WDU Weekday Upgrade

This pilot product will operate in a similar way to the long-standing Weekend Upgrade. The details of the pilot are as follows:

  • The Upgrade will be available on-board only; it cannot be purchased before boarding.
  • The Weekday Upgrade is intended to fill un-used First Class seats. The decision to make Weekday Upgrades available is at the Conductor’s discretion and should consider First Class seat reservations from future calling points (visible on the seat reservation screens) and the need to retain at least some seating for unreserved full fare First Class customers.
  • The Upgrade is only valid for a one-way journey on the service on which it is purchased.
  • Conductors may advertise the availability of Upgrades via passenger announcements.
  • The pilot will operate only on Liverpool < > Newcastle services. Services operating other routes (e.g. Redcar < > Manchester Airport or Scarborough < > Manchester Victoria) are not included.
  • The same conductor retail commission terms as Weekend First will apply.
  • The Weekday Upgrade may only be sold after 09:00 Monday-Friday.
  • The customer must retain their original ticket to exit at any gatelines.
  • The Upgrade may only be sold by the Conductor, unless the Conductor has advertised availability of the Upgrade via passenger announcements and given permission for Revenue Protection colleagues to sell the Upgrade. Otherwise, Revenue Protection colleagues should sell an excess fare or refer the customer to the conductor.

Pricing of the Weekday Upgrade will depend on the length of the journey. Selected prices for popular journeys are provided below:

During the pilot we will monitor uptake of the Weekday Upgrade and adjust stocks of catering supplies as required. We will undertake a review of the initial outcomes of the pilot in Spring 2026. If successful we will consider rolling out this product to other routes.

Availability

The Upgrade will be available on-board only; it cannot be purchased before boarding.

The Upgrade will be available on-board only; it cannot be purchased before boarding.

The Weekday Upgrade is intended to fill un-used First Class seats. The decision to make Weekday Upgrades available is at the Conductor’s discretion and should consider First Class seat reservations from future calling points (visible on the seat reservation screens) and the need to retain at least some seating for unreserved full fare First Class customers.

Discounts

N/A

N/A

N/A

Break of Journey

Outbound:

N/A


Inbound:

N/A

Change of Journey

N/A

Refunds

N/A

Validity and reservation requirements

Reservations are not required by this ticket type, but may still be forced by a selected timetabled mandatory-reservations train service.

Outward validity summary
SEE RESTRICTNS
Return validity summary
INVALID