Great Western Coffee Shop

Haven't looked at all the details myself yet, but they are located at http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=4872

What's the difference between this and "Plusbus" except that you pay extra for Plusbus?  I looked at the 1st April launch date too and wondered "is this serious" ... but then I recall that 1st April is the franchise anniversary as well.

I'm all for integrated ticketing.   This looks like a good, but small enhancement if it's real.  It's for 6 bus routes/route groups from Temple Meads and 2 from Parkway.  Train journeys must be on a route that's FGW served (though not necessarily travel on an FGW train). 

Tickets are for sale from station ticket offices or by phone. So does that mean that you can't do it online? That you can't get on the bus at the West of England University and buy an inclusive ticket to London?  And that you can't buy from a TVM nor from the conductor on the train to upgrade a not-quite-right nearest alternative from a TVM?

SuperBus tickets are valid for tickets where undiscounted (before railcard) fare is 25 pound or more - but not on season tickets or rovers.

As I say - good step. Initially a three month trial.  I hope it is real and goes well; hope that some of the ticket sales limitations can be lifted if it's a success, and the scheme expanded.


I would love to have this - or full PlusBus - available to me.  Get on a bus at the end of my street, connect off it into trains, with the ability to get my ticket for the whole journey from the bus driver.   

Me: "Can I have a day return [from Melksham Spa] to Cribb's Causeway, please"
Driver: "Yes - that will be xx.xx - here's your inclusive ticket. On the back is a note of where to change, and a return timetable"

Having read the website in a little more detail, it seems like it is aimed at visitors to Bristol who buy their tickets on the day.

They also say that you must start your journey at a FGW station.  So I'm assuming this is simply just an additional piece of paper that you are given when buying the ticket (perhaps preprinted) which you surrender to the driver or put in the validator on the bus.

It seems oddly contradictory in parts

but


So ... you can buy the ticket at any station ... but you can only travel from one that's FGW operated.

If that's really the case, there's a field day of oddities there!  For example, you can buy the ticket at London Paddington, but you can't actually travel from there ... it's a Network Rail station.  For further example, you can use the ticket to travel from Stonehouse (but is the fare high enough?), but you'll have to visit another station first to book, as Stonehouse has a TVM but no ticket office; if you're taking a weekend break before going to Bristol on the Monday morning and you're visiting south Devon, you could - according to the web site - even buy your ticket at Kingswear ...  ;)

It's probably "dumbed down" on the FGW web site.   I suspect you could probably buy and use the tickets from Paddington, and that they're available for sale only at stations on the national network.  But ask me if you can travel buy and travel from Swansea, and I would be guessing what the real answer might be.