Can anyone advise please? I want to book advance tickets + bike for an Edinburgh-Dundee return trip. Is there any sensible way to see which journeys currently have bike spaces available? It seems like a game of battleships where I keep trying individual journeys until I can find one that will take a bike reservation. So far I haven't succeeded. According to Scotrail's website "Unfortunately we are unable to process bicycle reservations through our website", although there's a bike reservation option on the online booking form. Am I missing something or is the system designed to torment?
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Questions/Support/Help
Booking a bike on Scotrail website
(25 posts)- Started 7 years ago by c30c60
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Posted 7 years ago #
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I've tried and failed to search online. I now go to Waverley* at an off-peak time and get them to check.
*other stations available.
Posted 7 years ago # -
I've definitely and repeatedly booked bikes through the Scotrail website, on Scotrail and Cross Country services. I've never found a train I've wanted to book that didn't have bike space.
I can't advise about how to find which trains have spaces, although I do know that I found that on one occasion, when I was buying a flexible ticket, I needed to reserve a seat on the train before it would make available the little box about the number of bikes I wanted.
Posted 7 years ago # -
I've tried and failed to search online. I now go to Waverley* at an off-peak time and get them to check.
Ditto, only the Haymarket.
I imagine you'd be okay going to Dundee though.
Posted 7 years ago # -
And it was round about 5:15pm when I asked the info chap...
Posted 7 years ago # -
I'm fairly sure the Edinburgh to Dundee line doesn't do bookings. Most trains have four bike spaces and I've never had trouble just turning up and getting on, so long as it's a Scotrail train.
For the Scotrail trains that do book (definitely includes Edinburgh to Inverness, and the west highland line from Glasgow to Oban, Fort William, Mallaig etc) you can book bikes from the Virgin East Coast (and possibly others) website. Scotrail annoyingly did away with online bike booking on their own site when Abelio took over.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Hi, thanks very much for your replies.
I should have said that I have recently managed to book a bike on this route for another trip. But this time I've had no success at all - I've tried the seat booking thing, I've chosen some fairly unsociable hours to travel, and I even tried a different browser.
For the past decade or so I've just turned up and assumed I'd get on, but now I'm trying to be organised and book tickets in advance. I'm concerned that if I can't get the bike on, I'll then have to pay the full ticket price for a later journey, which is pretty steep.
Going to the station is a good idea. Or I'll try to phone Scotrail. Life was so much simpler in the old fare-dodging days!
Posted 7 years ago # -
When you managed this previously, was it perhaps on an East Coast train? Fairly sure there are no bike reservations on "local" services. At least, this is what I was told when I asked about a bike reservation to Glasgow.
Posted 7 years ago # -
@DrAfternoon. I booked a bike space on the Scotrail website a couple of weeks ago.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Booking is possible, if a bit of a hassle. I did return this journey (well, I did Edinburgh - Leuchars) about 500 times between 2014 and 2016, always at the busiest times of day, and didn't ever book. I failed to get a space twice, both times on the way home. Once was when the forth road bridge was closed. If you are getting on at Dundee it really should be fine. I occasionally saw other people fail to get on, but it's extremely rare.
If you are getting on at Waverley and arrive more than five minutes early you will get on for sure. If you are worried then arrive ten minutes early for each train, this will be less hassle than trying to deal with the scotrail people on the phone.
Most conductors are very nice and will allow six bikes per train rather than four.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Also, once when I had advance tickets and I missed my train because I was late, I just got on the next one and told the guy that I couldn't get on my original train because the bike spaces were full. He was fine with this.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Basically you can't book on ScotRail trains between EDB and DEE.
You should be able to get on (see above).
IF you want a guaranteed place, hope there is an East Coast train at a time you want.
Posted 7 years ago # -
I called Scotrail. Spoke to a friendly chap who says that Ed-Dundee bike spaces *should* be booked. But there's no way to get an overview of which services have bike spaces, every journey has to be checked individually.
He advises phoning Scotrail and asking them to help make bike bookings: 0344 811 0141 then press *2 then *1.
UtrechtCyclist: your advice matches my previous experience. As I can't make a bike booking for the cheaper services anyway, I might as well buy the cheaper tickets and hope I can get the bike on.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Looks like all the web operators have standardised on the same booking system. East Coast used to use an older one which let you book bikes on any route but it apparently been upgraded.
Posted 7 years ago # -
"But there's no way to get an overview of which services have bike spaces, every journey has to be checked individually."
That would be nice/useful, but never happened before and seems more unlikely now -
"East Coast used to use an older one which let you book bikes on any route but it apparently been upgraded."
"Spoke to a friendly chap who says that Ed-Dundee bike spaces *should* be booked."
Problem is, I don't think that is true - or possible.
I hope to be corrected.
Posted 7 years ago # -
Problem is, I don't think that is true - or possible.
I meant on trains with reservable spaces, on the old platform you could book on VTWC from the old EC site or Scotrail trains but it looks like its changed. Sadly.
Posted 7 years ago # -
"I meant on trains with reservable spaces"
I know you did, I'm not so sure about the person on the ScotRail phone.
I had a look last night at the East Coast site and couldn't get a bike booking without logging in and paying for a ticket but I may have been missing something.
Posted 7 years ago # -
I may have been missing something.
When you select your ticket price and train, click "Buy Now". On the next page, you can click a tiny little button saying "bicycle space", which brings up the bike reservation option. This might not appear if there aren't any spaces left.
Posted 7 years ago # -
I may have been missing something.
No you're not. Used to have an option of bicycles under number of passengers.
Posted 7 years ago # -
"Used to have an option of bicycles under number of passengers."
That's ridiculous, I mean progress.
Posted 7 years ago # -
"This might not appear if there aren't any spaces left."
Ah...
Posted 7 years ago # -
Thanks to everybody who's contributed to this thread so far.
For what it's worth - Scotrail replied on Twitter that for Ed-Dundee it's "always best to book when possible. Give our reservations team a call on 0344 811 0141". So booking not obligatory, but places not guaranteed when I need them.
For those I know who habitually use a car, this won't convince them to put their bike on a train.
Posted 7 years ago # -
"Scotrail replied on Twitter that for Ed-Dundee it's "always best to book when possible"
They do know that means 'but not on ScotRail'??
Posted 7 years ago # -
Oh dear, there's more. Here's what Scotrail customer service has emailed:
"I can confirm that we only require cycle reservations to be made on longer and infrequent routes. As the train between Edinburgh and Dundee is a frequent train service, it is therefore not possible to reserve a cycle space."
Of course, when I book online I only know that the train goes to Dundee. I don't know whether it's an Ed-Abdn service and therefore is bike-bookable. This is where all the confusion arises, I think.
Posted 7 years ago # -
When I went to Dundee last year, I avoided virgin as did not want to book, gladly in my opinion scot rail did not require any booking, not a fan of booking as encourages tourists frivolous trips at expense of commuters ( my trip was frivolous) , virgin a couple of pound less but seemed a lot more agro. I found no issue going to Dundee and avoided the bookable trains even though I think marginally cheaper and quicker.
The price on scotrail was standard fixed prices its only on the long distance trains that use demand management pricing that really need to book on as have to take a set train on those so need to book or lose ticket. Last year the Dundee open return lasted a month I think and could use on any off peak train. The single and return fair had standard fixed journey prices not the variable prices that limit to one train.
Posted 7 years ago #
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