Ranger when ticket office is closed?

[whole diary]

[6 OF 2 redundant adjunct of unimatrix 01]

from the network rail station guide i advise you to phone first

Staffing Level    Part Time
Staffing Hours   Monday-Friday 06:15-20:30 Saturday 06:30-20:30 Sunday 09:45-21:00

[Brucey]

Very useful - thanks everyone

[devon_metro]

Axminster does have a "PERTIS^▸ (Permit to travel)" Permit to Travel machine, so try getting something from that, otherwise see the guard once he/she has closed the doors. They should be at the back, so not far from the car park entrance.

[vacman]

Shouldn't see a problem buying it on the train but best to see the guard before you get on the train to save any miss-understanding, if the guard doesn't know how to issue it it's in the avantix under "Rover enquiry" and to type in "devon" and it should come up with a list for the guard.

[Chris from Nailsea]

Brilliant - thanks, vacman! 

[Btline]

Why are the Rangers so hard to find on the Advantix machines?

I was travelling on the "Heart of Wales" line, I was about to pay for a Craven Arms to Swansea return - v expensive, as I wanted "any permitted route" so I could return via Newport - but a fellow passenger pointed out this "Heart of Wales day rover/ranger", which cost a lot less than the fare I was on the brink of paying.

But it took the guard ages to find the ticket. He went to the rear cab (of the Class 153) and found a file with all the rovers in, and we were the best part of 30 mins into the journey before I was finally sold the rover! (with many stops in between)

Any ideas? (particularly to guards like Vacman)

And as a side topic, why is a rover cheaper than a return ticket?

[vacman]

Why are the Rangers so hard to find on the Advantix machines?

I was travelling on the "Heart of Wales" line, I was about to pay for a Craven Arms to Swansea return - v expensive, as I wanted "any permitted route" so I could return via Newport - but a fellow passenger pointed out this "Heart of Wales day rover/ranger", which cost a lot less than the fare I was on the brink of paying.

But it took the guard ages to find the ticket. He went to the rear cab (of the Class 153) and found a file with all the rovers in, and we were the best part of 30 mins into the journey before I was finally sold the rover! (with many stops in between)

Any ideas? (particularly to guards like Vacman)

And as a side topic, why is a rover cheaper than a return ticket?

It only seems to be Arriva's rovers that are cheaper than SDR/CDR^▸ (Off Peak Day Return [ticket type] (formerly 'Cheap Day')), for Example, Aberystwyth to Pwlhelli is about ^12 SDR (no CDR avail) yet you can get a Cambrian rover for about ^7!

[devon_metro]

Fgw rovers mean local fares are capped. Barnstaple - Gunnislake CDR^▸ (Off Peak Day Return [ticket type] (formerly 'Cheap Day')) for ^9.50 for example.

I believe rovers are under secondary services, so perhaps guards simply havnt been trained sufficiently to issue them.

[Chris from Nailsea]

Thanks, everyone!

(However, before we cause TerminalJunkie an apoplexy, may I gently point out that the correct spelling is 'Avantix^▸ (Ticket Issuing System used on board trains)': see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avantix_Mobile )

[Btline]

Thanks for clarifying! I never seem to know how to spell that word. What does it mean anyway? What's wrong with "Fares Manual"?

[willc]

According to SWT^▸ (South West Trains)'s website, the booking office hours at Axminster are:

Monday-Friday: 06:15-17:00
Saturday: 07:15-13:05
Sunday: not yet supplied

Given their recent efforts to cut staffing costs, I would trust these more than Network Rail or National Rail Inquiries.

[cereal_basher]

Rovers aren't hard to issue, it's just guards aren't trained on them. They don't use the standard method of typing two stations in and getting a list of fares. They have to go to the main menu, select a different sub menu, then finally Rover Enquiry, which implies it is only for looking up Rover Fares, not for issuing them.