Young Teenager Alone On Train

[SkySmiler]

DS is 14 and pretty sensible, his dad lives in Liverpool and wants him to travel via train to visit him in the summer holidays - it's a 3 hour ride from us, it will be a daytime journey tho but just I'm just worried and feel he's too young.

Is it a direct train where you can reserve seats? I think it's fine tbh. What does your son think ?
If you are nervous then you could call him a few times to see how it's going?

Depends on the teenager. At that age I was travelling around the London Underground on my own, catching intercity trains to the other side of the country to see my grandparents. No problem. My own 13yo DS? I wouldn’t trust him to catch a bus into town! (But we recognise as a family that we need to work on him- I believe independence is so important)

Plan for what happens when he misses his connection, or it’s cancelled, or everyone is shunted off and crammed into a smaller one.

Long distance trains are a bit of a mare at the moment.

The journey as described should be fine but, he needs to be able to deal with the issues.

Really good experience.

Try to get him to book his own ticket on trainline.

Things to watch. Encourage not to use headphones as likely they may miss the stop.

Get open ticket so if they do miss the stop they can just get the next one.

Make sure they have all baggage b4 getting off train. But if they lose it it is also a learning curve.

The only issue really is if there is a change in schedule, a breakdown or a busy replacement service and even then what is the worst that can happen?

In terms of personal safety with so many people on a train it’s pretty easy to ask for help. Instruct him to look for families with children if he is in difficulty.

Bus replacement , not busy replacement (although it probably will be) 😀

If you’re worried, I have an app called life 360 which shows me where my teenager is (she walks home alone and is only just 13 so I like to keep a brief eye) so instead of going into panic mode if she’s 20 mins late I can see she is at Tesco etc or I message her.

I’d be a bit concerned about a 14 year old who couldn’t manage this journey (assuming no other relevant factors).

Or get an AirTag or similar so you can track him.

I found that some teens that age in peer group with DD had never used public transport before. So good experience.

Also tell them asking for help is an assertive skill and ticket person (and indeed rail staff) are quite happy to check platform of departure if they are not snowed under that is.

At 14 he’ll be fine

I would suggest the quiet coach, that’s what I have done when my 15 DD travelled on her own. It avoids the group bookings.

Make sure he has the trainline app and network rail too to track his journey.

OP, choose a likely date for his journe to Liverpool and one for his journey home.

Go to the National Rail Enquirer journey planner and work out the times, including changes. If you click on the arrow next yo each train you're considering, it lists all the stations between the one he'd be leaving and the one he'd be arriving at, either Liverpool (which station - there's more than one) or the station where he'd have to change.

Remember to take account of engineering works, which might mean taking a different route including additional changes, replacement buses or cancellations. Also look out for industrial action which might mean cancellations. All these will be flagged on the National Rail Enquiries site if known about in advance.

Rehearse what to do in case of missing any connections, cancelled trains, changes of route. Make sure he is confident enough to seek out members of railway staff and to make sure he understands their instructions or advice.

My youngest two DDs went together by intercity train to visit their student older sister some years ago. DD2 was 16 and DD3 was 13.

I didn't go with them, just went onto the platform at London Euston to see them onto the train. DD1 met them the other end and messaged me as soon as she had them. They were fine.

I'm sure your DS will be fine too.

Not as far as Liverpool but DD once had to go by train alone at the age of 15. I made sure she got on the right one and her dad met her at the other end. She was fine.

He’ll be fine! I was catching flights on my own from 11

A sensible 14 year old? Direct train? With a mobile? If yes to all of these then I would agree, as long as someone accompanies him the first time.

is he used to travelling by train?

Mine went to their grandparents from 10&12. At first I took them the first leg and put them on the intercity but by second trip they managed the interchange at Birmingham too. Plenty of kids fly alone by 14.

Hmmm, i travel distances by train a lot and you’d think it should be fine but in reality there can be drunk and rowdy passengers at times of day that you’d least expect. I sometimes feel uncomfortable let alone a 14yr old and if it’s a busy train it’s not always that easy to move seats. I think the coach might be a safer option as there’s fewer passengers and the driver is very visible.

Just upgrade him to 1st class on the day. That way he'll be nearer to staff and will get a quieter coach with free snacks.

If your ds is happy with it I'd let him. Especially if it's direct.

Christ where's he getting this train to 🤣?

How many changes are there? That makes a big difference.

Ds1 used to travel to his father's when he was around 13. His father (paid no child support) was too mean to pay for a straight through ticket so he had to make two changes. He managed it fine though. I kept in touch all the way via texts.