcard... Some of them don't even know that that fare exists... Luckily i know the price of said ticket and as it's the only ticket that has that price they are able to find it with ease... ;D