What is JourneyCheck?
What is shown?
Can I get a quick overview of what is happening?
How do I get more information about any item?
Can I filter the information for my journey?
How do I get departure board information?
Can I select journeys that involve changing?
Where does the real time information come from?
How far into the future do the listed incidents in 'Line' and 'Service' Problems cover?
How far into the future do the departure boards go?
Do the Departure Boards only show the trains operated by Northern?
What does 'No Report' etc. in the Calling Pattern mean?
Can I see how my train is actually running when it is en route rather than just having 'Expected times'?
What is a 'Circular Route'?
How can I quickly change my route around for the return journey?
Can I save a route to be used later?

What is JourneyCheck?

An internet site which gives details of what is currently happening in real time to train services on Northern generally and also in respect of specific journeys which can be personally chosen.

Back to top

What is shown?

The site gives details of incidents affecting services along a route, specific train delays, alterations and cancellations and real time departure and arrival information. It also gives details of both incidents and planned disruption of London Underground services (only relevant for Train Operating Companies running into London). Other information may also be shown dependent on the requirements of the particular Train Operating Company.

Back to top

Can I get a quick overview of what is happening?

Yes, the home page of JourneyCheck page shows how many items of each type of information there are and under the All Updates section.Expanding each section (if there are updates present) provides access to update details.Entering in the stations you are traveling between in the Select Journey box will provide you with the trains you can catch, and detail which of the updates will affect your trains specifically.

Back to top

How do I get more information about any item?

Alongside each item on the right is a square with a + sign in it. Clicking on this will expand the item and show more details. Clicking on this square again (now showing a - sign) will reduce the information shown to the summary.

Back to top

Can I filter the information for my journey?

Yes, by selecting stations from the list and entering them in the 'From' or 'To' (or both) boxes, the information will be filtered to only show items likely to affect trains serving the station(s) you have specified.

Back to top

How do I get departure board information?

You will need to select stations from the list and enter them in the 'From' or 'To' (or both) boxes (see previous Q and A).

Back to top

Can I select journeys that involve changing?

No, only routes with direct train services between them will display relevant information.There are no direct Northern services between the 'from' location and the 'to' location will be shown in the departure and arrival boxes in this case.

Back to top

Where does the real time information come from?

The 'Line' and 'Service' Problems are fed directly from the Northern Control Room, where decisions on current train running are made and using Nexus Alpha's own systems. It is thus the most up to date information available about the train service.

Departure Board information is supplied from National Rail Enquiries via an automatic system. Underground Information is supplied by Transport for London Travel Information.

Back to top

How far into the future do the listed incidents in 'Line' and 'Service' Problems cover?

These are displayed as soon as they are received from the Northern Control Room and thus cover as far into the future as is known at that time.

Back to top

How far into the future do the departure boards go?

Normally we'll show about then next hours' worth of trains up to a maximum of 10 trains.If there are no trains scheduled in the next hour, a message ' There are no direct services to the 'to' location departing from the 'from' location within the next hour.' will be shown for departures with a similar wording for arrivals.

Back to top

Do the Departure Boards only show the trains operated by Northern?

No, all the services of all the Train Operating Companies operating trains along the route you have selected will be shown together with the name of that company underneath the details.

Back to top

What does 'No Report' etc. in the Calling Pattern mean?

There are a number of words which may appear and this is what they mean: Delayed = This service is delayed, No report = There is no report on the progress of this service yet, On time = This service is on time, Starts here = The service has not yet started the journey, Cancelled = The service has been cancelled throughout, Not Stopping = The train is running for part of its journey but not calling at that particular station.

Back to top

Can I see how my train is actually running when it is en route rather than just having 'expected times'?

Yes. When the timing shown in the Calling Pattern against a station is shown in normal typeface this indicates an expected time. However when you refresh the page, as soon as there is a report of the train leaving a station, the timing shown in the Calling Pattern against that station will be shown in italic rather than in normal typeface and this indicates the time that the train actually departed that location.

Back to top

What is a 'Circular Route'?

Some trains start from a location and then go round in a loop returning to terminate at the same station from which they started. These are 'Circular Routes'. Sometimes using one of these trains the long way round the loop would be very slow. See the next Q and A for details of how to find the quickest service.

Back to top

How can I quickly change my route around for the return journey?

Clicking on the double ended arrow to the right of the 'From' and 'To' boxes in the Route Filter will reverse the 'From' and 'To' locations.

Back to top

Can I save a route to be used later?

JourneyCheck will automatically remember recent journey searches you have made in the Recent Journeys section of the page. You can 'Pin' one of these by clicking on the Pin image on the relevant item which will ensure this item is not replaced by future searches.

Back to top