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Home » Bikes on Trains: What are the rules?

Bikes on Trains: What are the rules?

So, you want to bring your bike along for a trip. Maybe you fancy a cycling holiday, or maybe it just makes the morning commute easier! Let’s take a look at everything you need to know about taking bikes on trains.

Who allows you to take bikes on trains?

First of all, let’s quickly go through the policies for each train company. We’ll look at who allows you to take bikes on trains, and whether you need to book ahead.

In most cases, you don’t need to book ahead for a folding bike, so long as it can fit in a luggage rack or doesn’t block any aisles and doorways. Where possible, we’d recommend having a carrying case to keep a folding bike safe. Most long-distance trains have at least one luggage rack like this one that you can use:

luggage rack for taking bikes on trains

Non-folding bikes also shouldn’t block any aisles or doorways.

Avanti West Coast

You’re able to bring a bike on board, but you’ll need to make a reservation. You can do this by ringing 0345 528 0253 and selecting option 5. Alternatively, you can pop into a ticket office.

Remember that you’ll need to print off your reservation before you travel (a ticket office can do this for you) and you should arrive 10 minutes before travel.

The cycle area is in Coach A, and you’ll need to let a member of staff know that you need access. When you’re on board, let the Train Manager know where you’re going so that you can unload it on arrival.

If you prefer, you can use a Cycle Hub to store your bike at a station. They’re available at Rugby, Coventry, Birmingham International and Preston, and cost £5 to join. Just visit the station, show some ID, give your email address and you can start using the hub straight away.

c2c

You don’t need to reserve ahead to bring bikes on c2c trains. However, you can’t bring them onto trains that arrive at London Fenchurch Street between 07:14 and 09:30, and leave there between 16:30 and 18:35 on weekdays.

If you have a folding bike, then you can bring it on the train whenever you’d like. It should be in a protective carrying case, though.

Many stations also have bike storage facilities, and you can find the full list here.

Chiltern Railways

Non-folding bikes on trains are permitted on all Chiltern Railways services, subject to available space and staff discretion. The exception is between the following times on weekdays:

  • Any train that arrives at London Marylebone, Oxford or Birmingham Moor Street from 07:45 til 10:00
  • Any train that leaves London Marylebone, Oxford or Birmingham Moor Street between 16:30 and 19:30.
CrossCountry

You should make a reservation in order to bring a bike on a CrossCountry train. You can do this by messaging them on Twitter (@crosscountryuk) or messaging them on Facebook here. Of course, you can visit a station to do this, too.

East Midlands Railway

You’ll need a reservation to bring your non-folding bike on the train if you’re travelling on services from London St Pancras to Sheffileld/Nottingham, and between Liverpool and Norwich. All other trains have spaces that are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

If you need to make a reservation, you can call 03457 125 678 or email East Midlands Railway at contact@eastmidlandsrailway.co.uk.

You can’t bring non-folding bikes on ‘Connect‘ services that arrive at London St Pancras before 10am on weekdays, or leave London St Pancras between 16:00 and 19:00 on weekdays.

Cycle Hubs are available at a number of stations, too. You’ll find them at Sheffield, Leicester, Nottingham, Lincoln, Loughborough, Kettering, Derby and Market Harborough.

Elizabeth Line

Non-folding bikes are permitted on weekdays between the following times, subject to space:

  • Arriving at Liverpool Street (from Shenfield) before 07:30 and after 09:30
  • Leaving Liverpool Street (to Shenfield) before 16:00 and after 19:00
  • Arriving at Paddington (from Reading and Heathrow) before 07:30 and after 09:30
  • Leaving Paddington (towards Reading and Heathrow) before 16:00 and after 19:00
  • Between Paddington and Abbey Wood before 07:30, from 09:30 to 16:00 and after 19:00.

There aren’t any restrictions on a weekend or Bank Holiday.

Gatwick Express

You can’t bringing non-folding bikes on trains that arrive in London Victoria between 07:00 and 10:00, or leave London Victoria between 16:00 and 19:00 on weekdays. You’re able to bring them on all trains on weekends and Bank Holidays at any time. There’s no need for a reservation.

Grand Central

There are three bike spaces for non-folding bikes on each train. Two are reservable, and one is available on a first-come, first-served basis. You’ll need to reserve a space at least 24 hours before travel by calling 0345 603 4852 and selecting option 4 then option 1 (open 9am-5pm weekdays).

When you travel, head to Coach B and show the Train Manager your booking. They’ll be happy to assist. Where possible, make sure you do this at least 10 minutes before the train leaves.

Great Northern

There are some restrictions for bringing non-folding bikes on trains on the Great Northern network:

  • They’re not allowed between Drayton Park and Moorgate at any time
  • You can’t bring them on trains south of Stevenage and Hertford North that arrive into London between 07:00 and 09:30 on weekdays
  • They’re not permitted on trains timed to leave London between 16:00 and 19:00 on weekdays
  • You can’t bring them on trains timed to arrive at Cambridge between 07:45 and 08:45 that come from stations between King’s Lynn and Cambridge North.
Great Western Railway

It’s strongly recommended that you make a bike reservation if you’re travelling on an Intercity Express Train. These trains run on most services to and from London.

Reservations are compulsory for the Night Riviera Sleeper train between London and Penzance. You can make a reservation for all reservable services by calling 0345 7000 125 (8am to 8pm every day) or visiting a staffed ticket office. It’s also possible to make an online account with them, and you can make standalone bike reservations without the need to buy a ticket at the same time.

All other trains are first-come, first-served. If you haven’t reserved a space for your bike, then it isn’t possible to bring it onto trains that arrive in London between 07:30 and 09:30, or on trains that leave London between 16:00 and 19:00. You can read more in this guide.

Greater Anglia

If you’re travelling on an ‘InterCity Mainline’ train, then you’ll need to book ahead and make a reservation for a non-folding bike. These are the trains that run between Norwich, Diss, Stowmarket, Ipswich, Colchester and London. You can do this by calling 0345 600 7245 and selecting option 8. You’ll need to give at least 24 hours’ notice.

You also can’t bring non-folding bikes on trains at the following times:

  • On services that arrive at Cambridge between 07:45 and 08:45 on weekdays
  • On trains that arrive at London Liverpool Street or Stratford between 07:45 and 09:45 or depart these stations between 16:30 and 18:30 on weekdays.

There aren’t any time restrictions if you’ve made a reservation in advance.

Heathrow Express

There’s no need to make a reservation for a non-folding bike. However, you can’t take it on trains that leave Heathrow between 06:30 and 10:00 or leave London between 16:30 and 19:00. This only applies on weekdays, and there aren’t any restrictions on weekends or Bank Holidays.

Hull Trains

You’ll need to make a reservation to bring on a non-folding bike on Hull Trains. You can do this up to the day before travel at any staffed ticket office.

Island Line

South Western Railway, which operates this service, hasn’t advised of any restrictions on bringing a non-folding bike on board.

LNER

You need to make a reservation in order to bring non-folding bikes on trains with LNER. This can be done at a station ticket office or by using an online tool here.

You should arrive at the station at least 10 minutes before the train leaves, and speak to staff on the platform or on the train.

London Overground

You’re allowed to bring non-folding bikes on trains on a Monday to Friday before 07:30, between 09:30 and 16:00, and after 19:00. There aren’t any restrictions on weekends and Bank Holidays.

You can also bring non-folding bikes on trains leaving Liverpool Street station going towards Chingford, Enfield Town or Cheshunt, between 07:30 and 09:30. They’re also allowed on trains arriving at Liverpool Street station from Chingford, Enfield Town or Cheshunt, between 16:00 and 19:00

Lumo

It isn’t possible to bring non-folding bikes onto any Lumo train. This is because they have very limited space on board. You can transport your bike with the LumoLuggage service instead.

Merseyrail

You can bring non-folding bikes onto trains on the Merseyrail network without any time restrictions. There are two spaces per train and they’re available on a first come, first served basis.

The majority of their stations also have secure cycle storage and you can find more information about this here.

Northern

It’s possible to bring a non-folding bike on a Northern train without any time restrictions. Just remember that it’s on a first-come, first-served basis.

ScotRail

On the majority of ScotRail trains, it’s possible to bring a non-folding bike on board without a reservation. All of these spaces will be on a first come, first served basis. However, you’ll need to make a reservation on the following routes:

  • Aberdeen – Glasgow Queen Street/Edinburgh
  • Inverness – Glasgow Queen Street/Edinburgh
  • Oban/Mallaig – Glasgow Queen Street
  • Aberdeen – Inverness
  • Wick and Thurso/Kyle of Lochalsh – Inverness.

You can reserve a cycle space by calling 0344 811 0141 and selecting option 2. The line is open every day from 7am to 10pm. You can also reserve a space at staffed stations.

Different rules might apply depending on the type of train you’re using, and how large your bike is. We’d recommend checking the ScotRail guide to bikes if you’re unsure.

South Western Railway

On the majority of the South Western Railway network, you can bring bikes on trains without the need to book ahead. On weekdays, there are some restrictions for trains arriving and leaving Clapham Junction and London Waterloo. You can take a look at this map to check if restrictions will apply to your journey.

You’ll need to make a reservation if you’re travelling on the London Waterloo – Salisbury – Exeter St David’s route. You can do this by calling 0345 6000 650, visiting a staffed station or contacting them on Twitter or Facebook. Reservations need to be made at least 24 hours in advance.

Southeastern

You can bring your bike on Southeastern trains at most times of day without the need to make a reservation. The only exception is that you can’t bring non-folding bikes on the following services:

  • Services arriving into London between 7am and 10am on weekdays
  • Services leaving London between 4pm and 7pm on weekdays.

If you’re travelling ‘against the flow’ of peak travel (eg. leaving London at 8am) then there aren’t any restrictions.

Southern

There’s no need to make a reservation if you want to bring a non-folding bike on board. However, they aren’t permitted on the following trains on weekdays:

  • Services scheduled to arrive in London, Brighton or Kensington Olympia between 07:00 and 10:00
  • Services departing London, Brighton or Kensington Olympia between 16:00 and 19:00.

On quieter parts of the network (such as west of Worthing, and between Sutton and Epsom Downs), there aren’t any restrictions. You can check this map to see if your journey falls completely within the ‘green zone’.

Stansted Express

It isn’t possible to bring non-folding bikes on Stansted Express trains. If you’re travelling to Bishop’s Stortford, Harlow Town or Stansted Mountfitchet, you can use Greater Anglia trains instead.

Thameslink

There’s no need to make a reservation to travel on Thameslink trains with a non-folding bike. However, you can’t bring them on trains at the following times:

  • On services travelling towards London that are timed to leave from, or pass through, any station in Central London between 07:00 and 10:00 on weekdays
  • On services heading away from London that are timed to leave from, or pass through, any station between 16:00 and 19:00 on weekdays.

You can bring a non-folding bike on trains between Bedford and Luton Airport Parkway at any time.

TransPennine Express

You’ll need to reserve a space to bring non-folding bikes on trains on the TransPennine Express network. Here’s how you can make a reservation:

  • Send a tweet or message on Twitter to @TPEAssist
  • Pop them a WhatsApp on 07812 223 336
  • Visit any staffed ticket office.

You can reserve up to 15 minutes before you travel, but you should reserve a space as early as possible.

Transport for Wales

On some services,you should reserve a cycle space before you travel. This includes long-distance services such as Manchester to Cardiff/Swansea, Aberystwyth to Birmingham International and Cardiff Central to Holyhead. To make a reservation, you can call 0333 3211 202 or visit a staffed ticket office.

On other trains, spaces are available on a first-come, first-served basis. It isn’t possible to bring non-folding bikes on Valley Lines services during peak hours.

West Midlands Trains

You don’t need to make a reservation, and every train has space for at least one bike. Non-folding bikes aren’t allowed on trains arriving in London Euston between 07:00 and 09:59 or departing from London Euston between 16:00 and 18:59 on weekdays, though.

Can I bring Tandem bikes on trains?

It isn’t possible to bring a Tandem on most trains. This is because they’re simply too big to safely store. However, some companies will allow you to travel with one:

  • On Avanti West Coast, you can only bring them onto Pendolino trains. You’ll need to book two spaces
  • On Greater Anglia, they’re only allowed on these routes:
    • Norwich – Ipswich – Colchester – London
    • Ipswich, Clacton, Colchester, Braintree, Chelmsford and Southend to London services plus the branch lines to Harwich Town, Walton-on-the-Naze and Southminster
    • Norwich – Cambridge, Ipswich – Peterborough and Ipswich – Cambridge trains (except for the first and last trains of the day between Ipswich – Cambridge and vice-versa and the 06:23 Bury St. Edmunds – Ipswich)
  • If you’re travelling with LNER, you’ll need to book two spaces
  • They’re allowed on ScotRail services between Glasgow Queen Street and Oban. In order to book a space, you’ll need to call 0344 811 0141 up to 6pm the day before travel. You can also bring a tandem on any service operated by a Class 380 or Class 385 train without a reservation, which includes all ‘fast’ services between Edinburgh and Glasgow Queen Street.

What about eScooters?

As of 1st June 2023, you can’t bring eScooters on board trains. There aren’t any exceptions to this rule.

Is there anything else I should know?

We’d recommend that you check the National Rail website or with your operator if you’re unsure about what you can bring on board, as there are specific rules about the sizes of bike that are allowed on each train.

Thinking of taking a trip soon? You can book it all with Railsmartr. We’ll be sure to show you the slower and cheaper options, so you can get the best value fare for your journey.

Changed your mind? Need to travel on a different day? No problem at all. You can change or refund your ticket (if it’s refundable) without any extra fees.

All information stated on this page was correct at 29/06/2023 and is issued without any liability. It’s subject to change at any time and Railsmartr are not responsible for any loss or disappointment incurred as a result of the information provided.