Catching the Train to Newcastle

Train somewhere in Germany

Back in June, I booked five nights at the Central Newcastle Travelodge, starting Sunday, 6 September.

I planned to go by train. First the through train from Marsden to York, then a break of journey for a few bevvies at the Golden Ball pub, before carrying on to Newcastle, arriving mid-afternoon for the Travelodge check-in at three. Seemed to be a good plan.

The other day I checked the train times.

There are no direct trains from Marsden to York on that Sunday due to Transpennine Upgrade works between Huddersfield and Dewsbury. The line is closed, and rail replacement buses are in operation to and from Huddersfield.

Starting by train at Marsden is also out; the first train towards Huddersfield is at 10:43, two hours later than usual (why?). So it’s the bus to town. An issue, because on a Sunday we only have one bus an hour! So maybe a taxi.

The Transpennine Express website showed trains at 10:00 and 10:30 from Huddersfield to Leeds, non-stop. Turned out these are rail replacement buses. The website was not very clear. I didn’t fancy changing from a bus to the train at Leeds: it’s one of the busiest stations in Yorkshire; the bus (hopefully a coach) could get stuck in traffic on the M62; there are few connecting trains from Leeds, so they will probably be crowded. Not good.

According to the Transpennine Express website, this was the only option.

I really didn’t fancy it.

I could cancel and get the hotel money back, but I was looking forward to the trip. I’ve been researching days out while there. I was also hoping to meet someone I haven’t seen for a decade or more.

Another possibility was catching the Huddersfield to Sheffield stopping train, changing at Meadowhall for a train to Doncaster. Then an express up to Newcastle. Looking in my trusty Good Beer Guide, I noticed there were three interesting (for me) pubs in Doncaster, including one at the station.

I used the Northern Rail website to check the route out. It works, but I didn’t fancy using it both ways. I wanted to use a period return, which meant I’d have to come back this way. I also wanted an open ticket; I didn’t want to be tied to a specific train.

Going out via Doncaster, returning via Leeds was a non-starter. In days gone by, some pillock decided that a single should be around the same price as a return! Going two different ways is a waste of money.

The train to Meadowhall is a stopping train; it’s very slow, but it’s a nice train ride.

An interesting option, but it just doesn’t work. It would work if an open single was half the price of a period return.

Then I decided to check the Huddersfield to York route again. Using the Northern Rail timetable this time, another option came up. There is a rail replacement bus at 10:05 from Huddersfield to Dewsbury, then a train through to York. This was better, much better. Dewsbury is a small station (two platforms), so the transfer is easier. The train to York starts at Dewsbury, so getting a seat should be easy enough. The train might not be as crowded.

Arriving in York at 11:36, I could easily make the opening of the Golden Ball pub at midday. A couple of pints, then the 13:25 express to Newcastle. Arriving in time to make the three o’clock Travelodge check-in.

I decided to confirm the trains and the ability to break my journey at York by phoning Transpennine Express. This took almost twenty minutes. Twenty minutes of my life gone. Five minutes to get through to the human, and fifteen minutes to sort out the bloody tickets and break. When I say human, it might have been AI.

Still, I’m now sorted.

It would have been nice if the TransPennine Express website was aware of the 10:05 bus to Dewsbury. After all, they run the bloody bus. Probably an AI system!

Period Returns

When travelling away by train for a few days, I like to use period returns. It gives me options. I can break my journey. I’m not tied to specific trains. Sometimes I can use a different route back. Sometimes you can break your journey overnight on the way back (though proving you can do this is difficult).

On this trip, I looked at getting a return from Huddersfield to York and a return from York to Newcastle. It’s a good idea to look at this: two tickets (known in the trade as split tickets) can save you money. Unfortunately, you cannot get a period return from York. You need a single out and a single back, which costs more because of the stupid single ticket pricing.

Being able to get a period return from York to Newcastle would have helped with my Doncaster idea.

Transpennine Upgrade

There is serious work going on between Huddersfield and Leeds. There is a page on the Transpennine Upgrade website telling you about upcoming engineering works. It’s now the middle of August; they only tell you about works until the end of September. Stupid. If I’d known about the closure on Sunday 6th September back in June, I wouldn’t have travelled on the Sunday!

Coming up, Huddersfield station is due to close for over a month. It’s in all the local press that the station is closed from the last train on the 24th December until the 2nd February. It would be extremely useful if this information was published on their website now.

Andy Burnam

Soon you will finish the nationalisation of our railways. Can you sort out the mess that is ticketing in this country? Maybe like you did in Manchester, where a single is half the price of a return.

While I have your attention.

Maybe you can sort out the train ticket prices from Marsden, see this post.

Can you find out why Transport for Wales cannot answer my queries correctly, and why round-robin tickets cannot be valid for four or five days? See this post.