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Fares

Fares A view from the tracks

Fares

Fares tend to vary depending on the time you are travelling, the class of travel you wish to take, and the length of your journey.

To buy tickets or find out about train times, you can visit National Rail’s website, or call National Rail Enquiries on: 08457 484950 (UK only).

This page can give you hints and suggestions for ways to reduce your fares, and help make train travel more of a regular mode of travel for people across Wiltshire.

Cut your rail costs

It’s usually cheaper if you travel during off-peak times (after 9.30am and before 5pm), but if those times are not convenient, then booking tickets as far in advance as possible is usually a good way of saving a bit of money.  You can buy advance tickets online up to an hour before you travel, but for the best deals you should book 12 weeks beforehand.

You can save around 1/3rd off the price of your ticket with a Railcard. These are available for:

  • 16-25 year olds
  • Two adults travelling together (Two Together card)
  • People over 60 years old
  • Disabled people
  • People travelling in a group with children (Family & Friends card). This saves up to 1/3rd on adult fares and up to 60% on child fares
  • People travelling in London and the South East (a Network Rail card)

The HM Forces railcard also offers around 1/3rd off for members of the Regular Forces or Volunteer Reserves and spouses/civil partners of members, To apply for your Railcard contact your Unit HR admin staff. War widows/widowers and their dependants can also apply for a rail card through the Royal British Legion. HM Forces Railcards can’t be purchased at National Rail stations or online.

Season tickets are a great way to save money on regular journeys particularly if you need to travel at peak times. They also let you avoid queuing for tickets and you can use them for extra leisure trips.

You can find cheap rail fares such as group tickets, 2-for-1 offers or combined tickets from Great Western Railway or South West Trains. You can do this at the station or with National Rail.

For longer journeys, splitting your ticket can be cheaper. Different sites can offer different savings depending on your journey. Remember, you can use these sites to check ticket costs and purchase at the rail station.

Mobile ticketing

Great Western Railway (GWR) now offers mobile ticketing across its network. Passengers can use their smart phone or tablet as a pocket ticket machine to purchase and to travel following the installation of barcode readers at station ticket gates across the GWR network in spring 2018.

By downloading  the app for free customers can instantly purchase a wide range of ticket types, including on the day ‘walk-up’ fares. You can also book your ticket via the GWR website and download your ticket to your phone.  The scheme covers all singles and return tickets; standard and first class, adult and child. Season tickets; Group Save and Rangers and Rovers are not currently available. Please note that mobile tickets are only presently available to/from stations with a ticket gateline.

Popular GWR routes where this service can be used include those in and out of London Paddington, Bath Spa, Bristol, Cardiff, Chippenham, Oxford, Plymouth, Reading and Swindon

Did you know?
You can ask your employer if they offer any subsidies or tax-breaks for annual rail tickets.