Originally Posted by
JugglerDave
Well I have a bunch of paper tickets to go through but then I will try the great unreserved Keystone Experiment.
I usually purchase (via 'multi city') PHL-PAO/PAO-PHL/PHL-PAO/PAO-PHL, with one of the return trips being 'peak' for Friday afternoon travel.
In theory there are 4 segments on one barcode which may be used in any order.
So my various experiements in the next few weeks will be:
1- use the two "phl-pao, phl-pao" segments before using the pao-phl segments
2 - use a pao-phl segment first, even if the first segment on the res is phl-pao
3 - ensure that the "peak" pao-phl doesn't get used on a non peak train, on a barcode that has another off-peak pao-phl available.
Expect to have problems with at least some that!
Had a friend just last week, before eTicketing came out that already had issues with something like you propose. He brought an unreserved ticket on the Hiawatha service from Chicago to Milwaukee airport with a second segment on the same reservation from MKA to downtown Milwaukee. He spent the night in a hotel near MKA.
The conductor on the morning train was unable to process his ticket. The App kept telling him that the reservation was already used.
The conductor could clearly see that he had a valid ticket, but he couldn't process it via the App. He did let the friend take his ride, but who knows if those points will ever show up?