Commuters are ‘dodging’ fares to save £50 on train tickets — and it’s completely legit

This hack from London Paddington can save you cash (Picture: In Pictures via Getty Images)

Buying train tickets might seem like a simple task, but travellers know just how tricky it can be to get from A to B, without spending a fortune.

The charity, Campaign for Better Transport, has long been calling reform, previously saying: ‘The rail fares system is riddled with absurd inconsistencies which makes buying a train ticket time-consuming and complicated.’

One way that travellers have been attempting to save money is by purchasing split tickets, which is when you buy tickets for individual segments of a journey, rather than one, straight through ticket — which is often more expensive.

While there are many instances of how split-ticketing can save you cash across the UK network, there’s one split-trip that you can’t afford not to know about.

If you’re travelling from London to Bristol, don’t forget the ‘Didcot dodge’, which has been called a ‘classic example’ of split-ticketing by travellers on X.

Get to Bristol for £50 cheaper (Picture: Getty Images)

While some jokingly say it ‘sounds like a 1920s dance move’, this tip can save you big bucks. Rather than buying one single ticket from London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads, buy one ticket from the capital to Didcot Parkway, and then a second ticket onwards to Bristol.

It means that, instead of paying £138.70 for an Anytime Day Single fare, utilising the Didcot Dodge means you’ll pay just £83.80 for the same journey on the same dates (we checked for travel on Thursday May 1, departing at 7.57am).

A ticket on the same train to Didcot Parkway will set you back £43 from Paddington, and it’s a further £43.80 onward to Bristol.

That’s a pretty impressive saving of £54.90.

What’s more, you don’t even have to change trains. You just need to make sure that you’re booking onto a train that does actually stop at Didcot Parkway (as there are some faster trains that don’t).

The Didcot Dodge is a favourite among train travellers (Picture: Getty Images)

While it might feel like you’re doing something illegal, we promise it’s all legit. The reason for Didcot Dodge is due to the fact that the line that runs from Didcot to Bristol is considered to be a ‘regional’ service, on which fares are kept lower, compared to those trains that travel to London.

While some websites, such as Trainline, will take split fares into account (the website uses their own Split Save tool), it’s not the case everywhere, so make sure you do your research to find the best deals.

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