Cycling UK Forum

I am a CTC member from America. I plan to arrive at the Manchester airport and travel with my bike in a case to Skipton. Is there a train connection from Manchester to skipton?
Do you know of a place where I might store a bike case in Skipton?
Can I travel with my bike on the train from York (return trip) to Skipton on the train?
How do I determine which trains allow bicycles?
Best Regards:
Archer Yates

Archer

A good choice for a bike tour but your thread title could be improved.

Taking bikes on trains in the UK is a specialist subject which few have mastered. (I live in Yorkshire and I'll be in Skipton today but I gave up on the trains years ago so I cannot help much there.) Railway experts may not even open your thread at present. You may get better advice with a subject like

'Transpennine trains - bikes'

thirdcrank wrote:Archer
Taking bikes on trains in the UK is a specialist subject which few have mastered. (I live in Yorkshire and I'll be in Skipton today but I gave up on the trains years ago so I cannot help much there.) Railway experts may not even open your thread at present. You may get better advice with a subject like

Archer. There are plenty of people who are happy to tell you how complicated it is to take a bike on a train. In my experience they are usually car drivers who never actually travel by train. Please don't let them put you off. Also bear in mind that moaning about the railways is a national pastime.

The UK rail companies actually have a pretty good record for being bike-friendly (if anyone wants to contest that please check out the research from the European Cycling Federation). The main things to bear in mind are that you can't take (unfolded) bikes in rush hours going into/out of London, and on the Underground in London, and, IIRC on the Stansted Express. However, you also need to bear in mind that on the main lines going from London to the North West and Glasgow the amount of available space is limited so you have to reserve in advance. Beyond that, in my experience, taking a bike is actually pretty trouble-free.

You can find out whether the train you are planning to take has any restrictions on bike carriage by going to the National Rail Enquires website and to the journey planner:

http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/en/pj/jp

For each train there will be a link to the train operator's website giving details on their bike policy.

You may have difficulties storing your bike case. I don't know Manchester Airport well, and there may be a left luggage facility there. Otherwise I'd suggest seeing if you can arrange with a hotel/B&B to leave it with them (obviously this is easiest if you are doing a circular tour).

Edit - bear in mind that Manchester Airport has its own station.

Since you're not travelling via London, virtually every train will take your bike provided it has a bike reservation. The rules are complex so start with:

ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/en/pj/jp

or perhaps....

deaves47.users.btopenworld.com/bikes/cyclingbytrain.htm

www.atob.org.uk/

If you book online I suggest you use:

www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com

as they are the only(?) company which handles online bike reservations.

You'll probably have to store the case at Manchester Airport. If you're starting and ending your tour in the same place, you might find a helpful hotel/B&B owner.

Manchester Airport has a 'Cycle Centre' (located in the airport station), which might be able to give advice on places to store bags &c, as well as on dealing with the trains, sorting out routes, etc. Details, including contact details, are here:
http://www.ctc.org.uk/resources/Benchmarking/Manchester_Airport_Cycle_Centre.pdf

hi archer, as advised by others , perhaps a b&b in skipton would store your case. However, If "times" can be liaised , I could store it at my house In Bradford, nr. Shipley which is near a very cycle friendly rail line from Leeds which takes bikes without booking[off peak of course]. {the rail link to Shipley from Leeds continues to Skipton and goes as far as Carlisle] There is sure to be a good train link from Manchester to Leeds.Reply to this and I can let you have my phone number. best wishes Bob.J.

swifty6 wrote:I am a CTC member from America. I plan to arrive at the Manchester airport and travel with my bike in a case to Skipton. Is there a train connection from Manchester to skipton?
Do you know of a place where I might store a bike case in Skipton?
Can I travel with my bike on the train from York (return trip) to Skipton on the train?
How do I determine which trains allow bicycles?
Best Regards:
Archer Yates

Hi Archer,

I can't help you with storage facilities in Skipton. However, there isn't a direct connection between Manchester and Skipton. You will have to change trains at Leeds.

Travelling between York and Leeds and Skipton and Leeds with your bike shouldn't be a problem. The route is serviced by Northern Rail which, although it does not allow booking of bikes onto the trains, allows bikes on all of its trains on a first come first served basis.

I've used Northern Rail frequently in the past between Leeds and York and have not had problems. Even when the limit of two bikes per train has been reached, the train guard is usually flixible enough to allow another bike onto the train. There are frequent trains between Leeds and York so you won't have a problem getting between the two cities. The trains between Leeds and Skipton ar at half hour intervals - I've not had problems on this service either.

Despite protestations that bike transport in the UK is an impossible task to master/schedule, it really couldn't be simpler.

It's generally impossible to book bikes onto local trains. -Not really a problem as they tend to run frequently so if you are unlucky enough to be turned away (I have never experienced this) then the next train should be OK.

Intercity trains prefer bikes to be booked onto the train. This can be done via the Internet but can be fraught with difficulties finding the bike booking option. A telephone call to the train operating company's telebooking service normally does the job. Speculatively turning up at a station and purchasing a ticket and booking a place for immediate travel usually works too.

You shouldn't have any problems with your intended journeys. Enjoy your time in Yorkshire. You might want to break your journey between York and and have a peek at the Royal Armouries Museum, a couple of minutes ride from Leeds station. http://www.royalarmouries.org/extsite/v ... ionId=2222
It's free and surprisingly interesting.

Vernon

Archer

Graham the mod changed the title and you can see the result.

If you need to know anything else, we are all desperate to help

As others have said, in general, taking a bike by train in the UK is very easy. On the Transpennine routers from Manchester airport, I would be tempted just to turn up without reservation.

You will need to go to Leeds first, there are direct train from Mancester airport, or change at Manchester Picadilly. The good news is the half the trains start at Manchester airport, so you should have time to stow your bike. On these trains there is spave for 3 or 6 bikes. Look out for the cycle symbol on the side of the carriage. Change at Leeds foir Skipton. Again, should be no problem, but try to avoid rush hour out of Leeds from 16.30 - 18.30 as trains are packed.

Trains to Leeds are every 30 min, though on half you need to change at Manchester Piccadilly. Trains Leeds to Skipton are also every 30 min.

If you want to book ticket and your bike on board go to:

http://www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com/

On the 2nd or 3rd page it asks you if you want to make a bike reservation.

You dfon't need to have your bike p;acked - just wheel him on!

Enjoy your trip.

Toby